This is my first stab at a childrens story. It was based on a dream that my daughter had. I woke her up one morning and the first words out of her mouth were ... "I had a dream about an ant named Fly, Daddy." The gears inside my head began to grind and the story incubated for a spell. I had to find an angle and I had to figure out a little adventure for the ant. I had to come up with a reason for him to have an unusual name. And then it struck me. Having an androgynous name myself ... (one of which I persecute my mother about to this day ... like why I couldn't just have been called John, or Joseph, or even Joey, but Jody? What were you thinking, Mom? )... gave me the idea. So even though my beloved daughter came up with the initial idea, she didn't have much more to go on with her dream, but the idea of an ant named Fly alone was all the ammunition I would need after my mind went to work on the details. Having this so called ant named Fly be picked on by his peers for his name being unusual, but then another angle came to mind. What if it wasn't even by his peers? What if he was walking around the forest and came upon different insects and animals ... ones of which generally eat flies as part of their diet ... and then yet another angle came to me. Put the story in rhyme. Why on earth would I even attempt something like that? I'm no poet! I suck at poetry and rhyming schemes! But some of the favorite childrens books to read to my daughter at night had rhyming schemes and the flow was fantastic and flipping that page to see the next illustration and more rhymes was entertaining for both parent and child. Okay ... I'll do it in rhyme ... even though I suck at that!
So after a few weeks of working on it a little bit at a time ... I didn't want to spend too much time on it being a childrens book and all. It's not like it's a childrens book epic or anything. It's just an ant named Fly for crying out loud. I completed the story and sent it out to friends and family after field testing it on my daughter. So far it is receiving good reviews. I hinted around to our friend Jen Booth who graciously did the cover art for Season of the Sand Devil (which you can see by clicking on the Books, Stories, and Excerpts link on the left of this web page) if she might be interested in illustrating the story. She got back to me this morning and is excited to give it a try. I did the cover art of Black Raspberries and Other Tales myself ... and to be honest, I consider myself a worse artist than I do a poet. But having to replicate the same character and make it look the same is next to impossible for me. I'm an author ... not an artist. Actually ... I'm just a story teller who can type like a mo-fo! So ... without further adieu, my blog entry for this date will be the latest version of An Ant Named Fly by Jody L. Campbell inspired by a dream my daughter had and I can only hope that when the book is finally done with Jen's illustrations, that she will be very proud of her encouragement and inspiration to me. Thank you dear Jadyn and thank your mommy, too. As always my beloved Vicky is my most passionate fan and always there to pick me up and put me back together when I crumble to little pieces. I love you Vix! To the rest of you that I know and the others I do not ... I hope you enjoy this tale ... and although it's already copyrighted ... of you're an editor or publisher of childrens books, I'd be interested in having this considered ... contact me at JL@JLCampbellBooks.com. Peace!
An Ant Named Fly by Jody L. Campbell
Copyright © 2007 by Jody L. Campbell. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the author. This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
An Ant Named Fly
Once upon a time, in a forest far away
Lived a family of ants who cherished every day.
And on one special day in a land beneath the sky
Was born a special ant and his family named him ... Fly
As Fly grew up he realized that his name was rather rare
Compared to ants with normal names, but he didn't really care
Until one day while walking through the forest by a log
He came upon an animal who introduced himself as Frog
Frog looked at Fly suspiciously and with a deep voice said
"Tell me what your name is ant for I have not been fed."
"My name is Fly," said Fly to Frog, "And you can plainly see ...
That I'm a little nervous of the way you look at me."
Said Frog to Fly "Don't worry, son, it's flies I eat for game,
But if you don't mind my asking ... again what was your name?"
The little ant looked at the frog and tried to hide his fear
"My name is ... Fly," he told the frog, "And now I'm leaving here.
The frog bellowed out a laugh and Fly walked sadly away
He didn't much like the way that frog had treated him this day
On his way home he thought of things and wished his parents had
Chosen not to call him Fly and make him feel this bad.
Once around the thickets and then a bending tree
Fly came across a perching bird who called herself Phoebe
"A flycatching bird I am," said Phoebe to the ant
"And now tell me what your name is bug or be gone if you can't"
"My name is Fly and I'm an ant," said the insect to the bird.
"And if you think you'll laugh at that, I'd like to say a word.
I met a frog and he laughed at me and I think that was bad,
But if you laugh at what I'm called, I think that I'd be sad."
Without a second passing by, the bird begin to giggle.
Poor Fly's antennae on his head began to twitch and wiggle
"I just don't understand what the matter is with my name,"
Said Fly to the bird as he walked away sadly in his shame.
On his way home he thought of things and wished his parents had
Chosen not to call him Fly and make him feel this bad.
But through a bush and past four friends who were gladly sipping cider,
Fly came upon a giant web and a large approaching spider.
"Who's there, who's there" cried Spider as he clicked his legs towards Fly
"It's me; an ant and I want no trouble, I'm simply passing by!"
The spider neared and gazed his eyes upon the weary ant
And said "Tell me what your name is ... bug, or be gone if you can't."
"I don't much wish to say my name, if you don't mind too bad,
It seems that others that find out just laugh and I feel sad."
"That's nonsense," said the spider in a voice so deep and scary.
"After all I am a spider and my family calls me Harry."
Fly caught himself before a smile broke out upon his face.
He didn't want to do the same that others had in his place.
But no matter how Fly tried, Harry had seen his smirk,
And he nodded to the ant to show his proof had really worked.
"Now tell me what your name is boy," said Harry to the ant.
"I want to really, Harry ... but I just simply really can't.
I understand your name is odd, and mine is too no doubt,
but your laughing at my name I can really do without."
"I really do not understand why you behave this way,"
Said Harry to the ant and then he crossed his web that day.
As Fly watched Harry walk across his web along the way
He said, "My name is Fly the ant so what have you to say."
Harry stopped and ignored a fly that had tangled in his web,
He turned and looked at Fly the ant and smiled a smirk and said,
"Dear boy, you're right! That truly is a very funny name
Who ever heard of an ant named Fly, why that's just quite insane."
And then a great rumble came from deep down inside of the spider
He guffawed out and chased away the ants beside the cider.
Fly sadly hung his head and he slowly walked away.
He didn't much like the way that Harry had treated him this day.
On his way home he thought of things and wished his parents had
Chosen not to call him Fly and make him feel this bad.
Then finally in the distance he could see his ant hill home
He was so done with exploring this day; he no longer cared to roam.
He walked inside the ant hole and passed his mom and pop
His pop took notice of his poking and asked for Fly to stop.
"What's wrong with you my little ant and why the droopy face?"
Poor Fly sat down and pouted right beside the fireplace
"I've met three animals today and when they asked me what I'm called
They all began to laugh at me and that made me want to bawl.
It made me walk and think of things and try to wonder why
My parents would have named an ant something silly like a fly."
"Tis' true the name is a wee bit off," said Pop ant to his boy.
"But be assured there's good reason for your name to give you joy."
"Twas when your mother walked along with her weary legs across
A rapid flowing stream of water near a nested patch of moss,"
"You had not been born yet, but were already growing in her belly."
"You moved around inside her and made her six legs feel like jelly."
"She stumbled, staggered, and as she tried to jump on a passing leaf,"
"She fell into the raging water and I was helplessly in grief."
"But suddenly from up above and downward from the sky,
Swooped a truly heroic insect who introduced himself as Fly."
‘I'll save your wife,' called out the fly to me on the nearby shore,
He plucked her from the river safely and we were grateful forever more."
"Dear friends we did become and promised Fly when you were hatched
"We'd honor his heroic effort and make your names both match."
Fly sat and pondered this a moment and looked at Pop and said.
"Considering the circumstances and all the things racing in my head,"
"And after meeting all the creatures and seeing what they eat,
I think I've come to a conclusion that I think you'll find quite neat.
So now I understand your reasoning, and I'll promise not to rant,
I'm sure glad I'm an ant named Fly, and not a fly named Ant."
The end
Jody L. Campbell
Posted at: 05:09 AM | Add Comment
