Every day, I love opening my mailbox to see letters from my young readers nestled inside. Their notes come in from all over the country and world - and in case their authors are wondering, I do read all of them and try to respond to each one in a timely manner. Nothing beats a handwritten note; email will never replace the art of handwriting. Personality shines through differently on paper than it does on a computer screen. So, keep those letters coming.
Many of my readers are aspiring writers, and they usually ask for advice on going pro. Sometimes they include samples of their work: short stories, poems, and so on; one eleven-year-old sent me a bound, illustrated manuscript over 100 pages long! It was very impressive.
A few weeks ago, a ten-year-old named Annabella Nootebos of British Columbia sent me a letter and included a graphical short story in the envelope. It delighted me so much that I asked her permission to reprint it here. “Diary of a Sapling” tells the tale of a young tree’s early experiences in the world. Click on this link to see the full story:
It is a very bold and sophisticated work for such a young writer: told in the first person with humor, quirkiness, and confidence; such a definitive voice! I also loved how the design was mocked up to resemble a book. There’s also quite a bit of gallows humor there; Miss Nootebos is my kind of girl.
I hope you enjoy her story. In the meantime, I will offer to other young aspiring authors the advice I gave to Miss Nootebos: a writer’s job is to notice things about the world that no one else sees, and then describe those things beautifully and effectively. Observing the details is your job.
And above all: practice, practice, practice—and then practice some more.
- lmmb
