Brody, age 13, wrote this somewhat horrifying science-fiction story in our Upper KS3 Creative Writing tutorials.

In creative writing, one of the biggest challenges is often knowing how to help students get started. Students can be really enthusiastic to write, but the prospect of staring at a blank page can be really daunting for them.

To help overcome this, students were given a rough outline of a science-fiction story, (specially written by Tutor Dave), which included a typical narrative arc, suggestions for common sci-fi character types and a range of other tropes.

The story outline was broken into six sections and students developed and extended the outline of the story over the six tutorials in the topic, completing more in their own time if they wanted to.

“You have put a huge amount of effort in to creating tension and ensuring the advance of the alien upon its prey leaves your audience scared stiff! I especially like your use of structure to make us pay attention to the clicking of the alien and how that structure makes us wait, building tension before that awful moment when it pounces. I am pleased that you didn’t feel you had to rush through just to get to the end and that the quality of your writing was your priority. Well done, Brody :)”

Feedback from Tutor Dave

To unleash your child’s creativity and help them to write like this, join our Upper/Lower KS3 English Tutorials.

A Science-Fiction Story

As I woke a bright beam of light began to boil my sight. This light must have damaged my brain since I couldn’t remember where I was or even who I was, had I been in a tragic accident? Have I lost my ability to remember? Still unable to see I reached out my arms, however, they came to a sudden stop, some sort of barrier. My vision slowly returned but I was seeing double, I was in some kind… pod? Within a room, but it didn’t look home. Just like my vision my memories slowly came back, who I was, where I was and what I was doing here. Within a few seconds my claustrophobia kicked in . I started viciously panting and kicking my legs around to try to escape from this glass prison. After a while of squirming around like a scorched moth, a small puff of smoke was released from my chamber, then I was to follow. 

Slowly I stumbled out of the pod, my legs violently shaking. Trying to grab onto the side of the pod, since my legs felt like half eaten jelly. I don’t know how long I had been in a slumber, but it hasn’t done my muscles any good. As I was holding onto my pod, I tried to scream for help but it was no use, there was nobody to receive my cries. Looking around to see hundreds of identical pods, however, one was empty as someone else was awake, only time could tell . Feeling as if I was going to faint, my head started spinning and my legs felt as if I was going to collapse, I blacked out for a second or two, as I started to regain consciousness I felt paralyzed, and a sense of despair. I tried to push up from the ground but like my legs, my arms had failed me. The only glimpse of hope I had was the ability to breath and move a pathetic little finger. But It was something. As I started to regain strength in my upper, I sat up to encounter red lights that looked to be sirens of distress, followed by a despared scream.

The screams eventually died out and with it the power. As I started to retrieve strengths within my legs, I stood up only to witness the others slowly wake up, but no pods were opening, they started squirming like a fish out of water, then gasping for air. I rushed to a pod. I tried everything I could think of to try to open it, with my petty remaining strength. It was no use. Every single one of them layed there, exhausted, pale, dead. Many questions were going through my head, but the one that really spooked me was the screaming coming from speakers. There was at least one thing I knew about this ship from hell is that I wasn’t alone. I stumbled to what looked to be an exit. From there it’s mainly just hallways cloaked in darkness. I walked for what felt like hours, until I saw a slight flicker of light. I didn’t know if it was just my mind playing games with me but, what other option did I have other than to start chasing it. Once I arrived I found a power box with torn wires and dents in the metal. Someone or something has hijacked the power. I sighed in despair, I had no idea how to fix the thing. My mind was focused on that until I heard a crash I viciously turned  around only to catch a glimpse of a tale covered in scales. I went to investigate when I found a vent lid with blood stains bleached on it. It was watching me, I was its next target, its next prey.

I was alone, within a ship I have no memory of, trapped with a scaly bloodthirsty beats. Trembling with fear, I knew I wasn’t safe, so I decided to find a place to call camp. As I stumbled through the ship, cautious of any movement in sight, I discovered a desk accompanied by a tall chair isolated within darkness. I slowly approached it, only to find this creature’s work, sitting there torn apart from the legs up, ribs and other bones stuck out of his fleshy remains. Clicking, a continuous clicking noise. 

It was approaching. 

I hid under the desk.

Click

Blood dripped down forming a puddle beside me. 

Click.

I was still horrified by what I had seen, but I had to keep silent… my life depended on it.

Click.

 Shaking with fear, I could hear its every move, its every attempt to smell flesh and blood.  

Silence.

Silence.

 Silence? What had happened to it? I curled my trembling fingers around the desk, and peered around, looking around left to right, it was nowhere to be seen, my heart started racing and with it my breath. I felt stressed, but relieved somehow until I felt something drop on to my hand, blood? As I cautiously looked up to see where it came from, it lay there up on the ceiling, its jaw locked in place, preparing to pounce.

It was then that I saw a pipe sticking out of the wall disconnected from the others. I could hear a faint hissing sound coming from it and as I took one last breath, I made a dash for it. Once I got my hands around it I haled it facing creature.  I needed it to come closer.

Click

It was my only chance to escape.

Click

It crawled closer.

Click

Closer.

Click

It viciously hurled its body towards whilst I slid to one side pulling the pipe with me, the steam blinded it which gave me just enough time to run, oh and I ran, I took every turn, every staircase, anything which looked promising.

To be continued…