Story explanation

My story is about Leon the vole and Rudge the mushroom. Leon is running from a hawk when we meet him. His home has been turned into a human landfill and he's all alone. He doesn't have a family. He reached Burns Bog and meets Rudge, who is a mushroom living in a small group of mushrooms just under the boardwalk. Rudge wants some adventure and he has knowledge of the bog that Leon doesn't have.

When the hawk attacks, Leon hides in the mushrooms, and Rudge gets uprooted. This gives him the excuse (after the hawk has given up) to go with Leon to the centre of the bog, (ahem) I mean to find the other voles and a new safe place for Leon to live. All of the bog animals are going to the centre of the bog (which is an otherworldly place. It's very unique.) to see the Great Sandhill Crane, who only nests there once a year. When he arrives, he grants one wish. Rudge really wants the ability to go anywhere he wants, so he wants "feet."

Rudge and Leon become friends, so Rudge tells him about the Great Sandhill Crane and Leon thinks he'll ask for a home or a family. What they will both find out is that they don't need wishes to get what they want.

The hawk will appear later on to attack them again. There is an urgency to the story about when the crane will arrive. And farther and farther they go, the more animals will appear to them, some helpful and some not. They will make it to the centre and the Great Sandhill Crane will appear.

With the story, there's the idea of safety and home vs adventure. Kids would understand this. Most children are protected by their parents and live in isolated neighbourhoods, but they appreciate adventure and fun in fantasy stories. I chose to do a story about animals and plants because 1. I want kids to learn more about these two things. 2. They personify humans very well, but they don't have the restrictions that humans do, like conventional lives with families, parents, school etc. I didn't want to write a story about a kid in the bog, all alone, making friends with birds and things because the thought of someone alone and lost in the bog is a bit too terrifying. 3. Different animals and plants have their own personalities that are easily identified.

The characters and story comes from other sources that are swirling in my head. A little bit of Narnia, Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, the Secret Garden, every Disney movie, Watership Down, etc. I don't want to be too cliche, but I know that good stories have similar topics and motifs. The idea of someone without a home, the outcast. The idea of friendship and family. The idea of making your dreams come true and getting the thing you want the most, whatever that is. Learning about survival. Learning about danger and the world around you.

And it all comes down to nature and how the world is full of interesting plants and animals that we need to appreciate and help. Also, that these things aren't far away. They are right in your back yard (Burns Bog is just one example).