fantasy books for kids 8-12
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INSPIRATION

I'm often asked where I get the inspiration for my stories from. The answer is simple: everywhere. From things I see, hear, read - even from my dreams. My children's novel, ANTics was inspired by a dream after watching a group of ants carry a  potato chip back to their nest. On this page, guest authors share the inspiration behind  their children's books. If you are a children's author and would like to be featured on this blog, please contact me via the contacts page on this website.

sample antics here

CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOKS

1/10/2016

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Is writing for children the final frontier for former lung doctor Larry Martin? Well time will tell. With 15 books, including 4 adult novels, to his credit, the American author is boldly going where others have gone before – by writing his first novel for young readers.

"With more than 30 colour photos and illustrations plus simple text, “Gravity Is Always With You...Unless You're an Astronaut” introduces kids to the concept of …. yes, you guessed it – GRAVITY.

Published in December 2015, the book explains why 'what goes up must come down', such as kids who jump up, a ball thrown in the air, or an apple falling from the tree. It also explains how gravity affects the planets, our own moon and the rise and fall of tides.

The book is for ages 6-11, with the expectation that adults will happily read it to younger kids, while older kids will read it on their own. The end of the book has a simple 10-question multiple choice quiz that reviews the main points. 

Larry believes "Gravity" is an entertaining and educational book for children and his family think it’s out of this world. “My grandkids (ages 3 to 9) love the book (albeit the two youngest mainly for the pictures),” he told me. “Their parents do, too; they are especially pleased with the dedication:  For Eli, Iris, Maya and Asher.  They are my gravity.”

The Inspiration For Gravity

“There were two sources of inspiration for “Gravity”:  my medical career and my grandchildren,” Larry explained. “As a lung doctor I wrote physiology textbooks for medical students and doctors.  Pretty deep stuff that required clear explanations. 

“As a grandparent, I’ve had the pleasure of reading countless titles to our four grandkids.  From Seuss to Sendak, from monster trucks to Curious George.  Pretty simple stuff, but somehow in one reading session the subject of gravity came up.  It might have been when one of those monster trucks fell off a cliff.”

My six-year-old granddaughter asked me, “Grandpa, what’s gravity?”
“Well,” I said, “when you jump up it’s what makes you come down.”
“Huh?  Nobody makes me come down.”

I thought, if I can explain oxygen physiology to doctors, shouldn’t I be able to explain gravity to kids?  After all, I am a writer, so I decided to write an illustrated book on gravity my grandkids could understand – my first children’s book.

Houston We Have A Problem

“The writing itself was enjoyable, but I soon hit a snag common to many children’s authors: I can’t draw," he said. " While drafting the text, and thinking about what I wanted to illustrate (e.g., child jumps up, child comes down; astronaut floats in space), I began hunting for an illustrator on the website freelancer.com.  You submit a proposal and people respond with offers and samples of their art.  The first one I tried didn’t work out but the second one was a winner, and her name (Rebecca Weisenhoff) is on the cover.

“ I also wanted some detailed photographs of a rocket launch, the space shuttle and other space objects, and for this I signed up to use stock photos from shutterstock.com.  Both options worked out well, and the published book is about half Rebecca’s illustrations and half stock photos (including the great cover picture)."

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From start to finish (allowing for delays caused by the need to finish two other books), the book took five months.  After much thought Larry decided to use a pseudonym.  “Another children’s author explained that when you have two totally different genres, in my case adult fiction and a children’s book, it’s best to keep them under separate author names,” he said. “My wife agreed, so the “Gravity” author is now Harry M. Abraham.”     

Larry enjoyed the experience so much that he is taking the plunge and writing a second children’s book. With his feet firmly planted on terra firma, he is busy writing another science-themed kids’ book called “You Always Need Oxygen…Unless You’re an Anaerobe.  A  Child’s Introduction to Oxygen and the Air We Breathe.”


“I like this title because it conforms with the “Gravity” title, suggesting a series (which it could become),” he added. “Also, “anaerobe” is a scientific word, one you wouldn’t expect in a kids’ book, let alone on the title page.  My hope is that it might spark the interest of parents to go to Amazon and click on ‘Look Inside’.  If so, I hope they will be pleased with what they see.”

Where To Find "Gravity"

At warp speed, zoom across to Larry's author's page to find out more about "Gravity":

http://www.amazon.com/Gravity-Always-You-Unless-Astronaut/dp/1879653036/  

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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOKS

8/3/2015

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It was only natural – some might say destined – that bookworm Maretha Botha would one day become an author to entertain fellow bookworms around the world.
Maretha is the author of five children’s books, whose roots go back to her days living in South Africa where she was inspired by the people and animals that crossed her path.

About The Author

Maretha is a South African Italian. She was born in a small town called Montague, and grew up in nearby Worcester in the Western Cape – a town she says is reminiscent of living in Switzerland among the snow-capped mountains, in winter. 

Worcester had a small library and young Maretha’s visits were limited to three times a week because the librarian told her, “You spend too much time with your nose in a book and neglect your school work.” 

Maretha said: 

“Nothing much has changed because I am still a confirmed bookworm and constantly strive to raise more bookworms who will enjoy reading, not just as a pleasant past-time, but as an excellent tool to be used when grown-up.”

Before immigrating to the UK to settle in Lancashire, Maretha worked as an assistant librarian in a private school in Botswana, where one of her tasks was to encourage children to enjoy reading. That was a labour of love for our bookworm and one that was to give her some valuable help in carving her own career as an author because it brought her face to face with the literary industry’s toughest critics – children and preteens. 

She recalls:

“I saw what they really wanted to read and it was not only the mainstream ghosts, werewolves and shape shifters who interested them. When they were re-introduced to bird-and-animal stories, their care, habitats and general well-being; read with a few catchy rhymes here and there, the reading sessions were truly alive and well, and readers began pre-booking their favourites of the week.”

In 2012 changes meant she no longer had a job. She was downhearted, but as is often the way of things, one disappointment led to a new chapter in her life. She tried to motivate herself by writing down everything she could remember about her pets – dogs, cats and birds that graced her home through the years.

Where Maretha Finds Inspiration

The character of the working-dog hero in Fauna Park Tales is based on the different traits of every single dog her family ever owned. She then moved on to researching habits, territories and interesting titbits about endangered birds-of-prey – martial eagles and eagle owls, as well as many smaller birds such as crimson-breasted shrikes and hoopoes. She painted many of them such as the illustration below which appears in Book 5 in the sub-section called, “The Bird Mission.”

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Maretha said:

“Many smaller birds came drinking water from our dogs’ bowls and the more I watched them, the villagers, their goats and herds of cattle, including a cattle herdsman with dreadlocks and many dogs, the more fascinated I became.”

“My daughter and our grandchildren shared our house situated on the outskirts of a game reserve, so one thing led to another, and more tales were told as I contemplated the next little story, creating new characters such as His Handsomeness King Rat and the tame ex-laboratory rat called RatX.  (My daughters really rescued a rat from the school laboratory). Their story is told in “An African Adventure: Flame and Hope”.
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The final piece of inspiration came to her unexpectedly while spring cleaning one morning. While unpacking boxes, she found a painting of a red-roofed farmhouse situated somewhere on the plains of southern African, painted years ago by her younger daughter as an art project and given to her as an anniversary gift.

She added:

“This painting gave me much inspiration; the thing which brought together all the stories in my head. Our house became the red-roofed farmhouse; Kgale Hill and the Mmokolodi Game Reserve surrounded by hills far in the distance – the ‘Molodi Valley’ and the ‘Llokodi Hills’.”

The Road to Publication

Although Maretha had all the pieces to write her series of children’s novels, it was a bit of a daunting task. 

She said:

“Writing and illustrating Fauna Park Tales became a much bigger project than I originally envisioned. Without encouragement from my family, especially my grandchildren, I wonder if I would have completed the stories.

“I was fortunate to meet Karen Perkins –  owner/author of LionheArt Publishing House. Without her expert advice, editing and formatting, I doubt whether I would have been able to publish any of the books on Amazon.”

Maretha's Books

Maretha has written a series of five children’s books, FAUNA PARK TALES, An African Adventure with illustrations for readers aged 6-12. The series was originally called, ‘African Adventures of Flame, Family, Furry and Feathered Friends’ and gained Gold Medal status in September 2013 on Authonomy, a HarperCollins author website.  The first book in the series is now called, ‘An African Adventure 1: Flame and Hope’.
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This is a synopsis from HarperCollins Children's Editor Review:

Life takes strange turns for Flame, a puppy born in the African desert. Adopted by a free-range cattle farmer, the pup faces the challenge of proving himself to more than one of his new family. As Flame grows into a strong and brave dog, he finds friendship with many loyal furry and feathered friends who teach him to keep The Promise – protecting the helpless ones in Fauna Park, a secret sanctuary within the boundaries of the farm. One of his feathered friends is Hope, an elusive bird with strange pink eyelids who tells stories about a tall leader and his gang of villainous poachers, ups and downs of life in the bush and Flame's ingenious plans to banish foes to the Llokodi Hills. 

Where To Find Maretha's Books

Maretha has three titles on Amazon

“An African Adventure 1: Flame and Hope” is an ebook (with colour illustrations), and a black and white paperback:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00MNKNI04

“An African Adventure 2: Friends” is available in ebook format with colour illustrations:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00Y2WS82E

and gold-banded 210 page volume “Tales From Fauna Park” combines stories from both books at:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/African-Adventure-Flame-Tales-Fauna/dp/1910115274


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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOKS

4/25/2015

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British author Lizzie Wallace’s passion for storytelling and teaching children a love of books put her on the path to start writing her own stories.

Lizzie, who has run a successful group of preschools in Croydon, England for over 20 years, wrote her first children’s picture book four years ago.


This busy mum lives in Croydon with her husband John and their two children. Her family provide the inspiration for her stories and it was her son who gave me the title of her first story ‘My Sister’s Turning into a Monster’.

“I love reading to children as well and helping them to create their own stories,” she said.

“My books are targeted for young children around the ages of 2 –6 and I have used family and friends to illustrate.

“Waterstones bookshop have been a fantastic support which has helped me get started and I am on my own learning  journey with social media to promote and sell my stories!”


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Her writing career kicked off with a series of fun farmyard tales called ‘The Farmies’. This was published in 2013 with a Christmas sequel ‘Christmas with ‘The Farmies’ released last October 2014.

The books are written in rhyme and have a selection of characters that tell their own story. One of Lizzie’s favourites is Murtle the Turtle:



Murtle the Turtle had a very bad habit
She’d pick her big nose and flick it at Rabbit!
Rabbit responded by filling the shell
That Murtle live in with a very bad smell!!



Look out for Lizzie’s books at:

www.amazon.co.uk
www.lizziewallace.co.uk   (signed copies)
www.i2ipublishing.co.uk
www.waterstones.com



You can contact her on Facebook and Twitter:

fb: lizzie wallace author
@lizziewallaceuk


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Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.

You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!

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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOKS

2/24/2015

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British children's author John Priest was born in a town called Netherton (where the anchor and chain were made for the Titanic) in the West Midlands.
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One of seven children (three girls and four boys), John started writing seriously in 1985 and had several articles published in national magazines. His first children's book, 'Naughty Nigel Runs Away', was published by Ginn & Co, Ltd. This was followed with 'Tom's Birthday Treat' and 'Answer The Phone Fiona!'


His latest book is 'The Curse of Sea Shell Cave', the second book in the popular children's detective/whodunit series of Jay-Pea-Eyes aka Junior Private Investigators.


CRIME-BUSTING PALS

The first book is ‘The Boomerang Mystery: Jay-Pea-Eyes aka Junior Private Investigators’. The story follows junior private investigators, 10-year-old Harry and his three friends, Stan and identical twins Polly and Lily, in their crime-busting investigations and is a 'starter chapter' book for good readers aged 7 years upwards.


A NOVEL IDEA

I asked John what the book is about.
“The Jay-Pea-Eyes have an unusual mystery to solve for their first case,” he said. “Children go missing and police have organised a massive search of Dudleigh town. A phone call from a security officer at Russington Hospital immediately has police heading for the Accident & Emergency Department.”

The plot thickens as the missing children mysteriously return to the hospital. No-one saw or heard anything.


“It’s as though the children fell from the sky,” John added. “The doctor is puzzled; the children are in excellent health but are refusing to talk to anyone, not even their own parents.Local detectives are baffled. Where have they been? What have they been doing? Why won't they talk? All questions the police want answered. Urgently.


“When Harry’s sister goes missing, the friends take it on themselves to investigate. They are determined to solve the mystery once and for all. The big question is: will they solve the mystery before the police?”
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‘The Boomerang Mystery: Jay-Pea-Eyes aka Junior Private Investigators’ story is the kind that I devoured as a youngster. I asked John where he got the idea for his detective story from. And it turns out, the answer is quite elementary - right on his doorstep in Dudley, in the West Midlands, where he grew up and went on many adventures with his friends.

He said, “When I was about eight years of age, I used to hang out with a group of my school friends. There was a large field that we sneaked through to get to another main road. We would crouch down to avoid being seen by the farmer. On one side was a tunnel that everyone called the fairy tunnel because older brothers and sisters said fairies lived inside.  We knew that this tunnel used to link a large rail track to the coalmines in the area.

“The entire area was very heavily mined and tunnel cave-ins and 'undergound' fires were quite common. I often wondered about the tunnels and whether or not you could get inside one and where it would take you.”

The farmer's field is long gone and a big hospital stands in its place, but John’s mind often went back to the exploring he did as a youngster.



AWAY WITH THE FAIRIES

“I often wondered if the fairy tunnel had been blocked properly and if there were any tunnels beneath it that could still lead to different areas in the town?” he said. “What if people already used these tunnels? Why would they use them? What kind of story could link these tunnels with the hospital?

“I thought of a group of friends who might investigate some strange goings on in the area.”


He decided to call them Junior Private Investigators but then needed a shortened version for them to use and that’show the Jay-Pea-Eyes were born.

'The Boomerang Mystery: Jay-Pea-Eyes aka Junior Private Investigators' can be bought as an ebook on: 



AMAZON

ITUNES

SMASHWORDS

BARNES & NOBLE


and paperback:


HERE


Other books by John on sale on Amazon are:
Peter Challenge - Time Surfer, a fantasy book for children aged 7-10yrs.


Little Miss Straight Tail  - a bedtime story all about farm animal friendship. Miss Straight Tail is a piglet born with a straight tail. Will it ever be curly?
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Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.

You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!

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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOK

2/7/2015

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My guest Nicholas Rossis has many feathers in his cap: he’s an avid reader, web developer, architect by training, holder of a PhD in Digital Architecture from the University of Edinburgh and most importantly, an author.
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He loves to write - and he seems to write very quickly. So I for one plan to bend his ear to find out what his secret is.

His latest publication is Runaway Smile, a children’s book, which you can read for free on his blog. He’s also written the Amazon best-selling epic fantasy series, Pearseus. FAN ALERT: the fourth book in the series is currently edited, and expected to be released mid-February.

Finally, he has published the Amazon best-seller The Power of Six, a collection of short sci-fi stories that includes his award-winning short story, I Come in Peace.

Nicholas lives in Athens, Greece, at a forest’s edge, with his wife, dog and two very silly cats, one of whom is always sitting on his lap. “So please excuse any typos in my blog posts: typing with one hand can be hard,” he says. “Mercifully, all my books are professionally edited.”



Runaway Smile: an unshared smile is a wasted smile is his first children’s book, aimed at children between six and 12-year’s old, and started off life as a poem.

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It’s about a little boy who wakes up in the morning and realises he has lost his smile. After spending the entire day trying to find it, he learns the truth behind smiles: the only real smiles are the shared ones.

What an intriguing title and story idea. I asked Nicholas how it came about.

“One day, back in 2012, I was having my childhood friend, Dimitris Fousekis, over for lunch,” he told me. “He’s a professional illustrator and liked the poem so much, that he suggested we turn it into a children’s book. This was before I decided to become an author, and my fantasy series, Pearseus, had not been written yet, so I was intrigued by the idea.

“At first, we wanted to do a traditional children’s book (full-colour spread with a couple of verses on each page). However, a publisher suggested we do it instead in prose. The text would be around 5,000 words long, and be peppered with monochromatic illustrations. This would both keep the printing costs down and make it easier to turn the book into a series.

“I played around with my poem and ended up writing the whole book in a single Saturday morning. I remember it clearly, as my wife, Electra, wanted to go for a walk in a nearby national park and was annoyed that I chose instead to spend my Saturday writing.”



A CREATIVE ROLLERCOASTER

After that, there was no stopping him. His creative juices kept flowing and flowing.

“I have written a total of six children’s books since that day, Runaway Smile being the first one to get illustrated and published,” he explained.


“Dimitris is currently illustrating the next one, called Musiville about animals-musical instruments sharing a picturesque village. When they all start carrying their own tune, an unexpected invader wreaks havoc.


“If Runaway Smile is my Little Prince, then Musiville is my Animal Farm.”


WHERE TO FIND NICHOLAS

I am totally impressed and hopefully you will be, too. So go check out this amazing author.

Nicholas is all around the Internet, but the best place to find him is HERE on his blog. 

Anyone interested in his books can check them out HERE on Amazon

People can read Runaway Smile for free on his blog HERE 


A little word from myself here: if you do and enjoy it, please consider posting a short review. Word of mouth is an author’s best friend and is much appreciated.


Other places to connect with Nicholas include:


Twitter:  www.twitter.com/Nicholas_Rossis

Google+:  https://plus.google.com/+NicholasRossis

Facebook: www.facebook.com/NicholasCRossis


Picture

Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.

You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!

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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOK

1/22/2015

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My guest author today is Gordon Ralph. He’s one cool dude from the Sunshine State of Florida in America – and he’s got a cracking imagination.

This funny writer is known as Gordon to his friends and “Dr. If” to the kids who gobble up his books.

That’s because his “Remaking the World” series shows what happens IF we remade the world to look the way we want it to be.

“This is not an original idea,” Gordon told me. “It seems that the “Midas touch” got the king in a bit of a bind as he wished all he touched to turn to gold, and could never get a drink to his lips before it became a heavy block of metal.”

The series features books with 8 tongue-in-cheek stories about self, family, farm animals and wild animals, each with a message for kids and parents to talk about. They are all in * Iambic pentameter (see below) with gorgeous illustrations by talented Romanian artist, Constantine.

They start with “My Brothers Pants Don’t Fit Me” about relationships with eight relatives, starting with brothers, and moving to aunts, parents, grandparents etc. with a temporary wish to “remake” each of them to suit a childish whim, but toward the last two verses, reality sets in and the child accepts a strict mom because she is so helpful when hungry or sick.


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Older brother is finally regarded as a handy playmate, regardless of the condition of the jeans he once wore, and the lessons throughout the series are great fodder for adult/child discussions about most every daily issue one might hope to cover.

“There is always the hint of the ridiculous,” Gordon says, “as when the world is remade so that the farm animals aren’t inconvenienced by major events (in “Pardon my Turkey”) which deals with the ultimate sacrifice including the naked and embarrassed sheep after a complete shearing, but the needs of mankind are rationalised in ways acceptable to a child.

“In the case of wild animals, respect is the operating concept, and a healthy dose of it is required in each of those eight stories about bears (“Hold that Hug” gives away the plot) and alligators and such.”


SNIFFING OUT A GOOD STORY

The series began with the story of “The Nose on the Back of my Head" with inspiration coming from an unusual source - the Metropolitan Opera.
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While on a car journey, Gordon listened to the radio. “I listened in amazement as the Met narrator explained the key points of the Shostakovich opera ‘The Nose’ where the Russian aristocracy was totally spoofed on stage,” he recalls.

“The title character is a nose that had once been connected to a haughty guy, but showed up walking the streets of Moscow while refusing to even recognize the body he had come from. Such is the depth of separation of the upper from the other classes.

“I started to think of my child side, loving the ridiculous and the result was the series that revised all the body parts with specious reasoning about ways to improve the eyes, ears, nose and other items we take for granted. Fear not. After all is said, we accept those parts exactly as the creator designed them, but oh what fun along the way.

“I hope the books will lead to some recitation of sing song rhymes for bedtime stories to share and discuss.”

Gordon has adopted the motto of the Florida Writer’s Association, “Writers helping writers” by using the lessons he had learned on his own publishing journey to help others.


To find out more about his books visit:

www.kidsandparentsdpress.com


A BIT OF INFO...

* Iambic pentameter refers to a certain kind of line of poetry, and has to do with the number of syllables in the line and the emphasis placed on those syllables. Iambic pentameter lines have a sing-songy rhythm like da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM.

In the movie “The Wizard of Oz”, the song “We’re Off to See the Wizard” features the line, “Because, because, because, because, because . . . because of the wonderful things he does!” The line “Because, because, because, because, because” is a great example of iambic pentameter. “Because” has a louder second syllable, and the quiet-then-loud syllable combination gets repeated five times.


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Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.

You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!

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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOK

12/18/2014

1 Comment

 
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Globetrotter Stephanie M. Ward has put pen to paper to write stories for children about amazing places around the world.

Stephanie
has been writing in various forms over the last 20 years in Public Relations and Marketing roles in the corporate world. But her wanderlust finally got the best of her and she spent a year-long honeymoon traveling across all seven continents. It was then that she decided to focus on writing stories for children. Her first book, Wally the Warm-Weather Penguin, was released in paperback on November 20, 2014.


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DAY DREAM BELIEVER

This cute story, for ages one to four, is about Wally an Emperor Penguin from Antarctica who isn't exactly like the other penguins. He is always cold and dreams of life on a tropical island. When he learns about the Galapagos Islands, he sets sail in search of warm weather and discovers and amazing world of tap-dancing crabs, racing hundred-year-old tortoises and diving birds with blue feet.
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A COOL IDEA

Stephanie was inspired to write the story after visiting both Antarctica and the Galapagos Islands within a couple of months.

"Visiting Antarctica and being amidst Emperor Penguins in the icy conditions made me wonder why they didn’t just pack up and go somewhere warmer," she said. "A couple of months later, I was in the Galapagos Islands watching Galapagos Penguins frolicking on the beach and swimming in relatively warmer water. And there was the story: What if an Emperor Penguin learned that he could live on a warm, tropical island?

"During the process of writing the book, I did a lot of research on the animals in the Galapagos Islands. Many are endemic and many are endangered. I wanted to give back to this incredible place that had inspired my book, so a portion of proceeds from sales are donated to the Galapagos Conservancy (galapagos.org)."

Wally the Warm-Water Penguin is available as both an ebook and paperback.

You can buy the paperback on Amazon HERE

and the ebook on Amazon HERE

Find out more about this fascinating author on her website HERE

and on her Amazon Author Page HERE

Picture
Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.

You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!

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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOK

11/27/2014

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I’d like to give a warm welcome to guest author Simon Williams, author of the Aona dark fantasy series (of which the first three books, “Oblivion’s Forge, “Secret Roads” and “The Endless Shore” have been published) and children's book,  “Summer’s Dark Waters”, a fantasy/sci-fi novel for ages 10 upwards. 

All the royalties from sales of Summer’s Dark Waters are going to TACT (tactcare.org.uk), an adoption & fostering charity.
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Summer’s Dark Waters is aimed at 10 to 12/young teens, but Simon tells me that the book also appeals to older teens and adults.

I asked him what the book is about.

“If everyone in the class had been asked by their teacher to vote on who else in the class they thought would turn out to be a truly extraordinary human being, Joe would probably not have received any votes,” he said.

“But Joe- and his best friend Amber- are both about to be drawn into a series of incredible events and discover hidden truths not only about themselves but about the world itself.

“Their lives will never be the same again...”

Inspiration for the book came in the same way that many authors come up with their story lines – by toying with different ideas.

“It would actually never have been written if it hadn’t been for an idea that my niece and I had for a quite different book, which was meant to be more of a superhero/light-hearted story,” Simon said.


“We wrote some ideas down and the story quickly changed into something quite different. The two main characters (Joe and Amber) are the same, although Joe’s powers are quite different- and the book still features the mysterious lake which we wrote into the original notes. It’s odd how things turn out!”

You can buy Summer’s Dark Waters by clicking on the links below:


Amazon US

Amazon UK

The book has received some great reviews. There are more reviews on the UK Amazon site than on the US one, for people who want to check them out.

Summer’s Dark Waters is Simon’s first book aimed mainly at kids, but the positive response he has received has pushed him into writing a sequel, which will hopefully be ready for release sometime late in 2015.

Click below to find out more about Simon and his work on his website:


www.simonwilliamsauthor.com



Also on his Amazon page 


and his Facebook fan page


Also

on Twitter: @SwilliamsAuthor
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Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.

You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!

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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOKS

11/16/2014

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Today, my guest author is English author M J Fahy (Jane). Her first children’s book The Magpie King has received some great reviews.

Jane is married with two adult children, two dogs, a deaf cat, and two elderly hens (one of these she says looks decidedly doddery lately).


She has a soft spot for animals in need of some TIC.

“If I ever won the lottery or became immensely wealthy, I'd adopt as many waif and stray animals as I could get my hands on, much to the annoyance of my long-suffering husband, I expect,” she said. “As well as write, I also love to draw and paint: the cover of The Magpie King is one of mine.”

The Magpie King, aimed at readers aged nine to 13 years, is set in the miniature village of Little Upham, a sanctuary for magical folk, found nestled in the vast rear garden of an elderly human couple.

But when Little Upham comes under siege, and someone attempts to kill the queen, the young faerie, Tatty Moon, is asked to help find and stop the culprits; and with her good friend Will, an elf who finds trouble without really trying, embarks on a journey into the treacherous realm of the Biggun.

Reviewers have decribed
The Magpie King as having “refreshingly original characters and storyline” and being “imaginitive and original”.

I asked
Jane where she plucked the idea for the story from.



“I always felt I had a story 'in me', and because I'm rather lazy I found it easy to avoid the work of actually writing it,” she said. “My grandmother's death was the catalyst that saw me begin to scribble down some little vignettes which, over time, became one story.

“The willow tree featured prominently in
The Magpie King still stands today, in the garden of a cottage that once belonged to my grandparents.”


To sample or buy The Magpie King go to:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J0Z3E9U



And to find out more about Jane, pop across to her Amazon author page:
http://www.amazon.com/M.J.-Fahy/e/B00LK3NJWM


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Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.

You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!

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CHILDREN'S AUTHORS REVEAL THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THEIR BOOKS

10/31/2014

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Award-winning American author Regina Puckett writes sweet romances, horror, inspirational, picture books and poetry.

She’s one busy bee with several projects in various stages of completion and characters and stories waiting for their chance to finally get out of her head and onto paper.


Regina lives smack in the middle of Tennessee in a tiny town near  Murfreesboro and that’s where she daydreams and gets the inspiration for her stories.


“On a good day I’m scatterbrained but on a bad day I’m not listening to a word anyone is saying,” she says.

 “I’m not a good listener. I have every intention of zeroing on what the other person is saying, but about three minutes into any conversation all I hear are the sounds of the adults talking in a Charlie Brown cartoon. 

"I could never be the president of the United States. There would be nuclear bombs exploding and I would just be wondering why doesn’t someone stop that awful noise so I can go back to daydreaming?"



Borrowed Wings, a cute story for 2-8-year-olds,  has received the Children's Literary Classics Seal of Approval and a 5 star review from Readers' Favorite.

Baby Dragon wants to fly more than anything else in the world, but his head is too big, his stomach is too round and his wings are too small. Mother Dragon is more than happy to let him borrow hers. 

It’s a story about the circle of life, and how sooner or later, we all need help from someone else.

“The inspiration for Borrowed Wings came during a time when my father was bedridden with Lou Gehrig’s disease,” Regina said.



“My two sisters and I were trying to help my mother with his care at the same time my two oldest grandchildren were born.  I was struck by how at the beginning and end of our lives we depend on those others when we aren’t able to care for ourselves.”

Readers can pick up a copy of Borrowed Wings at:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble 



OTHER WORK BY THIS TALENTED TENNESSEAN 

"Caterpillar wants to be a Cow" is the title of another children’s book penned by Regina.

She is an award nominated author for her short story, Balloon Wishes.

Her story Concealed in My Heart is a Readers' Favorite Book Award Winner and also was runner-up in the international 2014 MARSocial Author of the Year Competition.

Her poem, Memories won first place in the 1st WSBR International Poetry Contest and can be found in her book of poetry, Tilting at Windmills and Words.


Another poem, Slowly Drowning won second place in the 3rd WSBR International Poetry Contest and features in her poetry book, My Words into the Beyond.


Sir Galahad Comes to the Rescue won third place in the 3rd WSBR International Poetry Contest and is in her book of poetry, Ramblings and Dreams.


And her collection of poetry, Fireflies, won 2013 Turning Pages Poetry Book of the Year.



FIND OUT MORE ABOUT REGINA BY VISITING:

https://www.facebook.com/regina.puckett1

http://reginapuckettsbooks.weebly.com/index.html

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/154116.Regina_Puckett

https://twitter.com/ReginaPucket


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Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.

You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!

0 Comments
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