The Idea of an Essay, Volume 3

Narrative & Memoir 69 to create a story of my own that is both thrilling and masterful. I long to write a novel that will make its readers feel the same way I do about my favorite books. I have so many ideas for tales of adventure, fantasies peppered with magical creatures, enticing page turners, thrillers, scenes of heart wrenching sorrow, and passages describing immense joy. Yet these are only ideas. Not only that, but they are undeveloped, raw material. How in the world am I going to turn these into fictional stories with real-life scenarios and a meaningful message? When faced with this momentous task, my excitement fades imperceptibly. My determination cracks at the edges. This task, I find is not easy at all! It is nearly impossible to pluck from the air a perfectly well-developed character, and a structured, flawless plotline. In fact, it is impossible, because no one except God is a perfect writer. No author, however experienced and talented, puts together a novel overnight. I must slowly grasp this concept, and realize that if I want a polished masterpiece, I will have to work for it. As I examine my situation in life, I find that I am not without resources. As part of our school curriculum, my brother and I use a program called Omnibus, a literature, history, philosophy and Bible course. We read books and then discuss them, answering questions provided by the textbook. We have read epic poems such as Gilgamesh, Inferno, and Beowulf; classics, including Dorothy Sayers’ The Nine Tailors, Robin Hood, and The Chronicles of Narnia; books of the Bible (Genesis, Romans, James); and even some history books, considered the first of their kind—Herodotus’ History, Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English People, and Eusebius’ The Church History. Reading and discussing these ancient works has given me new knowledge and insight, and stretched my thinking, reasoning, and writing capabilities. This course has definitely been instrumental in my level of literacy and a great asset to my goals of being a writer. Undoubtedly, the person who has had the most influence on my reading and writing thus far is my mother. She taught me how to read in the first place. Once I had a basic understanding of the phonetic structure of our English language, I took off. I read book after book. Mom has faithfully supplied me with reading material for years, sometimes going out of her way to find new books in preparation for an upcoming road trip. On some occasions, she