Writing is fun. It's that simple.
The entire process of conceiving a story and developing characters is a wonderful journey - and a journey whose ending is never quite certain until the final keystroke
A story typically starts with nothing more than a concept - or a handful of concepts. With these in hand, I simply let my imagination fill in the details. For example, my first book, “Not Everyone Is Nice,” is a fictionalized account of a young child’s brief encounter with a suspicious stranger. It was written as an ice-breaker for parents and children to discuss this difficult topic.
It started with a search for a book on this subject for my own children. Not pleased with the selection, I decided to write one of my own. I was immediately drawn to the concept of nature as a metaphor for strangers: beautiful creatures that are nonetheless dangerous. With this concept in my mind, I set about creating a story and characters. I decided to write the story from the first-person perspective of a child. It was foremost in my mind that it not be frightening and that it end on the positive note that lots of people are really nice. In sum, the handful of concepts form which this book sprung was “nature,” “first-person” and “not frightening.” Concepts in hand, the real fun begins - writing!
Once I am happy with a story, I love sharing it. If a child can enjoy a book, talk about it, and take some meaning from that story into her life, what more could an author ask? Books from my childhood still touch my life today. Who can forget Margery William’s The Velveteen Rabbit? It contains some of the most beautiful dialogues ever committed to paper. Ms. Williams taught me the importance of characters’ thoughts and conversations. The Skin Horse’s explanation of what make you “real” is simply perfection. When I wrote Tommy and the Striped Triceratops and the critical conversations between Tommy and his mentor Alexander, Margery was certainly whispering in my ear.
Lastly, there is the joy of something written just right – little gems within the story. When I read a good book, I sometimes feel compelled to re-read a passage just because it captures a thought, an image, or a concept so marvelously. What a tribute to the author! Words that, like fine art, draw you back to them again and again. As this is written, I have just finished my first draft of The Fix it Shop: A Small Town Story. It is a chapter book about an odd little man and the mysterious little repair shop he opens up in a small town – a place where the “fixes” seem to extend well beyond the items repaired. While there is still much editing to do, let me share one of my favorite passages:
Before too long, all of the children in Taconic New York, and a few of the grown-ups too, understood that very special things were happening in Ed’s Fix-It-Shop, things that could probably be explained logically if you thought real hard about them. But if you didn’t think too hard, they were just wonderful.
Always have room in you life for the wonderful! Thanks for reading.
-RA
A story typically starts with nothing more than a concept - or a handful of concepts. With these in hand, I simply let my imagination fill in the details. For example, my first book, “Not Everyone Is Nice,” is a fictionalized account of a young child’s brief encounter with a suspicious stranger. It was written as an ice-breaker for parents and children to discuss this difficult topic.
It started with a search for a book on this subject for my own children. Not pleased with the selection, I decided to write one of my own. I was immediately drawn to the concept of nature as a metaphor for strangers: beautiful creatures that are nonetheless dangerous. With this concept in my mind, I set about creating a story and characters. I decided to write the story from the first-person perspective of a child. It was foremost in my mind that it not be frightening and that it end on the positive note that lots of people are really nice. In sum, the handful of concepts form which this book sprung was “nature,” “first-person” and “not frightening.” Concepts in hand, the real fun begins - writing!
Once I am happy with a story, I love sharing it. If a child can enjoy a book, talk about it, and take some meaning from that story into her life, what more could an author ask? Books from my childhood still touch my life today. Who can forget Margery William’s The Velveteen Rabbit? It contains some of the most beautiful dialogues ever committed to paper. Ms. Williams taught me the importance of characters’ thoughts and conversations. The Skin Horse’s explanation of what make you “real” is simply perfection. When I wrote Tommy and the Striped Triceratops and the critical conversations between Tommy and his mentor Alexander, Margery was certainly whispering in my ear.
Lastly, there is the joy of something written just right – little gems within the story. When I read a good book, I sometimes feel compelled to re-read a passage just because it captures a thought, an image, or a concept so marvelously. What a tribute to the author! Words that, like fine art, draw you back to them again and again. As this is written, I have just finished my first draft of The Fix it Shop: A Small Town Story. It is a chapter book about an odd little man and the mysterious little repair shop he opens up in a small town – a place where the “fixes” seem to extend well beyond the items repaired. While there is still much editing to do, let me share one of my favorite passages:
Before too long, all of the children in Taconic New York, and a few of the grown-ups too, understood that very special things were happening in Ed’s Fix-It-Shop, things that could probably be explained logically if you thought real hard about them. But if you didn’t think too hard, they were just wonderful.
Always have room in you life for the wonderful! Thanks for reading.
-RA
© 2011 Frederick Alimonti. All Rights Reserved.
