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| Boys Will Be Boys |
We wanted to let everyone know that the next round of judging is happening and we will be announcing a winner soon. There were some excellent entries and of course it always makes it very difficult to choose just one. Stay tuned!
Until then, please enjoy this screening of NOSFERATU.
When Kellie Celia at Walden Pond Press asked if I wanted to speak with Patrick Carman to continue our GUYS READ:THRILLER celebration I had to keep myself from being a bit of a slobbering fan boy and answer with a calm yes. Well, when I made my first call to Mr. Carman I stumbled over my tongue and started speaking bocce (an interplanetary trade language comprising parts of multiple languages. It was created by the Baobab Merchant Fleet to allow communication between starcraft pilots, crews, and support personnel of various species.).
We decided to set up a second call for the interview a day later (mostly because our timing was off, not because he wanted to call the authorities about the raving lunatic speaking to him on the other end of the line). Mr. Carman was very gracious to speak with me about his story
Ghost Vision Glasses, the craft of writing and a shared love of weird mail order gadgets. This is how it all went down...
What brought you to the Guys Read: Thriller project?Patrick: I'm fishing buddies with Jon (Scieszka, writer and editor extraordinaire). He's not very good, he's kind of a hack actually (laughs). I've been with friends with Jon for awhile and when he asked if I would write a weird little story, I said sure. From there he let me off the leash and do my story with very little editing involved.
A lot of your books lean to darker themes. Why did you choose to write suspense/thrillers? Were you influenced by these types of stories?Patrick: The kind of stuff I grew up on was the creature features. Creature from the Black Lagoon, Twilight Zone, etc. They were softer creepy stories, weird stories, that are not as scary and graphic as the movies and stories are today. The movies today would have terrified me as an 11 year old viewer.
I agree. Movies like Saw and Hostel would have put me into therapy...Patrick: I know. Those older stories were great escapism, thrilling stories that took you to different worlds that I could enjoy from the safety of my own room. Those kind of stories were an influence to what I create today.
I prefer the classics myself. Why do you think young readers are drawn to these types of stories?Patrick: Weird things are universal and I think that everyone can relate to these kind of stories on some level. It's another form of escapism much like Willy Wonka or the Narnia books where
In our continuing SHOCKtober celebration of all things GUYS READ: THRILLER, Walden Pond Press and I have wrangled up another contributing author from the dark underground tunnels. Bruce Hale, who is no stranger to the Asylum, has joined the arsenal (I call them the arsenal because they are dangerously... good) of writers spilling ink in the thrilltastic anthology.
What brought you to the GR:Thriller project?Bruce: I'd written a story for the earlier GUYS WRITE FOR GUYS READ collection, so I guess that means I was in some way part of the Guys Read gang (although they never showed me the secret handshake). Being a mystery writer, I presume I was on their list of candidates for selection in this new collection -- and I'm honored to have been chosen.
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| Courtesy MetroLibraryNetwork.org |
I've always dreamed of being a monster hunter personally. Is this a factual retelling or was it something you had brewing? Bruce: Alas, this isn't a factual retelling -- but wouldn't that be cool? I'd been a big monster fan since the days of making Wolfman and Dracula models as a kid, and when Jon Scieszka invited me to contribute a story to the collection, I wanted to do something that was less detective-y and more monstrous. This idea of kid monster hunters came to me during my brainstorming session, and it struck a chord.
In your opinion, what makes a story thrilling and how do you balance it from being too creepy or scary for young readers? Bruce: Making a story thrilling is largely about getting us to care about a character and then putting that character in deep, deep doo-doo. And that's true no matter what genre you're writing in. What scares us most, I think, is the unknown. If you can play with that fear during the course of your story, you can milk a lot of thrilling moments from it.
I think kids today can handle a lot gorier, scarier stuff than they could when I was growing up, but that doesn't necessarily mean we should give it to them. I balance the scary stuff with humor, which works as a safety valve for letting off the reader's tension, and I use my best judgment as to how much creepiness appropriate for young readers.
R.L. Stine set that bar pretty high, though, so I've got a lot of leeway.
Why do you think young readers are drawn to these kind of stories? Did you read them growing up? Bruce:&n
Suspenseful and thrilling tales are nothing new to Margaret Peterson Haddix. Her books have kept young readers on the edge of their seats for years. But it may come as a surprise to many of us that she has never written a ghost story. Gasp!
Don't fret my fiendish pals. Thankfully,
GUYS READ: THRILLER was able to pull such a ghostly tale that has been buried deep inside her creative attic. In our continuing celebration of the Walden Pond Press latest release, I was able to catch up with Margaret during her very busy schedule to ask her about her story
Thad, the Ghost, and Me.
What brought you to the Guys Read:Thriller project? Margaret: I was bribed with promises of baked goods and lawncare assistance. That’s the funny (but true) answer. The more serious (but also true) answer is that I think Guys Read is a good program, and I thought it would be fun to be involved.
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| I wouldn't want to mow this lawn. |
In your opinion what makes a Thrilling story? And can you tell us why you chose to write a ghost tale?Margaret: I think a thrilling story makes readers obsessed with finding out what happens next. So suspense is very important to the thrill.
I think this is the first ghost story I’ve ever written—I’m not sure why it took me so long! I’d had the idea rattling around in my brain for a while of doing something about a real ghost haunting a “fake” haunted house, and the way formerly “brave” people dealing with the ghost wouldn’t seem so brave once they knew everything they were seeing was real. It seemed to be a good fit for Guys Read: Thriller, and once I started thinking about the actual characters of Harvey, Thad and the narrator, I knew I wanted to write the story.
As a writer of stories that keep us up all night, why do you think thriller stories resonate with young readers?Margaret: It’s a safe way to try out their own bravery. Or, somet
I'm new to the world of Matt de la Pena. I knew of him and his work and heard others speak of him around the children's literature water cooler. So I had to know more and educate myself about this award winning and highly talented writer. And was I ever glad that I did. At this year's LA SCBWI event I came across his first picture book A Nation's Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis (Dial Press, 2011). If you have not seen this book, stop what you are doing and check it out. It is amazing. I was mesmerized by the book.
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| Matt de la Pena |
When I heard he had a story in GUYS READ: THRILLER I was very excited to see what he would bring to this anthology. Kicking off our series of author interviews from GRT, Matt was gracious enough to let us steal away some of his time to talk about his involvement with this awesome project.
What brought you to the GR:Thriller project?Matt: I was lucky enough to be approached by Jon (Scieszka) and Jordan Brown (Editor at Walden). I'd never written a "Mystery" or "thriller" story and they thought it'd be fun to have a few writers try something outside their comfort zone. I'd read the first book,
Guys Read: Funny Business, and loved it, so I jumped at the chance. I really thing Jon has an awesome and relevant thing going with the Guys Read series. I'm so happy to be a contributor!
This was your first middle grade story. How was writing MG different for you? What were the challenges (if any)?Matt: I finally got to curse at will. Kidding, of course. I didn't do much differently, to be honest. Tried to stay away from the language. But my characters are all growing up too fast, so I don't shy away from moments of (street) sophistication. There's maybe a dash more innocence, I guess. And it was the first time I've ever written a scene at a school. That was interesting. Ninety-nine percent of my stuff takes place outside of school grounds. But it was fun to drop into a junior high and let the scene play. It helped that there's a school across the street from my apt in Brooklyn. That was my model. I'll tell you this, writing this middle grade story definitely makes me want to write a middle grade novel. It felt like a good fit. I have some ideas . . .
In your opinion what makes a Thrilling story? And can you tell us why you decide to stay with a more grounded-in-reality tale?Matt: "Believing in Brooklyn" definitely veers more toward the mystery side of the Mystery/Thriller category. For me as a reader, the stakes are always building in a good mystery or thriller. Each bit of conflict build on what comes before. Things keep getting ramped up until the story explodes. And I've always loved love worki
The Asylum is going bonkers over the recent release of Walden Pond Press' GUYS READ: THRILLER. Unleashed upon the world on 9/20/2011, this book is chock full of stories by some of the biggest names in children's literature. Check out the list and be ready to have your face melt off.
Contributing authors are
M.T. Anderson, Patrick Carman, Gennifer Choldenko, Matt de la Pena, Margaret Peterson Haddix, Bruce Hale, Jarrett J. Krosoczka, Anthony Horowitz, Walter Dean Myers, and James Paterson. Illustrated by Brett Helquist. Edited by Jon Scieszka.Wow wow wow! The stories in this book are a lot of fun and I found myself reading many of them twice just because I enjoyed them that much. As Halloween is creeping up on us I can't think of a better treat to share with your friends, children, and anyone else who loves a thrilling story.
To celebrate the release of this literary chillfest we have all kinds of wonderful things happening around the Asylum. First of all, if you haven't seen the writing contest we are hosting with
Walden Pond Press and
Underneath the Juniper Tree magazine then YOU NEED to check it out
here or (
http://literaryasylum.blogspot.com/2011/07/thrilling-contest-and-celebration.html) and enter now! The entries have been sneaking up on us and all I can say is there is some heavy competition. Give us your best, thrilling, creepy, and horrific. We are DYING to read them.
AND if that contest wasn't awesome enough - you have to return often for our very special interviews with many of the contributing authors of the book! I'm over the moon about these interviews and I think you will enjoy them too.
Please join us and shout it from the rooftops, tweet, facebook, blog, vlog, blog radio it, send carrier pigeon messages, or whatever! Spread the word. Kick off the Halloween season with gigantic thrills!
In the meantime check out this awesome posting and video over on Jarrett Krosoczka's blog of the Guy's Read panel that happened during that latest BEA. Click here -
http://thejjkblog.blogspot.com/2011/
During the 2011 LA SCBWI event, several things happened that changed my life. The first one was that I finally got to meet Bat Girl Editor extraordinaire
Liesa Abrams for Aladdin/Simon Schuster books. And let me tell you. She. Is. Amazing. She is also an uber cool nerdy gal that I am honored to call a friend. The second amazing thing to happen was that she introduced me to one of her authors, mister
James Riley.
There are times in life when you meet someone and you know that they might be a long lost brother or we may have been fighting Spartan in a previous life. The dude is a riot. I seriously think he needs a stand up routine.
Anyway, when James handed me his book
HALF UPON A TIME (edited by Liesa) I kinda wanted to take the rest of the day to go read it. Then some writer named Judy Blume took the stage and well, you know, she kinda deserves some attention, seeing how
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing was a game changer for me.
To celebrate the paperback release of this awesome book (September 13th, 2011), James and I drove around in a ice cream truck and flung bomb pops at people. This is how the conversation went down.
James, shall we start our conversation/interview for the blog to celebrate your fantastic book?James Riley: Yes! Wow, these questions are really easy. Do you start off just lobbing them in, then ask me about the Battle of Hastings once I grow in confidence? 1066, if you do. In, um, Hastings.
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| The Battle of Hastings |
Can you give us a bit of your background and what brought you to writing for children?JR: I like my background to accent me, so I typically try to stay backlit, with soft colors, maybe blues or greens. Sometimes, when I'm feeling frisky, I go str
Some of you may have been wondering where I have been hiding out. Did I vanish? Was I abducted by aliens? Did I join a rogue legion of super villains? Some of you may not of even noticed that I was gone. That's okay too. All I can say is that there has been a lot going on in Asylumland (trademark pending).
For starters, myself and Mrs. Asylum welcomed our second child into the world. A baby boy! His big sister has welcomed him with open arms and she is excited to show him the ropes.
Secondly, I was buried under the third season of Ancient Aliens, which I work on as a researcher. Having multiple shows going at once was overwhelming and sucked up a good part of my day, not leaving much time for blogging, writing, being my usual geeky self during the off hours.
Thirdly, I hope to have some very big, awesome, amazing, stupendous, outrageous (you get the point) news to announce shortly. Some things have been brewing in the Asylum basement that I have had to be hush hush about. I hope to share that news with you all soon.
Fourthly, Halloween is creeping up on us and I have been slack in my usual haunting posts and celebratory babels about one of my favorite holidays. But, never FEAR, my collaboration with Walden Pond Press celebrating their recent release of GUYS READ: THRILLER kicks off this week with some amazing interviews. I think you will enjoy them.
Fifthly, enough of my gabbing already, let's get back to blogging. Join me tomorrow for my interview with fantastic writer James Riley,
author of
Half Upon A Time (Aladdin Books).
I'm just going to say it right now.
Bill Doyle is my new hero. There, I said it. If they made a Bill costume for Halloween, I would wear it. If there was a Doyle Lucha Libre mask, I would buy it and wear it. The reason I'm so ga-ga over Mr. Doyle has to do with his awesome chapter books that are chock full of the spooky fun. And to top it with the cherry, Mr. Doyle is an awesomely nice guy. That's a double threat in any book. When I came across a book with the words Shark and Zombie in it I gobbled it up. And after reading it I was all "Who is this author and why have I not spoken with him yet?!" That's how I started my stalking career (I kid. Such a kidder...)
Now, as Nacho says, "Let's get down to the neeeetty greeeetty."
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and what brought you to writing for children?
Bill Doyle - While I’ve wanted to write since I was a kid, I didn’t always want to write for kids. At eight, I was reading Lovecraft and King, which my mom and brothers gave me. And I was really into clacking out scary stuff that bordered on horror on my plastic toy typewriter. What really got me excited about writing was when my grade school teacher, Mrs. Fenster, let me stage a “slasher” mystery play I wrote. Seeing the kids in my class watch my play and ooh and ahh at the nutty plot twists and the big revelation of whodunit was incredible—something I’ll never forget—and something I wanted to experience more.
Years later, I went to NYU’s Film School for graduate dramatic writing…and thought I’d be creating scripts for grown-ups. After working in development for a nano-moment, I applied for a magazine editor job posted in the New York Times. What it didn’t say in the ad was that the job was at Sesame Workshop, home of Sesame Street. I got hired, and thought, “Oh, my voice is meant for more sophisticated ears. I’ll stay here for a month or two.” But within a week, I was hooked on writing for kids.
During the couple years I was editor of Kid City, also known as Electric Company Magazine, I realized that I had a love of and knack for writing for kids—and it didn’t have to be in script form. One of t
RAWRRRrrrrrrRRRRr! (since I don't squeee). That is how I feel about the launch of the brand new
Underneath the Juniper Tree website! If you don't know about the best and most darkly deeeelish children's literature web magazine on this blue marble then you need to do yourself a favor and - run like banshees are behind you about to swallow you up - get over to the website.
Here is the link: http://underneaththejunipertree.com/Congrats to Tex and Marjorie for such a wonderful and amazing and fun and amazing (yes, I said it twice) place for all of us kid litters with a love for the creepy to hang and share stories. I am SO proud of you two and all the other creepers involved!
Uber illustrator, Jason Smith and I have been working on a little project that we hope to continue for some time. More than anything, we just want something to have fun with. This is a comic strip we created called Chickens Don't Like Lunar Dust. It follows Lester and his best friend Frizzle - along with many other characters - on Lester's journey to become an astronaut.
We hope you will come check out the site, share with the kids and enjoy. We look forward to your thoughts.
http://chickensdontlikelunardust.wordpress.com/
In celebration of the upcoming release of Walden Pond Press' Guys Read: THRILLER (Aug 2011) and our favorite holiday - Halloween! Literary Asylum (that's us) and Underneath the Juniper Tree in association with Walden Pond Press want YOU to give us your best opening paragraph or two of the most thrilling, terrifying, spooky, creepy, and crazy MG/YA story you can muster.
Here's your motivation. The top writer will receive a copy of GR:THRILLER signed by the ambassador of Children's Lit himself Jon Scieszka. And, your paragraph/s will appear in an upcoming issue of UTJT. And, there is more! How is that even possible? The winning writer will be interviewed on the Literary Asylum blog to celebrate your thrilling job well done.
I can tell you this. Having an agent in your corner and on your team is like being able to eat lunch with Han Solo and Chewbacca everyday.
If that means nothing to you then you need to eat lunch with them and you will understand. Basically, it's freakin awesome! Speaking of awesome. I had the opportunity to speak with out-of-this-world agent, Chris Richman, from Upstart Crow Literary about his task of being an agent in the best sector of the literary world - children's literature. This post is not about what he is looking for or how you can submit manuscripts to him - that you can find on his site here. This is about being an agent and what happens on a day to day basis.
How involved are you with your writers (from editing, notes, story development), and how important is this for you?
CHRIS RICHMAN - I’m typically very involved with my clients when it comes to editing, notes, and story development, especially on projects which are not under contract. I’ve yet to have a project go out on submission without doing at least one round of revision with the client first. For new clients, we can sometimes do several rounds of revision, from both big picture issues to pacing and character development. With existing clients, I weigh in on the marketability of new projects they’re considering working on to make sure the new work has a home in the market. In truth, I’m happy to help out in whatever way is most helpful for the client, and have done a little bit of everything.When a project sells, however, I step back and let the writer work more directly with the editor, since that’s where the meat of the development takes place.
Put me in the agent chair, what are some of the day to day hurdles of being a lit agent? What do most people/clients not know about the hard work you do?
3 Comments on In the agent's chair with CHRIS RICHMAN, last added: 7/27/2011
TOMORROW (7/26) is the paperback release of one of my favorite books. MILO: Sticky Notes & Brain Freeze (Aladdin books) by Alan Silberberg. It lands in bookstores and all across the net in the soft and pillowy form we know as paperback. It's like a marshmallow for you hands and so good for your brain (I just made that part up. Feel free to use that among your friends).
Because MILO is such a wonderful book - you can check out my older posts here
http://literaryasylum.blogspot.com/2010/12/what-milo-means-to-me.html -
we want to celebrate it's PB release all day 7/26. We, being you, me, your friends, Aladdin books, bloggers, tweeters, facebookers... you get the idea.
MILO Synopsis: Milo Cruikshank is a 13 year-old new kid, who has to find a way to hit the "restart" button all over again.The truth is, ever since Milo's mother died nothing has felt right. Now, instead of the kitchen being filled with music, the whole house is filled with Fog. Nothing's the same. Not his Dad. Not his sister. And definitely not him. In love with the girl he sneezed on the first day of school and best pals with Marshall, the "One-Eyed Jack" of friends, Milo struggles to survive a school year that is filled with reminders of what his life "used to be".
Brimming with heart, humor and ultimately hope, Milo: Sticky Notes & Brain Freeze is a powerhouse of a novel that will stay with you well after you've turned the last page. Tell us what MILO means to you. Do you have any favorite quotes, moments from the book, drawings that struck a chord! Join us over on twitter (or your networking place of choice) and give a shout out to MILO.
Be sure to use the hashtags:
#MILORules#MILOPB#BrainFreeze#MILOReleaseGive a shout out to Milo's awesome creator Alan Silberberg
@AlanSilberberg. Milo's incredible editor, Liesa Abrams
@BatgirlEditor and let them know your love for the book. They hear it from me all the time so it would be nice for the gushing to come from others too.
Fellow blogger and author Shannon Messenger
@SWMessenger and I will be among the bookish fiends leading a charge to spread the MILO love all day. So come join the fun and celebrate MILO with us. You are certain to meet fellow like-minded bloggers, authors, industry peeps, readers, fans, librarians and more! If you are not on twitter celebrate on the other social networks and be sure to send us a line so we can share with others.
Did I forget to mention that there may even be a really awesome giveaway?! Stay tuned for details. Until then. Long live MILO!
At 12 feet 6 inches tall,
Jonathan Auxier, is literary force of nature. Okay fine, he's not really that tall, but he is talented. His debut book,
PETER NIMBLE & HIS FANTASTIC EYES - available August 1st (Abrams) - is a darkly whimsical and sharply written tale. I highly recommend it to all.
Jonathan and I have had the pleasure of hanging out on a few occasions and it is always entertaining and awesome. He's a great guy, wonderful talent and kindred spirit. I am absolutely honored to be able to have him here at the Asylum to dish on writing and his fantastic new book.
Can you give us a bit of your background and what brought you to writing for children?
Jonathan Auxier - I’ve been working as a professional storyteller for a few years now. By “professional,” I mean I’ve been lucky enough to pay my bills through writing, if just barely. During that time, I’ve written everything from plays to screenplays to commercials to comics. A few years back, I found myself growing frustrated by the “hired gun” aspect of the entertainment industry. Most of the time, you’re working with someone else’s story ideas -- and even if those ideas are brilliant, they aren’t yours. Screenwriter Javier Grillo-Marxauch once described this to me as “marching in someone else’s army,” which I’ve always liked. Some writers really enjoy that collaborative spirit, but I’m not one of them. I think when I know something isn’t 100% mine, I subconsciously hold back.
JA - At some point, I was starting to lose sight of why I even wanted to tell stories in the first place. This desperation led to me unearthing a novel manuscript I had written in graduate school -- Peter Nimble & His Fantastic Eyes. The draft was terrible, but something within the story still sparked my imagination. And so I started squirreling hours away on nights and weekends, revising the manuscript. Over time I realized that there was something about the nature of prose writing that engaged my imagination in a way script writing never had -- it’s a bigger canvas.
It makes sense that my “passion project” was a children’s book because children’s literature has been the one constant in my life. My love for theatre and film has come and gone, but since a very young age, I have been an avid collector of children’s books. My wife is a Victorian Children’s Literature scholar, and pretty mu
Many thousands of us will be attending the
San Diego Comic Con (starting today) and the nerdocolypse will wash over the gas lamp district. For many of you, it could be your first time or you may be trying to figure out how to navigate the crowded waters to find those KID LIT friendly/related panels. Well, have no fear. I have compiled the list of panels in one spot - here. Have fun, I look forward to seeing some of you there.
THURSDAY1:15-2:15
Books vs. Graphic Novels and Comics— Writers often dabble with various forms of art as an outlet for their creativity. In this panel, authors discuss the process and collaboration involved in publishing a graphic novel versus a novel, as well as the role comic books play in the creation of their characters and story arcs. Panelists
Christopher Moore and
Ian Corson (
The Griff),
Jim Butcher (The Harry Dresden series),
Tom Sniegoski (The Fallen series),
Amber Benson (The Calliope Reaper Jones novels), and
Matthew Holms (
Babymouse, Squish) talk about the differences and similarities with moderator
David Mariotte of Mysterious Galaxy.
Room 6A Tags: Comics | Writers & Writing3:00-4:00
Magic & Monsters— Adult and young adult science fiction and fantasy authors discuss the costs and consequences of "magic" in their novels and the scary, hairy, and dangerous creatures that lurk in the worlds they have created. Visit the worlds of
Kim Harrison (The Hollows series),
Andrea Cremer (The Nightshade series),
Anton Strout (The Simon Canderous series),
Lev Grossman (
The Magicians),
Ben Loory (
Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day),
J. F. Lewis (The Void City novels), and
Diana Rowland (The White Trash Zombie series), guided by moderator
Maryelizabeth Hart of Mysterious Galaxy.
Room 25ABC Tags: Horror and Suspense | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Writers & Writing4:30-5:30
Comics for Teens— Comics creators
Cecil Castelluci (
Plain Janes),
Hope Larson (
Mercury),
Nate Powell (
Swallow Me Whole), and
Gene Luen Yang (
Level Up) come together for a discussion of what makes a comic fit a teen audience. Do books for teens have something special that books for kids and adults don't have? Moderated by
Scott Westerfeld (
New York Times bestselling teen author).
Room 26AB Tags: Art and Illustration |
2 Comments on Bookish Kid Lit Panels at San Diego Comic Con 2011, last added: 7/21/2011
Because I am always having to go to many sites to find out what is releasing in my passion area of books, I have decided to start collecting a list of weekly releases in the middle grade arena. So let's start the kick off with the following:
Dragonbreath: No Such Things As Ghosts (Dial, July 21, 2011)
Bone Dog (Roaring Brook Press, July 19, 2011)
Synopsis: Ghost dogs and skeletons in a tall tale with a tender heart from the Caldecott Medal-winning creator of My Friend Rabbit
0 Comments on MG Releases - Week of July 17th 2011 as of 7/18/2011 4:38:00 PM
“It’s not who you are underneath…It’s what you do that defines you!”
People, it is time to spread the word. And the word is – Literary Asylum returns! Bigger, better. More interviews, more contests, more reviews, more middle grade than you can stand. From the Lazarus pit the warden will return. Soon.
People need dramatic examples to shake them out of apathy, and I can't do that as D.M. Cunningham. As a man, I'm flesh and blood. I can be ignored, I can be destroyed. But as a symbol … as a symbol, I can be incorruptible. I can be everlasting.
Having a blog on writing gives you the opportunity to speak with some very impressive people. Some days you wonder how you get so lucky. Today's interview is with an amazingly talented and smart writer. I'm stealing this next part from her website because it's too good not to.
JOANNE ROCKLIN is the critically acclaimed author of several books, including
ONE DAY AND ONE AMAZING MORNING ON ORANGE STREET, an Indie Bound book;
STRUDEL STORIES, which was a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year and an American Library Association Notable Book, and
FOR YOUR EYES ONLY!, which was a School Library Journal Best Book and a Bank Street Best Book. Her early readers
THREE SMART PALS and
THIS BOOK IS HAUNTED will soon be e-books, the latter also to be released as an App.
Her latest middle grade novel is ONE DAY AND ONE AMAZING MORNING ON ORANGE STREET, also published as an audiobook. "Fully realized characters and setting definitely make this one morning on Orange Street amazing." KIRKUS, starred.
She has a doctorate in psychology and is a former elementary school teacher, presently writing children’s books full-time. For several years she taught a popular class in writing children’s books at UCLA Extension. She gives presentations in schools, libraries and bookstores and has been a speaker for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, the California Reading Association, and other organizations.
Joanne is a rock star. Wouldn't you say? Is it possible to air guitar to book interviews? (because I'm doing that right now). Okay, now that my opening act is over let's get to the main event.
You have a strong history of writing and teaching, can you tell us what brought you to writing for children?
JOANNE ROCKLIN: I have always written, ever since I was very little-- poems, stories, etc. Books have been one of my greatest loves, and I believe that most, if not all, writers have been life-long readers. As for writing for children-- I write middle grade, and the middle grade voice is strongest in my head, because of all the letters I wrote to a best friend during summer vacations. I fell in love with children's literature all over again when I had my own children. And, living in L.A., I found myself taking wonderful children's writing classes at UCLA Extension, as well as becoming inspired by and active in The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, which began in L.A. but is now an international organization.
Your new book sounds wonderful, can
Because the dust has settled for some time since my last interview. Those of you still hanging with me may be saying "Hey D.M. it's really dead around here." And you would be right. I have two wonderful interviews coming up in the next week and then I will be taking a bloggercation, twittercation and any other cation of the interwebs variation.
I have been hammered with a workload that has worn me down. I need some time to finish a couple writing projects that I am so close to wrapping up. But they need some TLC and some focus. Unfortunately the blog will suffer for the time being. I hope to come back from the dead and raise the bar on the blog. It is probably due for a face lift and some rebooting (We can thank DC comics for that mindset).
Until then, keep writing, keep reading, and keep it simple.
I rambled off fifty different ways to start today's interview. I was smart, witty, and dashing (although you couldn't see it - I really was). I dressed in superhero gear, prepped my utility belt, filed the batarangs and gassed the Mattmobile (my version of the Batmobile disguised as a silver Chevrolet). Sometimes, no matter how much you prepare, you just can't be fully ready for an explosion of geektastic awesomeness that is today's interview. Seriously folks, I am over the moon. I have been a big fan of
DAN SANTAT for a long time. His work is inspiring and laugh-out-loud makes me want to cry amazing. Thanks to
LISA YEE, I finally got to meet him. But that is enough of my fan boy blathering. Let's get down to the meat and potatoes!
Coming in July is Dan's latest graphic novel that is going to melt our faces off, turn them to dust and blow the ashes into the wind. If you are not aware of
SIDEKICKS (Arthur A. Levine Books, 2011) - you are now. Dan and I talked about this awesome book and I of course had to ask other slobbery fan questions. So sit back and enjoy the awesomesauceness about to unfold...
Can you tell me a bit about Sidekicks and how the story came about?
DAN SANTAT: When I was in art school I took a Natures of Materials class where we learned how to paint in various mediums and experiment with different painting surfaces. All the assignments had to have a theme and so I went with superhero animals. The first one I did was a beaver dressed as Captain America (which ended up becoming the hamster in my book) and the next came an electric cat and so forth. I started sketching out these characters more and more in my sketchbook until I had six characters that I was fully satisfied with and I called them The Domesticated Six.
I still had a good year left in art school and I began appropriating them into other class assignments hoping that I could have a whole picture book dummy to show by the time I got out of school. Turns out that a year after graduating I met Arthur Levine and he offered me a two book deal (the first being
The Guild of Geniuses) and the second was The Domesticated Six, which he bought just on the idea alone.
For many of us summer break no longer exists. These days we work through the week to get to the weekend to have mini summer breaks. But there was a time when summer break meant a world of possibilities. A time to reinvent yourself before the new school year. A time to explore the outer fringes of the neighborhood and stay up late at night reading monster books or watching monster movies (okay that is what I did - you fill in your summer event here). I say embrace those memories and grab yourself a heaping of STEVE COTLER'S debut book CHEESIE MACK Is Not A Genius or Anything (Random House Books for Young Readers, 2011). It's here just in time for your summer reading. Ahh, summer. Well, I could go on for days about the crazy things I did in the summer but let's talk to the author of this awesome middle-grade book that will leaving you craving for more.
Mr. Cotler, you have a very interesting background from Apollo to Harvard Business School to Hollywood. What brought you to writing for children?
Steve Cotler: First, I’m a father and grandfather who purposely engages his progeny in conversation. I like to hear what they have to say, so even small events in small lives get me thinking. For children, there’s an adventure in every hour. Second, I’m a natural storyteller. Ask me a question (“Where could I go to dig up my own fossils?”) and be prepared for a very long, but very intriguing answer. (“There’s a little-used highway heading east out of Madras, Oregon. I was driving Winkie—remember that periwinkle-colored van?—past hawks, rock slides of every hue from red to redder and from gray to green, and one horse with a man and a sheep dog.”) And third, I no longer feel I have to prove anything or win a ribbon. Now, I just want to do good deeds. The grin on a kid’s face when imagination leads to cognition or discovery is evidence of one of those good deeds.
Currently working in Hollywood myself, I find that a lot more screenwriters are turning to writing books. Why do you think that is? What do you think is the biggest challenge in doing so?
SC: I left TV and screenwriting in 2001. And I was never really part of the Hollywood scene, so I can’t generalize about others making the switch to books. For me, novel-writing offered the privilege of writing alone, without producers and studios sitting on my shoulder as I stared at the keyboard.
Your debut book, Cheesie Mack is a lot of fun! What made you decide to have this be your first book and can you spill any beans on some of the upcoming books in the series?
SC: The summer I was 19, I was a counselor at a boys camp in Maine. I made up and told my ch
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1 Comments on I would be DAN SANTAT's SiDEKiCk Any Day!, last added: 5/20/2011
Great interview:)