Tom and the Dragon: Birth of a Fantasy Story
Author: Stan Guthrie
May 21, 2026
This Saturday, May 23rd, at 10 AM, NCC will host a new kind of event: “Whimsy and Wonder: Exploring Tom and the Dragon with Author Stan Guthrie.” Stan will share how and why he wrote the book, the elements of a great fantasy story, a dramatic reading, and a Q&A time. In addition, he will read a passage from the book. There will also be fun activities for children and inside info on what’s ahead. This post reveals why Stan wrote the book. Part 1 of this series was last week.
I started writing Tom and the Dragon for my son Peter when we were both a lot younger. Along with the book characters Tom and Steve, we managed to get through the Dragonfly Gate in the frantic search for Mr. Gordon. But there the quest hit a yearslong roadblock. I didn’t know where the story would take us next, and life in the real world was getting extremely busy.
Tom and Steve had just entered the medieval kingdom of Vandar, and I wasn’t sure where they should go next. Frankly, I felt a little in over my head and didn’t know how to move ahead with what was becoming a novel. Peter also was becoming interested in other things, so it was easy to set it aside. But I never expected the writing hiatus for Tom and the Dragon to be so long!
But early last year, after some of my freelance writing projects dried up, I found myself with some unexpected time on my hands. So I thought of two stories I had done for my kids—Isabella’s Special Days, which was more or less finished, and Tom and the Dragon, which wasn’t. I decided to edit and print ISD as an artsy hardcover book, which I did, thanks to my wife, Christine, who is a talented artist. It’s a lovely book for younger kids and is available on my whimsybystan.com website.
The second one, Tom and the Dragon, was just a partial manuscript on my computer, so I dove in and finished it around summertime. The book flowed into a really compelling and fun fantasy tale (if I do say so myself). After it was finished, Christine designed it inside and out. She painted the lovely cover, and I’m thrilled with how it turned out.
As to influences, J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings affected me deeply when I first read it in high school so many years ago. Tolkien was not necessarily the best writer I had ever come across, but his attention to detail, character development, and, especially, world building was amazing. He didn’t invent wizards, dragons, and the like, but he placed them in an unforgettable world and an achingly poignant story. The Lord of the Rings tapped into some deep longings I didn’t know I had and helped set me on a spiritual quest toward the good, the true, and the beautiful—and God. It also populated my mind with ideas for what a great fantasy story should look like.
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and while TATD is not nearly in the same league with LOTR, or The Hobbit, there are similarities. These are not evidence of plagiarism but tribute, and anyone who has read Professor Tolkien will likely see them quickly. Here are a few: the hero narrative has an untraditional twist; Edwyn is a sort of Gandalf; victory has its costs; and so on.
I also have been enlarged in my imagination through The Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis. I agree with Lewis, and C.K. Chesterton, that fairy tales aren’t just for children and that adults have much to learn from them. But the story, first of all, must be honest, engaging, and true to life.
Perhaps because of Tolkien’s influence, or maybe because writing Tom and the Dragon was so much fun, I’ve decided to make it the first volume in what I’m calling The Blue Dragonfly Series. I’m hard at work on the sequel, which is actually a prequel. I expect the series to span three books in all. I hope readers will go on this journey of discovery with me.
But the most meaningful thing to me is not whatever readership or success accrues to Tom and the Dragon. When I presented the book as a surprise to Peter, who is now twenty-eight, he gave me a hug and said, “Thank you! You’re the most amazing dad!”
Nothing could ever top that.
Tom and the Dragon is available on Amazon.com. Find out more about Stan’s fantasy stories for young people at https://whimsybystan.com/.
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