Writing as Child’s Play, Part 2

Within minutes of the previous post — “Writing as Child’s Play” — this comment from Princess Scribe:

Fantastic article!

If you have not seen it — and most likely you have — there is a YouTube video of a glorious french toddler, telling tales of Winnie the Pooh, hippos, tigers… and crocodiles:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCQZvLPIiVo

Storyteller in the making. May we all be so free.

I checked out the video — and it is incredible! Honestly take 4 minutes of your life to watch it:

See how ingrained storytelling is in the human experience. Even as children, we know the basic elements that comprise a narrative. This little girl’s tale is a case in point:

* Something happens… and then something else happens… and then something else happens…

* Conflict! Conflict! Conflict!

* Surprise

* Danger

* Emotion

* Journey

* Overcoming obstacles

* And a happy ending

I am reminded of a story from my own life, one that was a major inspiration for this blog:

Awhile back the night before I started writing my next screenplay, on a whim I asked my three-year-old son if he had any advice. He looked at me with his huge blue eyes and without hesitation said, “Go into the story, and find the animals.” I laughed — pretty funny. Over time, however, I’ve discovered wisdom in my son’s words. As writers, we do, indeed, go into the stories we create. And the animals? How about characters, plot, theme, dialogue, subtext, and all those other mysterious, magical creatures prowling in the jungle of our imaginations?

Writing can be such a cumbersome task. Sometimes the best thing we can do is get in touch with our inner child… and write from that place. As Princess Scribe says, “May we all be so free.”

What did you gleam from watching that little girl’s story?

A massive H/T to Princess Scribe for forwarding me that link. That totally made my day!

Comment Archive