“Everybody has a secret world inside of them. I mean everybody. All of the people in the whole world, I mean everybody — no matter how dull and boring they are on the outside. Inside them they've all got unimaginable, magnificent, wonderful, stupid, amazing worlds... Not just one world. Hundreds of them. Thousands, maybe.” - Neil Gaiman

 “I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues.” - Doctor Seuss

Hi, my name is James and I’m going to be your instructor for this short course called The Magic of Language!

Poems, stories, songs and words are all capable of transporting us to new worlds, seeing things differently or of expressing ourselves in ways we might not have thought possible.

In this course, we’ll explore how you can start to tap into the magic of language, find out some of the things you can do with words, have fun, and do lots of writing exercises and games too!

Everyone has words inside of them and with just a little help, we can all write stories or poems from thin air, which is like magic if you ask me! 

Let’s get started!

What you need for this course:

• Paper
• Pen or pencil
• Headphones or somewhere quiet you can listen to readings and watch a video
• Imagination
• A snack to reward yourself after finishing!

Your course tutor is James Smart. James is a short story writer from Barnsley who loves language and what words can do! His stories have been published in the UK and abroad: he was shortlisted for The Commonwealth Short Story Prize, won the award for best new writer with US journal Glimmertrain, has been nominated twice for the Pushcart Prize and once for the Best of the Net award. He lives in Norwich and loves making things, exploring new places, and teaching creative writing!

To move through this course, click the green complete and continue button at the top of the page. You can go back to a previous chapter at any point by clicking on the title on the left of the screen.