June 24, 2010: How Boomwriter is inspiring young writers

IMAGINE BEING A SIXTH GRADE STUDENT SUBMITTING A CHAPTER TO A BOOK, WATCHING YOUR CLASS MATES VOTE ON YOUR CHAPTER AND ULTIMATELY SEEING YOUR CHAPTER END UP IN A BOOK ON THE SHELF OF A BOOKSTORE.

THAT'S THE PREMISE BEHIND BOOMWRITER.

WE WENT TO BROOKLINE TO CHECK IT OUT.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN BROOKLINE THERE WAS A MYSTERY BOOK.

>> IS EVERYONE ABLE TO GET ON, AND ABLE TO LOG ON?

>> Emily: STUDENTS PREP TO PEN THE NEXT CHAPTER.

>> VIVIAN, YOU WROTE THE SECOND CHAPTER AND FIRST ONE WAS -- WHO WAS IT?

>> Emily: WITH THE HELP OF A NEW WEBSITE, BOOMWRITER, STUDENTS WRITE BOOKS BY BLENDING CREATIVITY AND SOCIAL MEDIA.

KEN HAYNES IS TRYING TO TURN THEM INTO AUTHORS.

>> YOU HAVE STUDENTS THAT ARE ENGAGED BY WHATEVER IT IS THAT THEY'RE DOING AND THAT LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT LEADS THEM TO WORK LONG AND HARD.

>> Emily: ONCE FINISHED WITH THE CHAPTER, THEIR CLASS MATES VOTE ANONYMOUSLY ON THEIR FAVORITE.

THE CHAPTER WITH THE MOST VOTES GETS PUBLISHED AND THE STUDENTS MOVE ON UNTIL THE BOOK IS DONE.

>> SOMEBODY WROTE THE CHAPTER AND YOU CAN TAKE IT WHEREVER YOU WANT.

>> I LIKE WRITING WHATEVER I WANT.

IT'S HARDER TO THINK OF STUFF, BUT WHENEVER YOU WRITE WHATEVER YOU WANT, IT'S YOUR OWN.

>> Emily: KIM GERARD HELPED THEM COME UP WITH THE IDEA.

>> I CAME UP WITH THE CASE, OF THE MISSING -- IT'S KIND OF A TRADITIONAL CLASSIC MYSTERY.

THE KIDS JUST HAD TO TAKE THE FIRST CHAPTER AND GO FROM THERE.

>> SHE IS MUSCULAR AND STRONG WHILE MARK IS LIKE A NERD.

AND BASICALLY, THEY'RE HUMAN, BUT THEY'RE UNDERWATER.

IT'S EPIDEMIC.

>> WRITING IS SO MUCH PERSONAL AND SO MUCH FUN.

>> Emily: FUN AND WITH A GREAT REWARD.

>> IT'S BEEN A GREAT SPIRIT TO THE WHOLE PROGRAM.

KIDS APPLAUD WHEN THE WINNERS ARE ANNOUNCED AND NO ONE HAS SEEN -- SEEMS TO BE DEJECTED WHEN THEY DON'T WIN.

THEY KEEP AT IT.

>> Emily: PERHAPS ALL THE WAY TO THE BOOKSTORES.

ALL RIGHT, WITH ME NOW IS CHRIS TWYMAN, A DEVELOPER OF BOOMWRITER, AND HIS DAUGHTER KALYANI.

WELCOME TO BOTH OF YOU.

WHAT IT IS ABOUT THE SOFTWARE THAT HELPS PEOPLE WRITE?

>> WELL --

>> Emily: A SCRIPT FORMAT?

>> NO.

IMAGINE COMBINING ALL THE FUN OF "AMERICAN IDOL" WITH THE KIND OF VOTING CAPACITIES OF EBAY AND CREATIVE WRITING.

SO THE KIDS GET AN ENVIRONMENT THAT THEY WANT TO COME INTO IN THIS -- AND IT'S INTERACTIVE.

>> Emily: WHAT IS IT THEY'RE LOOKING AT ON THE PAGE THAT HELPS THEM WRITE A BOOK?

>> WELL, THE PAGE, THERE'S AN INTRODUCTION, AN AUTHOR WRITES THE FIRST CHAPTER.

THEY'RE ALL ANONYMOUS SO THEY SIGN INTO THE SYSTEM AND THEN THEY WRITE THE NEXT CHAPTER.

>> Emily: IS IT DIALOGUE AND --

>> IT'S DIALOGUE, IT'S --

>> Emily: NARRATIVE.

>> EXACTLY.

IT'S WHAT YOU WOULD SEE IN ANY NOVEL.

THEY GET TO SEE -- TO CHOOSE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES, SO WE CHOSE THE TEST WITH PIERCE.

WE CHOSE A MYSTERY BOOK.

WE FOUND THE FIRST AUTHOR THAT SHE'S A PUBLISHED KIDS AUTHOR, KIM, SHE'S GREAT.

AND SHE WROTE THE FIRST CHAPTER FOR US AND THEN THE KIDS WENT AT IT.

IT WORKED PHENOMENALLY.

>> Emily: KALYANI, WHAT CHAPTER WAS IT?

>> AFTER THE BOOK WE DID, WE STARTED ANOTHER BOOK.

THAT WAS THE BOOK I WON.

I WON IF SECOND CHAPTER OF THAT BOOK.

>> Emily: AND WHAT WAS THE ANGLE IN YOUR CHAPTER?

>> SO I IN THE BOOK THEY WERE AN UNDERWATER LIKE SEAMEN, SO I ADDED LIKE THEY WENT DOWN INTO THE OCEAN TO FIND STUFF.

AND LIKE THEY GOT ATTACKED BY GIANT SQUIDS.

AND, YEAH.

THAT'S WHAT I ADDED.

>> Emily: SO IS THE NEXT CHAPPER THE DONE YET?

>> IT'S UNDERWAY.

SO THE KIDS ARE DIVIDED UP INTO NEW TEAMS AND WORKING ON THE NEXT CHAPTER.

>> Emily: ONCE ONE OF THE BOOKS IS COMPLETE IT GETS DONE -- WHAT HAPPENS WITH IT?

>> ONCE THE BOOK IS COMPLETE, UP TO THAT POINT ONLY THE AUTHORS KNOW WHO WON.

EVERYONE IS ANONYMOUS SO THERE'S NO COLLUSION WITHIN THE SCHOOLS.

>> Emily: SO YOU DON'T SAY THAT'S MY CHAPTER.

>> THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN WITH BOOMWRITER.

ONLY WHEN WAS FINISH IT AND THE KIDS GET THEIR NAME ON THE PUBLISHED BOOK AND WE GIVE IT BACK TO THE KIDS.

>> Emily: BUT IF KALYANI WINS CHAPTER NUMBER FOUR, SHE KNOWS.

DO YOU HAVE TO KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT?

THAT'S GOT TO BE HARD.

>> NO, SHE DIDN'T KEEP HER MOUTH SHUT.

>> Emily: HERE HERE IS IS.

>> EXACTLY.

EXACTLY.

BUT THE PREMISE OF KEEPING IT ANONYMOUS TRIES TO GET AROUND THE COLLUSION WHICH IS IN THE CLASS.

YOU KNOW, YOU VOTE FOR ME, YOU VOTE FOR ME NEXT TIME.

THE KIDS CREATE AVATARS OF THEMSELVES.

>> Emily: LITTLE ICONS.

>> THAT FOLLOWS THEM AROUND.

AS THEY PROGRESS THROUGH AND USE THE SYSTEM AND WIN, THEY GET TO DO MORE AND MORE WITH THEIR AVATARS SO IT BECOMES A WAY OF REPRESENTING THEMSELVES.

>> Emily: TRYING TO GET THE DIFFERENCE, IF YOU CAN EXPLAIN IT TO ME, WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THIS AND A REGULAR CREATIVE WRITING, GO HOME AND MAKE UP STORIES?

>> WELL, THIS IS LIKE ON THE COMPUTER WHICH IS FUNNER FOR MOST PEOPLE.

>> Emily: BE ON THE COMPUTER EVEN AT HOME.

>> YEAH.

YOU CAN GO ON THE INTERNET.

YOU CAN CREATE THE AVATAR, AND YOU CAN -- YOU CAN LIKE ADD STUFF TO YOUR CHAPTER FROM THE OTHER CHAPTER.

IF YOU DON'T WIN, YOU HAVE LIKE A NEW WAY TO WRITE.

LIKE YOU HAVE TO THINK IT ALL OVER AGAIN.

LIKE WHEN YOU'RE WRITING CREATIVE WRITING YOU DON'T LIKE -- ANOTHER PERSON WOULD IN YOUR CREATIVE WRITING.

YOU HAVE TO WIN AND KEEP THINKING THAT WAY.

ON BOOMWRITER YOU'RE THINKING --

>> Emily: I SEE.

WHAT KIND OF FEEDBACK HAVE YOU GOTTEN FROM TEACHERS?

>> WELL, THAT'S INTERESTING BECAUSE THE KIDS FOR THE FIRST TIME AND THIS ALL CAME ABOUT THROUGH A DISCUSSION WITH KALYANI AND A TEACHER, YOU SAW HIM ON THAT, AND WE JUST, YOU KNOW, WE WENT FOR IT AND PRODUCED THIS PIECE OF SOFTWARE AND TESTED IT AND IT'S WORKED PRETTY WELL.

BUT THE FEEDBACK THAT WE HAVE GOTTEN, THE MOST INTERESTING FEEDBACK WAS THAT HAVING KIDS VOTING FOR ONE ANOTHER, THEIR OPPOSING PEERS WORKED FOR THE FIRST TIME.

>> Emily: YOU'RE LIKE A CRITIC.

>> YEAH, THEY ENJOYED IT.

>> Emily: NO HURT FEELINGS.

>> BECAUSE IT'S ANONYMOUS, EACH PERSON GETS ONE VOTE.

AND THEN WHEN THE WINNING CHAPTER GETS PUBLISHED AND THEN THEY GET MIXED UP INTO A NEW TEAM, SUDDENLY THEY THOUGHT THEY WERE TAKING IT IN ONE DIRECTION BUT THEY HAVE TO BASE IT ON ANOTHER.

>> Emily: WELL, GOOD LUCK TO YOU.

SOUNDS LIKE YOU'RE TAKING IT TO ANOTHER SCHOOL.

>> WE'RE LAUNCHING IT IN SEPTEMBER AND LAUNCHING IT IN SEPTEMBER, AND MY GOAL IS WE GET KIDS COMPETING IN SAN DIEGO.

>> Emily: AGAINST KIDS --

>> ALL PIECE IT TOGETHER.

>> Emily: THAT'S RIGHT.

CHRIS AND KALYANI, THANK YOU SO MUCH.

TOMORROW NIGHT THE WEEK IN REVIEW AND THAT ALL STARTS AT NOON, FOLLOWED BY CALLIE CROSSLEY AT 1:00.

AND THEN BEAT THE PRESS, ELIOT SPITZER IS HIRED FOR A NEW POSITION.

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