Illustration: Shutterstock Tuin der Giganten (The garden of giants) is his first novel. A fantasy book for young adults. Ron ten Caat, who studies Animal Sciences, wrote the book during the weekends. As a means to relax. ‘During the week I am a normal student, but at the weekends, I write. One afternoon, and another chapter is ready. Writing is a way for me to relax. It gives me rest.’
Daydreaming
He started writing at a young age, ‘When I was in primary school, I was already writing stories. One of my first was entitled The King’s cat. It is about a boy who finds a stray cat that turns out to belong to the King. I have always written stories such as these. I have an active imagination and am always daydreaming.’
His fantasy, coupled with a fascination for dinosaurs, is the basis for The garden of giants. ‘Many children have a passion for Dino’s. With age, they outgrow this stage. With me, it stuck’, he laughs. ‘They are animals, but far larger and stranger than the ones we know. Only their fossils remain. So, you can fantasise to your heart’s content about what they looked like.’
T-rex
The idea for the book arose when he was cycling from the campus to his house in Ede with his best friend, Lidian Bakkenes. ‘She said: What if we suddenly saw a huge T-rex here in the meadows? What would that be like? What would you feel? An exciting idea, that prompted me to write this book. I showed her each new chapter. She also designed the cover.’
The protagonist of the book is Maya, a nineteen-year-old girl living in Atlanta who is searching for the meaning of a stone she found one day. The year is 2165, and Dino’s have returned to the earth. Humans have retreated to walled cities. The stone turns out to be of value for the repressive city governance, The Cult.
I see the story unfold in front of me, like a movie. And then I just write down what I see.
Ron ten Caat, student Animal Sciences
‘When I write, it is as if I’m watching a movie’, Ten Caat describes his work. ‘I retreat into my own world and write what I see. I do have some notion of which way the story is going, but I add new things as I progress. You detail it further and continue along that path if it works with the story. And, before you know it, you have a book.’
Second
And, before you know it, there is another. ‘Yes, I am already working on another book. It’s great that the Dino book was published, but my passion remains. This is just the beginning. I want to continue to learn to write and gradually build a portfolio.’
Tuin der Giganten is available from uitgeverij Boekscout and on bol.com. The price is 20,99 euro.
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