Space Santa's name!
Space Santa’s name!
Space Santa’s name is Chris or Father Christmas.
Chris to Santa Claus and Father Christmas to the children and adults in Space.
The name Chris kept coming into my mind, when I was thinking about what to call the Space Santa in my story, The Big Red Button.
I liked Chris because it was short and I felt it fitted in the story. Also, Chris could be short for Father Christmas.
My next step was to think about how to connect this name with Santa Claus and the children and adults in Space. I decided Santa would know the Space Santa as Chris and the children and adults in Space would know the Space Santa as Father Christmas.
A character’s name is very important in a story. I listen to my reaction to the name and feel if I think the name would suit the character and the story. A name that needs changed feels ‘sticky’. A name that works flows when I am writing and reading the story. Sometimes choosing a character’s name is the hardest part of creating a story.
Here is the story so far – The Big Red Button
Santa has delivered all the presents and is on his way home. He saw some wonderful Christmas lights, which he wanted to go to but is very good and guides the sleigh up into the sky. The elf and reindeer wanted to go to the lights, too. Santa loves Christmas lights.
He’s thinking about possibly asking Mrs Claus if she would like to go a trip to see the lights, when the elf alerts him to the fact that the sleigh is dangerously close to the barrier between the night sky and Space. Santa pulls on the reins and manages to stop the sleigh going into the barrier. Santa, the elf and the reindeer are all very relieved. Then the back of the sleigh touches the barrier. The sleigh is pulled through the barrier into Space. The elf has to press the big red button.
Santa is now stuck in Space with no way of knowing how to get back to the night sky. Luckily, Chris has seen the sleigh come through the barrier and is on his way to help Santa.
What do you think happens next?