How To Write a Book

A Random Fairytale

Once upon a time there was a beautiful girl called Zoe Gloop. She was on the way to see her best friend Daniel Khan, when she decided to take a short cut through Baikunthapur Forest.

It wasn't long before Zoe got lost. She looked around, but all she could see were trees. Nervously, she felt into her bag for her favourite toy, Emma, but Emma was nowhere to be found! Zoe began to panic. She felt sure she had packed Emma. To make matters worse, she was starting to feel hungry.

Unexpectedly, she saw a fierce wolf dressed in a black crop top disappearing into the trees.

"How odd!" thought Zoe.

For the want of anything better to do, she decided to follow the peculiarly dressed wolf. Perhaps it could tell her the way out of the forest.

Eventually, Zoe reached a clearing. In the clearing were three houses, one made from cabbages, one made from fruit gums and one made from toffees.

Zoe could feel her tummy rumbling. Looking at the houses did nothing to ease her hunger.

"Hello!" she called. "Is anybody there?"

Nobody replied.

Zoe looked at the roof on the closest house and wondered if it would be rude to eat somebody else's chimney. Obviously it would be impolite to eat a whole house, but perhaps it would be considered acceptable to nibble the odd fixture or lick the odd fitting, in a time of need.

A cackle broke through the air, giving Zoe a fright. A witch jumped into the space in front of the houses. She was carrying a cage. In that cage was Emma!

"Emma!" shouted Zoe. She turned to the witch. "That's my toy!"

The witch just shrugged.

"Give Emma back!" cried Zoe.

"Not on your nelly!" said the witch.

"At least let Emma out of that cage!"

Before she could reply, two fierce wolfs rushed in from a footpath on the other side of the clearing. Zoe recognised the one in the black crop top that she'd seen earlier. The witch seemed to recognise him too.

"Hello Big Wolf," said the witch.

"Good morning." The wolf noticed Emma. "Who is this?"

"That's Emma," explained the witch.

"Ooh! Emma would look lovely in my house. Give it to me!" demanded the wolf.

The witch shook her head. "Emma is staying with me."

"Um... Excuse me..." Zoe interrupted. "Emma lives with me! And not in a cage!"

Big Wolf ignored her. "Is there nothing you'll trade?" he asked the witch.

The witch thought for a moment, then said, "I do like to be entertained. I'll release him to anybody who can eat a whole front door."

Big Wolf looked at the house made from toffees and said, "No problem, I could eat an entire house made from toffees if I wanted to."

"That's nothing," said the next wolf. "I could eat two houses."

"There's no need to show off," said the witch. Just eat one front door and I'll let you have Emma."

Zoe watched, feeling very worried. She didn't want the witch to give Emma to Big Wolf. She didn't think Emma would like living with a fierce wolf, away from her house and all her other toys.

The other one wolfs watched while Big Wolf put on his bib and withdrew a knife and fork from his pocket.

"I'll eat this whole house," said Big Wolf. "Just you watch!"