Workshop: An Introduction to Writing for Children and Young Adults
“So the tale as it is retold on the page should still be pleasing to
the ear.” Jane Yolen
Classics
What to you makes a classic? What is your
favorite classic? What favorite stories did you hunger to read as a child, as a
teenager, as an adult? What do they have in common? What is different?
Common Ground
There are many variations of genre and style
that are listed as classics but they all have some common features. Our books
may never become a classic but if we can study and integrate some of their
characteristics then our stories can carry a stamp of credibility.
Classics attract readers from generation to
generation. Many once began as oral tales such as Tales of King Arthur, One
Thousand and One Nights, Aesop’s Fables and Cinderella. The delivery style
might change but not the core heart of the story.
For example, Cinderella is the most familiar
folktale worldwide with over five hundred variations listed in Europe alone.
According to Wikipedia there are over a thousand known versions. Picture books,
poems, novels, operas and films explore this age-old blueprint, originally told
in the traditional form of an anonymous storyteller.
And we still keep adding to the collection
in both novels and movies.
Classics continue to be read across the centuries
and across cultures. They cross genres as well showing up in historicals,
fantasy, sci-fi, regional and mysteries. How do they engage such a diverse
audience of readers?
One point is the credibility of the
characters. Each of the classics taps into the emotional core of feelings even
when their circumstances are beyond our reality.
Another is the reality of conflict. The
conflict the heroes and heroines experience isn’t manufactured but true to
their own emotional and physical events.
The themes underlying their struggles are
significant and not superficial.
Then the storytellers engage their readers
with their quality of style. They use language and metaphors and pacing that
resonates with their listeners.
Most of the classics have their roots in the
categories of traditional literature such as legends, fairy tales, tall tales
and folklore. Also included are religious stories, songs, fables, myths and
epics.
Action Steps:
1.
Choose
which category listed above one of your favorite classics has roots in and read
some modern adaptations.
2.
Look
for any movies that may be based on your childhood choice.
3.
Make
a list of what has remained the same and what is different?
4.
What
scenes do you still find enthralling? Why?
Share: What is your favorite classic and
why?
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