Three Feet of Trouble began as a short little story that took up just three small pages in my pretty pink writer's notebook. It was more of a sketch than a story, but it was cute. Originally written as a submission to a writing contest run by Dandelion Press, it was inspired by Lori Preusch's painting, Once Upon a Time (I could not find a link to the original painting, but I found one to Lori's Magical Storybook cover art, which features the painting, Once Upon a Time).
I typed up this three page story sketch, and began editing it for blog publication, intending to use the rather boring name The Girl and the Library. In the original version, the main character (Indira) had a pet grizzly named Lionel (if you clicked the link to the storybook cover art, you would have seen a bear in the picture the link takes you to.)
"Did you ever see such a bear!" Huckleberry Finn ejaculated, accidentally bumping our grouchy friend, The Tightwad Gazette.
When I began editing the story sketch, I realized that Lionel, the grizzly, wasn't particularly necessary to the story. He was only there because the Once Upon a Time painting included a grizzly. So poor Lionel was cut completely from the story.
As I reread, chopped characters, and edited, I began to ask more and more questions about The Girl and the Library. Check out this snippet:
"'Oh,' Alice In Wonderland breathed, 'It's a girl.'
"And indeed it was. The library seemed to brighten when The Girl entered it."
Why is Alice In Wonderland so excited that there is a girl in the library? Aren't girls, or people in general, for that matter, common occurrences in libraries? Apparently not in this library. In Three Feet of Trouble, I answered this question with another question. You'll have to read Three Feet of Trouble to hear what Treasure Island and The Tightwad Gazette have to say about the girl's presence in the library. It will make you ask even more questions.
"Oh well, her [Indira's] family had moved into their sprawling ancestral home. She would have all the time in the world to read these dear old books."
Why has Indira's family moved into this house? How come they haven't always lived here?
These questions aren't fully answered in Three Feet of Trouble, as Indira never has any family members appear, aside from her "father" and grandfather (hmm...more questions...what happened to the rest of her family...?). Indira does, however, live in Grandfather's old house during the entirety of Three Feet of Trouble's storyline.
"She [Indira] remembered reading these very copies with her grandfather before he died."
What happened to Grandfather? Did he simply die of old age, or did he die in some tragical, devastating accident? Perhaps he was whisked away by some fairytale creature (that's absolutely ridiculous. Don't ask me why I would even suggest something so preposterous!)?
These questions are answered in Three Feet of Trouble, but I cannot tell you how I resolved them, since it would require divulging some rather serious spoilers, and that would never, ever do!
"Leaning against Lionel, she opened her book. In the front, her grandfather had scrawled in his untidy handwriting, Never forget: books are magical. Remember that. I love you always, Indira. XOXO, Grandfather."
Books are magical? Did Indira's grandfather truly believe in magic, or was he just trying to remind his granddaughter of the value stories can hold?
If you take the time to read Three Feet of Trouble, you will see that Indira's grandfather did believe in magic, very much so.
Rereading The Girl and the Library, I found so many questions just begging to be answered. Curious writer that I am, I responded to their desperate pleas.
One thing led to another, and before I knew it, the less than 500 word story had ballooned into a 16,000 word story filled with lots of magic; a few talking books; one very evil little man; a grandfather who is thought to be dead, but isn't; two different worlds connected by a mysterious Black Space; and so much more.
The Girl and the Library became so much more than I ever imagined it would, blossoming into Three Feet of Trouble. And from Three Feet of Trouble, a whole new batch of intriguing questions have sprouted. They're still tumbling around in my brain, begging to be answered on paper. Who knows? Maybe they'll be the seed of my next great story...
If you haven't read Three Feet of Trouble and are curious, here are the links to all four installments. Enjoy!
Three Feet of Trouble - Part One
Three Feet of Trouble - Part Two
Three Feet of Trouble - Part Three
Three Feet of Trouble - Part Four