Have you ever wondered “what if”? What if magic were real? What if mythical creatures were real?
What if you’re not actually human?
What if you're not actually human? Click To TweetI’m sure you’re starting to gather from the nature of my articles that these are definitely thoughts that cross my mind!
I’m frequently asked where I came up with the idea for my book Dreams of Beautiful Whisper, and to be honest, I never really have a particularly good answer. It’s just something that kind of happened.
But the question plays in the back of my mind and I’ve been coming to the conclusion that it likely came from years of fantasizing about these very “what if” ideas.
When I was a child I loved the Smurfs. I had (ok let’s be honest, I still have…. Yes at 42) a life size Papa Smurf stuffy. Well life size to a 6 year old! I also had a much smaller (and less scary) Smurfette stuffy.
We lived in a rural area just outside of the city of Calgary, Alberta, and when we would go to the city there was a farm on the outskirts that had this tiny little building. I’ve since learned that this little house was the cover for some gas pipes, or maybe a well head. But as a child my grandparents convinced me that it was a house for “the little people”.
Well Smurfette went missing one day and I was super upset. My grandparents convinced me not to worry, that she had simply gone to visit “the little people”.
Months later, a once loved, but since forgotten, Smurfette reappeared. Terribly dirty, but fully intact. An occurrence which my grandparents latched onto to solidify their story that Smurfette had simply been on a journey to visit “the little people”.
I suppose this was the start of my secret desires and beliefs that such things COULD be real!
Fast forward a couple decades (yeah ok, three), and my dormant childhood “what if” ponderings resurfaced with an urgency that couldn’t be ignored.
What would it be like to be an Elf? Elegant and regal and magical? What if, one day I were to find out that my life as I knew it wasn’t the full story? What if I had 74 years of a past that I couldn’t remember, along with a twin sister (another childhood dream and many hours of pretending I did have a twin… I got really good at fast wardrobe changes in an attempt to convince neighbourhood friends!)?
So many of these scenarios have taken on a life of their own in my books. One might think that it’s a great way to get such whimsical thoughts out of my head, but I fear it has simply made them grow! (Ok I don’t fear it, I love it actually!)
One of the best compliments that I’ve received from a reader is that by the end of the first book they very much wished that THEY were an Elf! How delightful!
I know for myself, that I do very much love the idea of so many mythical possibilities being real in our lives.
Of course there are many dangers that could also potentially surface if all things mythical were in fact real, and there are considerations of what it would do to life as we know it if they were. These considerations are the premise for many of my weekly articles, I find them quite fun to explore!
So what are some of your childhood “what if” fantasies? Did you dream of being an Elf? Of having magic? Of being a time traveler? Being able to talk to animals? Oh there really are so many “what if” scenarios that can bring the imagination to life!
What if your deepest, mythical desire were real? Click To TweetWhat do you think your life would be like if your deepest, mythical “what if” desire were to become reality?