Creative writing with Julia Donaldson

Primary Times chats with Julia Donaldson, famous author of The Gruffalo and countless others children’s books, to get her expertise on how we can inspire young minds to write creatively!

Julia Donaldson CBE is an English writer, playwright, performer, writer, playwright, performer, and the 2011–2013 Children’s

Laureate. She is best known for her popular rhyming stories for children, especially those illustrated by Axel Scheffl er, which includes The Gruff alo,

Room on the Broom and Stick Man, and Lydia Monk who illustrated Sharing a Shell illustrated Sharing a Shell and What The Ladybird Heard.

Juliaʻs Past and Present Writing

As a child, Julia dabbled in her own creative writing. “I grew up in a house with my parents, aunt, uncle and my grandparents. My grandmother always used to save me big brown envelopes to write on. My fi rst story, I recall, was about a wizard who lost his tail. I remember at school writing a story about a rabbit. An orange rabbit running away from a farmer, perhaps theirs a liמּ le bit of Beatrix Poמּ er in there?” My latest book, and all my books really, are still similar in nature to those I wrote while at primary school.”

Julia continues to write many children’s books. In 2020, she wrote her fourth book in the Ladybird series, entitled, ‘What the Ladybird Heard at the Seaside’. “In every book (in the Ladybird series)there’s this comic duo, Lanky Len and Heﬞ y Hugh who are bungling robbers who always have a plan to steal something. In this latest book they are trying to cut off a mermaid’s hair and sell it to a wealthy famous star. The ladybird gets the seaside animals to thwart the plan. The fi rst two ladybird books have noises, and the latest book has sounds from the sea. The book is illustrated beautifully by Lydia Monk who has illustrated a number of my books now. In fact, the idea of the fi rst Ladybird book came aﬞ er Lydia and I worked on our book Sharing a Shell and she suggested that we work on a book about farmyard animals, so while on a walk with my son we came up with the Heﬞ y Hugh and Lanky Len characters.”

Inspire Writing

With her own childhood perspectives and her talent for writing children’s fi ction, Julia tells us that, to help a writing children’s fi ction, Julia tells us that, to help a child get into the fl ow of writing, they could child get into the fl ow of writing, they could start out writing scripts as they are a less start out writing scripts as they are a less descriptive, plot focused, and fast form descriptive, plot focused, and fast form of creative writing. “I think children of creative writing. “I think children love to write short plays. I know love to write short plays. I know I did when I was younger, as it’s I did when I was younger, as it’s actually easier to write a play than a actually easier to write a play than a book. You don’t have to write all the book. You don’t have to write all the descriptive parts with a play like descriptive parts with a play like you do with a book.” you do with a book.”

If the creative juices just aren’t fl owing just aren’t fl owing however, Julia advises that,

“children could take an already wellknown story and characters, say the three liמּ le pigs, and just create a play about them doing something.”For parents its important to encourage creative writing to help develop literacy skills and inspire creative writing to help develop literacy skills and inspire imagination. As the 2011-2013 Children’s Laureate, Julia has spent a lot of time promoting reading and writing in many schools and libraries across the UK. During this time she has created her own tips that adults can use to help encourage children’s writing. “When I was a working with children, I would ask them to create a character and give the character a problem. Then make the problem get worse before it gets beמּ er. Don’t make the problem get worse before it gets beמּ er. Don’t solve the problem too soon, or maybe trying to solve it solve the problem too soon, or maybe trying to solve it gets worse, and then come up with ways the problem gets worse, and then come up with ways the problem gets solved. Following this fl ow can help channel the gets solved. Following this fl ow can help channel the creativity. It’s very hard to create a plot but a child’s creativity. It’s very hard to create a plot but a child’s imagination can run wild and I would say let the child imagination can run wild and I would say let the child write about whatever they want to write about without write about whatever they want to write about without laying down the law to them.”

Between Light and Dark

Children’s literature can be quite dark and scary at times, such as The Gruff alo and The Stick Man. Julia has been able to fi nd that balance of light and dark in her writing and creates twists and writing and creates twists and turns that make for exciting tales. “Well I think all stories are like this, not just children stories, and this, not just children stories, and that’s what makes them interesting. that’s what makes them interesting. If you can take the character out of their comfort zone, say when they’re of their comfort zone, say when they’re threatened, and they have to pick their wits against an threatened, and they have to pick their wits against an opponent and oﬞ en things get worse before they get beמּ er - because it would be a bit boring if things got beמּ er - because it would be a bit boring if things got solved right away. So I feel that’s the nature of all good solved right away. So I feel that’s the nature of all good stories. There needs to be a dark or threatening aspect, but with all my children’s stories the bad element gets conquered. I think kids like being scared to some extent, my own children were riveted by the troll and three billy my own children were riveted by the troll and three billy goats gruff .

I remember my sister and I had a book of Greek myths, tangle wood tales, Jason and the Golden Fleece and tangle wood tales, Jason and the Golden Fleece and there was a picture of the cut fl eece hanging on a tree next to a serpent and we were intrigued by it but also next to a serpent and we were intrigued by it but also terrifi ed and fascinated.”

The Woolly Bear Caterpillar is the newest children’s The Woolly Bear Caterpillar is the newest children’s book wriמּ en by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by book wriמּ en by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Yuval Zommer (Macmillan Children’s Books, £12.99)