English Language so far

I really am enjoying English Language, although I didn't think I would at first. From the start of the year I wasn't really that interested in what we was doing (grammar) seeing as there wasn't much writing involved but recently as we've got into coursework I actually like English lessons and they go quite quickly.

This half term I've really got into the lesson and am looking forward to studying it in more depth over the course of the next two years.

"Help"- Scary Flash Fiction

Help.

I liked to think of my flat as cosy, silent, but cosy. It was me, myself and I. There were times when I wished I had some company; but I had to get used to it, I had no choice. To be quite honest I didn’t actually know any different, my parents had died back when I was a youngster; just like the rest of the world.

I’d never known the meaning of the word scared; I just knew it was an emotion. What was I to be scared of? It was me against the world: always had been, always will be. That’s what I had believed anyway, until that one day.

It was like any other day for me; I rolled out of bed around half past ten, picked up yet another rusty tin of baked beans from the cupboard and cut the can open with a knife. I slowly poured them into a glass bowl and lit the fire I had built in the centre of the living room floor only the night before.  The flames rose high and the gentle sounds of wood cracking automatically made the world feel louder. I left my food sitting next to it as I got changed out of my timeworn, withered tracksuit and into my rancid leggings and vest top. I sat down and began to consume a spoonful of the tasteless, mouldy looking beans and swallowed.

I wasn’t even half way through breakfast when it happened. The sound that changed my life forever: knock. My bewildered oak stained door began to make noises, not from the inside, but from the out. The door that hadn’t been opened in nearly 6 weeks began to rumble, I dropped the bowl. Boiling hot beans scuttled across the floor and the steam surrounded my body, I was shaking from head to toe, you know that sick feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you know something could go really well or really badly? Yes, that’s how I felt.

“It’s just the wind,” I told myself. I cupped my hands over my ears and bent over.
“It’s just the wind. It’s just the wind.” I kept repeating over and over again. I needed to reassure my thoughts that nothing was going to hurt me, I took one deep breathe and looked up. There it was again: knock. I jumped. This couldn’t be happening, not again. I knew the only way to resolve this problem would be to open the door and see what the fuss was about; but something’s are easier said than done.

I stood up trying to dodge the beans below me; I put my left foot in front of the right and began to step in the direction of the door. I had reached my destination. This was what being scared felt like. I slowly turned the door handle down and pulled it against me. I gasped.

Help.

Commentary on flash fiction "Help"

Sentence types:
I used a range of sentence types; all of the different sentence structures created effect to keep the reader interested. For example: “I gasped.” This is a brief sentence but gets strait to the point and explains exactly how the speaker maybe feeling, like shock. I use complex sentences to go into detail about the room the speaker is staying in and really try to set the scene for the reader; "Boiling hot beans scuttled across the floor and the steam surrounded my body, I was shaking from head to toe, you know that sick feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you know something could go really well or really badly?" this sentence sums up the readers thoughts and emotions and ends on a rhetorical question to gain extra interest from the reader.

Phonological features:
I tried to use a range of phonological features to gain a higher level and show I can have an advanced range of writing techniques in my work. I used personification to describe the beans: "Boiling hot beans scuttled across the floor" this sounds better than just saying how they were suddenly on the floor. "I liked to think of my flat as cosy, silent, but cosy." here I used repetition to really get across to the reader how I feel about being the last girl on earth. As a first full sentence in my writing, straight away I'm hinting to them that I am the last person but without actually saying it.

Grammar:
I used a range of adjectives and nouns to interest the reader. I chose in the beginning to use "silent" rather than "quiet" seeing as from the start I wanted to create a spooky atmosphere. "Timeworn" and "withered" are words used to describe old things, I thought these were a good choice so that I could help the reader picture the clothes and show them they won't be able to replace them and they will just have to live with it.