Today I am shining the spotlight on my best Lockdown Discovery: Laurence King Publishing’s new creative writing game, Story Out of the Box by Nicky Hoberman, Deeny Leander and Hiromi Suzuki.
As a parent and an author, I have been on a constant search during lockdown for innovative ways to balance my creative writing and looking after my children full-time. The publishing community has really come together during this crisis. Several publishers have allowed their books to be read online, authors have shared worksheets to go alongside their books and illustrators have run online art lessons. Just a few shout-outs:
- Curtis Brown are providing free weekly writing workouts throughout lockdown.
- For free online art lessons for children, check out #DrawWithRob.
- Amy Sparkes has run a host of fabulous writing workshops for adults.
- Tiny Owl’s books are being read aloud via their YouTube channel.
- Lantana has made several of their diverse picture e-books free.
- SCBWI has set up a directory for remote learning resources.
But despite all of these fantastic initiatives, for many writers out there, writer’s block is at an all-time high. Many parents are also finding the task of making education fun in a home environment a daunting and relentless task.
That’s where Story Out of the Box comes in…
Unleash thousands of stories from the depths of your imagination! Pick a subject card and a technique card and use them to create your own madcap tales. These 80 cards will provide hours of storytelling and creative writing entertainment. All you need is a pencil and paper, and a pirate ship, and a warrior princess, and an elephant…
The concept is not new, similar writing prompt style games do exist. But, what I love about this particular version is that the cards are very thought-provoking, funny and original. They also “speak” to the player, giving them little suggestions for how to go about the writing challenge which are great. Here’s a challenge I was set when I tried it out:
Story Out of the Box is a fantastic creative writing resource for all ages. As a writer of picture books, I have found it a great way to spark a new idea. For children, it is a fun way to introduce storytelling and also, why not have a go at illustrating them?
Publisher: Laurence King Publishing
Publication date: 4 May 2020
ISBN: 978-1786275974
I am very grateful to the publisher for providing me with a complimentary copy of Story Out of the Box. This voluntary review contains my honest opinion.
Picture Book Perfect 
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