Chapter 8: A Louisiana Tiger

 

 

 

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Comments

[caitlin]

cant wait yayayayaay :P

[Cierra @ LACS]

Dear Mike Peterson,
How did you create all of the characters in this story? I can't wait until next week so I can read this chapter!
-Cierra

[bradley hoffman]

hey mike its me brad ive been comenting on the story every thursday im really enjoying the story so far cant wait to read this chapter B)

[Skylar]

Hello Mr.Peterson I'm loving your story so far the only thing that I am still wondering about the story is if Betsy is going to let/ help Seth or is she going to turn him into the Sheriff?
Sincerly,
Skylar

[Mike Peterson]

I think she's probably wondering the same thing, don't you?

[Alyssa Hamburg]

Dear Mr.Peterson,
I was wondering about if Seth is going to go home or get turned in to the army? I can't wait until next week to find out if he is going home or going back to prison. I hope Seth gets to see his family again.

PS: Your stories are really good.
From,
Alyssa at LACS

[masie allen]

Dear Mr. Peterson

I was wondering how you came up with the ideas for this serial story?

[Mike Peterson]

Masie, we wanted to do a story about the Civil War because of the 150th Anniversary. But most of the battles and other events happened away from New York, except that there was a POW prison in Elmira. So we decided that was where the story should happen. And we wanted a girl to be the main character because we just had two stories where boys were the main characters.

And I knew about John Jones, so adding him was easy, because he was such an interesting man!

But I couldn't just have a story about a girl who walked by the prison every day. She had to care about it. And I think I came up with a way to make her care.

Writing a story is a little like setting up an apartment -- you arrange the furniture, and sometimes you bring in a new piece, and you try to make it all fit, but you also try to make it comfortable and attractive, too.

I hope I did a good job of it!

[michael holbrook]

Mr.Peterson

I wonder why besy did not turn in seth.He was a escaped prisoner.

sincerely,

michael holbrook

[darrius houston]

will betsy let seth escape and go see his brother?

[masie allen]

This is Masie again and I think you did a great job.

[Ashton Houppert]

Dear Mike Peterson i was woundering how you came up with these storys????? Also how you where so creative about the thief, like how you said he came from the Andersonville prison... I love your stories sooo far :)

Thanks for reading my comment

Sincerly,
Ashton from Mrs.Sweredoski's class

[Mike Peterson]

So, Michael ... what if Betsy's brother Jimmy got out of Andersonville and had a chance to come home ... would you feel that a Southern girl should turn him in and send him back?

(And what about John Jones? Should he have obeyed the law and turned in all those escaped slaves and sent them back, instead of helping them to get away?)

[Gladys]

Dear Mike Peterson,
Why would Betsy try to hit Seth with a hay fork?

[casey]

Dear, Mr.Peterson love this chapter. How do you come up with such an awesome story like this one.
-Casey

[micah]

I hink that Betsy should let Seth go.Micah at lacs

[Mike Peterson]

So, Gladys, imagine that you are Betsy: It's night time, it's dark, you climb up into the hayloft and find out that there is a strange man hiding up there.

What would you do? (I think she's awfully brave, myself.)

[Zachary]

Mr.Peterson what inspired you the idea of seth?

[Mike Peterson]

Zachery, I thought Betsy needed to be faced with a situation that would challenge all her anger and force her to think it over.

[Amari' Sanon]

Well when I read the chapter before this chapter I thought that a theif or a crook was stealing eggs and milking the cow. After I read who the person was I thought that is Seth gonna attack Betsy and run away. But the main question in my head was is he nice or is he pretending just to escape.

[Kendra Peebles]

Hello Mr.Peterson,I love your chapters.I wish they would never end.I think that your serial stories are the best I have read this year.I have been thinking about what inspired you to right these? Are you going to right more?

[Dillon@lacs]

Dear Mr.Peterson,
I liked this story but I have to know does jimmy ever make it out of the POW camp.

[Leslie Damuth at Lowville Academy and Central School]

Hello, Mr. Peterson. I really like how you made it that Seth Dussault had his ankle broken. Why did you make it so that his ankle was broken?

[Mike Peterson]

That's an easy question, Leslie: If his ankle wasn't broken, he would have been long gone with the rest of the escaped prisoners.

But for those who want to know how writers get ideas for their stories, Leslie's question gives an example: I had to give him a broken ankle so he didn't just run away and be gone, and so he needed help from Betsy.

But then I had a problem: Why would Betsy be the one to go up into the hayloft? Why wouldn't her father do that chore? If I wanted Betsy to be the only person who knew he was there, I had to figure out a way to keep her father from going up there.

So I made it so that it was hard for him to go up the ladder. Not only did that mean that it would be Betsy's chore each night, but it also meant she knew about ankle injuries and could help Seth. (And Jimmy also knew a little about treating his wound, too, because of his father's experience.)

That's the fun part of writing a story -- making all the pieces fit, like in a puzzle!