‘Show don’t tell’ is the writing advice people love to give, but what does it even mean? Is it even possible to show don’t tell in the medium of language, a tool used exclusively for ‘telling’? Unit one introduces the idea that emotions have a grammatical shape. We’ll look specifically at the emotion of fear, and play with the different ways fear might be grammatically structured.

Video length: 42 minutes

Could grammar be used to cure writer’s block? In unit two we explore how a clause-based approach to grammar can help with ‘show don’t tell’. We’ll be looking specifically at the grammatical shape of envy in a business advice column and Othello. You’ll learn easy-going strategies for identifying subjects and verbs in clauses as a way to play with transitivity and explore the shape of envy.

We’ll cover: clause structure (overview), how to use the question-tag probe to find subjects and verbs, transitivity, grammatical participants (actor and goal), active/passive voice

Video length: 44 minutes

What’s the difference between envy and grief? We’ll explore both the ‘felt’ experiences and the grammatical shapes of these two emotions. We’ll look at how grief is shaped in NHS guidance about losing a partner in pregnancy and in the opening scenes of Sean Lusk’s historical novel, The second sight of Zachary Cloudesley.

We’ll cover: subjects, verbs and complements, how to use the who/what probe to find complements, the structure of cleft sentences and how they can be used to shape emotions

Video length: 40 minutes

How easy do you find it to ‘show don’t tell’ when describing bodily/sensual experiences? It’s not always as easy as you’d think. In this unit we’ll explore transitivity in more detail, looking at the types of processes that can be expressed by verbs. We’ll analyse sensuality in a TripAdvisor article and in a passage from Michael Ondaatje’s The English patient.

We’ll cover: barriers to ‘show don’t tell’ when it comes to bodily/sensual descriptions, transitivity, which M.A.K. Halliday calls ‘grammar of experience’, an overview of the types of processes in transitivity grammar (material, behavioural, mental, verbal, relational and existential), how material processes can help with sensual scenes, a review of passive/active voice

Video length: 36 minutes

Do you believe in love at first sight? Even if you don’t, it can make for a great plot device. We’ll look at a Reddit thread about a Tinder date and Laura Esquivel’s Like water for chocolate to examine the complex grammatical shape of love at first sight.

We’ll cover: love at first sight as a plot device, the value of writing sensuality into love-at-first-sight scenes, a closer look at these processes in transitivity grammar (material, behavioural, mental, relational and verbal), how to shape complex emotions by juxtaposing different process types, how to analyse complex sentences with embedded clauses, the role embedded clauses can play in conveying complex emotions

Video length: 42 minutes

What change would you like your writing to inspire? In this unit we’ll explore writing rage as a form of social justice. We’ll examine a Dear Sugar advice column where the writer expresses righteous rage about barriers to disability care. We’ll also look to The bluest eye to learn from Toni Morrison’s expert portrayal of rage (and shame) in a character who is especially vulnerable to the destructive power of everyday racism. 

We’ll cover: how to conduct an SVCA analysis (subjects, verbs, complements and adjuncts), metaphor and grammatical structure, how to weave metaphor into the grammatical shape of the emotions you’re writing, how character emotions can be linked to the themes in your work

Video length: 47 minutes