I have been devouring this for the past week. It’s one of those books I’ve immediately come to treasure, and know I will return to over and over again. At its simplest, it is a guide to creative storytelling for children… But more than that, it’s a book that bubbles with energy, trills with melodic wisdom, and provides insight in such a beautiful and utterly inspiring way (not to mention, all the lush illustrations by Matthew Forsythe). You can’t help but want to draw and write, when reading this.
From Chapter Four, “The Fantastic Binomial”:
We have seen the birth of the fantastic—as the starting point for a story—originate from a single word. But this is an optical illusion more than anything else. In reality, one electrical pole is not enough to cause a spark; it takes two. The single word “acts” only when it encounters a second that provokes it out of its unusual tracks to discover new possibilities of meaning. Where there is no struggle, there is no life.
What synchronicity, that on the same day I read those words, I stumbled upon a little drawing challenge of imaginary flowers hosted by the talented artist Estee Zales, incorporating those very principles. I’ve been thoroughly enjoying taking a break from the usual, to create a few nonsensical doodles… This was my creation for Day 5, pairing flower with…shoes! (Well, cowboy boots, in this case.)