Creative Writing and Commentary on Theme Park

Planning:

Story:	Tour guide:
Child is alone in a theme park - Shut in after closing Sun is setting image – metaphor for child’s youth disappearing Darkness is fear of growth and adulthood Rides come to life myth is brought to life – horror film conventions but less scary; more mysterious and magical	Old style theme park brought ‘back to life’ Renovated carousel with old horses Ferris wheel has lights in the dark – seen from the distance from miles away Ship that sways side to side – 10 feet off the ground Hotel with spa – somewhere for adults to relax

A.)    Write the opening of a children’s story based in an attraction that has tour guides e.g. a museum.

I think mum and dad left me here on purpose.

Somehow, through the flurries of people, I let go of mum’s hand and I got lost in the thicket of unknown bodies. I think dad would be happy. He hates me. He thinks I don’t act my age because I still want to be a child. I am still a child! But he doesn’t think so.

One day I will stop picking up Lego bricks and start picking up briefcases as I go to work. Who wants to do that? I would rather build towers of epic proportions every day, all day, until they fall down and I have to start again. I want to pretend to be an airplane and swoop down to pick up passengers for the rest of my life. I want to dress up as a pirate and pretend to sink my sister’s bed because she always stays on the family computer past her computer time, and into my computer time.

But now the gates of the theme park are closed, and I’m here. Alone. In this theme park, by myself, without an adult or someone to guide me through this maze of clustered-together rides and hot dogs stands.

The gaudy primary colours of the carousel look muted now that the sun is setting on the park. Settling on my skin like the ripping of a plaster from a bloodied knee, the darkness feels ominous. I can imagine the monsters coming out from the rides and trying to eat me. I don’t want to grow up.

There’s a story that after dark this park comes to life and the rides let you go on them for as long as you want. But you might have to keep riding them until the sun comes up again. I think I want to ride the carousel if that happened. Nobody can stop me.

B.)    Write the opening of a tour guide’s script for an attraction.

Hello, my name is Sofia and I am your tour guide for today. Along the way, I’m sure you will have a lot of questions about the park. I will leave a pause after each part for you to ask any questions. Just raise your hand and I will do my best to tell you anything you need to know. Let’s begin.

(Guides audience into the entrance of the park)

Here stands the memorial of Dr Edgar von Cloud who first renovated the park in 1967 after discovering the park was a secret part of his inheritance, and was a good investment. He was right. Since the renovation, the park has attracted over 60,000 people each year. Edgar’s most popular investment is the carousel with the infamous black horse that leads the rest, which we will see later.

(Pauses for questions)

If you haven’t booked a reservation with the park hotel yet, it is not too late. The hotel is the newest attraction on the site as it was built in 2005 after Edgar’s death but it is sentimental of the vintage style that often attracts visitors to the park.

(Pauses for questions & walks to the ship)

Follow me.

This ship ride is the highest in Britain. It swings 10 feet above the ground when in motion, and the ship can accommodate up to 100 passengers in one flight. Standing next to it is the iconic ferris wheel, named after Edgar von Cloud’s estranged wife Betty Ferris, which can be seen from 10 miles away when it is dark as the lights emit a very powerful beacon in the surrounding country side.

C.)    Write a commentary that compares and contrasts your choices of styles, form, and content.

The children’s story uses metaphors to describe the park as the character sees it rather than trying to sell it as the tour guide script does. An example of this is the use of the adjective ‘gaudy’ in the children’s story. This adjective has connotations of tackiness, and it is clear that the lexical field does not completely match up to the estimated age of the narrator, as it is not a word that is often used in a child’s sociolect. The effect of this is that it adds a more adult theme to the story whereas the script evidently matches an adult sociolect. To highlight the contrast, the tour guide script uses the adjectival phrase ‘vintage style’ in order to sell the attraction.