In this informal interview, a host (Speaker A) talks with a child named Alana about what makes a story a fantasy. Alana identifies typical fantasy elements—monsters, dragons, magic, and other non‑real things—using Percy Jackson and Harry Potter as examples. The conversation explores whether a fantasy must include real‑world elements, emotions, plot, and dialogue, and whether animals or even worlds without characters can be part of fantasy. Alana discusses the role of emotions and dialogue in making stories thrilling, and reflects on animal‑centric books like Charlotte’s Web, considering whether talking animals add a human quality. The host probes Alana’s ideas about animal emotions, perspective (e.g., fish eyes), and the line between real and imagined. The interview also touches on Alana’s own writing motivations, her reading habits, and upcoming interest in The Chronicles of Narnia. Throughout, the tone is curious and supportive, encouraging Alana to articulate her understanding of fantasy storytelling.
Chapters
Good morning, Alana. How are you?
I'm good. How are you?
I'm well. Are you guys going to the beach?
Yes.
Surfing?
Yes.
All right, all right. Well, I was thinking about fantasy because I know you were reading Percy Jackson. Would you describe Percy Jackson as a fantasy novel?
Yeah.
And then I think you wrote— your dad sent me a story that you wrote, and I think I would describe that as fantasy. Would you say that you write fantasy stories as well?
Yeah.
Okay, so what is— what makes something a fantasy? We could start with Percy Jackson. What makes his work fantasy?
To me, like, it includes maybe a lot of maybe monsters and stuff, like, or maybe like dragons, or a lot of stuff that sometimes people think aren't real. Sometimes they aren't, sometimes they are. Um, and things that aren't real, sometimes they still go into a book, like maybe which that to me sounds like fantasy because it's not real. But like it has all these different kinds of powers and there to me that's fantasy.
Okay, you're a little bit hard to hear. Can you either get closer to the microphone and/or speak louder? Try that now. That's better. Definitely there are car sounds in the background too, and so with the car sounds it's a little bit hard to hear you. So fantasy has all these elements that aren't real. I assume that is fixed.
What did you say?
Much, much better. That's much better. Thank you. Can you hear me?
Yes, I can.
Okay, much better. Thank you. So yeah, I assume you would say Harry Potter is also fantasy?
Mm-hmm.
So with fantasy, it sounds like some stuff are things that don't happen in our world, like monsters and magic and things. But they're also— do there have to be some things that happen in our world? Or could we have a fantasy that had nothing that happened in our world?
You could have something like that.
So suppose there was a fantasy that had no people, no animals, no earth, you could have all of that? You could have anything you want?
Yeah. Sure, what?
Suppose, suppose that the characters in the fantasy have no emotions. They never become afraid, they never become happy, they're never scared. Um, could we do that?
You could if you wanted to.
Um, suppose there are no characters. Suppose, uh, it's just this imaginary world with no characters and no action and nothing that we recognized at all, do you think it would be a good fantasy?
Um, if you looked at it the right way, maybe it would, but if you wanted to make— if you want it to be kind of, at least kind of thrilling, I think something should happen, not just like an imaginary world.
Okay, so in order to be thrilling, we need to connect it to something. So you're saying something has to happen in order for it to be thrilling. Do you think you need characters that we can relate to, more or less?
You can, or it can just be animals or anything you want.
But with the animals, is it important that we think of them as having emotions, or they don't have to have emotions?
Um, you can do either one, but I would put them with emotions. So like, you can describe like what they're doing or how they feel, like if they're ready.
Well, when you said it has to be thrilling, or you want it— it sounds like you like to read fantasy because at least sometimes it is thrilling. Is that accurate?
Yeah.
And so to be thrilling Something has to happen, and I expect— it seems like to me it would be hard for it to be thrilling if the characters had no emotions. Does that seem accurate?
Yeah.
So the fantasy— some— I'm trying to get out what's in a fantasy, what part is fantasy, and what part kind of should be sort of real in order for us to relate to it. And so something like emotions and something like a plot plot. Is that enough? As long as there's a plot and the characters have emotions, then we can find it thrilling?
You can, actually, but maybe there, but maybe like you need to add something else, like maybe background dialogue, because you can't really see if if it's in a movie, not, or if it's in a book, like if, like what the character is feeling. So maybe dialogue and maybe just like, you know, stuff like that.
Got it. The dialogue is interesting. And it's been a long time since I've read Harry Potter and I've not read Percy Jackson. Do both of them include plenty of dialogue?
Oh yes.
Okay, do your stories include dialogue?
Mm-hmm.
So dialogue, that seems like a very human thing. Would you say so?
Yeah.
And I'm trying to think of stories where animals are the characters because I know I've read stories where animals are the characters. Have you read stories where animals are the characters?
I don't think so, but I may have.
Charlotte's Web. Oh yeah. What did you read? What is it?
I think it was Charlotte's Web.
Yes, that's an excellent example, a fabulous example. So in stories like that, do you think it helps if the animals have dialogue?
I think so, because then I can tell what they're saying or how they're feeling. Like maybe the goose said, "Oh, I'm feeling so scared." Or maybe she said, "Wack!
I'm feeling so happy!" That sounds like an important part of a fantasy that we can relate to. So there's all the magic stuff and the monsters and all that, whatever, but there also has to be something human, and the human part, even if it's animals, it's— do you know what I mean? Even if it's animals talking as in Charlotte's Web, would you say in a way there's something human about the way they interact with each other?
Yeah, like they're talking, they're talking to each other, communicating.
Do you think that real spiders talk to each other or spiders talk to pigs in ways that are human-like or not really?
Maybe, but I think that spiders talk to spiders because they probably have their own language.
You think the spiders have human-like emotions?
I don't really know, but they could have.
Do you think that dogs have human-like emotions?
Mm, I think so, because maybe if like they got sad because maybe something died that was really special to them, or maybe they lost their pet bone— I mean, the toy bone— they maybe could feel sad.
How about fish? Do you think that fish have human-like emotions?
I don't know.
Okay, how about mosquitoes?
I don't know.
Have you ever killed a mosquito?
No, I don't think I have, but I've tried killing flies.
Okay, so, um, you know, I'm kind of thinking of what's real and what's not real, going back to that. So in a fantasy, obviously we've got things that are not real, and we've got things that are— that it's tricky. Would you say in Charlotte's Web that— what's real about Charlotte's Web? That's a good question. What do you think What aspect of that is real, if anything?
Like, do you mean like what's real in the book, like maybe some of the characters or anything?
Well, let's ask it this way: is Charlotte's Web a fantasy story, or is it not a fantasy story?
Um, I mean, it could be, but the only fantasy in it is that the animals can talk to each other. So I think it would, because it has all human things almost, like animals, barns, humans.
So everything about it is real except the animals talking to each other?
Yeah.
Okay, so does that make it a fantasy or not?
I think it would kind of make it a fantasy. It's because like, you know, they're still talking to each other, like Rover still has to like try to overcome things. It's probably not fantasy, but to me, actually, yeah, that's probably not fantasy.
Is there another word for it? And would you, would you call it a real life story? It could be based off one, and it could be So in a real-life story, do you think it was just once that all these animals had these conversations and these relationships, or do you think it happens all day every day, that the entire animal world is having these relationships and conversations?
Um, they could have, or they could have, or they could be doing it.
Okay, so you're thinking that it— so they're— just to take an example, there are millions and millions of fish in the sea. You think it's possible that the fish are all having these conversations and fights and relationships and all this stuff?
It could happen. Actually, I think it like maybe it's just from one fish to another. Maybe they are talking to each other. Maybe they have their own fishy language.
Got it, okay. Do you think there's anything different about human talk in relationship versus fish talk in relationship?
Um, the only differences that I can really see is that they is that the fish live in the water and we live here and we talk differently.
So some kinds of animals, you know, certainly fish actually have like different eyeballs. So, you know, fish have eyes on the sides of their heads. So you and I have eyes right in the front of our heads, whereas if we were fish, we'd have an eye looking that way and an eye looking that way. Do you think that— you know what I mean? You've seen fish, right? They have eyes on the sides of their heads. Do you think having eyes on the side of your head would make you see the world any differently?
I think so, because you would see like you could see that way and that way instead of this way and this way.
Do you think that you would be the same person that you are if your eyes were on the side of your head instead of in the front of your head?
I think so.
Okay, so if you were— and do you think that If suppose you were magically transformed into a fish and so you were swimming in the ocean, you know, with all the other fish and you had eyes on the side of your head, would you think your life would be more or less the same as it is now or would your life be very different?
I think it would be more or less the same because it only transformed like my body, like it could have only transformed my body, like my eyes, my body into a fish, Maybe not my personality.
Got it. Um, do you think it would be— so what if your mom and dad stayed human beings but you became a fish? Would that be difficult?
Maybe, but one possibility is that they could maybe keep me in a fishbowl on their counter.
Okay, okay. Well, um, are you gonna write any other stories? Coming up soon? Do you have other stories you're thinking about?
Not right now, but I'm sure I will write more.
What causes you to want to write a story?
Excuse me?
What causes you to want to write a story?
I'm just reading other books, and maybe I can kind of copy off of that and see if I can get new ideas.
Okay, well, I look forward to reading your next story. What Are you still with Percy Jackson or do you have another book coming that you're going to start reading?
Um, I think I'm going to start reading Chronicles of Narnia.
Wow, that's exciting. I remember that one really well. So you've never— you've not even read one of those yet, is that correct?
I've read a little bit of the first one, but then I have to— but then I have to go on to Harry Potter, then Percy Jackson, and then I could go back to Chronicles of Narnia.
Okay, I'll be interested in hearing what you think of Chronicles of Narnia. So have a great day surfing and stay safe, okay?
