The Importance of a Good Writing Mentor

Scarlet fidgeted in her chair as Debbie flipped through the printed manuscript. For a ten-year-old with no prior writing experience, the story was quite well written. It strangely reminded her of an old animated movie1 that she personally found to be quite adorable.

Scarlet had a rather pure imagination and it was a pleasure to read it despite the grammatical issues here and there. The girl must have read many books for she was using many phrases she picked up that seemed a little too cliched for a piece of original work. If it was a school assignment to be graded, Debbie would not have hesitated to give her an A+ and send her home with a lollipop. Unfortunately, the girl wanted to be a professional writer. That meant that being good simply wasn't enough.

The tutor-governess looked up from the script and observed the puny creature before her and adjusted her glasses. Scarlet looked very nervous and even a little afraid. This took the ex-lawyer back to her teenage years when she was nothing more than a snotty brat who was only embarking on her journey to fame and freedom as an author. After many turns and tumbles, Debbie came to understand that the path of writing was more than fame and riches. It was difficult for one person to continuously seek out new experiences and inspiration to bring to the world authentic ideas without having everything sound almost exactly the same. As such, Debbie decided to leave her writing days behind as a memory that blazed with passion. The fire in her author heart was then channelled to become fertiliser for those who had grander ideas than hers. Debbie decided to become an editor for that very purpose.

"Hello Scarlet, I've heard a little about you from Mr Wilde. Won't you tell me more about yourself? I'm a little curious. Why would such a young girl like yourself be interested in such a boring hobby? Most kids your age would be more interested in sports or art or music... Some would prefer making friends and having fun instead of being cooped up in a room in front of a computer with additional self-imposed assignments to do. I don't know many children who would use the computer other than for assignment researching and gaming. You're the first child I know who wants to be a writer..."

The blogger blinked and looked at her hands. It was true. Most children would prefer doing other things. Even Alex preferred holding a paintbrush to a pen if she had a choice. Jasper was far more interested in the software applications on the computer than games, but Scarlet was only interested in the word document whenever she touched a laptop. Perhaps in the eyes of an adult, she was weird for having such a boring hobby.

"I just like reading and writing helps me get some of the things I couldn't say off my chest. I don't know who I can tell or talk to, but I just wish that someone in this big world can pick it up and read what I have to say. I'm not very good at communication..."

The editor put the script down and looked at the girl with seriousness. No wonder Wilmer was so worried about her. "Is there something you'd like to talk about then? I can listen to what you have to say..." she offered.

The feeling of having nobody to talk to about problems can really eat away at one's happiness. For a girl as young and as intelligent as Scarlet, this must be a really heavy burden to bear alone. Debbie didn't know what happened to Scarlet for her to be so guarded, but she heard bits and pieces of Scarlet's background from the CEO. The governess could only imagine what was going through this sweet child's mind while it all happened.

Scarlet made no attempt to say more and had her eyes downcast the whole time as if she was afraid of making eye contact. Debbie took the cue and didn't push any further. Instead, she changed her approach.

Scarlet was tense when Debbie reached for her bag. She didn't know what her tutor wanted when she took out a new notebook that had never been used before. The governess didn't say much as she pushed it across the table to Scarlet.

"I need time to read through the story you've written but I don't want you to be idle. This is going to be our secret communication diary, I hope you can take good care of it. I have approximately about another hour or so today so while I am reading through your manuscript, I would like you to decorate the journal and write the very first entry inside."

Scarlet took the notebook and looked at it. The book was a very common and relatively cheap kind that can be bought at any bookstore. There were single lined pages on the inside and it wasn't very thick, so Scarlet could easily carry it around in her school bag. The blogger vaguely remembered using notebooks like this back when she was in Keyman International for penmanship classes. Her teacher used to call it a Jotter Book. But the one Debbie passed her looked slightly nicer. It had a blank cover page made out of recycled pulp and had a lovely rough texture to the brown colour. It was clearly a product made by a company that believed in recycling. That gave Scarlet an inspiration and she asked permission to leave the room in search of decoration materials.

While Debbie appeared neutral on the surface, she was internally ecstatic about Scarlet's willingness to participate in the communication book. The tutor nodded and Scarlet hopped off her chair to find Claire. The penthouse might not have the materials she needed, but that shouldn't be a problem. Alex was quite the artist, so she could borrow the glue and colouring supplies she needed later.

"Claire," Scarlet knocked on the door to the kitchen. The maid was busy preparing ingredients for dinner when she heard a soft voice from the doorway.

"Hello Scarlet, how can I assist you?" the head maid quickly put away the carrots for the chef who was coming in ten minutes. It was rare for Scarlet to request anything from her so the head maid was slightly curious.

"Can I go downstairs for a little? I'll be back. This is for my classwork now with Ms Connor."

Claire was a little surprised. What kind of classwork would require Scarlet to go downstairs? 

"Why do you need to go downstairs? What kind of classwork has Ms Connor given you?"

Scarlet blushed a little and played with the end of her long side braid. "It's something I wanted to do, it's not really necessary. If it's too troublesome then I'll find another way to get it done. I'm sorry for disturbing you while you're very busy..."

Claire quickly denied it and held the girl by her hands before kneeling down to look at Scarlet who had her eyes to the floor.

"Look at me, Scarlet. I'm not angry or annoyed. I can make time for it, don't worry too much. I was just curious as to what kind of assignment it was. You don't usually enjoy going outside after all..."

Scarlet stole a peek at the serious maid's expression and looked around a little before leaning in to whisper her plans.

Claire smiled and ruffled the blogger's hair when she heard that. "I see. In that case, I shall have Sue or Tina to accompany you. I will also inform Mr Wilde about it just in case, if it's alright with you."

Scarlet brightened up at that and nodded before leaving to find her outdoor shoes. Claire watched the girl run off and reached for her phone. This new governess was making big waves and the head maid wasn't sure if it was a good or bad thing.

Still, if Scarlet was happy, then it's fine. That was all that mattered to her.

Claire waited for the phone to stop ringing and wondered how Mr Wilde would react to the good news. Debbie Connor might just be the lady who knew how to pull Scarlet out from that deep and dark hole she dug for herself.