Guys Cliffe Creative Writing Day Winners
Image by Elliot, Year 9
Last term, the English department took Y9 pupils to Guys Cliffe House in Warwick. We hoped to provide pupils with plenty of inspiration for creative writing, based on the premise that 'New ideas need old buildings'. We saw the chapel and cellars, the cliff and caves and the pupils keenly showcased their photography and writing skills.
In the afternoon, pupils completed a group writing project, each writing a page for a Choose Your Own Adventure book, loosely based on our own adventures at Guys Cliffe House. With their combined efforts, we created a book in a day.
We awarded prizes for particularly impressive creative efforts, and are delighted to announce that Elliot won best photograph for this atmospheric image of the front arch at Guys Cliffe House, while Alex's creative writing (below) won the prize for the most striking section of our Choose Your Own Ending book. Congratulations to both of them!
'Page 22', by Alex (Year 9):
You step out of the dusty library, stooping under a low doorway to enter a new peculiar room. Intriguing objects litter the room: a collector’s dream. Coins imprinted with a hundred faces lie strewn across the carefully crafted tables and chairs. Shafts of sunlight beaming through the single arched window reflect off a jumble of silverware. Arching columns pull your gaze upwards, drawing you to a glorious chandelier, hanging from a tragically dilapidated ceiling, plaster hanging in strips. An old, musty smell reaches your nose.
Glancing back down, you notice a particular piece which draws your attention. An ancient amulet hanging on a gothic pedestal gleams under a heavy coating of dust. It is pure silver with a gemstone embedded in the centre. Brushing away the dust, you encounter swirling designs crawling across the surface of the amulet.
If you pick up the amulet, turn to page 48. If you decide to leave the room, turn to page 50.