Laura loved stories.   Every evening when her mom came down the hall to tuck her in tight, Laura would recount as many occasions of her day as she could recall in her little mind.   She would exaggerate, of course - embellish on dialogue when she felt it necessary and include tiny details that may or may not have actually been based on fact.   Her audience, including both her mother and numerous stuffed animals, gave her their full attention from start to finish, even inserting the proper amount of " ooohs " and " ahhhs ."   But after Laura had remembered all that she could possibly remember and was left with nothing else to share, she would finally quiet down.   Now it was her turn to listen.

Up to this point, Laura's mother would be waiting patiently with Laura's favorite companion, a shabby, pink-spotted stuffed rabbit named Funnybunny.   Funnybunny's ears would perk up when he finally heard silence, for this is how he knew that he alone had the stage.   Each time a new tale was told:   Funnybunny's short stint as a tightrope walker in the circus, Funnybunny's fabulous vacation to the charming country of Italy, Funnybunny's clever escape from the department store where he had been trapped so very long ago - the possibilities were always endless.   Night after night, Laura drank in every single word that Funnybunny uttered; she insisted that he "knew absolutely everything there was to ever know" and wished that she had such wonderful knowledge and exciting experiences to share with others.  

But as Laura got older, her mother's inventive stories began to die away.   Laura had, she thought, grown up, and grown-ups, she claimed, did not talk with silly, old stuffed toys.   One day she told her mother that this was so.   The very same night after the little girl was kissed on her forehead and tucked in tight, Laura's mom found Funnybunny facedown on the carpet.   She picked him up from the floor where he lay and placed him on Laura's bookshelf.   There he sat, a bit lopsided but still wearing his worn, knowing smile, for quite some time.  

It was not until a very long while after this moment that Laura began to put her own thoughts down on paper.   She wrote of her own life, she made up fiction, and she even created poems.   But nothing seemed to work!   Something, she felt, was missing.   Before touching pen to paper one evening, Laura searched her room, hoping for inspiration, when her gaze suddenly jumped to the old rabbit on the bookcase.   Laura dusted off Funnybunny and took a good long look at him, when suddenly all her mother's past stories came rushing back to her mind.   Laura felt like she was six years old again when she felt something finally click within her.   It was at this point that Laura decided she would write children's books.  

Laura effortlessly wrote of Funnybunny's many adventures.   She told of his trip to the zoo, his quick run-in with the President of the United States, his great grand slam against the New York Yankees, and more.   Laura even invented her own characters and stories and eventually became a very successful author, all thanks to her old rabbit.   See, Funnybunny taught Laura an important lesson that she kept with her ever since, story after story.   Just because she had, at some point, grown up did not mean that she had to wholly outgrow her childhood.   It is quite a well-known fact that even some adults have stuffed animals!   So Laura remembered to revisit the curiosity, the excitement, and so many other feelings left from her six-year-old self every time she began writing one of her stories.   And if Laura ever forgot, Funnybunny, still wearing his knowing smile, was always around to remind her.

Formal Explanation

The above is an example of what I most want to use as my main vehicle for writing:   children's literature.   So far, I realize that my writing experience has been a fairly limited one; I have only just now begun to think of my work as a truly creative process.   But, as depicted, I plan to pursue this practice from now on.   When I look back at the end of my lifetime, I want to know that I have seized each and every opportunity presented to me in order to share my writing with others, specifically children.

I wish for my writing not only to entertain, but also to inspire and teach its audience.   I consider these to be my highest long-term motives for writing.   I view children's literature as a means of entertainment and thus want children to really enjoy what I write.   My writing needs to be relatively easy for kids to relate to and must consist of a good storyline.   However, an interesting plot alone will not help me to attain all that I feel is necessary.   Therefore, I also wish to inspire children to think creatively and actively seek their goals.   Just as the main character of my story, Laura, is motivated by her mother's inventive stories, I want children to be inspired by my writing.   So many times a child's creativity is stifled by the stipulations of our society; my writing will encourage rather than hinder this imagination, for I feel that it is one of the most important characteristics a child can possess.   It is also my hope that, when children read my books, they are inspired to pursue their dreams.   In the above story, for example, Laura's wish to become a writer is pursued until she is, at the end, successful.   Finally, I want each of my books to teach a lesson that children can take with them.   Laura learned that, just because she had become older, she did not have to entirely outgrow her childhood.   Not only was she able to keep her beloved stuffed animal, but she also realized the importance of retaining such childlike (but valuable) qualities as playfulness and passion.      

  Through writing children's literature, I hope to entertain, inspire and teach each and every child who picks up one of my books.   I, along with countless others, have gained a new perspective to the world around me through such noteworthy books as Dr. Seuss' The Sneetches and Margery Williams' The Velveteen Rabbit .   I hope that my writing is someday able to attain this same level in order to help children to gain new understanding.