Text-Types-Diary

2. DIARY ENTRY
                             

- Start : Dear diary,

- Include  the date.

- Daily routine's not enough
- A good diary entry should contain thoughts, feelings, reflections, in secret, in confidence
- Diaries are private
- The 'direct address' technique allows you to talk to your diary as 'you'
- The writer's opinions give structure to the writing rather than the events themselves
- Start with a phrase or exclamation or rhetorical question to focus the reader on the main event you       wish to relate
- The language and ideas should sound fresh/spontaneous . Very colloquial . Idioms.
- Basic rules of paragraphing apply
- Finish with a final thought or question
- 1st person perspective
- Writing in character, reflect on the personality/mood of the diary writer
- Key tenses - narrative tenses (past/present perfect/conditionals)

Example

March 4, 2012

Dear Diary,

Today was a little better. I texted Sarah last night asking if she wanted to have lunch with me today, just the two of us, and she said sure. I told her that just because I’m hanging out with Jane, it doesn’t change anything about our friendship. After all, we’ve been friends since first grade! She said that she knows that, but she just felt like the third wheel because she doesn’t think that Jane likes her and because Jane and I have a lot of classes together. I told her not to worry about what Jane thought and that I’d talk to her about it. Sarah felt a lot better, and after we both cried a little, we spent the rest of lunch catching up on the latest gossip, which I missed!  

During English, I talked to Jane about what Sarah said. She said that it’s not that she doesn’t like Sarah; she just thinks that she gets too worked up about things sometime, like her breakup with Nick. I explained why Sarah was so upset about it and how Nick had cheated on her, which Jane didn’t know, and she felt bad for saying mean things about Sarah. I think Jane’s really cool, but I wish she wouldn’t assume things about people. I’m worried she was saying mean things about Sarah to our other friends when she didn’t know the truth. She sometimes likes to spread rumors even when she doesn’t know if they’re true.  

I thought it would be fun for the three of us to get some coffee after school and try to make everything better. I’m not sure how well that worked, because even though Jane was trying really hard to be nice to Sarah, I could tell that Sarah was being really fake with Jane. When I texted Sarah later, she said everything was fine, but I know her well enough to know that’s not completely true.

::Sigh:: Oh well. I’m not her mom, and I can’t force her to feel anything. It just frustrates me because I don’t want things to change between us...

We’ll see what happens. I have to get some math homework done now!  

Night!

Kate