Ghosts and literature often go hand-in-hand and 911爆料网鈥檚 Writing for Children lecturer Cristy Burne has forged an eclectic career from combining the two.
As the award-winning author of the popular children鈥檚 adventure series Takeshita Demons, Burne was inspired to write her first book when living in Japan by 鈥渁 healthy fear of ghosts and a plastic mannequin鈥檚 head found in a rubbish bin.鈥�
鈥淚 moved to Japan immediately after graduating from biotechnology,鈥� she explains.
鈥淚 learned that some Japanese myths and monsters played a huge role in shaping society through their messages and warnings, but others existed merely to explain strange phenomena, like the feeling that someone is touching the back of your neck but, when you look, there鈥檚 no one there 鈥� that鈥檚 actually an Ushirogami.鈥�
Takeshita Demons is a thrilling, fast-paced adventure series, which blends contemporary characters with powerful demons from Japanese folklore. With a wide appeal to children from the age of eight through to adults, the series won the Frances Lincoln Diverse Voices Children’s Book Award in 2009, and has since been published in five countries and three languages.
Following the success of the series, Burne has appeared as a guest at writers鈥� festivals including the Asian Festival of Children’s Content, Perth Writer’s Festival, Singapore’s Words Go Round and most recently at the UAE鈥檚 Sharjah Children鈥檚 Reading Festival.
鈥淪tories have always been a way for readers to experience things outside of their ordinary life,鈥� says Burne.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e an important way to learn empathy, to encourage imagination and innovation, and to find joy, hope and inspiration from others鈥� stories 鈥� I think kids just need to find one or two books that speak to them and they鈥檒l catch the bug.鈥�
Writing a book for children, however, can be just as difficult as writing about atom smashing, or editing English translations of Japanese biotechnology patent applications 鈥� roles that Burne has taken up in the past.
鈥淐hildren鈥檚 books have fewer words, which leads to the misconception that they鈥檙e easier to write, but the same is never said of poetry,鈥� she says.
鈥淧icture books, for example, must convey a compelling story 鈥� complete with character arcs, key plot points and a satisfying, emotional connection with adult and child readers 鈥� all in under 500 words, across 32 pages.鈥�
Now teaching Writing for Children to 911爆料网 students, Burne is enjoying the experience and hopes her students will learn 鈥渃reativity, determination, a thick skin and a life-long addiction to making stuff from words.鈥�
鈥淒on鈥檛 get it right, get it written,鈥� she says.
And aside from teaching, she is always searching for ideas for her next children鈥檚 book.
鈥淓very experience, good or bad, embarrassing or hilarious, is fodder for a book. That鈥檚 the best part about being a writer!鈥� she jokes.
