My husband, Bob, and I were enjoying our morning coffee recently
when he looked out the window at the fence of live bamboo. I’d planted it to
avoid looking into our neighbor’s living room. And of course, I’d placed
containers in the ground to prevent the plant from spreading outward and
conquering the world, as bamboo likes to do. What caught Bob’s attention was
the height it had achieved. He suggested pruning.
My fiction writer’s imagination immediately went to work and
I recommended getting a couple of panda bears to keep the bamboo trimmed.
“Well, that’d be different, but that’s not what I had in
mind,” he said, looking at me like I’d lost my mind. “Tree trimmers can do the
job.”
It’s moments like this one, where Bob’s practical solution
and my imaginary one remind me fiction writers have vivid imaginations!
In a stream of consciousness, I thought of Lewis Carroll, the
British author, who wrote Alice in Wonderland. Carroll’s creative
mind shines through from cover to cover in the characters, plot, and story. And
it’s a children’s book! Though adults are captivated by its originality
too.
In the story, Alice falls through a rabbit hole into a
wonder-world of anthropomorphic creatures, the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat, the
White Rabbit, and the Queen of Hearts. Alice’s stable and innocent world is
challenged by the adventures she encounters in Wonderland.
Over the years, the story’s meaning has been studied and
debated. Critics suggest Alice showed signs of mental illness, as did other
characters, like the Mad Hatter. Reviewers have even questioned if Carroll was
on drugs when he wrote Alice in Wonderland. While others state the
story is a child’s progression into adulthood.
What we do know is that Carroll’s characters and surreal imagery
have influenced film and literature, especially the fantasy genre.
So where does this lead me? Back to the imagination of fiction
writers. Whether we write steamy romance, espionage, science fiction, cozies, or
mystery thrillers, we often start with a kernel of truth. After that, our creative
mind takes charge. We don’t have to invent anthropomorphic creatures like Lewis
Carroll did. As authors, though, we must create compelling characters!
I take a quick look out the window. My bamboo fence has shot
skyward another six inches. Just since I started writing this blog!
Can you imagine that?
Kathryn’s books –
The Nikki Garcia Thriller series and her short story collection – Backyard
Volcano. Available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B082H96R11
Kathryn Lane started out as a starving
artist. To earn a living, she became a certified public accountant and embarked
on a career in international finance with a major multinational corporation. After
two decades, she left the corporate world to plunge into writing mystery and
suspense thrillers. In her stories, Kathryn draws deeply from her Mexican background as well as her travels
in over ninety countries.
Photo credit:
"The White Rabbit - Alices
Adventures in Wonderland 8671" by Brechtbug is licensed
under CC
BY-NC-ND 2.0
I knew you had a wickedly creative mind --- and that Bob is the straight man for your humor ever since I watched the joy he took in watching you win an award for your writing at KN. Good post.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Debra! You are a great judge of character!
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