To Live and Experience – to Write and Imagine

By Tuula Pere

April 17^th, 2023

To Live and Experience – to Write and Imagine

Ifreed myself from previous professional obligations about ten years ago and devoted my time to storybooks. Instead of contracts, strategies, annual reports, and stock exchange releases, I dived into the same freedom I felt as a child with my imagination.

As a child and young adult, I wrote fairy tales, poems, and plays at school and in my free time. I sent my texts to a local magazine, too. When the other pupils complained about the difficulty of getting started and the dread of a blank paper, I was enthusiastic about every new writing task. There were years when I also wrote several pages in my diary every single day.

I loved the library in my home village and read everything possible. Sometimes I wondered how some people became authors, but I couldn't find a path for that. So, I focused on other things and started studying law at university. During my law studies and various tasks in the business world, I had to write a lot of important and impressive texts. There were also years when I wrote my doctoral thesis in law. All these were, of course, quite different challenges compared to fairy tales.

Sometimes I still ponder what I would have accomplished as a children's writer if I had started earlier in that field. But I've realized, however, that all the years of working with other issues were necessary. I needed to face all those assignments and handle various writing tasks to develop as a person and a writer.

Those were the years for preparing to become an author. Without that exercise and accumulated experience, I wouldn't write the same way I do now. I hope my books reflect something about a lifelong effort as an avid reader, writer, legal scholar, business executive, mother, wife, and grandmother.

In any case, my ultimate goal in writing children's books is that important messages are conveyed and that they help change the lives of families for the better. I have written many books that could be considered educational or related to parenting and family life.

When I write these books, I don't think about making other people act on the teachings of my books. I just let the story flow! Books born from my experiences and honest thinking bring some practically tested behavior for the readers to consider. Of course, I wish the stories make an impact, maybe even influence people's judgment. However, only when they believe it is valuable and essential.

I have met teachers and parents who have come across my books and noticed how they could use them as educational aids. I consider it essential that parents and educators read together with children even after the little ones have already learned to read. Then it is possible to discuss the story and its deeper meaning with the child. An adult can immediately notice which elements are interesting, challenging, or maybe too scary for the young ones. Even for an older child, talking with an adult about the topics they read can be helpful.

I also write articles and give interviews and presentations about the ideas behind my books. This way, I can tell adults about the backgrounds of my stories, and they will pass the message on to improve children's reading experience. So, my influence takes place on two levels – in children and the adults around them. Some of my stories have even inspired drama workshops for various age groups. In them, it is possible, through role-playing, to learn how to interact with others in challenging situations.

To my younger self—or anyone who dreams of becoming an author—I would say: Be patient! Take good care of all future writing assignments and keep writing different kinds of texts. All this experience will be needed and helpful when you write stories for children later!