Training to be a novelist- Heidi Naylor

C.S. Lewis, in his biography, Surprised By Joy, pinpointed events/experiences in his life that shaped him into the person he became; the C.S. Lewis he is known as today. There were two really important aspects of his childhood that led him to become a great writer/teller of stories.

From any early age, Lewis explained that he was exposed to a wide variety of books in his house: “there were books in the study, books in the drawing room, books in the cloakroom, books (two deep) in the great bookcase on the landing, books in a bedroom, books piled as high as my shoulder in the cistern attic…” (10). Most interesting, however, was the fact that neither of his parents took an interest in mythological books like he did. His mother was fond of Meredith and Tolstoy and his father was a big fan of Shakespearean plays; in Lewis’s words: “Neither had ever listened to the horns of elfland” (5). Lewis also stated that if he was a romantic, his parents bare no responsibility for it.

Another early influence in Lewis’ life was the time he spent creating with his brother. When they were very young, Lewis would draw pictures of “dressed animals”, while his brother drew pictures of ships, trains, and battles. But, as they grew older, they moved on from drawing to writing stories. They each even created their own country to write stories about: Lewis’ brother created India and Animal Land became Lewis’ creation.

What really drove Lewis to write, as he explains, was the clumsiness he often experienced as the result of having one joint in his thumb: “with pencil and pen I was handy enough, and I can still tie as good a bow as ever with a man’s collar; but with a tool or a bat or a gun, a sleeve link or a corkscrew, I have always been unteachable” (12). It was this inability to create with tools lead him to write, which was where he could make things. He believed he could do more with a castle in a story than he ever could with the best cardboard castle.

Inadvertently, through reading mythology and creating a world of his own, Lewis was training himself to be a novelist. He did not quite realize that he was training himself, nor did he think his writings were of value, but he enjoyed writing and reading. And, it was that glimpse of joy that often brought him back to reading mythology and creating his own.