This is a "pass the paper" activity good for medium to large sized groups. Begin with one person writing a short, descriptive passage. (By this ,we mean it is colorful, uses adjectives, appeals to the senses, visual language, etc.) Now, pass the paper to a new person, who will rewrite the passage using very plain language. Fold the paper over so the original passage cannot be seen. The next person will rewrite the passage descriptively, and so on. The activity should begin and end with a descriptively written passage. We tried this at last week's meeting with only three participants - it worked out really well,and it was fun (as always) to see the differences in our ideas and writing. But with only three people, we could only write a descriptive, non-descriptive, and descriptive passage (as the first writer already knew the original content). So, in that respect, the more people for this activity the better it may be! See how much the passage changes each time it's translated back from non-descriptive to descriptive language. Here's what we came up with! (Descriptive)
Under the fiery light of the August moon, nine ladies, naked, with long hair in ravenous braids, danced around a bed of smoldering stones. Joyfulness radiated from their chests, and they too became celestial bodies swarming around a lonesome sun. Tonight the moon was full and passionate, holding them tightly as the tide, taking them deeper. (Non-Descriptive) Nine naked women danced around hot rocks. Their happiness left their bodies and joined the sun. The full moon held them captive taking them into the deep waters. (Descriptive) Nine bare-skinned fairies rhythmically flew around the boiling cobblestones. Their happiness slowly left their soulless bodies and became one with the sun. The full, bright moon made them its slaves, dragging them down into the bottomless oceans.
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