JEREMY: Hello, Helen. Sorry I’m late.

HELEN: Hi, Jeremy, no problem. Well we’d better work out where we are on our project, I suppose.

JEREMY: Yeah. I’ve looked at the drawings you’ve done for my story, ‘The Forest’, and I think they’re brilliant – they really create the atmosphere I had in mind when I was writing it.

HELEN: I’m glad you like them.

JEREMY: There are just a few suggestions I’d like to make.

HELEN: Go ahead.

JEREMY: Now, I’m not sure about the drawing of the cave – it’s got trees all around it, which is great, but the drawing’s a bit too static, isn’t it? I think it needs some action.

HELEN: Yes, there’s nothing happening. Perhaps I should add the boy – Malcolm, isn’t it? He would be walking up to it.

JEREMY: Yes, let’s have Malcolm in the drawing. And what about putting in a tiger – the one that he makes friends with a bit later? Maybe it could be sitting under a tree washing itself.

HELEN: And the tiger stops in the middle of what it’s doing when it sees Malcolm walking past.

JEREMY: That’s a good idea.

HELEN: OK, I’ll have a go at that.

JEREMY: Then there’s the drawing of the crowd of men and women dancing. They’re just outside the forest, and there’s a lot going on.

HELEN: That’s right, you wanted them to be watching a carnival procession, but I thought it would be too crowded. Do you think it works like this?

JEREMY: Yes, I like what you’ve done. The only thing is, could you add Malcolm to it, without changing what’s already there.

HELEN: What about having him sitting on the tree trunk on the right of the picture?

JEREMY: Yes, that would be fine.

HELEN: And do you want him watching the other people?

JEREMY: No, he’s been left out of all the fun, so I’d like him to be crying – that’ll contrast nicely with the next picture, where he’s laughing at the clowns in the carnival.

HELEN: Right, I’ll do that.

JEREMY: And then the drawing of the people ice skating in the forest.

HELEN: I wasn’t too happy with that one. Because they’re supposed to be skating on grass aren’t they?

JEREMY: That’s right, and it’s frozen over. At the moment it doesn’t look quite right.

HELEN: Mm, I see what you mean. I’ll have another go at that.

JEREMY: And I like the wool hats they’re wearing. Maybe you could give each of them a scarf as well.

HELEN: Yeah, that’s easy enough. They can be streaming out behind the people to suggest they’re skating really fast.

JEREMY: Mm, great. Well that’s all on the drawings.

HELEN: Right. So you’ve finished writing your story and I just need to finish illustrating it, and my story and your drawings are done.