When I say I’ve always wanted to be an author, I’m not exaggerating. Witness: my first self-published piece of fiction: “the elvse and the showmaker”. Yes, I clearly needed the guiding hand of a good editor. And I was yet to grasp the concept of plagiarism. But, still – I was barely 5. Cut me some slack. If I was a visual artist, I’d be calling it ‘appropriation’. And I segued to another ‘appropriated’ tale to end my novel – “firoshus the puppy dragan” (aka: Ferocious the Puppy Dragon). ‘the dragan got the bisket and the little boy came a fabilus coke. the end.’ Transl: ‘The dragon got the biscuit and the little boy became a fabulous cook.’ Now, that’s what I call a twist – ending a story about elves and a shoemaker with a dragon and an ambitious young man. And, no – the association between cooks and coke is not something young Meaghan knew anything about.
Meaghan Wilson Anastasios 