The Books that Inspired ‘The Girl Who Lost Her Imagination’

“Kirsty loves her decaying town, the peoples’ towering hair sculptures and heavenly strudels. They fuel her imagination, which Mama thinks is alarmingly over-active. Is it causing problems for her family? When Papa vanishes, Kirsty blames her imagination. She crushes it, hoping this will bring him home. Unexpectedly, she gains a superpower: spotting liars. Professor von Wallop promises to make her town great again. Kirsty alone sees that he plans to destroy it. Can she defeat him without her imagination? As it fades and her world grows dull, does she even care anymore? Will she find Papa and reignite her imagination before it is gone forever? ”

Pitch for ‘The Girl Who Lost Her Imagination.’

The Star of Kazan by Eva Ibbotson

After reading this book I had images imprinted on my mind of the glory of Vienna. I could even smell baking in those lovely squares. This was an inspiration for the town of my story - smaller, even prettier and with even better baking. A place so wonderful it would be a tragedy if someone decided to destroy it… 

Matilda by Roald Dahl

Matilda simply knows she’s right. I wanted a heroine like that. Someone so certain she’s right that she will take a seemingly crazy and self-destructive course of action to solve the problem of her dad disappearing.

The Secret of Nightingale Wood by Lucy Strange

I chose this for its young heroine battling a terrible grown-up. An impossible match up, yet she wins through clever trickery. I wanted my own heroine, Kirsty, to face an equally intimidating foe, and to come up with an equally clever way of bringing him down. Only one rule - it had to involve strudels.

The Last Polar Bear by Harry Horse

A grandad takes his characterful dog on an expedition to the north pole to find polar bears. He updates his grandson on their progress through letters that ooze gentleness and charm. I wanted something of that in my story, in the relationship between Kirsty and her dad.

A Few Good Men by Aaron Sorkin

The broadway play turned into a film starring Jack Nicholson and Tom Cruise. A monster is brought down by being taunted into telling the truth - a truth he knows will bring him down, but a truth he believes in so deeply that he has to say it anyway. In my story this is how Kirsty will win.

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