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E. B. White: A Letter From

E.B. White wrote this letter in response to frequent questions from young readers about his books and writing process. He explains that the ideas for Stuart Little and Charlotte's Web came from a dream about a mouse-like boy and thinking of ways to save a farm pig's life after watching a clever spider. White also notes that he began writing as soon as he could spell and found it a way to earn a living as an adult. While he cannot visit schools or send gifts, he hopes his stories provide imaginative truths about feelings and relationships.

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Lizbeth Martin Mendez
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135 views1 page

E. B. White: A Letter From

E.B. White wrote this letter in response to frequent questions from young readers about his books and writing process. He explains that the ideas for Stuart Little and Charlotte's Web came from a dream about a mouse-like boy and thinking of ways to save a farm pig's life after watching a clever spider. White also notes that he began writing as soon as he could spell and found it a way to earn a living as an adult. While he cannot visit schools or send gifts, he hopes his stories provide imaginative truths about feelings and relationships.

Uploaded by

Lizbeth Martin Mendez
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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A

LETTER FROM
E. B. WHITE
Before his death E. B. White composed the following
letter in response to the frequent questions he received
from young readers.

Dear Reader:

I receive many letters from children and can't answer them all -- there wouldn't be time enough in a day. That is
why I am sending you this printed reply to your letter. I'll try to answer some of the questions that are commonly
asked.

Where did I get the idea for Stuart Little and for Charlotte's Web? Well, many years ago I went to bed one night in
a railway sleeping car, and during the night I dreamed about a tiny boy who acted rather like a mouse. That's how
the story of Stuart Little got started.

As for Charlotte's Web, I like animals and my barn is a very pleasant place to be, at all hours. One day when I was on
my way to feed the pig, I began feeling sorry for the pig because, like most pigs, he was doomed to die. This made
me sad. So I started thinking of ways to save a pig's life. I had been watching a big grey spider at her work and was
impressed by how clever she was at weaving. Gradually I worked the spider into the story that you know, a story of
friendship and salvation on a farm. Three years after I started writing it, it was published. (I am not a fast worker, as
you can see.)

Sometimes I'm asked how old I was when I started to write, and what made me want to write. I started early -- as
soon as I could spell. In fact, I can't remember any time in my life when I wasn't busy writing. I don't know what
caused me to do it, or why I enjoyed it, but I think children often find pleasure and satisfaction is trying to set their
thoughts down on paper, either in words or in pictures. I was no good at drawing, so I used words instead. As I
grew older, I found that writing can be a way of earning a living.

Some of my readers want me to visit their school. Some want me to send a picture, or an autograph, or a book.
And some ask questions about my family and my animals and my pets. Much as I'd like to, I can't go visiting. I can't
send books, either -- you can find them in a bookstore or a library. Many children assume that a writer owns (or
even makes) his own books. This is not true -- books are made by the publisher. If a writer wants a copy, he must
buy it. That's why I can't send books. And I do not send autographs -- I leave that to the movie stars. I live most of
the year in the country, in New England. From our windows we can look out at the sea and the mountains. I live
near my married son and three grandchildren.

Are my stories true, you ask? No, they are imaginary tales, containing fantastic characters and events. In real life, a
family doesn't have a child who looks like a mouse; in real life, a spider doesn't spin words in her web. In real life, a
swan doesn't blow a trumpet. But real life is only one kind of life -- there is also the life of the imagination. And al-
though my stories are imaginary, I like to think that there is some truth in them, too -- truth about the way people
and animals feel and think and act.

Yours sincerely,
E.B. White

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