Blogs by s a ellis #@gobythegoblin #gobythegoblin

My daughter kept telling me to write down the stories I use to make up and tell her when she was a little girl. When Bianca was 2/3 years old I was going through a difficult time, my daughter's father was not on the scene and my father had a terrible mental illness so I could not rely on my parents for support. Money was tight so I use to make up stories to tell Bianca. She loved them and they have stayed with her throughout her life. The pandemic has been such a traumatic experience for so many and lockdown has been so restrictive, it has been a challenge to occupy your time. Bianca knew how restless I would become and convinced me to start writing down my stories. Hence, Goby the Goblin was born and it has been my panacea to get me through the pandemic. 

I have realised that if you put your mind to it and become methodical and put aside an hour or so everyday, you can achieve good results, no matter what it is that you have your sites on. Just be diligent and work to a programme and don't give up.

If you have an idea, don't dismiss it and automatically think no one would be interested, this simply isn't true. You will appeal to a genre, so pick up your pen, or tap on your keyboard and start writing your ideas down, you will be amazed with what you can achieve if you stick to a plan, give yourself a timescale of when you want to complete your book and get started.

This is the first drawing I did of little Goby, I was thinking to do an Alphabet calendar for my daughter but it never materialised. Maybe I will do this one day but of course I will draw Goby as portrayed in my book. With this drawing I had not put any ears on him, I thought at the time that there was something missing and of course nearly 30 years later I give him some ears!! You will probably notice a similarity to the position of Goby from this old drawing to the new one, but of course the difference being Goby is holding Squiggle the Booquar and not a duck! And his tummy is not as big.

I have always had a vivid imagination, I think I got that from my father would was a brilliant salesman, he worked in the textile industry and could sell any cloth to anyone! I followed in his shoes and entered the world of sales and throughout my career, I believe my imagination has helped me win over many customers and helped me progress.

It has been a wonderful experience to create Goby's world and introduce you to all the characters, some being more pleasant than others, but you always have to have goodies and villains.

My favourite character of course is Goby, he is my little hero and I have to be careful I don't give too much away if you haven't read the book yet. But, Hebden has a special place in my heart too, he is a very brave and resourceful character that helps Goby along the way. There are many characters in the book that have been born out of wanting to portray something different and hopefully this is what I have achieved. I wanted to move away from the normal and create new characters that children would come to love, for example Squiggle the booquar, he is quite a character and plays quite an important part in the book. Another character that I find very cute are the impbahs, they have such smiley faces and of course can be quite impish!

Elphin is a little impbah, he may look cute but don't be misled by his appearance, he is quite a resourceful little chap and much respected within the Pumple camp. The only trouble with impbah's is how loud they can screech, this always make the goblins toes curl up in fright.

I have a villain in the book who was not always evil, circumstances made him this way and he treads a dangerous path that leads to traumatic ending. It would be interesting to hear what you think of him and how everyone treats him, please let me have your thoughts.

There is a very old and wise warlock in this story that helps the creatures from the Three Realms, he is full of mystery and magic and one who is greatly  respected and honoured for his wisdom and knowledge. The goblins need his helps on several occasions, I like the way he is admired and held in such high regard. I like to think all my characters help each other in some way, they are all connected and all have a purpose but of course, not always for the good of the goblins!!

This has been an easy decision for me, I have so many stories in my head and want to play them out in my second book about Goby. He had such a vital part in the first book but so much more to reveal in the second book! Goby does not realise how important he is and the part he has to play, of course with the help of his family and friends. I am already half way through, I have found it much easier to write this story as it is a continuation of Goby's travels throughout the Three Realms. Most of the characters have now come to life and were introduced in the first book, but I have left a couple to be introduced into the next one to keep you intrigued. The map I created for the first book shows you the Three Realms and where all the places are located but the second map will reveal more places as the story is told.

One thing I have learnt is put as much dialogue in as you can, it really brings the characters to life. You can put so much emotion into their words and create the right atmosphere, I love the banter that Garvtak and Garvoid have, it shows their deep respect and love for each other, even though they are forever jibing each other. And I try to write as if I am telling you the story not just stating facts, I think it is important to try and engage with your audience, I want parents to be expressive when they read my story to their child but I also want them to enjoy reading the story too, so I try and inject humour wherever possible to keep it light hearted and fun.

I try and include moral values for children to follow, if they like a character and the way they conduct themselves, then I hope they will try to emulate and adopt the same values in their own lives. Call it a sneaky way to educate and show them the right path.

I am thinking of writing several endings to my second book, I would like to run a little competition and involve children. I will give them the opportunity to make this decision and whichever ending gets the highest vote will be written into the book. But, I am thinking of giving a prize to the child that gives me the best reason for their decision. I might even give a first, second and third prize and make it more appealing. What this space...........................