Debra Tidball is an author with a particular passion for picture books, and she has written a few award-winning ones herself! Her poems, plays and short stories have been published in story collections and The School Magazine. Debra lives in Sydney where she writes with her biggest fan, Archie the French Bulldog, cheering her on.
ANCHORED
My latest picture book is called ANCHORED and it’s for anyone who’s spent time apart from someone they love. It’s about a big ship and little tug boat and the power of love that anchors them together even when separated by oceans. ANCHORED is released today!
It’s illustrated by Arielle Li and published by EK Books.
Hardest thing about writing Anchored!
One of the hardest things about writing the book was making the boats seem ‘human’ so that readers could recognise their own emotions in the boats. It’s called personification, and it’s heaps easier to do if you are personifying animals (especially mammals), as they share a lot of anatomy and feelings with people eg eyes and ears and beating hearts; fear, contentment and excitement.
I knew I was giving Ship and Tug feelings, but I had to work out what other ‘human’ qualities I would give them. I tried to keep with boat terms like engines ‘sparking’ and ‘purring’ to show excitement and contentment, but I couldn’t go past giving them hearts in the end!
Most Fun thing about writing Anchored
The most fun thing about writing Anchored was getting the words just right to convey the emotion needed, and coming up with the concept of the anchor as a metaphor. You might find it surprising that the concept came to me very late in the process, but was a ‘light bulb’ moment that made everything fall into place!
WRITING PROMPTS
- Write down all the different types of boats/ships you can think of.
- Imagine you are a boat, what type would you be?
- What is your purpose? Eg Cargo ships take objects to different places; cruise ships carry people for recreation; Racing yachts are for sport.
- Who or what is on board?
- Where would you go?
- Are you leaving anyone behind or meeting someone at your destination? How do you feel about that?
- At one point in my story, the sea ‘glitters like crystals and jellyfish dance in shimmering shoals.’ What would you see on your trip?
- How does it feel to have the water beneath you? Is it ticklish/massaging/spikey/icy cold?
- How would the water sound?
- At one point in my story, the ‘swell pulses and grows into a wild beast that crashes over’ Ship’s hull. What danger might you run into? Pirates? Sea monsters? Rocks? Storm?
- Use these details as a base of a sea-faring story.
Thanks Debra, love these great writing prompts and your book sounds fabulous. Happy launch day!
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