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We’re Celebrating Black Friday!

Heads up! We’re celebrating BLACK FRIDAY (not Cyber Monday) this year.

With 2020 comes our 20th year in business as Brave Writer. Let’s celebrate!

Thank you for being such an awesome community—here are some customer appreciation rewards!

Black Friday

20% discount on ALL Brave Writer products purchased in our store (not classes) for 24 hours.

Sale starts at 9:00 AM (Eastern) on Friday November 29 and ends at 9:00 AM (Eastern) on Saturday November 30.

Holiday Shoppe

Friday, November 29 will also be the opening of our annual Holiday Shoppe! It will provide you with gift ideas for holiday shopping and will be open through midnight Eastern Dec. 31, 2019.

JOIN ME on Facebook or Zoom LIVE on November 20 at 3:00 PM Eastern for details. No need to register for Zoom. Just click the link when the broadcast starts.

First-Time Ever Sale on a Class

We’re waiving our “no discounts on classes” policy to offer you $20.00 off of each student registration for the online writing class that started it all The Writer’s Jungle Online!

This is the class that teaches YOU how to coach your children in writing. The instructor works with you and your kids to transform their writing lives.

The discount is only good for two weeks (12/2 – 12/15), once our Winter/Spring registration opens.

Monday, December 2, 2019 Noon Eastern

Learn all about it here.

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3 Keys to a Complete Writing Program

Scroll down for “The 3 Keys to a Complete Writing Program” webinar replay!

I’ve been asked countless times: Is Brave Writer a complete writing curriculum?

The short answer: Yes!

A complete writing curriculum is made of three parts.

Writing mechanics and literature.
Original thought.
Writing projects.

Let’s take a look at how the three pieces of Brave Writer fit together!

1. Writing Mechanics and Literature.

Writers can hire someone to physically transcribe for them, but the process goes much faster when writers are competent in

handwriting,
spelling,
punctuation, and
grammar.

With these skills, they can skip right to giving their attention to all the ideas they want to express.

How can young writers become competent in writing mechanics? Through regular copywork and dictation using quality writing.

The Brave Writer mechanics and literature guides (Quiver of Arrows, Arrows, Pouch of Boomerangs, and Boomerangs) provide that instruction and practice.

2. Original Thought.

When was the last time you finished a book and said, “Wow! The comma usage in that book was phenomenal!”

Um, never? That’s because punctuation supports communication. It’s not a replacement for it.

While writing mechanics are important for the ease and pleasure of reading, it’s the author’s original thoughts that stick with us!

The new insight.
The tantalizing argument.
The immersive storytelling.

These are the aspects of writing that connect the writer with the reader.

Your children are already natural storytellers—they freely share about

the games they play,
the bug they saw scurry onto a leaf,
the time they saw their friend fall and skin her knee. Ouch!

The key is to get those stories (original thoughts) onto the page—without the constraints of proper grammar, punctuation, or spelling.

Those thoughts need the freedom to spill out just as they appear—skinned knees, muddy shoes, and all.

The Writer’s Jungle provides parents with the tools they need to facilitate getting those words to the page and preserving the original thoughts (and voice) of the child.

3. Writing Projects.

Now it’s time to bring it all together!

Writing projects blend writing mechanics and original thought to create a finished piece of writing to publish and share.

Jot It Down!, Partnership Writing, Faltering Ownership, and Help for High School all provide projects to hone writing skills and original thought.

Brave Writer Bundles

We pull all three pieces together for you in our Brave Writer Bundles. Each bundle is designed for a targeted stage in writing development!

Want to learn more? Watch this FREE webinar!

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Happy Birthday, E.B. White!

Elwyn Brooks White, better known as E.B. White, was born on July 11th, 1899, and to celebrate we’re offering you a special deal (keep reading!).

Did you know that two of the writing mechanics and literature guides in our Quiver of Arrows set (1st–2nd grades) are based on books by E.B. White?

Yes, two! They are Charlotte’s Web (our free sample) and The Trumpet of the Swan.

That’s how much we adore E.B. White’s

charming stories,
delightful characters, and
relatable, witty writing style.

Not to mention his opening hooks (“Where’s Papa going with that ax?”)!

How are we celebrating White’s birthday?

Pick one:

Purchase The Trumpet of the Swan Arrow for half price ($5.95).
Or use the discount code QUIV10 to buy the complete Quiver of Arrows set (10 issues) and get the Trumpet of the Swan Arrow for FREE!

The sale ends July 17, 2019 at midnight Eastern.

What’s the Quiver of Arrows?

The Brave Writer Quiver of Arrows is a collection of 10 guides that provide a gentle step into the study of writing mechanics and literature.

They make a bridge for your child from The Wand (K–1st) to the Arrow (3rd–6th grades).

The guides and the accompanying Guidelines equip you, the homeschooling parent, to teach:

spelling,
punctuation,
grammar, and
literary elements (like the opening hook)

using quality living literature.

And don’t forget the Book Club Party School sections!

They’re bursting with ideas to celebrate literature and bring stories to life with your kids.

[This post contains Amazon affiliate links. When you click on those links to make purchases,
Brave Writer receives compensation at no extra cost to you. Thank you!]

Although E.B. White’s first books did not earn immediate critical acclaim, they quickly became favorites to those most discerning of critics–young children. Kids know what kids like, after all, and kids love White’s books.

So take advantage of this special offer (ends July 17, 2019 at midnight ET)!

Purchase The Trumpet of the Swan Arrow for half price ($5.95) or use the discount code QUIV10 to buy the complete Quiver of Arrows set (10 issues) and get The Trumpet of the Swan Arrow for FREE!

If you’d also like to buy a copy of the novel, it’s available through Amazon: The Trumpet of the Swan

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2019-2020 Arrows and Boomerangs

The new Arrow and Boomerang book lists have dropped! What a party!

If you did not catch the big reveal live, you can watch the REPLAY here or on the Brave Writer Facebook page.

Why the big party?

The big reveal is exciting because these are:

Books your family will read aloud together and treasure all year.
Books that naturally teach writing mechanics and introduce literary elements.

Here at Brave Writer, we take the selection of these 20 book titles Very Seriously! All year, we read, discuss, and delight in the year’s latest fiction as well as relishing the classics. We:

aim for diversity of authorship and protagonists.
incorporate a variety of genres: fantasy to the classics.
carefully orchestrate the sequence of the books.
balance book length against the holiday demands of a given month.
alternate moving, poignant books with silly, lighthearted books.
launch the year with a sure-fire winner and end with a warmhearted one.

By the time we’ve settled on a book list, we’re chomping at the bit to share it with you!

This year’s Arrow list is all brand new, and the Boomerang list features only two re-boots. You can expect a lively, inspired reading journey!

About the Arrow and Boomerang

The Arrow (3rd-6th) and the Boomerang (8th-11th) are your specially crafted monthly guides to teaching literature and the mechanics of writing.

These programs include 10 month-long guides that feature:

exciting read aloud novels each month,
copywork and dictation,
literary elements,
Big Juicy Discussion/Think Piece questions,
and Book Club Party School ideas.

A year’s worth of curriculum (10 month-long guides) for one low price!
When you purchase, you will be invited to a Private Facebook Group for year-long members.

The Brave Writer Arrow and Boomerang guides use living literature to bring writing mechanics to life.

A year of adventure, heart-break, humor, tenderness, history, and fantasy await you!

2019-2020 Titles

[This post contains Amazon affiliate links. When you click on those links to make purchases, Brave Writer receives compensation at no extra cost to you. Thank you!]

Arrows

August: Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O’Brien
September: The Wild Robot by Peter Brown
October: Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina
November: Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
December: The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser
January: PIE by Sarah Weeks
February: Stella by Starlight by Sharon Draper
March: Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
April: Bronze and Sunflower by Cao Wenxuan
May: The Boy Who Saved Baseball by John H. Ritter

Purchase the 2019-2020 Arrow Subscription

Boomerangs

August: The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien (reboot)
September: Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
October: The Red Umbrella by Christina Diaz Gonzalez
November: A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
December: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (reboot)
January: A Separate Peace by John Knowles
February: Unbound: A Novel in Verse by Ann E. Burg
March: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
April: The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani
May: The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt

Purchase the 2019-2020 Boomerang Subscription

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2019-2020 Arrow & Boomerang Book Reveal: May 31

It’s that time of year when our families get a little nutty enthusiastic. They’re excited for good reason!

Each year at the end of May, I announce the new book titles for the coming academic year for our Arrow and Boomerang programs. These programs are designed to teach your kids the mechanics of writing through living literature!

The big reveal is exciting because these are:

Books your family will read aloud together and treasure all year.
Books that naturally teach writing mechanics and introduce literary elements.

Here at Brave Writer, we take the selection of these 20 book titles Very Seriously! All year, we read, discuss, and delight in the year’s latest fiction as well as relishing the classics.

We aim for diversity of authorship and protagonists.

We incorporate a variety of genres: fantasy to the classics.

We carefully orchestrate the sequence of the books.

We balance book length against the holiday demands of a given month.
We alternate moving, poignant books with silly, lighthearted books.
We launch the year with a sure-fire winner and end with a warmhearted one.

By the time we’ve settled on a book list, we’re chomping at the bit to share it with you!

This year’s Arrow list is all brand new, and the Boomerang list features only two re-boots. You can expect a lively, inspired reading journey!

Come to the live reveal! It’s always a blast!

Be sure to have your kids tune in too—they love it!

Some families get together and throw a community party for the big book reveal.

We’ve got new surprises in store for this year’s books and subscriptions to the Arrow and Boomerang too, which we’ll share on book reveal day.

So are you IN? I hope so!

This year we are hosting the webinar on Zoom (our live webinar platform). You don’t need to register to participate. Just click the link below on May 31.

Date: Friday, May 31, 2019
Time: 11:30 am EDT
Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/111145777

We’ll also simulcast on Facebook Live.

See you soon!