Last May, I think it was, I attended the book launch of a local museum themed anthology, and learned that the publisher was now looking for New Zealand Christmas themed stories. For children.
“For kids, huh?” I thought, rubbing my hands confidently (nearly gloatingly, I have to admit). Never mind the fact that (a) I’m not particularly fond of Christmas stories – I generally find them pretty naff, or (b) I’d never attempted to write for kids before. So I sat down, full of self-assuredness, and wrote….
Well, I tried to write. Mostly I did a lot deleting and a lot of despairing. I did actually come up with two Christmas themed stories, but whether they were suitable for kids was another matter entirely. I sent them off, not at all hopeful, and was soon sent the polite rejection letter.
However, I like to think that a good story will never be wasted. You can always go back, refine, re-do, re-think. I ditched the whole “this is a kids’ story” and wrote the better of the two as I’d like to read it. It’s called A Christmas Letter. (The other failed story will never leave its folder again, and hopefully not be read by anyone ever, and let’s not mention it okay?).
And walla! Here is A Christmas Letter, in Splickety Prime’s 3.4 Issue. Digital copies are purchasable for $2.99, or buy the print version!
And yes… mine is the one that involves present eating piranhas. It’s a lesson about what happens when you piss off the elves.
I. K. Paterson 
Leave a Reply