“The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say”
~Anaïs Nin
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Popular writing for children and young people on environmental issues is a growing field. Textbooks, especially language textbooks, have been carrying prose and poetry on environment and society such as nature poems, stories about tree felling or poaching, etc. But children should have material other than textbooks too to inspire, guide and bring joy.
Mini Shrinivasan feels that it is very important for children to enjoy reading, but there is not a great deal of material being written for the group in between the toddlers and the teenagers. She says, ‘the writing should engage the minds, and help young people explore their own values without being preachy’. Mini has written short stories on environmental issues for children, and is currently developing a graphic story on recycling.
Author of the recently launched Sahyadri Adventure double book, Deepak Dalal, has been writing wildlife adventure books for children for over a decade now. In an article for the CEE book Walking the Wild Path, Deepak talks about what inspires him. He says, “It was simple things that enchanted me. Small things like the collection of dew drops on a spider’s web. When the sun shines through the tiny drops, hundred of tiny rainbows are produced. For me, falling in love with nature was a gradual thing. I think it came about as a consequence of my love for the outdoors. When you trek, when you climb mountains, or indulge in wind surfing, you come into close contact with nature”.
On why he started writing for children he says, “Today wild India is under threat. Our national animal, the tiger, is in danger. The purpose of my stories is to kindle a love for nature in you and open your minds to the senseless destruction of our wild places. If my stories gently nudge your hearts and help mould you towards being responsible future leaders, I shall feel fulfilled”.
Says Std X student Anusha Menon, “One of my favourite ‘environment authors’ is Ranjit Lal whom I’ve been reading since I was seven or eight. The idiosyncrasies of each creature are brought out and woven into the story. It was Ranjit Lal’s book Birds from My Window that got me interested in bird-watching and I even made a bird-feeder.”
There is no shortage of inspiration when looking for subjects to write about when writing about the environment. You can write about what you see and what you feel about the environment. About what’s going on around you, in the streets of your city, about the rivers and the hills, the beauty and the problems of our world. As entries for the Srushti Mitra award, you can send in essays, stories, open-letters, articles, poems and even cartoons, that you may have already created. Send your entries for the Bal Sahitya category in the Srushti Mitra Award before 31st October 2012.
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Illustration: ‘Birds in my balcony’ by Anusha Menon
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Cinquain – Poetry in five lines
If you are one who is stuck for words, here is a formula called a Cinquain you can use to produce a little poem in free verse. Try it!
Line 1: Title Noun (one word, which is the subject of your poem)
Line 2: Description (two words which are adjectives related to the noun)
Line 3: Action (three words, that are verbs, related to the noun)
Line 4: Feeling or Effect (a phrase of four to five words describing your feeling about the subject of the poem, or the effect it has)
Line 5: Synonym of the initial noun
