After you’ve told a story to your class, what do you do next?  Here are some ideas for follow-on writing activities.  These exercises, culled from storytelling students at Cal State LA and USD, focus on a story’s main characters.

Create a character web.  Write the character’s name in the center of the page, and surround it with a network of adjectives and descriptive phrases.

Create a poem, each line of which begins with the character saying, “I am...”

Create a poem, each line of which begins with a letter from your character’s name:
                        Cool under pressure,
                        Over the mesa he lopes.
                        Yo! Coyote!
                        Over here!
                        Turning from the rocky path, he
                        Escapes into the sky.

Have one character in the story write a letter to another character in the same story or in a different one.  Are the two characters friends? enemies?

Write a journal entry of the day’s events from the character’s point of view.

Have your character write a job application.  What are your character’s strong points? What previous experience has he/she had?

Have your character fill out a college application.  How would Coyote describe himself to the Dean of Admissions?  Don’t forget to mention that he’s captain of the cross country running team, he did volunteer work retrieving fire from the Fire Spirits, and he played the role of clown in the senior play.

Write a letter to the editor of a newspaper defending, condemning, or praising a character’s actions.

Make a paper puppet of your character.  On the back, write why the character is important in the story.

Is there a villain?  Create a wanted poster.

Is there a runaway?  Write a description for the police.

Is there a wedding?  Write it up like a journalist.  Describe the bride’s and groom’s past accomplishments and their current employment.