Welcome to the blog post challenge.

Below is an example of a blog post written by Pie.

Chapter 1 – The Leaving

Finally, they were ready to leave.

That afternoon, a message had arrived with Flame, a robin-carrier, to say that the Gorm were only a few miles away from Steepwater Warren. No one would be safe. The old warren’s tunnels had been built many a Bramblemas day ago and were too rickety. Its walls were too sandy to withstand an onslaught. Its rooms would never survive an attack from the Gorm.

So it was that the three little rabbits, Pipkin, Pasco and baby Prue, left home. Their journey to safety would take at least a week but first they would have to pass through the forest of Darkwater and cross the Fiery Hills until they reached the rock caves of Splinter Holm. Even the Gorm could not enter that mighty warren, carved in the mountainside by rabbits so long ago that they had passed into the old stories that only the Bards now knew. Once the rabbits reached their destination, they would be safe. Other rabbits from their warren had chosen to travel elsewhere but Pipkin’s mother had given them an ancient map that showed the old paths, mostly hidden from unwanted eyes and glances. Too old to travel, she had stayed behind, hiding in the woods.

Clutching the ancient map, the little band of brave rabbits struggled over the rope bridge that crossed the dark waters of the Grimheart River. Soon they were in the forest, wending their way towards what they hoped would mean safety. Tall trees towered overhead as they followed the ancient rabbit pathways.  Cautiously, Pipkin took the lead. Tugging his fur-lined cloak closer, he trudged on as the winter winds swept snow across the landscape. Wherever he looked, he imagined the sharp, red eyes of wolves, shadows of bandits and perhaps the steely weapons of the Gorm.

Trailing behind Pipkin, Pasco held onto baby Prue’s paw. Wearily, they tried to follow in the footsteps of their elder brother. Pasco made it like a game for Prue but soon, his paw was frozen and she could feel him shivering. As the sun began to fade and the shadows of the forest drew in, she made Pipkin halt so that they could build a shelter. Together, they dragged branches to an oak tree and soon had built a lean-to hut. Pipkin packed the gaps with moss until it was weather-proof. Pasco lit the stump of a candle and the shelter began to warm.

That night, they ate slices of dried apple, oatcakes and nibbled at the clover bread and stoat cheese that their mother had packed. Prue was soon fast asleep, snuggled between his older brother and sister. Carefully, Pipkin tugged some branches across the front of their shelter, hoping it would be enough to hide them from prying eyes.

As Pipkin drifted into sleep, his mind swirled with dreams of the metallic clank of the Gorm, moving through the darkness like a relentless wave of fear. Would they ever reach the safety of Splinter Holm?

©Pie Corbett 2021

A Fight for Space

Chapter 1.

Meet Amber, Willow and Arthur.  They all are Lop-eared rabbits, and their little lives are about to change. They live at Cenoursvile Warren – a happy, big, warming and safe warren; well it used to be.

One day, a dove came bearing news that the moles had been sighted, and that they were coming, and that their worst nightmares were about to come true. Except there was one problem: the Warren could not hold another fight as it was built many moons ago, by the first rabbits that walked the land. Their mum, Alana, told them to run far away, and ask for assistance from Boing Boing burrow from the fierce, blood-thirsty, red-eyed rabbits that eat danger for breakfast. This journey would take at least a week, and it wasn’t going to be easy. They would have to travel through a dark, gloomy, betraying forest and sneak through Coelchashire then wade through Leisure Lake to see the moles cunning plan.

Through their tears, the three rabbits ran for their lives. Their mother was too old to travel, so stayed behind and hid in the forest. Soon the sun set, and the weary little rabbits set up camp in the heart of the gloomy wild willow; those willows had been the heart of war stories; they had been used for hiding from the enemies for years. And with that, Arthur made a tipi-like structure. Meanwhile Willow and Amber went to collect some wood, leaves and moss to help set a fire, carefully marking the trees ensuring, that they could return to Arthur. These materials would make the tipi weather-proof. After that, Arthur covered the entrance to stop the piercing gaze of the moles.

That night, they nibbled on the green beans, carrots and bananas that their mother had packed for them in case of emergency. After that, the three rabbits snuggled together as if they were in a storm. They slowly drifted off to sleep and dreamt of the day to come, not knowing what they were about to face.

by Martha yr5 -Thrussington Primary School.

You can listen to Pie reading this using the player below.

Use the form below to write your poem and then submit it so it can be ready and commented on by a much wider audience.

Writing Tips

• Always check your work before submitting;
• Type your work into a separate document and save it before using copy and paste to submit;
• Don’t use coloured text, it’s hard to read;
• Don’t use emojis and text speech;
• Don’t use the spacebar to move to the next line-use the return key;
• Always stick to the task, we won’t publish stories and poems not related to the instructions.

Please record your text by using the Padlet below. Here are some brief instructions on how you can use Padlet to capture your voice:

 Audio