The Five Lives of Our Cat Zook (22 page)

1. Stories are whoppers, but in a good way.

2. If a story is going around and around in your head, that gets annoying—ever notice? So tell it to someone. Or write it down.

3. You make a story yours by taking pieces of your world and putting them in your story to make a whole other world. These pieces are called details.

4. A story doesn't have to be true, but it does have to be real. That makes it truly a story. So even if it's a fantasy, try to make the whopper-getter believe it could really happen. That's where details help.

5. The more you tell or write your story, the more you want to add some details to it. That's OK. Each time you complete
a new version of your story, that's called a draft. Details are like jigsaw puzzle pieces, helping your drafts become whole.

6. If the ending fits, use it. Even if you say “To be continued” because you're having so much fun with the story, there still has to be some sort of ending. It doesn't even have to be a totally happy ending. It could be happy and sad at the same time.

7. Your story will make you, the whopper-teller, feel good when you tell it or write it.

8. Your story will make the whopper-getter feel good, especially if your puzzle pieces are pieces of that person's puzzle, too.

Thank you, Eric Silverberg, for making me aware of the work of Barrel of Monkeys (
barrelofmonkeys.org
). BOM inspires kids in public schools to write their stories, which this wonderful Chicago theater troupe then performs. “The kids become stars and the world is saved. The End.”

And thank you, Rupa Basu, for broadening our lives in so many ways. And Sarah Jackson, for your practical wisdom, and Michael Silverberg, for your loving support, always. Thank you, Karen Gaiger and Jim Gaiger for all the laughs. And Jackee Berner and Marjan Shomali for your beautiful
writing spaces. And thank you, Gerry Nelson, for the subcutaneous fluids, and much, much more. A big thank-you to my editor, Maggie Lehrman, and the rest of the Abrams team, and also to my agent, Erin Murphy, for those encouraging shout-outs. Thanks to Chris Buzelli for his wonderful cover and Robyn Ng for the interior artwork.

And thank you to my grandchildren for their stories, too.

I am grateful for the assistance of everyone at Montclair Veterinary Hospital, Oakland, California, especially Dr. Gary Richter, who knows that Howard Fiske, DVM, is a figment of my imagination.

And to all my pets, past and present, especially our cat Mitzi, working on her umpteenth life despite the BB-gun pellet—thank you for everything.

J
OANNE ROCKLIN
is the critically acclaimed author of several books, including
One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street
, which earned starred reviews and which
School Library Journal
called “sweet and tart and sure to satisfy.” She's also the author of
Strudel Stories
, which was a
School Library Journal
Best Book of the Year and an American Library Association Notable Book, and
For YOUR Eyes Only!
, which was a
School Library Journal
Best Book and a Bank Street Best Book. She lives in Oakland, California.

This book was designed by Maria T. Middleton. The text is set in 13-point FF Atma Serif, a modern typeface that incorporates transitional elements similar to those found in Baskerville. FF Atma Serif was designed by Alan Dague-Greene in 2001 for the FontFont type foundry. The interior illustrations were drawn by Robyn Ng.

This book was printed and bound by R.R. Donnelley in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Its production was overseen by Erin Vandeveer.