The Horrifying Holiday
What happens when your Norwegian Forest Cat's tail looks like an extra bristly toothbrush from Tesco's Aisle 19 and you think it's just a mouse?
In this episode, our narrator wakes up on a cruise ship heading to the Maldives to find Myrtle, their four-foot-tall Norwegian Forest Cat, looking distressed. After breakfast at the VIP buffet (fresh tuna for Myrtle, pancakes for our narrator), they try the water slide called 'The Praying Mantis', brilliant until the whole boat shudders and everyone goes into panic mode.
The captain screams over the loudspeaker: 'RUN TO YOUR ROOM, YOU NANCIES!' The restaurants and water slides close down. And when our narrator finally gets down the slide, they discover an Asian Praying Mantis that's somehow grown six times larger than a six-foot-one human, punching holes in the boat.
Myrtle is dodging its attacks. The mantis grabs her and holds her over the edge. Our narrator jumps overboard to save her, Myrtle catches the dangling anchor, and our narrator plummets into the chaos below whilst the mantis topples into the waves and sinks. Twenty minutes later, they're on the news. The paparazzi descend. Heroes never get a peaceful holiday.
Action-packed, genuinely funny, and told with impeccable comic timing, this is a story about the bond between human and cat, about heroism you never asked for, and about fame ruining everything.
This story proves what one Year 6 student told us: "The only superpower you need is imagination."
About the Story
Story Type: Action-comedy adventure with creature feature elements
Themes: Human-animal bonds, accidental heroism, fame as curse, trusting your instincts
Setting: Cruise ship from South Asia to the Maldives, the frothy seas, the Maldives beaches
Key Elements:
- Myrtle: Norwegian Forest Cat, four feet tall when arched up, tail like 'extra bristly toothbrush from Tesco's Aisle 19'
- The cruise speeding towards the Maldives (two-day journey)
- Running down hallways singing (Myrtle purring to the lyrics)
- VIP breakfast buffet: best tuna ever, fresh pancakes
- Something stalking and growing in size (unnoticed)
- Guards at South Asian port singing whilst letting the mantis aboard
- 'The Praying Mantis' water slide (brilliant until the shudder)
- Captain's advisor: 'Everybody stay calm!' Captain: 'RUN TO YOUR ROOM, YOU NANCIES!'
- Asian Praying Mantis grown six times larger than 6ft 1 narrator
- Myrtle dodging punches that tear holes in boat
- Mantis grabbing Myrtle, holding her over edge
- Narrator jumping overboard, Myrtle catching anchor
- Narrator plummeting, mantis sinking (can't swim)
- Myrtle dropping anchor on mantis (killing blow)
- Instant fame: on news within twenty minutes, paparazzi descending
- Final line: 'So next time we're on holiday, we will be the ones hiding in the cabins watching people save the day!'
Why This Story Matters
This author has created something rare: an action story with genuine comic timing. Notice the escalation of absurdity delivered with completely straight-faced precision. 'I thought nothing of it because I believed she might have seen a mouse or a different small rodent, but I decided to be wary; because Myrtle's senses have never lied to me before.' That's setting up trust in the cat's instincts whilst also being hilariously specific about toothbrushes from Tesco's Aisle 19.
And that contrast between the advisor trying to maintain calm ('Everybody stay calm!') and the captain immediately screaming 'RUN TO YOUR ROOM, YOU NANCIES!' is perfect comedy writing. The person who should be in control is panicking, whilst the narrator and Myrtle are the only competent ones.
The relationship between narrator and Myrtle is the emotional centre. They run down hallways singing together (Myrtle purring to the lyrics), they have breakfast together (best tuna ever known), and when the mantis holds Myrtle over the edge, the narrator doesn't hesitate, they jump. That's love. That's sacrifice. And Myrtle returns it by dropping the anchor on the mantis (the actual killing blow).
When children are given complete creative autonomy, they write stories where cats can be four feet tall, where mantises board cruise ships whilst guards sing, where heroism leads not to glory but to paparazzi harassment. That ending, 'next time we're on holiday, we will be the ones hiding in the cabins watching people save the day', is brilliant. They saved everyone, became instant celebrities, and now just want to be left alone. That's genuinely sophisticated commentary on fame and privacy wrapped in a giant mantis action story.
About StoryQuestâ˘
StoryQuest is a validated methodology that achieves 100% engagement across all learners, including reluctant writers, boys, and students with SEND. The approach is simple but profound: give children complete creative autonomy over something that truly matters to them.
Resources & Links
Bring StoryQuest to Your School:
Visit my-storyquest.com to download the curriculum guide and discover how your students can become published authors.
Start Friday Night Storytelling at Home:
Download Gabriel's StoryQuest Family Kit at theadventuresofgabriel.com
Read Gabriel's Adventures:
The international #1 bestselling series that started it all, co-authored by Kate Markland and her son Gabriel Khan. Available at theadventuresofgabriel.com
Connect with Kate:
Website: katemarkland.com
Share This Episode
Know a teacher struggling with reluctant writers? A parent whose child says 'writing is boring'? A school leader looking for proven literacy solutions? Share this episode with them.
Because every child has a story. And when we give them the freedom to tell it, extraordinary things happen.
Keywords
Child authors, creative writing for children, literacy education, reluctant writers, StoryQuest, student engagement, children's storytelling, authentic writing, educational innovation, child-led learning, action comedy, creature feature, Norwegian Forest Cat, cruise ship adventure, giant mantis, hero stories, Bradford UK, UK education
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Production: StoryQuest
"When given complete creative control, children don't just create great stories, they discover their voice. And that voice deserves to be heard." - Kate Markland