When Trolls Whispered Stories: The Birth of a Young Writer

"This is the best story I've ever read from any student in my 30 years of teaching," Mrs. Robinson exclaimed holding up the rough stack of notebook pages stapled together, showcasing my handwritten story.

I was in shock and by the look on her face she was too. I was in the 6th grade and this was the first time in my life anybody had ever told me I was good at something, let alone the best at anything.

I struggled greatly in school. Things that seemed to come so easy to everyone else never came easy to me... until that assignment.

"I want you to write a story. It can be about anything you want but it has to be at least five pages," Mrs. Robinson had told us the week before.

I went home and thought about what I was going to write. I had a deep love of magical realism, where mundane realities get sprinkled with fantasy. I grew up with two very troubled and broken people raising me so the idea that there might be magic around any corner was very appealing. It gave me the hope that there could be something better than the darkness that was around me, if only I could find it.

Harry Potter didn't exist quite yet but I had movies like The Labyrinth and Hocus Pocus to draw inspiration from. I started writing and I by the time I was finished I had a cramped hand and 30 pages of story written down in my Five Star notebook.

My Story was called Troll Bridge and it was about two 12 year old twins who've been tasked with taking their annoying six year old brother Alex trick or treating on Halloween night. They dare him to go sit under the town's covered bridge by himself. It's nicknamed troll bridge because legend has it that trolls will kidnap kids they find under the bridge and take them back to their troll kingdom.

Eager to impress his siblings, Alex accepts their dare. However, when the allotted five minutes is up, the twins are alarmed to find him missing. Suddenly, a mysterious black crow emerges, revealing that the trolls have abducted Alex. Now, they must journey to the troll kingdom to rescue their younger brother.

I wish that I still had this story because it was so special to me. The words came naturally, the characters seamed to develop themselves to the point where I could almost see and hear them interacting with each other. They helped me to feel a little less lonely during a dark childhood. They helped me realize that magic didn't have to be some childish imaginary thing. It was something I could create whenever I wanted, with something as simple as a worn down pencil and a cherished pink Five Star notebook.

As an adult, I yearn to recapture the enchantment of writing, especially in moments when I crave that touch of magic the most. While it seemed effortless in my youth, today I often find myself tangled up in overthinking. Yet, I remain hopeful that with practice, words will flow once more, like old friends inviting me to sit, listen, and rediscover the adventures they've eagerly waited to share.