Presenting Jack and the Giant Boy, a short story by Carmen. We hope you enjoy it!
Carmen says:
I wrote this initially for a nephew’s birthday present. He loved (and still loves!) all manner of trucks, and sticker books are most popular at his house, so I originally wanted to make some kind of “digger” sticker book (think: lamination, with one side coated with double-sided tape). While discussing this plan with a family member, I realized that such an undertaking may well be beyond my means (among other things, if the pages and trucks are both laminated, which does the tape stick to?). However, the image of an enormous child playing with real cars and trucks as though they were toys got stuck in my head – it was a fun image, and something my nephew might relate to.
Jack and the Giant Boy was born! It’s a little different from the version of “Jack and the Beanstalk” than you’re used to – but the mysterious bean-carrier is still there, ready to trade for animals!
Every reader’s imagination is different, and different things can trigger stories. I’ve always loved following authors’ blogs in which they include a writing prompt at the end of a post. The prompt is a suggestion for a story, an invitation to write without any outside pressure. You can write, or not, and nobody will ever need to know. It’s entirely up to you – and if the listed prompts don’t catch your fancy, you can change them at will until it’s something you’re interested in writing.
Now for the first prompt! (Drumroll, please!)
In most versions of “Jack and the Beanstalk,” there is a man willing to trade magic beans for a scrawny, starved cow. Who is this man? Why is he so ready to give Jack genuine magic beans for a cow? Write about his side of the story.