Monday, April 25, 2011

Case Study: Part 1, IDEA

I have decided to create my own children’s book and publish it online using all the tools and skills I write about in my blog. This is the first article where I will explain my idea and how it came about.

'Catch that Fly' is the name of the story I have written. I grew up on a dairy farm and anyone from a farm will know about the frustration of having a fly inside. My mum would constantly be chasing them around the house trying to either catch them or shoe them out the window. I recently moved home for a while and realised how appropriate this idea was for a children's book.

The idea seemed to work on a comical level, however I need to transform into an interesting meaningful story as well. I drew inspirations from books like 'The Cat in the Hat' where the story revolves around trying to get rid of something. It forms an interesting plot with the ending a celebration because they finally succeed.
  The Cat in the Hat

This seemed to work well for my story. I decided to theme it around a family sitting down to dinner only to discover there is a fly inside. Every member of the family try something different to get rid of the fly then in the end one of them just lets it out the window.

This seemed pretty basic and I felt it needed more layers. I then thought it would be more interesting if as each person tried to catch the fly they broke or ruined part of the dinner. So by the end when the tiny fly finally escapes they are left with a great big mess. This idea that one little fly can cause so much ciaos is quite funny.

I wanted to create a story that was fun to read. As an illustrator I have images in my mind of the scenes as I write them. This story has a lot of action and sets me up to create some very energetic, dynamic illustrations.

I was worried about not having a strong moral within the plot. However I feel that the little fly winning in the end gives the message that the small can win against the big sometimes. I also tied in a line at the end where the family sit down in the mess they have made and still enjoy their dinner. Sending the message that it doesn’t matter if everything is not perfect the dinner still tastes great.

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