Author Interview

Lari Don tells Caroline Lindsay why girls don’t need handsome princes to be fierce, fearless and free

Writer and storyteller Lari Don is passionate about sharing traditional tales – myths, legends, folktales, fairytales – with young people, and showing how those old stories can inspire new stories.

“I write collections of traditional tales, I write fantasy adventure novels set in the Scottish landscape and I write picture books based on Scottish folklore,” says Edinburgh-based Lari.

“Before becoming a writer, I worked in politics and in broadcasting, but neither of those were nearly as much fun as playing with dragons, kelpies and werewolves,” she smiles.

Although she loves the old stories, she’s never been happy about the role of girls in many of them: “Damsels in distress waiting to be rescued, or prizes to be given away to the bloke who kills the dragon,” she says.

“And if a girl does have a story of her own, she is often rewarded for being passive, patient, silent, polite or pretty.

“So I started to look past the well-known stories, and discovered lots of stories from different cultures about strong, active girls who defeat their own monsters and solve their own problems.”

And now she has gathered those stories in her latest book Fierce, Fearless And Free.

“This new collection contains tales from all over the world, like the story of the Sumerian goddess who wrestles a mountain, the Lithuanian giant who thwarts a dragon, the Siberian warrior who jumps into the belly of a giant snake, and the Nigerian girl who defeats a fiery hippo.”

For Lari, the key to writing a good book for youngsters is to spend time with children, sharing and discussing stories with them.

“Each story in Fierce, Fearless And Free was told to real, live audiences long before I typed a word,” she explains.

“I wanted to see how the kids reacted to the stories, which moments excited or surprised or shocked them, so that I could write the story in the most compelling way.

“Kids know what they like, so if you want to write for kids, you need a sense of that too!”

So does she have a favourite story?

“That depends!” she laughs. “My relationship with these stories doesn’t end when I’ve researched them and written them down. I continue to tell them in classrooms and school canteens and libraries, so on any day, my favourite story is the best one to tell to the kids sitting in front of me.”

Meeting readers helps keep her focused. “I love their enthusiasm for stories and their individual imaginations, and I love how their questions help me see my own stories in a different way,” she muses.

Lari is currently working on a new adventure trilogy. “And I’m always looking for more exciting myths and legends about strong girls to share,” she says.

Fierce, Fearless And Free by Lari Don, illustrated by Eilidh Muldoon, is published by Bloomsbury, £6.99.