Restructuring Kingdom of Nerada ‘Sleepy’

Dragons, dragons, and more dragons plus a gryphon!

About five years ago, I began the exhilarating process of writing the first two novels of my Kingdom of Nerada series, Isabella Airyfairyabelous & the Sleepy Dragon and Doughnut Dungeon. Since then I have continued to revise and develop these initial texts in my series.  ‘Sleepy’ is approaching full realisation now. Exciting adventure awaits younger readers. I have illustrated with photos from picture research.

Writing a trilogy requires strong foundations. Developing the detail to write the third unwritten novel, The Quest, has proven to involve many  tasks. As a result, I have restructured ‘Sleepy’, discovered  new characters and added dialogue along the way. I plan to self-publish the first two novels in a revised form, prior to Christmas.

One such character, who will potentially enable me to add important plot elements to third unwritten novel ‘The Quest‘ is the sailor,  Zaccharius, a friend of Seral-the-Wise, chief-doughnut-maker-in-the-Kingdom-of-Nerada. Another is the gryphon who rescues Isabella from the dragon’s lair on  Mount Emerald.

This time, during the process of restructuring point-of-view and chapter sequence to enhance reader engagement,  I have included entertaining elements of magic. Enchantress Esiwell  and her son, Arnold feature with a golden cloak and crystal ball in an exciting magical scene.

Furthermore, the plot  of ‘Sleepy‘ no longer only focuses only on dragons, dragons and more dragons–or simply the catastrophe of mirror kingdom, but is firmly anchored in the personal challenges faced by Princess Isabella Airyfairyabelous.

By including dialogue and shortening sentences to enhance clarity, the chapters spring to life.  Even so, many children have literary fairytales read to them with elegant, long and beautiful sentences, which may enhance language development skills.

Discussion points

What impact do readers believe shorter sentences have on thinking processes?

What impact has visual media had on children’s ability to read literature?

Gryphon illustration: Shutterstock