Usually I’m more of a ‘write by the seat of your pants’ kind of author. I recently came up with a story idea that would require a bit more planning than usual, mostly in the form of a map and some cool creatures. Naturally, there will be other information to plan, such as who the main characters will be, but that will come once I start writing.
This morning I was babysitting my nephews while my brother and sister-in-law were packing their house to move. Having two, three, or four little boys around, along with my own children, getting their help with my planning was too good an opportunity to pass up. My nephews love hearing my stories and also enjoy being part of the writing process, so I knew they would be up for the challenge of helping me plan my story.
Four year old Wes working on a map
My four year old nephew had a wonderful time with a giant post-it-note working on a map, complete with drawings of all the creatures we wanted to include. My other nephews had a wonderful time drawing a mixture of wonderful creatures for me.
My 16 year old got out his sketch book and started drawing some amazing illustrations for me. He has some real talent and you may see some of his illustrations in the books. Some of his illustrations were in 3…2…1…Done!.
Now that the basic plan for my story is taking shape, with the help of these amazing boys, I just need to get writing!
