“I think I’ll call it Bluewall,” she tells me as we drive out to our new house to do some painting. “It’s going to be about all kinds of animals, like mice and rats and weasels and dogs and things. The hero is going to be a squirrel named Rosa.”
“No horses?” I inquire with a glance in the rear view mirror. She is busy sketching out her ideas in the journal she made.
“Oh, yes. Of course there will be horses.”
I smile to see her so enthusiastic about writing. It goes in phases with her. I’d prefer she concentrate a little on finishing up her e-zine she is way overdue on, but I don’t really have time to help her with it right now, anyway.
“Mom, do you think my story is too much like Redwall?”
A story about all sorts of woodland creatures, living in an abbey with a squirrel for a hero? The subtle color change in the name of the abbey likely would not shield her from copyright laws. But I don’t want to dampen her enthusiasm, either.
“That depends, sweetheart. If you tried to sell it or publish it in anyway, yes, it is too similar. But writing just for you? It is just fine. Just make it your own stories about the little creatures.”
She looked up from her book, a little confused.
“Think of it like an artist. People who want to be artists spend a lot of time copying great pieces of art. They find a great master to study under and try to learn all his or her techniques so that they may become masters themselves. Once they have learned to copy, they begin to create their own work and their own masterpieces. It is not wrong to learn by copying. The best way to become a good writer is to read and listen to good writing and your own style will develop out of that.”
She seemed satisfied and went back to her work. We finally got to the house, and while I spent the afternoon painting trim work in the front room, she spent it lost in her tale of little woodland creatures in an abbey with a blue wall. I’m still not sure how she is working in the horses, but she finally seems to be grasping the importance of the setting and how to use the introduction to draw a reader in.
My writer/artist/animal lover daughter is constantly inspired by stories she reads or movies she watches. At least once a day I hear the words, “I’m writing a book about…..” I think you handled that very well.
I did that as a kid, too, but I tended to write sequels or stories about minor characters in the books I enjoyed.
Hi,
My 6 years old son, Albert loves to draw fantastic and powerfull cars. Yesterday, we have studied first pages of one Atlas of the World, for children. We discovered where Santa Claus has the house, in Laponia. Albert drawn a huge submarin that will take us to Laponia. So, who wants to come is wellcome. A lot of amaizing adventures are waiting for us.
Great!, Thank You! That is awesome. I see my daughter the little artist who is making her own books with notebook aper and a stapler. i am so charged by her intelligence and creativity.
Wow that sounds interesting to me. A little genius. Wish her all the best.