I was contacted in November by Rachel from Roundabout DramaTherapy, to ask if I would contribute to their #ShareAStory Advent Calendar for this year.
Roundabout is a great charity that uses story telling and drama therapy techniques to support people to understand themselves and make positive changes in their lives. So of course, I was happy to help.
After giving it a bit of thought, I came up with a lovely little story, set in the rolling hills of Northumbria, called simply Vanessa and George. I recorded it (dressed in my panto dame costume [I’m currently playing at the Gala Theatre in Durham]) and it features as Day 21 on their calendar.
I’m very pleased with how the story turned out, and the underlying morals that it contains. It will no doubt need a bit of redrafting and polishing up (doesn’t every bit of writing that we do?!), but I hope to do so some time next year and do something further with the story.
I feel it would make an excellent picture story book for young readers. (Any publishers of such books out there who would like to take it on, get in touch!)
In the meantime, I hope you enjoy watching the video (and all the other great video stories on their advent page), and perhaps even consider supporting Roundabout and the work they do.
And finally, a Merry Christmas and a prosperous 2022 to all the readers of this site.
PAUL DUNN 