Promoting Reading and Discovering Talent is Possible from Childhood
According to Iran Book News Agency (IBNA), the unveiling ceremony for the twenty-third volume of the comic ‘Iliya’ was held on the occasion of Book Week by Komika Studio, with the presence of Abbas Jahangirian and Mostafa Rezaei, children’s and youth authors.
Put Aside Your Mobile Phone and Read Books
At this session, Abbas Jahangirian spoke about the path that shaped his interest in writing: ‘Everyone has events in childhood that change the course of their life. I grew up in Qom and worked in theater until I was 20.’
He added: ‘Then I went to the University of Dramatic Arts, which is now called Cinema and Theater, and came to Tehran. Since I grew up in Qom, three to four of my novels are also set in this city. ‘Wake Me Up When the War Is Over,’ ‘Pomegranate Branch,’ ‘Prince Pumpkin,’ and ‘Tree House’ are all narrated in Qom.’
Jahangirian, referring to the German education system, said: ‘In Germany, children decide what they want to become from the fourth grade. There are four main fields, and students are assigned based on their talents, such as artistic talent or technical services.’
He continued: ‘Technical work in the world is not like in Iran and is a respected specialty. As a result, everyone chooses their path based on their talent. Children can choose their field at a young age. I myself realized I liked writing at 17, something that could have happened much sooner.’
He emphasized: ‘It’s the same in other fields like football, music, and theater; sometimes talent is recognized late. But children should think early about what they want to become.’
Jahangirian advised: ‘If I want to give advice, I say put away mobile phones and read more books. Read books at night; audiobooks are also available. Put your phone on airplane mode to prevent harm and don’t go for horror stories. Find peace and spend time with books.’
He also explained the path to becoming a writer: ‘To become writers, children must both read and write. The more stories we read, the greater the impact. I have three collections at the Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults: the art of storytelling, screenwriting, and playwriting. In those, I have also suggested reading many books.’
He added: ‘I tell screenwriters to watch at least one movie a day, write down its dialogue and summary, and study extensively.’
This author continued: ‘The best way to become a writer is to write. Take a notebook and write stories in it. Write about any event that happens at home, school, among neighbors, at a party, or even about the 12-day war.’
He said: ‘If you travel, write a travelogue. Start with simple things; for example, choose your grandfather or grandmother as a character and write two pages about them.’
Jahangirian, explaining the dimensions of characterization, said: ‘In storytelling, we say to write about people. Every character has five dimensions: physical or appearance, psychological and behavioral, sociological, worldview, and another dimension that I have added: the dramatic or theatrical dimension.’
He explained: ‘Not everyone has a story; a 70-year-old might not have a story, but a 20-year-old might have a life full of events. Children who have no experience and only sit in front of computers have zero dramatic dimension and cannot be written about. Someone who gains experience from life has a stronger dramatic dimension.’
He added: ‘Let’s write and create characters with these five dimensions. It’s also very good if we do the illustrations for the stories ourselves.’
Jahangirian concluded: ‘I have suggested to the Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults that a section be created where children can write their own stories. We write stories for children now, but children can also create stories for themselves.’
From Childhood Mischief to Writing and the World of Robotics
Mostafa Rezaei, a children’s and youth author, also spoke about his childhood and his path to an interest in writing: ‘My childhood was different from Abbas Jahangirian’s. In our generation, computer games like Sega had just arrived, and all children loved them. Games gradually entered our lives. As a child, I was mischievous, curious, and interested in football; I still am.’
He continued: ‘I studied electronics at university. My uncle was an engineer and had an electronics workshop at my grandfather’s house. Computers had just entered the market, and my uncle had a first-generation computer. I would break it, and he would fix it again. My generation became familiar with gaming, and this led me to become interested in electronics and then to robotics.’
Rezaei spoke about his interest in writing: ‘I became interested in writing at 20 and wrote enthusiastically. It was as if all my curiosities converged in writing, and I never let it go. I loved the world of writing, football, and computer games alongside each other. Computer games were attractive because you could create a new world in them. Another one of their attractions is their connection to reading; every story is like a new world, and it was enjoyable for me to read many books.’
He referred to the Zayo series, saying: ‘In the Zayo series, I have a young character named Sorena who enters towards the end of the story. This three-volume series has a similar atmosphere to the Iliya comic. Zayo’s characters are usually like scientists; for example, I have a scientist advisor character. But Sorena is young, and his appearance and behavior are not in sync with the others. Other characters have frameworks and rules, but he breaks frameworks.’
Rezaei added: ‘In the second volume, Sorena becomes the story’s hero. However, for me, the old characters from stories have remained more in my mind, and less of the new characters have stayed with me.’
