Book Excerpt

Therapeutic Storywriting by Trisha Waters
publ. David Fulton
Copyright © Trisha Waters 2004

Excerpt from Chapter 1:-

Introduction to Therapeutic Storywriting

Story holds a magic for children. Its symbolic language, of monsters and mythical creatures, of heroes and heroines, of terrifying obstacles overcome, can seem to convey meaning more powerfully to a child than the most thought-out rational arguments. While anyone who has told children stories will be familiar with the rapt gaze of their spellbound audience, what is also interesting to note is the power of children’s own storywriting to similarly engage their attention. It is particularly interesting to observe that many children with emotional difficulties, who may find it hard to stay on task in the classroom, can suddenly become completely focused and motivated when storywriting. By playing with different characters, scenes and plots of which they are the creators, storywriting seems to provide a way for the child to explore who they are and what they feel within the protected world of the imaginary. The opportunity to express their internal world through story metaphor can be beneficial for all children but especially so for emotionally anxious children whose own life ‘story’ may have been a particularly painful or complicated one. The task of this book is to unravel and tease out the process by which the magic web of story is spun – not to analyse for the sake of it, but in order to free the story threads where caught and support the healing possible by enabling children to weave their own personal narratives.

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