Here in the United States, we celebrate Easter by going to church to rejoice in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, having Easter egg hunts, and eating the ears off chocolate bunnies. Well, maybe not everyone eats the ears off the chocolate bunnies, but that is something my husband used to do when our kids were little.
Norway Easter crime novels, www.londonstrategyunit.com
What about other countries? How do they celebrate this holiday? Let’s visit the Scandinavian country of Norway. They have Easter eggs and tend to do a lot of decorating, but that isn’t the best part of their celebration. What do I consider best about their celebration? They love to read. Specifically, they like to read crime novels. Special releases of crime novels take place at this time every year. They are known as Easter Thillers. Even their milk cartons are changed at this special time of year so that crime stories can be printed on their sides.
Easter Witches, annmi.tumblr.com
In Sweden and parts of Finland, they have the Easter witch. Witches at Easter? Yep. Instead of having the Easter bunny bring them all of their sweets, the kids get the goodies themselves. Young girls will dress in old clothes and skirts that are too big, take a copper kettle, and go door to door begging treats. This takes place on either the Thursday or Saturday before Easter.
Why do they dress like witches? An old belief says that witches would fly to a mountain in Germany on the Thursday before Easter and meet with the devil. As these witches would make their way back, the Swedes would scare them away with bonfires. Now, not only do they light bonfires, but they also set off fireworks.
girl writing, etc.usf.edu
Writing Prompts
Write a story for children about someone who sneaks and eats the ears off all the chocolate bunnies. Will the culprit be caught? If so, who catches the eater of chocolate bunny ears? Or will the ears of chocolate bunnies always be in danger?
Here is another idea for a story about a chocolate bunny’s ears There is one chocolate bunny whose ears will not stay gone after they are eaten: new ones grow back. How fast do they grow back? That is up to you. Anyway, how is the one who ate the ears off this bunny affected? Does the person begin to act like a bunny? This one could be either a story for children or a story for adults. That depends on how scary you decide to make it.
You are a writer of crime novels, so you decide to visit Norway to write one and plan to have it published around Easter. While you are there, however, you become embroiled in a real-life crime. What is this crime and what do you do?
Create a character that is a young Swedish girl. She is so excited. This will be her first year dressing up as a witch and going door to door to beg treats. Along the way, she meets up with another one dressed as a witch, but this one isn’t wearing a costume. Her new companion is really a witch who made a pit stop on her way to the mountain in Germany, and she invites her new little friend to go with her. What happens?
Recommended Articles:
A Colony of Rabbits
Easter and Leporiphobia, the Fear of the Easter Bunny
Lisa….what a great article. Cannot promise that somehow or another one or more of your prompts won’t wind up in a story!
My writing prompts are happiest when an author chooses to use them. 🙂 They beg me to add them to my articles in the hope that at least one of them will be chosen to be part of a story that will be read by many.