Politics, spooky stories, poetry, talking dogs, and more. Enjoy the tale of Wolf Pup Land, learn what happened that night, and hear about the bee who accidentally stung a flamingo.

— Simon Traub-Epstein, International Library of Young Authors

From the introduction by Nora Rodriguez Camagna: “Like an Epio poem, What I Want it To Be is full of adventure, lively characters, fantastical creatures and inclement weather. Our Mariemont Elementary 916 Ink class was bursting with so much creativity that we often added more time to our silent writing sessions. One of the most rewarding parts of being a Wordslinger is when students ask if they can have another few minutes to write. In our Mariemont classroom, it began with a timid call for one more minute please, then a more daring two more minutes, and finally a chorus of five or ten more minutes These amazing Mariemont students felt the satisfaction that comes from sitting with your imagination for a while after listening to a 916 Ink writing prompt and putting pen to paper to create their story. As you read through these pages filled with avatars, princess cats, time-traveling soldiers, unicorns, magical sisters, and so much more, remember that these stories were in these students' imaginations waiting to be sparked.”