When you’re writing a story, it’s important to have a problem that your characters can solve. In The Secrets of Eastcliff-by-the-Sea, one of the problems I introduce is “no monkey, no money.” The family believes they are due to inherit money from their Grandmama … but only if they’ve taken good care of the sock monkey she made for each person when they were born. And some members of the family can’t find their sock monkeys!

Last week, I invited you to write stories about your stuffed animals and how they were related. You may have described each of your companions, where they came from, and what they like and don’t like.

This week, decide on a problem your companions need to solve. It’s okay to make up a problem or you can write about a problem challenging you or your family or the world. Then write your story to tell your readers how you would solve that problem.