Reigniting A Spark

I found this particular quote today and thought how true this is for me. Some books really do touch our souls. I remember the books I read as a child, the ones I would read over and over again. I remember being so involved with a story that I couldn’t wait to get home and pick up where I left off.

As a writer we have the power to shape our worlds any way we want to, but in doing so we are also in some respects shaping the people that read our words too. Words are powerful things, they may not seem like it in isolation “I” by itself doesn’t have the same power as it does in a sentence such as “I love you”.

It’s quite a daunting and terrifying prospect to be creating a world that people will read and almost live in just like your characters at some point in the future. I wonder if writers like Terry Pratchett, Agatha Christie, Jane Austen could have imagined that people would become so involved in their worlds that dedicated fan clubs would spring up, whole societies who dress up as their favourite characters and meet up for gatherings like comic con. Did Gene Roddenberry or George Lucas ever have an inkling at how much of a global phenomenon their creations would become? J K Rowling now has theme parks  dedicated to her characters and the world she created.

How do they create that magical formula that speaks to people? And not just one person but different people from all walks of life and age ranges? Harry Potter is well read by both children and adults alike. What is it that makes the words on those pages ignite the sparks in so many? They seem to reignite that spark of imagination that lies dormant in all of us, that for some reason this business of being an adult seems to stifle.

I can only hope that my world helps others forget the outside world for awhile, that some day in the future they find themselves hurrying home to read another chapter of my book and wow what a dream that would be.