Outline 1 |WIP Eva and the Growbug

I think I need to change Growbug to Glowbug. It makes a lot more sense because glowing is the primary point of distinction for the magical critter. It is visually recognizable, it can pop in the book, being that I have this black and white design in mind for it and the fact that she grows into a giant of light is an unexpected turn, so it doesn’t make sense to have a clue to that in the title. I also like the idea of the way child might mush an L and R with their developing speech to make it so that the word play of glowbug to growbug can be a whimsical element that sparks the imagination and makes for a fun surprise.

My intention was to make this rough outline have 16 points, each representing a spread of pages, to make a 32 page book. I only came up with 15, but with how much I want each page to show, I think I can spread some of it out to cover the right amount of pages. The real point of it all is that I think these 15 points make a good skeleton for the story.

Eva is tucked in
Eva saves the Glowbug
Eva meets Glowbug
Eva’s dad checks on her
Eva and Glowbug talk about shadow spray and how it should be called Anti-shadow spray instead
Eva gets scared as she realizes the shadows really are real
The shadows grow powerful and get into her room
Glowbug saves Eva, but passes out
Eva wards the shadows off with the spray
Eva hears screams and sees that her parents were taken by the shadows
Eva goes to Glowbug for help, but she is weak and slowly recovering
Glowbug tells Eva she needs her help to recover and fight off the shadows
Eva doesn’t know what to do to help. Eva gets geared up and heads out to save her parents, taking along Glowbug along to protect her as best as she can (This will be a cut suiting up scene)
Eva treks out to find her parents. Glowbug guides her or gives her advice. As Eva gets closer to her parents, her fear grows as do the shadows
Eva sets her fear aside and uses her courage and imagination to make the Glowbug grow to a mighty size. The glowbug and the mass shadow struggle. Eva helps with her spray and cheers on the glowbug until the shadows fade awayGlowbug returns Eva and her parents home. Eva tucks them in and cuddles next to them and goes to sleep confident that she can face her fear of the shadows from now on. Glowbug gives her a kiss on the forehed and leaves the family as she heads off into the distance.

The designation of “WIP” stands for both “Work in Progress” and “Writing In Public” as I will be publishing and updating these posts as I write them. I might mark off each update to track my progress.