Seven Polyphony editors and Voices contributors collaborate to provide you with amusing narratives of the very first story they ever wrote.
Adriana Carter
Throughout elementary school I wrote some bizarre short stories for school that I distinctly remember, but the first time I set out to write something for fun was in the 4th grade. But the story I wanted to write was not just a short story—I was determined to write an entire novel.
I was obsessed with reading every book I could get my hands on (I carried them all around with me in a bright blue picnic basket), and some of my favorites were fantasy novels and mysteries. As a result, my “novel” was heavily influenced by both genres as well as the oh-so iconic Barbie movies that I watched and re-watched obsessively with my best friend. The premise of my novel was that a family of twelve siblings (6 pairs of twins) had their parents mysteriously disappear because they were spies, so the siblings went to stay at their grandparents’ mansion. At this mansion, they began to uncover some bizarre mysteries (A supposedly broken elevator that went down to a secret room? A series of letters detailing their family’s secrets? A grandfather who only left his study in the middle of the night?). Oh, and I can’t forget to mention the fact that it switches from third person to first person halfway through the novel because I felt like it. Unfortunately, I only made it to page 23 before stopping this project to write the next Great American Novel.
Alia Nathani
The moment I opened my eyes to Pooh Bear’s smiling face and round belly as a two-year-old, I instantly fell in love with the amiable character of the stout little creature. Thus, it was no surprise that “Blue Bear” was the subject of the page long story written in sloppy, uneven handwriting by my kindergarten self. As I stood at the front of the class, my chubby hand gripping my paper, my face plastered with a pleased smile, I brought to life the story of Pooh Bear’s cousin: a similarly fluffy bear with a blue tinge to his skin that came from eating honey containing a piece of the fallen sky (I may or may not have watched Chicken Little the day before). Thanks to that story, we now have two cuddly bears to befriend, which leaves me thinking, what other words rhyme with Pooh and Blue…?
Adil Ahmed Alvi
When I was about twelve years old, I decided that I was going to publish stories on Wattpad, in what was perhaps its prime. I sat on my bed, the Notes app on my phone open, and I began to just spontaneously write and see where my semi-well constructed sentences took me.
There were so many opportunities, and yet such little time. Oddly enough, rather than delve into foreign, inexperienced content territory as I had expected to, the first story I wrote was about a boy who moves to another country and tackles middle school life there, which was pretty close to home for me as a writer.
To say it was loosely based on my life would be an understatement. My writing has often been a reflection of my life, and I think that stems from a desire to share my fairly unique experiences in a way that is neither too obvious nor too subtle, as I did with this story.
My passion for the story, coupled with the free time I had over winter break, eventually led to it becoming an unfinished novel with a few chapters. I had hoped a bunch of people would enjoy my story and maybe resonate with the ideas, and so my twelve year heart was crushed when the story only garnered less than a hundred reads. However, it motivated me to write more, and so I honed my skills over the next few years.
Soon enough, I began writing poetry and submitting my work, and thats how I joined Polyphony LIT. When I look back at the first story I wrote (which I shall not name, for it is still on Wattpad, and I do not want anyone else cringing and/or questioning my writing skills at age twelve), I initially feel like cringing at the dramatic overtones and teenage angst that radiated through my work, but then, I feel grateful to have started writing (unfinished) novels from a fairly young age, which allowed me to grow into the writer I am today, just as my current writing experience will allow me to grow into the writer I’ll be in ten years. Had I not written those chapters a few years ago, I may have never joined Voices. And hey, the entire paragraph you just read, may have never existed, had it not been for my first story.
Emmane Khan As a lifelong lover of stories, I like to think that I have been infatuated with the written word since birth; my mother read to me from as early as I can remember all the way through elementary school, but I didn't actually start to think Hey, maybe I can do this too! until kindergarten. My first story centered around the thrilling premise of a hyena going for a walk and getting a sunburn. I'm happy to say that I haven't looked back since, but my first story will always have a special place in my heart.-Emmane Khan
Ellen Wu
The first story I ever wrote was about my cat. Though she wasn't real, I made sure everyone who read my story told me they believed she was real. Sometimes she would be a foot long, but other times she would be as big as my house, protecting the entire house from evil monsters. When I drew a picture of her, I couldn't come up with a proper name, so I called her "cutie", since she was always cute, no matter her size.
Lara Katz
Essentially, it was a feminist manifesto concocted by a very confused eleven-year-old. By the hundredth page, the story had devolved from a teenage girl with magical powers showing up elderly men with less cool powers to that same girl “questing” to murder ghosts in California, and I decided to start rereading things from the beginning. But I soon became disheartened by my own vapid prose. I moved the whole document into the trash, until my English teacher asked me how that story was going, and commanded me to rescue it.
It was worth it. That same piece of trash has now become a very entertaining biopic of my tweenage years, and I don’t regret it at all.
Danielle Ranucci
I wrote a story about two spies (based on me and my friend) who went on an adventure to save the world from an evil spy organization. I was like, two when I wrote it, and I typed it up on a Microsoft PowerPoint slides because I was like, smart. But I was definitely proud when I finished!
Adriana Carter is a high school senior and a Second Reader at Polyphony.
Alia Nathani is a high school junior and a First Reader at Polyphony.
Adil Ahmed Alvi is a high school junior and a First Reader at Polyphony.
Lara Katz is a high school junior and an Executive Editor at Polyphony.
Danielle Ranucci is a high school senior and a First Reader at Polyphony.