Guest post – Page 42 – Unleashing Readers

Author Guest Post!: “What’s in a Name?” by Royce Leville, Author of The Book of Names

October 11, 2015 by Kellee

“What’s in a Name?”

A pseudonym is much more than a writer taking a different name, or even a writer hiding behind a different name. It requires a process of creating a whole new writing style.

Like hitting a tennis ball, making a quilt or playing an instrument, writing is a skill.¹ As a skill, it can be trained, honed and improved. Talent is useful, but most writers agree that talent only takes you so far, especially when it comes to writing fiction.²

There are many ways to work on the skill of writing and to hone the craft.³ A favorite is the “write as someone else” exercise. In fact, writing as someone else was such a boon, it allowed for the creation of me, Royce Leville.

Okay, before we give birth to a pseudonym,⁴ let’s take a few steps back. Why write as someone else? Good question. If you’re working towards writing fiction, especially novel-length, then you need to accept that there’s a lot of preparation and work involved before you even get to chapter one. Part of that is writing character descriptions.⁵And the character really comes to life when he or she is given a voice; that is, when you attempt to write “in character.”⁶

Here’s a good sample exercise for writing as someone else:

Step 1: Write down some details of a character, including age, gender, profession, nationality, brief back story
Step 2: Move on to personal interests (past and present), taste in music, sports, books, etc
Step 3: Give the character some applicable (or even contrary) attributes, based on what’s already been listed in steps 1 and 2
Step 4: Start to populate the character’s world: car, house, furniture, clothing, accessories. Maybe make a list of the items found in the character’s fridge or wallet
Step 5: Now comes the Frankenstein moment. Can you bring the character to life on the page? Write in the first person, trying to use this character’s voice. Start with very simple things, such as making a cup of coffee or getting ready for work. See if you can write “in character”
Step 6: Now place the character in situations with other people. Think about dialogue and how this character speaks, and how this character behaves and reacts

Hopefully, through such a process, the character moves from being a blur of features to a sharply drawn and detailed person, one you might find yourself having conversations with inside your head.⁷

The more work you do in fleshing out the character, the more complex and believable the character becomes. In fact, the character may become so complete, he or she might even become the writer, with a unique style and a specific genre. And you’ve got yourself a pseudonym.⁸

Once there, the trick is how to get in character. Royce Leville has a black hat. With this hat on, Royce is writing.

This Jekyll and Hyde act might sound weird, but it can open some very interesting creative doors.

Notes:

This is the best thing to understand about writing, as it will help you with all forms of writing, whether it’s a birthday card for grandma, an important report at work, or a speech of some kind. If you work at writing, you can get better at it.
There are plenty of writers out there low on talent who churn out successful books.
Solitary writing endeavors result in little progress. Attend workshops, take creative writing classes, join a writing group. Book clubs are also good. Take the time to master the tenses and understand things like point-of-view, narrator knowledge and character consistency.
Royce has written before about the benefits of writing under a pseudonym: http://chapterbreak.net/2015/01/12/guest-post-seven-reasons-to-write-under-a-pseudonym-by-royce-leville/
Who hasn’t read a book with characters that seemed more like lazy sketches on napkins rather than intricately detailed and artistically drawn portraits? Or where a character said something that the character was completely unlikely to say?
Have no illusions. This is much more difficult than it sounds.
Not necessarily a bad thing.
And you’ve possibly opened up a little can of crazy, because you’ll be writing as a character you’ve created, who then starts writing as characters he or she creates. Neat, huh?

ABOUT THE BOOK OF NAMES:

There’s a benevolent locksmith with keys to every lock in town, a serial-killing vet who harvests his victims’ organs, a group of men locked inside a container and stranded at a harbor somewhere, and a performance artist who can open a bottle of champagne in an extraordinary way

Strange situations, unsolvable problems, secret lives, redemption and revenge. At times THE BOOK OF NAMES invokes the spirit of The Twilight Zone, yielding tales of morality, sexuality, and power.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Campbell is a prolific author, journalist and advertising writer who has published three books under his own name and two as Royce Leville. He has won four independent publishing awards and received three prestigious writing residencies. Campbell, born in Australia and residing in Germany, took second place in the 2012 Next Generation Indie Book Awards for his first Leville book, A Little Leg Work. His articles have featured in numerous magazines and newspapers, while his short stories have appeared in Australian Reader, Spotlight Magazine, Italy from a Backpack and the Fellowship of Australian Writers (WA) compilation, Lines in the Sand.

Find more information at: www.rippplemedia.com

Thank you to Royce for this fascinating look at pseudonyms and building characterization within writing!

and

Author Guest Post: “Teaching Kids Empathy through Story” by Natasha Sinel, Author of The Fix

September 27, 2015 by Ricki

“Teaching Kids Empathy through Story”

“I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself become the wounded person.”

― Walt Whitman, Song of Myself

Recently NPR’s All Things Considered aired a piece about a research study suggesting that school kids who read and identify with Harry Potter display more positive attitudes toward people from disadvantaged groups. The reporter said, “So it turns out Harry Potter may be an effective tool against prejudice…When stories allow us to empathize with people who lead very different lives or come from very different backgrounds, it allows us to get into their shoes in a way that no amount of preaching can accomplish.”

While this doesn’t surprise me, I find it extremely interesting and validating.

I consider myself empathetic to an extreme. To be a writer of fiction, I believe that’s a requirement—we have to get inside our characters’ heads to see who they are, how they live, how they think. If I didn’t have empathy, then all of my characters would be privileged white women in their forties. But that’s not who I write. I write about teenagers—female, male, white, non-white, gay, immigrant, autistic, mentally ill.

In The Fix, some of Macy’s actions could be judged—she’s not particularly nice to her mother, she has a history of sleeping around—but as you get to know her, you learn that there’s a reason for her behaviors that even she doesn’t quite understand, even when the reader already does. Same goes for Sebastian. He’s an addict, he suffers from depression, and he spends several weeks at a psychiatric institute.

For readers who have experienced any of these hardships—depression, addiction, sexual abuse—I hope they’ll see that they’re not alone. I hope a reader who has been abused will see that telling someone can help. But I also hope that readers who haven’t dealt with any of these things will take away an understanding of the difficulties a friend may be going through, and will see how important it is not to trivialize or overlook pain that may be underneath the surface.

This quote I found really struck me, and I think of it now whenever I write: “We could be standing next to someone who is completely broken and we wouldn’t even know it.”

Part of empathy is realizing that people wear cloaks to make the pain and scars inside easier to hide. When we read, we see beneath the cloaks. Maybe that can help us look at our friends, our classmates in a new light. Maybe we can question actions first instead of judging. Maybe we can begin to understand what it feels like to be a survivor of abuse, an addict struggling every day to stay clean, an immigrant who fears deportation, an intersex girl learning about her complex body, a boy with Aspergers who wants close friends but doesn’t always understand the nuances of social interactions, an impoverished girl who doesn’t know where her next meal is coming from.

If the studies are true, and kids can become more empathetic by reading diverse narratives, then we need to keep giving them the stories. I promise to keep writing them, and I hope you’ll keep teaching them.

About the Book:

“Sinel bravely addresses tough topics, demonstrating that the weight of secrets can pull us under––and their release can save us from drowning.” —Holly Schindler, critically acclaimed author of A Blue So Dark and Feral

“Bewitching, beautiful, and brave . . . readers will marvel at Macy’s resilience. Sinel’s writing devastates and uplifts, by turns.” —Carrie Mesrobian, award-winning author of Sex & Violence and Perfectly Good White Boy

“A riveting picture of a teenager haunted by her past and struggling with her present . . . richly drawn, heartbreakingly real, and difficult to put down. The Fix shines.” —I. W. Gregorio, author of None of the Above

“A vivid storyteller, Sinel tackles an emotional topic, portraying the pain and repercussions of Macy’s experience with an honest sensitivity. I was hooked from the opening pages.” —Yvonne Ventresca, award-winning author of Pandemic

“Unflinchingly honest writing.” —Marie Jaskula, author of The Lost Marble Notebook of Forgotten Girl & Random Boy

Perfect for fans of Laura Weiss’s award-winning Such a Pretty Girl and Leftovers, as well as Sarah Dessen’s Dreamland, THE FIX (Sky Pony Press; September 1, 2015; ISBN: 978-1-63450-167-5; $16.99; ages 12 & up), by debut author Natasha Sinel, addresses real-life issues of drug addiction and sexual abuse.

While there are many YA novels that focus on sexual abuse, very few explore the complex effects of sibling sexual abuse, which is extremely prevalent (five times the rate of parent-child sexual abuse) and underreported. The Fix, a contemporary story featuring two teenagers from opposite sides of the track, fills a void in young adult fiction.

Meet seventeen-year-old Macy. Rich, popular, and dating the cute boy next door, Macy’s life should be perfect. But she harbors a secret that could ruin her seemingly flawless family. A late night conversation with loner and recovering addict Sebastian at her friend Rebecca’s party throws Macy’s life off balance. The following morning Sebastian doesn’t show up at school, and rumors fly that he’s been hospitalized after attempting suicide. Though their conversation was brief, Macy feels connected to Sebastian and begins to visit him in the hospital. Their blossoming friendship eventually shakes Macy out of her carefully maintained complacency as she realizes that keeping her secret could destroy her.

The Fix not only tells the story of two good-hearted teenagers coming to terms with the cards they were dealt but is also about the fixes we rely on to cope with our most shameful secrets, and the hope and fear that comes with meeting someone who challenges us to come clean. Written with honesty and sensitivity, Sinel’s heartfelt and courageous debut will inspire readers.

About the Author:

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Natasha Sinel is a writer of young adult fiction. She graduated from Yale University with a BA in English and from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business with an MBA. Before beginning her career as an author, she was director of business development at Showtime Networks. Born and raised in Washington, DC, she now lives in northern Westchester, New York, with her husband and three sons.

You can visit her website at natashasinel.com.

Thank you to Sara at Sky Pony Press for sharing this great book with us, and thank you, Natasha, for your beautiful words.

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Author Guest Post: “An Element of Fun: A Teacher’s Reflection” by Melissa Polyakov, Author of Mr. Fact and Miss Opinion

April 22, 2023September 20, 2015 by Ricki

“An Element of Fun”

In every job that must be done there is an element of fun. – Mary Poppins

I believe that my experience as a teacher is very much like the students’ experiences. The school year starts with excitement, anticipating what’s new. The work isn’t too much of a bother because we’re fresh and there just seems to be a feeling of, “Well, that’s what we’re back to school to do!” Two months later…

Teacher thoughts: How long is this grading going to take? I’ve only graded 10 papers? It feels like 20! When will the work end? I just want to sip some coffee and read a good book.

Student thoughts: How much more homework are we going to have? Seriously? I just want to go outside.

The school year officially begins and the days start to feel longer. If the routine stays the same, everyone will be worn out by December. After teaching my first year and experiencing the need for change in my daily routine, I learned something very important about myself, and I believe about students as well. Sometimes, you just have to have fun and make work feel like play in order to stay motivated.

In my training for becoming a teacher, one of the main pieces of information we were given about students was that they need to stay motivated. If they are going to keep learning and stay engaged, they need to stay interested in the topic. I know this to be true about myself. I noticed in the slow months of teaching, I had to do things to keep my job fun so that I would stay motivated to continue working hard and being the best teacher I could be. Around Thanksgiving I would buy new pumpkin and fall scents to put in my wax burner. As the room would fill with the smell of a nice, warm, baked pumpkin pie, all of our faces would smile, our shoulders would relax, and questions would arise from around the room saying, “Mmmmm!! What’s that smell?!” Immediately, the feeling of the classroom went from “reading my 2 chapters” to reading a book in a cozy home. The smell would motivate the students to work because the environment had changed to something different. A good different.

At the end of teaching a unit, I could always tell the students seemed to be trudging along, needing a boost in their step. I would also need a little boost in my step after all the work put together to organize and teach the unit. All of us needed some kind of break, while still having class and continuing to learn. This was when I would put the books and pencils away and play Jeopardy. The students loved playing Jeopardy and it was a way for them to review all the information they had been learning over the last month or two. After playing Jeopardy over a couple days, the students were re-motivated and re-energized to learn and continue working hard. I believe this is because we all are motivated by something we enjoy. For students, playing is something they enjoy. When learning and working feels like play and there is an element of fun, the energy goes up and everyone is motivated to continue working.

This brings me back to the original quote from Mary Poppins which says, “In every job that must be done there is an element of fun.” When we work, we must find the fun. We must find ways to make it engaging and motivating. This was my goal when writing my recent book Mr. Fact and Miss Opinion. I wanted to give parents and teachers the opportunity to teach about fact and opinion through a story and not through a workbook. I wanted to add a fun, playful element to a not-so-interesting topic. Not only does the story teach the difference between fact and opinion in a silly and entertaining way, it also shows how two completely different characters can become the best of friends. It can act as a teaching guide for both parents and teachers while also being a cute, beautifully illustrated story about a goat and a pig who develop a friendship and learn about each other. When a story such as this is used to teach a lesson, students remember it because it was wrapped up in a fun, playful package. Children’s literature plays a vital role in the education of children, and I believe that it can and should be used to educate children on a multiplicity of subjects. That is my goal as an author and teacher. I would love to see more books that teach about specific concepts within a story that is fun and entertaining. If you have a favorite children’s book that taught you or your children or your grandchildren something important, please share it so we can benefit from each other’s wealth of knowledge.

Mr. Fact and Miss Opinion Summary:

This book is a lively and lyrical story about unlikely neighbors, a goat named Mr. Fact and a pig named Miss Opinion.

Miss Opinion shares a flavorful meal with Mr. Fact, attempting to show him that opinions can add spice to his life. This educational children’s book uses endearing characters to introduce terms such as objective and subjective by personifying fact and opinion.

About the Author: Melissa has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education from Multnomah University in Portland, OR, and is a member of SCBWI. An educator since 2012, she has taught multiple ages and subjects. However, it was working as the school librarian where her love for children’s literature grew. During her free time, Melissa and her husband enjoy playing volleyball and spending time outdoors with their beloved Goldendoodle.

Thank you so much to Melissa for her reflections about finding the fun in teaching!

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Blog Tour with Review, Author’s Guest Post, and Giveaway!: Ghostlight by Sonia Gensler

September 25, 2015September 18, 2015 by Kellee

Ghostlight
Author: Sonia Gensler
Published August 4th, 2015 by Knopf Books for Young Readers

Goodreads Summary: Things that go bump in the night are just the beginning when a summer film project becomes a real-life ghost story!

Avery is looking forward to another summer at Grandma’s farm, at least until her brother says he’s too old for “Kingdom,” the imaginary world they’d spent years creating. Lucky for her, there’s a new kid staying in the cottage down the road: a city boy with a famous dad, Julian’s more than a little full of himself, but he’s also a storyteller like Avery. So when he announces his plan to film a ghost story, Avery is eager to join in.

Unfortunately, Julian wants to film at Hilliard House, a looming, empty mansion that Grandma has absolutely forbidden her to enter. As terrified as Avery is of Grandma’s wrath, the allure of filmmaking is impossible to resist.

As the kids explore the secrets of Hilliard house, eerie things begin to happen, and the “imaginary” dangers in their movie threaten to become very real. Have Avery and Julian awakened a menacing presence? Can they turn back before they go too far?

My Review: I do not do creepy. No creepy books, movies, haunted houses…nothing. So, a creepy book had to sound really good or be recommended to me by someone I trust for me to read it. This one was both, so I agreed to give it a chance. Although it did scare the kajeebees out of me, I am very glad that I picked it up. First, the ghost story part of the plot is done so well. It isn’t over the top, it seemed real, and it really got me! Second, the book was so much more than a ghost story. It was a look at rural vs. urban, celebrity, the definition of family, mental disorders, filmmaking, and more. Third, the characters seemed real. You have four very different preteens/teens, but they all represent a different type of person. Each has flaws, and each is wonderful

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: I was fascinated by all of the filmmaking information that Julian shares with Avery. I would love to use this part of the book with students, as well as information from other sources, to help them make a film from a script they wrote. They could also use the information to make a book trailer with good filmmaking technique.

P.S. I book talked Ghostlight on Tuesday to my class, and 90% of them put it on their TBR list. They all want to know what is going on in that house!

Discussion Questions: Would you forgive Julian and Lily after what they did to Avery?; If you were Avery, and you were asked about your father, how would you respond?; What does Avery’s family situation tell us about what family is?; What specifically made the ghost in Ghostlight scary?;

We Flagged: “…Julian paused the video. This time I could see the wispy thing hanging in the air across from Lily. It wasn’t a person, but it was something.” (p. 119)

Book Trailer:

Read This If You Love: All the Lovely Bad Ones by Mary Downing Hahn, Doll Bones by Holly Black, Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver, Seer of Shadows by Avi, City of the Dead by Tony Abbott, Skeleton Man by Joseph Bruchac

Sonia Gensler has some more books to share that you may enjoy: Ghostlight, my first middle grade novel, was inspired by classic B&W horror films and the spine-tingling tales of authors like Mary Downing Hahn and Patricia Clapp. To celebrate its release, I thought I’d share other recent middle grade ghost novels that raise the stakes with deft characterization and unique conflicts.

Breathe: A Ghost Story by Cliff McNish (2006): Jack and his mother move into an old farmhouse, but only he can see the resident ghosts. Having once nearly died of asthma, Jack has a special sensitivity to those who have crossed to the other side. In fact, Jack senses several ghostly individuals within the house, but the more he learns, the more vulnerable he becomes to the most powerful of the spectral entities — one who wishes to control all the inhabitants of the house, living or dead. Breathe presents the ghostly characters and their conflicts in an innovative way that will keep readers gripped to the very end.

Seer of Shadows, by Avi (2008): Young Horace apprentices with a society photographer in 19th-century New York City. When Horace finds an eerie image on a developed photograph — the likeness of the subject’s dead daughter — dark things begin to happen. I am fascinated by the notion of Victorian spirit photography, so this story was particularly to my liking! (Another spirit photography novel for readers interested in more mature characters and themes would be Cat Winters’ In the Shadow of Blackbirds.)

The Aviary, by Kathleen O’Dell (2011): Clara lives in the crumbling Glendoveer Mansion, where her mother is housekeeper. Her life is comfortable enough, but she can’t go outside, has no friends, and actively fears the exotic birds kept by old Mrs. Glendoveer. One day, the mynah bird speaks to her, and he seems to be saying a name. Eliot. When Clara investigates, she gradually learns the dark history of the Glendoveer family, and in turn discovers secrets from her own past. While not a traditional ghost story, this Gothic tale is full of mystery and chilling reveals.

Doll Bones, by Holly Black (2013): Zach has decided to put childhood things behind, but when his old friend Poppy tells him she is being haunted by her china doll, he agrees to help her properly bury it. Creepy dolls aside, this book is haunting in its look at childhood play and imagination–particularly what may be lost in the transition from childhood to adolescence.

A Curious Tale of the In-Between, by Lauren DeStefano (2015): Pram, who can see and speak with the dead, wishes more than anything to meet her living father. The mysterious Lady Savant says she can help, but Pram soon learns the lady has a dark agenda of her own. This captivating novel is more mystery than horror, and I was intrigued by how it represented interactions between the living and dead. The novel’s focus on the manipulation of memories reminded me (in a very good way) of the film Inception.

About the Author: Sonia Gensler is also the author of the young adult novels The Dark Between and The Revenant. She grew up in a small Tennessee town and spent her early adulthood collecting impractical degrees from various Midwestern universities. A former high school English teacher, she now writes full-time in Oklahoma. To learn more, and to download a free curriculum guide, visit soniagensler.com or her Twitter: @soniagensler

Giveaway:

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Follow the Ghostlight Tour!

Mon, Sept 14	Cracking the Cover	http://www.crackingthecover.com/
Tues, Sept 15	Ms. Yingling Reads	http://msyinglingreads.blogspot.com/
Wed, Sept 16	Charlotte’s Library	http://charlotteslibrary.blogspot.com/
Thurs, Sept 17	The Book Smugglers	http://thebooksmugglers.com/
Fri, Sept 18	Unleashing Readers	http://www.unleashingreaders.com/
Mon, Sept 21	The Hiding Spot	http://thehidingspot.blogspot.com/
Tues, Sept 22	Proseandkahn	http://proseandkahn.blogspot.com/
Wed, Sept 23	Word Spelunking	http://wordspelunking.blogspot.com/
Thurs, Sept 24	The Book Monsters	http://thebookmonsters.com/
Fri, Sept 25	GreenBeanTeenQueen	http://www.greenbeanteenqueen.com/
Mon, Sept 28	The Haunting of Orchid Forsythia	http://hauntedorchid.blogspot.com/
Tues, Sept 29	Kid Lit Frenzy	http://www.kidlitfrenzy.com/
Wed, Oct 1	Mother Daughter Book Club	http://motherdaughterbookclub.com/

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Barbara from Blue Slip Media for providing a copy for review and giveaway as well as a big thank you to Sonia Gensler for her guest post!**

Author Guest Post: “Space: The Next Frontier in Children’s Books?” by Christopher Peter, Author of Danny Chaucer’s Flying Saucer

September 13, 2015 by Ricki

“Space: The Next Frontier in Children’s Books?”

As a kid I loved science fiction. My imagination was fired by stories set in space, a place of boundless possibilities; tales of future worlds, stunning galaxies, brave human colonists, exotic aliens.

As I began writing the Danny Chaucer’s Flying Saucer series, I renewed my interest in all things space-y, particularly books aimed at 8-12-year-olds / middle grade. But sci-fi isn’t exactly in vogue in children’s literature right now, or at least not space-set books specifically. It got me thinking, why not?

Fashions come and go of course. But I also wonder whether it’s because, space-wise, the future turned out to be a bit of a, well, disappointment really. I mean, I’m too young to remember the Apollo moon missions of the 1960s and 1970s, but I did fall in love with books in the years soon after, and it was a time very much influenced by those heady lunar-treading days when anything seemed not only possible but also within imminent reach.

Look back at movies like 2001 and Blade Runner and TV shows like Space 1999. Back then, dates like 1999, 2001 – and certainly 2015 – seemed impossibly futuristic. Surely we’d have flying cars, moon bases, men on Mars, and charismatic yet slightly sinister AI computers by then, right? Well – um – not exactly … but hey, we do have very cool phones …

(And by the way, what happened to that army of robots that were supposed to gift us all carefree lives of leisure and pleasure??)

I’m not dismissing NASA by the way, nor the other research agencies and institutions with all their talented and dedicated people. Nor have I forgotten the space shuttle. And yes, space exploration is mind-numbingly expensive. It’s just that – I don’t know – as amazing as the International Space Station is, it’s not exactly a Martian colony. (And speaking of Mars, disappointingly it turned out not to be home to little green aliens after all.) I can’t help thinking the child of 1970 would be asking, ‘Is that it?’

And yet I believe things are changing. In 2019 we’ll be celebrating the 50^th anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s historic first step on the moon, and we’ll be reminded again of what a galactically awesome achievement that really was (especially with 1960s technology!). Meanwhile there’s much excitement about a manned mission to Mars, with some even predicting it could happen in the next 10-15 years, with a permanent colony not long after.

The amazing pictures of Pluto recently sent back by the New Horizons probe have come after the steady stream of incredible images of deep space from the Hubble space telescope.

We’ve got the eagerly-awaited new Star Wars movie coming soon, and that’s following some pretty amazing sci-fi cinema in recent years – think Moon, Gravity, Ex Machina and Interstellar. Meanwhile sci-fi continues to thrive on the small screen too.

So why not children’s books?

The whole concept of space has the incredible ability to feed the imaginations of the young (and old). The possibilities are literally endless. We’ve already been to the moon and sent unmanned spacecraft to Mars and far beyond. What will the human race have achieved in another fifty years? A hundred? Five hundred?

And what about life on other worlds? Of course we haven’t come across aliens yet (or so we’re told …) but that mind-bending prospect remains.

Writing about space and sci-fi is also a brilliant opportunity to encourage kids’ interest in science. Space is an amazing, huge, fascinating place, about which we’re finding out more and more incredible things all the time. Just take a look at some of the dazzling Hubble images. Consider for example the famous picture of the Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula. How dizzyingly huge it is, how unimaginably far away … and how it’s a place where stars are made! It’s almost beyond words (though I’ve had a crack at describing it in Danny Chaucer. I simply had to include it).

And of course (on a clear night at least) you can look up and see space for yourselves! Well part of it anyway.

I want kids today to discover the power of stories, especially boys who generally less inclined to read than girls and so may need more encouragement. And the 8-12 age group is a vitally important time for fostering a love of books, an age when children start to read more independently and develop their own tastes.

I wrote Danny Chaucer partly for my own sons, the older of whom is now 11 and hasn’t been getting into books very much. He doesn’t particularly like the fantasy, paranormal or dystopian themes which seem to dominate children’s fiction these days. He does however like science and gadgets and is into Doctor Who, so space is right up his street.

To finish, I’d like to highlight a small selection of kids’ sci-fi books – some old favourites, some new, but all have the power to launch young imaginations into the great beyond … all ideal for 8-12-year-olds, depending on reading ability, though the last two might be less suited to younger readers.

Doctor Who and the Daleks, by David Whitaker. A classic Who adventure, launching an ordinary man from his humdrum earth-bound existence to a distant alien world with distinctly unfriendly inhabitants. And if this goes down well, there are dozens of other Doctor Who books including a series aimed especially at younger readers (the Young Reader Adventures).
Cosmic, by Frank Cottrell Boyce. A young boy gets to go on a mission to the moon! Slightly slow build-up so it takes a long time to take off (literally), but it’s worth sticking with. The writing is great – funny and moving in places, with strong likeable characters. Quite educational too – the reader really gets a feel of what it would be like in space.
Jacob Wonderbar and the Cosmic Space Kapow, by Nathan Bransford. In contrast to Cosmic, this book makes no pretence to be educational, but it’s fun, fast-moving and wonderfully imaginative, and may appeal to younger readers in particular.
The Lotus Caves, by John Christopher. On the moon, two bored teenagers go off in a lunar rover and discover something amazing. A classic from a renowned YA sci-fi author.
Futuretrack 5, by Robert Westall. More YA (probably 11+ I’d say) with some adult themes, this is actually an earth-bound dystopian thriller, but I had to include it because it’s brilliant and by one of my all-time favourite authors. Dark, witty, compelling and with an unexpected ending.
Galactic Warlord, by Douglas Hill. Again, may be better for 10/11+ as there’s some violence, though nothing too gratuitous or graphic. I read this when I was about 10 and loved it. Set in distant space, a lone survivor of an attack on his planet broods and plans revenge … the first book in a series of five.

Danny Chaucer’s Flying Saucer Summary:

One night Danny Chaucer, a lonely eleven-year-old boy, sees a strange light and hears odd sounds in his garden – and the next day there seems to be something there but he can’t quite see it. His Uncle Colin, who works at the mysterious Ganymede Institute, reveals that something top-secret has gone missing from there. Danny teams up with the new girl in his class, Nat Ford, to dodge the school bullies and investigate what’s going on. They encounter the sinister Captain Frost who is also on the trail of the mysterious missing object. Danny works out how to make the thing in his garden become visible, and it is revealed to be a flying saucer. Inside Danny and Nat meet the computer, BOB, who controls the saucer. Meanwhile Captain Frost is close to tracking down the saucer too, and she manages to get on board. They all take off and into space and then on a virtual reality journey to the Pillars of Creation in the distant reaches of the galaxy. Captain Frost intends to sell the saucer for her own profit, but Danny outwits her, and then the saucer terrifies the school bullies back on Earth. Finally BOB wipes Captain Frost’s memory to foil her plans, and then the saucer takes off leaving Danny and Nat to keep their adventure a secret.

Book Passage:

What would you do if a flying saucer landed outside your home?

Danny Chaucer is lonely. Life’s boring since his best friend moved away. Nat Ford is the new girl in class and spends half her time trying to dodge the school bullies.

Nothing interesting ever happens in their dead-end village. Nothing that is until one still, starry night when something lands in the trees behind Danny’s house. And then the sinister Captain Frost arrives…

There might be only one way to escape—and that’s up…

About the Author: Christopher lives near Oxford, UK and is married with three children. He has always loved writing but only began to write more seriously after he turned 40 (a kind of mid-life crisis perhaps?). He self-published two YA novels (Falling Girl and BASIC Boy), before writing Danny Chaucer’s Flying Saucer. He has always leaned towards writing for children and teenagers because he feels strongly that good stories are very important to help the younger generation fall in love with the written word; this will enrich their whole lives; and also because he has such fond memories of the books he loved which shaped him when he was younger.

Thank you so much to Christopher for his reflections on space as the next frontier!

and

Guest Post!: 20 Desserts Inspired by Your Favorite Books

September 6, 2015 by Kellee

Nothing is as intriguing as a well-written novel—it can take you to a new adventure with each flip of a page. The detailed descriptions of scenery, relationships, characters and desserts! Yes, desserts! Can you imagine sitting at a table and drinking Harry Potter’s Butterbeer? Or a basket full of tea biscuits and jam inspired by Alice In Wonderland? Well, now you can.

Shari’s Berries created a visual that pairs 20 great books with iconic desserts from their pages. We hope these delicious treats inspire your next read and cooking adventure.

Thank you to Shari’s Berries for the yummy pairings!

and

Review, Giveaway, and Author Guest Post! That’s (Not) Mine by Anna Kang, Illustrated by Christopher Weyant

September 25, 2015September 4, 2015 by Kellee

That’s (Not) Mine
Author: Anna Kang
Illustrator: Christopher Weyant
Published September 1st, 2015 by Two Lions

Goodreads Summary: Two fuzzy creatures both want to sit in the same comfy chair. The trouble is, they can’t agree who it belongs to. They get madder and madder, until…

With expressive illustrations and simple text, this giggle-inducing tale about (not) sharing and (not) being a good friend features the endearing characters from Theodor Seuss Geisel Award winner You Are (Not) Small.

Kellee’s Review: Our two fuzzy friends from You Are (Not) Small are at it again! Although they seem to be friends, every time we encounter them they seem to be having a disagreement that will definitely make their readers laugh. This text isn’t about identity and differences like the first text. Instead, it focuses more on sharing, friendship, wanting what others have, and also dealing with losing what you wanted. These are all really big (and tough!) lessons for kids. By sharing this book with your child or your class, it becomes a very entertaining way to talk about these issues and topics.

Ricki’s Review: About three days before I received this book in the mail, my husband and I were discussing our concerns with our son’s new affinity for the word: “mine.” Like most toddlers, he has become obsessed with the concept that everything is “mine” (and by “mine,” I mean his). We don’t support this new “anti-sharing” movement that has become a hot topic in parenting groups and blogs. We want to raise our son to understand that, yes, some things can be his, but he should work hard to share as much as he can with others. I want to raise him to value his peers, respect adults, and give back to his community. So when this book came in the mail, I was extremely pleased. I read it aloud as my husband listened. His response? “This is the perfect book for him right now.” These two fuzzy creatures are teaching my son a lot of great lessons—it is okay for him to be short (my son’s destiny), and in this new text, not everything has to be “mine.” I am looking forward to the next installation from this husband-and-wife duo!

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: Curriculum guide for That’s (Not) Mine

Sharing is a concept that goes beyond childhood. Teachers might facilitate a discussion about the different ways that sharing can relate to many contexts and situations in life—for people of all ages.

Discussion Questions: Why did each of the characters want the others’ chair?; Who do you think won in the end?; What type of friends do you think the two characters are?; Have you ever thought you wanted something, but then didn’t really want it once you got it?

We Flagged:

Read This If You Loved: You Are (Not) Small by Anna Kang, Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast by Josh Funk, Your Alien by Tammi Sauer, The Pigeon Needs a Bath by Mo Willems, Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems

Recommended For:

Giveaway!

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Author and Illustrator’s Guest Post:

Our inspiration behind the book:

The inspiration behind THAT’S (NOT) MINE was growing up with my brother. As anyone with siblings will attest, we were forced to learn to how share almost everything with each other—food, toys, attention, space, and in the days before computers and smart phones, whose turn it was to choose the television show or radio station. Sharing is tough, even for adults, and I must admit, I was not good at sharing with my brother (sorry, Emil). Lucky for me, he was a really kind older brother and let me have my way more often than I deserved (thank you, Emil). Now that I have two daughters, I see them battle over the same things. I’ve realized that for a child, possessions are precious—they shape their identity. My kids and their friends will say that the “best” part of their day was that they “got a turn” playing with a certain toy or reading a favorite book at school, or that they were “first to use the best swing,” etc. And conversely, they will report how devastated they were because they “didn’t get a turn” with a coveted item. It requires a certain amount of emotional maturity to see someone else’s perspective and to let go of an object you value.

How we work collaboratively:

Anna: I write something, Chris reads it, gives me notes, we discuss the notes, I rewrite it, we discuss it again, and then when we both like the text, we discuss the illustrations and visual style. Chris begins to sketch some ideas, I give him feedback, he revises, and we discuss them again, etc. It is a constant back-and-forth collaboration. I’m very fortunate to have him as a sounding board.

Chris: One of the things I like most about our collaborative process is the ongoing conversation Anna and I have as the book goes from early concept to final art. Along the way, we will discuss what’s working and what could be stronger, continually making changes, large and small, until we feel the book is what we envisioned. Many times we’ll have a quick talk while doing the dishes or in the car. It feels like a very natural process that has become a part of our everyday lives.

About the Authors: Husband-and-wife team Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant are the creators of You Are (Not) Small, which won the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award and was named a Notable Children’s Book by the American Library Association. They live in New Jersey with their two daughters, Kate and Lily, a guinea pig named Athena, and a hermit crab named Olaf.

Anna, a native New Yorker, grew up believing everything was hers until one day she realized it was her brother’s, too. She received a master’s degree in fine arts from the USC School of Cinematic Arts, where the visual storyteller in her was awakened, forever changing the way she saw art, life, and everything in between. In addition to writing, Anna loves to read, travel, laugh, eat, and nap. Visit her online at www.annakang.com.

Christopher is a cartoonist and illustrator. His work can regularly be seen in the New Yorker. His cartoons are syndicated worldwide and have been featured on the Today Show, Meet the Press, and World News Tonight. Christopher likes to share everything but his personal space on the subway. Visit him online at www.christopherweyant.com.

Twitter: @annakang27 @chrisweyant05

For more information visit: www.amazon.com/thatsnotmine or http://www.annakang.com/tnm-internal-page.

Follow the Tour

Mon, Aug 31	Watch.Connect.Read.	http://mrschureads.blogspot.com/
Tues, Sept 1 Happy book birthday!!!	Jean Little Library	http://jeanlittlelibrary.blogspot.com/
Wed, Sept 2	Teach Mentor Texts	http://www.teachmentortexts.com/#axzz3fo9y9pNf
Thurs, Sept 3	Kid Lit Frenzy	http://www.kidlitfrenzy.com/
Fri, Sept 4	Unleashing Readers	http://www.unleashingreaders.com/
Mon, Sept 7	The Children’s Book Review	http://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/
Tues, Sept 8	proseandkahn	http://proseandkahn.blogspot.com/
Wed, Sept 9	The Library Fanatic	http://www.thelibraryfanatic.com/
Thurs, Sept 10	Sharpread	https://sharpread.wordpress.com/
Fri, Sept 11	Bluestocking Thinking	http://bluestockingthinking.blogspot.com/

**Thank you to Barbara at Blue Slip Media for providing copies for review and to Anna and Chris for their guest post!!**