Voices of Future Generations English - Blog #Creativity

Finding Your Roar - Voice of Hannah Gold

Thu, 26 Oct 2023 11:30:38 +0400

Finding Your Roar

My dream was always to be a children’s author. To one day be able to walk into a bookshop and see MY books on the shelves – to see my stories and my voice out in the world. There was one small problem. As a child I was chronically shy. So shy, I was too afraid to speak up in class or ever share any of my stories.

It took many years to realise that even shy people are capable of achieving of big goals. And so, in 2019 I sat down to write my debut children’s book.

Inspired by my deep love of animals, The Last Bear tells the story of a 11-year-old girl who meets, befriends and then saves a wild polar bear. The book was never intended to have an environmental angle – at heart I just wanted to focus on this extraordinary friendship between girl and bear. But as I started researching Arctic habitat, it soon became clear that it was impossible to write a story about a polar bear without referencing the melting ice-caps.

The Last Bear was a book written from my heart. It’s an adventure story with a powerful emotional heart. And despite its Arctic setting, something about it struck a universal chord with readers all around the world. Since its publication in the UK in 2021, it has now been published into 25 different languages, including Arabic, won multiple awards and become a bestseller.

Lovely as this all was, I soon came to realise that the best part of being a children’s author was not the external recognition, but the impact I was able to make – including shining a spotlight on these incredible animals who so desperately need our help.

As Bear teaches April the power of her own roar, I would love everyone to know, no matter how small or shy you may feel on the inside, you’re never too small to change the world.

Voice of Hannah Gold

Hannah Gold worked in the film and magazine industries before taking time out to pursue her dream of writing. She lives in the UK with her tortoise, her cat and her husband. The Last Bear was her middle-grade debut which became an inspirational, international bestseller on release in 2021 and has gone on to win a multitude of national awards including the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize and the Blue Peter Book Award 2022. Hannah’s books have sold over 290,000 copies worldwide and have been translated into 25 languages. She is also an ambassador for Whale and Dolphin Conservation (https://uk.whales.org/).

Favourite book right now?

Go Toxic Free by Anna Turns. By a well-known British environmental journalist, this book is fantastic for providing practical everyday tips to rid your house (and your body!) of toxic chemicals.

Favourite lesson at school?

Not really a lesson but it has to be storytime! Each Friday afternoon, we curled up on beanbags and listened, enrapt, as our teacher read the latest chapter of our classroom read. Books play such a huge, but undervalued role, in creating empathy and action in our children of tomorrow.

Favourite animal?

I always get asked this question in schools and my answer is always the same. ALL animals as each lifeform plays an integral role in the eco system of our planet. ALL animals deserve greater love and respect.

Favourite hero/heroine?

Lucy from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe as I desperately yearned to travel through the wardrobe into Narnia and meet some talking animals!

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Painting with Words - the voice of Phil Ferguson

Mon, 07 Dec 2020 10:07:00 +0400

Painting with Words

Our writing lessons start with two questions: Why do I want to write today? And how do I want to write it?

There are many reasons why you might have the urge to write. Perhaps you feel you want to teach something to somebody - something you know a lot about and want to share, or maybe just offer some advice about. So write some information and an explanation, perhaps a set of instructions. You’ll be teaching yourself too!

Does something need changing in your life? Write a letter to someone with some power asking them to help. Writing can be a great way to get something done. It doesn’t always succeed, but it’s certainly worth trying!

Everyone loves a good story. Perhaps you’ve got an idea for one in your head - something funny maybe, or thrilling or scary. Could be a true story about something amusing or shocking that actually happened to you. Go ahead and be entertaining, you might also feel like being poetic today - we call it ‘painting with words.’ You can write a poem about any subject on earth, and of course you can paint with words in all kinds of writing, even if it’s just instructions. Try it!

Maybe today you have the urge to record something that happened to someone in the past, or something someone did that not many people know about. Writing it down means that little piece of history won’t be lost or forgotten. And possibly you feel like simply putting your own thoughts about something down on paper. Writing helps you think, feel and wonder about things. It helps sort out the muddles in your mind (always a good thing).

So, once you know why you want to write today and how you’re going to write it, you’re good to go.

Voice of Phil Ferguson

Hello, I’m Phil Ferguson. I’ve always written stuff, even when I was little - stories, plays, and once I started a magazine - with me as the only contributor. I thought I’d grow up to be a writer, but instead I became a teacher. I write just as much now!

Phil Ferguson has done two MAs, one in Linguistics and the other in Children’s Literature. She has also co-authored two books:

My VoFG Writing Journey - the voice of Saira Thomas

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 12:34:06 +0400

It all started at the beginning of 2020, when I was in 4^th Grade. One day, my English teacher asked if I was interested in participating in a story writing competition. I was thrilled because story writing is something that I enjoy a lot.

Once I went through all the instructions and guidelines for writing a VoFG story, I knew that I wanted to write about animals because I love them a lot. However, it was on a trip along the desert highway that I found the inspiration for my story. The usual scene of camels resting under a Ghaf Tree made me wonder…. “What if..there were a few more trees? Would we have found birds and other animals too in the desert?” Soon, ‘The Green Warrior’, the story of Salma and her determination to create a safe habitat for animals was formed.

My teacher was excited to read my story and submitted it in the VoFG website towards the end of March . As it was an early submission, I bagged an exclusive one to one online feedback session with the VoFG team in April, where all the best parts of my story were pointed out to me and then some tips were given to improve it even more. I resubmitted my improved story later that month.

And then on the 12^th of August came the mail that changed my world.. The Green Warrior was in the top ten stories that were being send to the international commission!!! We were all invited to the Award Ceremony at the Zabeel Ladies Club on 27^th September. The Green Warrior won the award for ‘The Most Captivating Setting’. But that was not all! My joy knew no bounds when at the end of the nail-biting ceremony I was announced the Gold Medalist of the VoFG Arabia 2020.

Voice of Saira Thomas

Saira Thomas is a bubbly, friendly girl from Our Own English High School, Sharjah . Her favourite hobby is reading and she aspires to become a world renowned author. Her dream is to popularise vegetarianism because she believes that it can make the world a better place. Saira is 10 years old.

How do you envision creative spaces? - the voice of Aedan Lake

Mon, 20 Apr 2020 17:12:32 +0400

World Creativity and Innovation Day

Most of us are stuck at home right now, and those that are not are working in essential jobs keeping our society functioning, whether that means caring for COVID-19 patients or stocking supermarket shelves or sanitising our streets and buildings. A hospital or supermarket might not be your idea of a creative space (we’ll come back to that in a bit) but what about your home?

We are all inspired by different things. I am very lucky – the two things that inspire me most are books and nature, and at my desk I am surrounded by stacks of books and have a view of my green, overgrown garden and the birds that visit it. My house isn’t perfect but my wife and I have managed to make it a creative space that works for both of us.

Hopefully, whether you live in a house or apartment and whatever size your family, there is a part of your home you can claim as your own. Take a moment to think about how you use it and if it inspires you or oppresses you. What about it works, and what needs to be changed?

Once you have thought about your own space – take a moment to think about the wider world. Our cities as a whole and the parts that comprise them. Which spaces around us are “creative spaces”, and who has access to them? Who gets to be creative? After all, we need creativity for innovation but we also need it to recharge our minds and develop our personalities.

Once we survive the coronavirus, we will still have to deal with the climate crisis, and that will mean rethinking how we live in many ways. We should take the opportunity to make our surroundings more pleasant and more inspiring – for everyone.

About Aedan Lake

Aedan Lake is a freelance writer living in Sharjah. Part of the founding team of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, he worked on 12 editions of the Festival. He is currently advising Abu Dhabi International Book Fair on a series of online talks for readers enduring the current lockdown.