Storyteller's Journey

My Literary Memories

When I think back to some of my favorite books as a young reader several come to mind. The three featured in this post also inspired me to be a writer.

Pippi Longstocking introduced me to a world where being an unconventional child was not only okay, but it was also fun and inspirational. Pippi was the earliest character to encourage me to be myself. Later in life, learning about author Astrid Lindgren inspired me as a writer.

Of all the books I read as a child, Heidi was my very favorite. My mother's copy of Heidi is the very book I read. (It sits proudly on my mother's fireplace mantel to this day.) There was something that pulled at my heartstrings about the young girl who had been orphaned, and was raised by relatives, until she finally found a home in the Swiss mountains with "Alm-Uncle." The little orphaned girl's love and kindness eventually warmed the heart of the angry mountain man. Heidi was the first novel I ever read.

Like so many female writers, I can directly connect my love of writing - and reading - to Louisa May Alcott's, Little Women. It's difficult to explain just what it was about this American classic that so captured a generation of young readers so long ago, or why it still does. For me, reading about the simple life of a family during the Civil War was a big part of what drew me in to the plot. Reading this coming-of-age novel in my fifth-grade year seemed to turn my life on a dime. After reading Little Women, I began journaling and writing poetry...and I've never stopped.

As I embark on the process of publishing my novel with a young female protagonist, these three books are never far from my mind. Each one seems to echo in my soul. The dream isn't to just write a successful book, but one that is meaningful. Like these books were to me.