The Ink Splat is our monthly activity letter filled with inspiration sparking challenges and resources guaranteed to inspire your creativity. In this Ink Splat, the book and author spotlighted is Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff along with an author interview!
The Challenge: Misunderstood Villains
Even villains have reasons for their actions. Some villains feel that they are misunderstood. Have you ever considered a villain’s feelings? In the book Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin, author Liesl Shurtliff shows how misunderstood the character Rumpelstiltskin is. Choose a fairytale villain and write a scene from his or her point of view. Show how the villain might be misunderstood.
Submit your response here for a chance to be published online! What are you waiting for? Dev (age 11) submitted below. Can you guess which villain Dev’s writing features?
I hate Harry Potter! How would you like it ig someone murders part of your soul? He should be sent to Azkaban Also it is not fair that we share the same core of the wand. I would have killed him years ago. Now I am dead because of him!
– Dev, age 11
Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff
Rump has never known his full name—his mother died before she could tell him. So all his life he’s been teased and bullied for his half-a-name. But when he finds an old spinning wheel, his luck seems to change. For Rump discovers he can spin straw into gold. Magical gold.
His best friend Red Riding Hood warns him that magic is dangerous—and she’s right! That gold is worth its weight in trouble. And with each thread he spins, Rump weaves himself deeper into a curse. There’s only one way to break the spell: Rump must go on a quest to find his true name, along the way defending himself against pixies, trolls, poison apples, and one beautiful but vile-mannered queen. The odds are against him, but with courage and friendship—and a cheeky sense of humor—Rump just might triumph in the end.
An interview with author, Liesl Shurtliff
1. With young writers, we focus on the process of writing and often have discussions about different creative processes. What is your writing process like? Do you have any habits?
My process is somewhat haphazard. I always have a character and basic premise in mind, a loose idea of a beginning, middle, and ending, but the rest I discover along the way. Sometimes I have to go back and change a lot. It’s probably not the most economical way of writing but it works for me. I’ve made a habit of writing early in the morning. I never thought of myself as a morning person, but out of necessity I recently started getting up very early to write, and it’s turned out to be wonderful. Everything is so still and quiet. My mind is rested, my imagination loose, and things seem to come together easier. 
2. How long did it take to write Rump and what was the most difficult part to write?
It took me a little over a year to write Rump before I got a publisher. The most difficult part was the ending, or resolution of things. I wrote about 80 pages before I figured out where I was headed, and I ended up having to rewrite almost the entire beginning (just like I said above.)
3. Where do you get ideas for stories? Do you draw inspiration from people, places, questions?
I get ideas and inspiration from just about everything, but I think most of my story ideas start with questions, usually what if’s and why’s. For Rump, the story stemmed from my general fascination with names, combined with all the questions surrounding the tale and character of Rumpelstiltskin. A lot of ideas come seemingly out of nowhere, but when I think about it later, I can usually connect all of them to something I’ve experienced. But it isn’t necessary to worry about where ideas come from in the moment. The important thing is to be open and listening, and willing to work with what you have and what comes your way. It can’t be forced, that inspiration. It demands patience.
4. If you could be a character in any fairy tale, who would you be and why?
I think I would be Gretel, from Hansel and Gretel. I would like a taste of that candy house, and how satisfying that she’s the one who defeats the wicked witch in the end! One of the few proactive, self-saving females in traditional fairytales. Smart, crafty girl.
Thank you, Liesl Shurtliff! Visit the author’s website Learn more about the book and purchase it here
