The Once Upon A Time Princess

The Once Upon A Time Princess 5

“Well, what do you think?” asked Princess Jeneth.

“You really like your books, don't you?”

“Yes, I do. I like them so much that I would like to share them with other boys and girls. Father says books are expensive because a scribe has to copy out each book by hand and that takes a long time. So, I wondered if there was a way that books could be made more easily. But before long, I felt hungry so I went to the kitchen and Betsy was stamping cookies.”

“Stamping cookies?” asked Viveka.

“Yes, stamping cookies. When the Royal cooks make cookies, some of the cookies become misshapen in the oven. Some get too well done. These cookies cannot be served at a Royal party so the cooks stamp an 'X' on them,” explained Jeneth.

“How do they do that?”

“They cut a potato and then make an 'X' on it. They dip it in beet juice and then mark the not-so-good cookies. I get to eat some when I'm in the kitchen. Mostly, though, the guards and other castle staff get a treat.”

“With a purple 'X' on it.”

“Yes. Then I wondered if we made the letters small enough, could we print a book? Also, I have seen my father use his ring to stamp melted wax as a Royal Seal. If a letter is as hard as a ring, then it can be reused many times.”

“That's an interesting idea, Jeneth. Have you discussed this with anyone?”

“Well, I thought that I would show you the story first. Then, if you didn't think that the idea was silly, I would go ask Lee, the old scribe in the library.”

“Yes. I think it is a good idea. It seems as though you thought it out well and worked through the details. Yes, I think it would be a good idea to go see Lee. He's a very smart gentleman,” stated Viveka. “But that will be your homework. Let's look at the rest of the story in a little more detail. Did you use the correct words and did you spell them correctly?”

“I believe that I have. I did check the more unfamiliar words in the dictionary.”

“Good. Now, let's look at your grammar and sentence structure,” began Viveka. Together, they worked through each sentence, checking to make sure that everything was ordered properly.

“Now, let's discuss character development, starting with Gutenberg. Did you show me that he was meticulous or did you tell me?” asked Viveka.

“Because this story is for younger people, I did both. I explicitly said that he was meticulous. Then I wrote that he became the chief scribe at an early age. This should imply that he was meticulous,” replied Jeneth.

Together, they reviewed the story from many different perspectives, discussing the many ways to take an idea and make it into a believable interaction between characters. This became a routine part of Jeneth's school work.

“Viveka, what does 'literary' mean?” asked Jeneth.

Viveka thought for a moment.

“It means different things to different people. Generally, it means presenting a story, not just as a story, but as an art form. Sometimes telling a standard story in a non-standard way is literary. Or telling a non-standard story in a standard way. Or putting a surprise at the end that changes the story completely.”

“Could you put the surprise at the beginning?” asked Jeneth.

“That would be difficult, I would think,” pondered Viveka.

“I was thinking that an obscure reference in the title or dedication could change the story but you wouldn't understand it until the story was over,” offered Jeneth.