Sandra R. Andersson
I got the first glimpse of this story at a course in writing for children, many years ago. The assignment was to write the first chapter in a chapter book, and I didn't even know what that was at the time.
I started writing and there he was: Konrad, sitting on a bench outside the principal's office, waiting for a reprimand. I had no idea what he had done to get there, or who he was, and when he found the sunglasses I had no idea what they could do.
This was the last assignment of the course, and then I went back to work and forgot all about writing for a while. But I kept thinking about this boy over the years, and about the sunglasses and the strange painting that I discovered on the wall when I wrote another few pages.
Eventually, I realized that I needed to find out what this story was about, and I applied for another writing course, using my first chapter as a sample of my work. The course was held at Astrid Lindgren's childhood home Näs in Vimmerby, and the atmosphere there along with the other participants' confidence in my writing (because I didn't have any myself) were essential in the writing of this book. That place is magic, and if you ever get a chance to go there, take it!
I started writing and there he was: Konrad, sitting on a bench outside the principal's office, waiting for a reprimand. I had no idea what he had done to get there, or who he was, and when he found the sunglasses I had no idea what they could do.
This was the last assignment of the course, and then I went back to work and forgot all about writing for a while. But I kept thinking about this boy over the years, and about the sunglasses and the strange painting that I discovered on the wall when I wrote another few pages.
Eventually, I realized that I needed to find out what this story was about, and I applied for another writing course, using my first chapter as a sample of my work. The course was held at Astrid Lindgren's childhood home Näs in Vimmerby, and the atmosphere there along with the other participants' confidence in my writing (because I didn't have any myself) were essential in the writing of this book. That place is magic, and if you ever get a chance to go there, take it!
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