Deborah Abela's Blog Tour For Her New Series Ghost Club

A Few Ghostly Queries

by the author of Ghost Club, a new series for kids, Deborah Abela

www.deborahabela.com

Would you have liked to have been part of a ghost club?

Absolutely! Alongside my nanna, most likely. My nanna wasn’t your regular cake-baking, round, hugging kind of grandmother, she was feisty, no-nonsense and used to tell me stories about ghosts. True stories, that were passed down through the family and this sparked a life-long love of all things ghostly.

So how did your ghost club come about?

Partly because of Nanna but also because this year was the 200^th birthday of Charles Dickens, who not only claimed to have seen ghosts but also was the founding member of the Ghost Club 150 years ago. (The club still meets today to investigate ghostly sightings.) I decided to create my own club where two of the most successful catchers are 11-year-old twins, Angeline and Edgar Usher. Like the real clubsters, they investigate haunted sites and try to convince the ghosts to stop their pesky ways. 

How does your ghost club work?

It is run from a ramshackle mansion in Gravesend and is headed by Grandmaster Fleischmann. Regular meetings are held to discuss upcoming conferences, welcome new members and discuss the latest ghostly sightings. Professor Grandma Rose is the chief inventor and in charge of the Spectorium, where all the  equipment is kept and Endora Spright is the Head of Spectral research and looks after the archives, museum and investigating the history of haunted sites.

Do you have a favorite character?

I never start out with one but the more I get to know my characters, one always stands out and this time it’s Mr Roderick Gloom, former ghost catcher and groundsman of the club. He keeps unusual pets like piranhas and tarantulas and fancies himself a bit of a poet, where, to the dislike of newest member Dylan, the characters always seem to meet a dismal end.

Do you believe in ghosts?

Yes, but I have only seen one. It was late at night when I was climbing into bed. I reached to close the curtains when, outside the window, I saw the face of my nanna. After a few moments she faded away. I drew the curtains, had a strong feeling that Nanna was looking out for me and had a very calm, restful sleep. 

What kind of kid do you think will enjoy Ghost Club?

Kids who are about 8-12, enjoy adventure, mystery and a bit of fun, ghostly peskiness. 

Thank you, Deborah, for including my blog in your blog tour. All the best with Ghost Club. 

Thank you so much for being involved, Robyn. It's been great fun.

Visit the next stop on Deborah’s blog tour:

http://booksforlittlehands.blogpot.com.au

Did you miss the previous stop? See:

http://orangedale.livejournal.com/

To see all the stops on the tour, go to:

www.deborahabela.com

About Deborah Abela

Deb knew she wanted to be a writer when she was 7 years old.  Her first story was about a man made out of cheese.  It wasn’t very good.  She’s had much more practice writing since then and strangely enough her first writing job was for a kids’ show on channel Ten called Cheez TV.  After 7 years of writing scripts about everything from llamas to bungy jumping and how to go to the toilet in outer space, Deb wrote her first novel - Max Remy Superspy Part 1: In Search of the Time and Space Machine.  

 

Elements of a Good Children’s Book

A guest post by Sara Dawkins

While there is certainly no shortage of children’s books lining the shelves of bookstores these days, that doesn’t necessarily mean that all the books available are good children’s books. It takes a special understanding of children to really be able to write in a way that makes them want to keep reading, which is something that many authors struggle with as they try to cater their writing to children. To really capture the elements of a children’s book that make it worth reading, consider these five elements as you brainstorm and write:

1.    Determine your target age group. Before you start writing you need to determine the target age group you want to market your book to and then begin researching that age group. Read as many books as you can that are geared towards that age group so that you can start to see what each author does that works and that doesn’t work. This will help prepare you to write your own book that is tailored to that demographic.

2.    Write from the perspective of the children. One of the major downfalls of children’s books is that the author is writing about children of a certain age, but they lack a full understanding of that age group, making them unable to accurately portray events and objects from their point of view. When you write you have to remember that you’re an adult, so you’re going to see things differently. Get down on the floor to view rooms, check out kids’ TV shows and the games they are playing, run across the playground and play on the playground equipment – become the age of your characters so that you can really write from that perspective.

3.    Include elements of humor. Whether your book is meant to be comical, mysterious, or sentimental you should include elements of humor throughout it. Kids enjoy humorous situations that they can relate to – even if it’s just a paragraph to lighten the mood. One great example of using humor to connect with the children you’re writing for is the book Stop! Do Not Read This Book! by Robyn Opie Parnell. This humorous book deals with some of the trials and tribulations that kids go through during adolescence, but does so with an element of humor that engages kids to keep reading.

4.    Take the reader on an adventure. Every good story will have a hurdle that the protagonist will need to overcome before they reach a resolution and gain understanding of why something happened and how it’s affecting them as an individual. In Robyn Opie Parnell’s book Maya and the Crystal Skull, Maya has to deal with the fact that her mother has passed away and her father has gone missing. Maya is thrown into a historical adventure that has her uncovering clues that take her closer to understanding exactly why certain events in her life have happened. To write a good children’s book you need the protagonist to go up against different obstacles like this and come out stronger in the end.

5.    Include a lesson at the end. At the end of a children’s book children should be able to take away some sort of lesson from the story. Maybe it’s to never give up, maybe it’s that everything happens for a reason, maybe it’s to respect your parents – whatever it is, they should have a clear understanding of this lesson without it feeling like they were being lectured throughout the book.
 

Writing children’s books is no small feat, but when they’re written correctly they can have a lasting impact on the children who read them.

Author Bio
Sara is an active nanny as well as an active freelance writer. She is a frequent contributor of http://www.nannypro.com/.  Learn more about her http://www.nannypro.com/blog/sara-dawkins/.

First CUT by Rob Parnell on Pozible

First CUT by Rob Parnell on Pozible

Stop! Do Not Read This Book by Robyn Opie Parnell

A Five Star Review on Goodreads

A Review by Warren Thurston

http://www.aussieauthors.com

Stop! Do Not Read This Book

by Robyn Opie Parnell

Sam has two pet hates, books and having her mum call her Samantha. In fact everyone in Sam’s house loves books. They are devoted to the written word so much that even when the electricity is off they use candles to see to read. But worst of all her mum writes books.

Sam likes to watch DVD’s and play computer games. Reading is not for her, even at school. She always finds a way to escape to the sick bay. The school nurse is almost her best friend.

The family pet, Huckleberry the Dachshund, has a farting problem that young readers will enjoy. Sam thinks his gaseous explosions are chemical weapons of mass destruction. Finally the family takes Huckleberry to an Earth Therapist for treatment. To their relief his farting becomes less frequent and smelly.

Fate strikes a double blow at Sam. Her mum is about to launch her new book. Sam is distressed when her mum comes into the classroom to talk about the book. The class thinks that the girl in the story, who has a bed-wetting problem, is really Sam. Sam denies this but her denial reinforces her friends’ belief that the girl is her.

This misunderstanding leads to series of incidents, including a fight with her best friend Emma, which causes a lot of grief and embarrassment for Sam. She sinks into a world filled with frustration. Her mother’s effort to help Sam makes matters worse. Sam hates her lot in life and is desperate to find a solution to her own secret problem. The story has a twist that will delight readers and make them happy for Sam.

Robyn Opie Parnell has written a delightful tale of about the trials of growing up with a problem that is hard to share. Her choice of words make the story sparkle and builds a strong empathy between the reader and Sam.

This is a book I highly recommend for all middle grade readers.

 

To read the review of Goodreads CLICK HERE.

To purchase the PDF e-book of Stop! Do Not Read This Book CLICK HERE .

To purchase the Amazon Kindle e-book of Stop! Do Not Read This Book CLICK HERE.

To download Chapter One of Stop! Do Not Read This Book by Robyn Opie Parnell absolutely free CLICK HERE. 

To request a review copy of Stop! Do Not Read This Book or to request an interview with Robyn Opie Parnell or for any reason please email: robyn.opie.parnell@gmail.com

 

 

 

Writing Children's Books with Robyn Opie Parnell: Bushland Lullaby Blog Tour With Sally Odgers

Writing Children's Books with Robyn Opie Parnell: Bushland Lullaby Blog Tour With Sally Odgers: Hi Sally, welcome to my blog, and congratulations on the release of your beautiful new picture book Bushland Lullaby . Hi, Robyn, a...

Bushland Lullaby Blog Tour With Sally Odgers

Hi Sally, welcome to my blog, and congratulations on the release of your beautiful new picture book Bushland Lullaby.

Hi, Robyn, and thanks for hosting Bushland Lullaby on its tour.

Thank you for being here, Sally, and now over to you.

Rhyming picture books are popular with children, parents and teacher/librarians, but can be less than popular with publishers. Why, as Professor Julius Sumner Miller would once have said, is it so?

I asked an editor about that and her reply was staggeringly simple; (a) Because rhyming texts are so difficult to do well. (b) Because rhyming texts don’t translate into other languages without a complete rewrite, which compromises the chance of foreign editions and thus, of foreign income.

So, why did I write Bushland Lullaby in rhyme? And not only in rhyme, buy in aa/bb rhyme? I suppose it was partly because lullabies are traditionally sung, and partly because rhyme and scansion come easily and naturally to me. Also, Scholastic Australia, the publishers, have a big enough customer base in Australia to make the translation problem less of a – well – problem.

Telling a story in rhyme can be difficult, as often I see texts (unpublished) where the first two lines in a verse drive the story while the next two are “passenger” lines, which are there just to carry the form. A rhymed story, to work, must conform to the rule of any picture book; each line must be essential to the story.

As it happens, Bushland Lullaby is not really a story, but – a lullaby, so each stanza, although relating to the theme as a whole, stands alone.

Another problem with rhymed texts is the temptation to twist the syntax to get the rhyme and scansion going. The example below is not from a picture book, but does show how twisted syntax works (or doesn’t work) in a narrative poem.

I went to the lake with a circle of friends

The month was July and almost the end

As you can see, we have an obvious case of twisted syntax. The natural way for this line to fall would be;

It was almost the end of July.

Could you use it in a natural way and preserve the rhyme?

With a circle of friends to the lake then went I

It was almost the end of July

This has messed up the meter, and twisted the first line. What about;

I went to the lake with a circle of friends

It was almost the end of July

I knew I had failed them; too late for amends,

On the lakeside I bade them goodbye.

So that the word July does not look dragged in, it should mean something in the poem. In Australia, July is winter, while it is summer in the northern hemisphere. Either season could be important, and could be referred to in the next line…

The summer had shrunken the lake to a pool

OR

The chill of the land matched the chill of my soul

So, with a bit of thought and skill, it is possible to write rhymed lines with natural word order, even if the language employed is a bit more poetic than prose. Picture books, though, are written mostly for a young audience, so too much high-flown language is inappropriate. The trick is to use exact and colorful language without getting obscure, and to be willing to use assonance and/or consonance rather than strict rhyme if it will improve the text. 

To finish, here is an excerpt from Bushland Lullaby…

In a merry creek where the currents run

Where eddies dance with winking sun

Curled in a burrow so safe and deep

Little Platypus lies asleep …

Thanks so much for hosting us, Robyn! 

Thanks for including my blog in your tour, Sally, and all the best with Bushland Lullaby. It's a beautiful book all children will love.

Bushland Lullaby

Asleep in a gently snoozing ball

Little possum's soft and small.

In a twisty tunnel and cosy bed

Little wombat rests his head.  

All the baby animals sleep soundly in the comfort of the bush.

Bushland Lullaby is published by Scholastic Australia 2012 ISBN: 9781742831770

Blog Tour

Spinning Pearls – Sally Odgers

1^st September 2012

Writing for Children – Peter Taylor

3^rd September 2012

From Hook to Book – Chris Bell

7^th September 2012

Kids’ Book Review – Tania McCartney

8^th September 2012

Reading and Writing with Dale Harcombe

12^th September 2012

School Magazine with Jackie Hosking

18^th September 2012

Writing Children's Books with Robyn Opie Parnell

23^rd September 2012

Please visit Sally's website to learn more about Sally Odgers, her books, manuscript assessments and a wonder of other information: http://www.sallyodgers.com/

 



 

First Chapter Book Ideas for Children

Today, I'd like to welcome guest blogger Heather Smith who is going to discuss ideas for first chapter books for children. Thank you, Heather, over to you.

When I first started reading chapter books I may have gone a little overboard. My first chapter book was The Hobbit. Yeah, I do not really recommend that for anyone else. Instead, kids should start out with something light and adventurous. Something fun to read that is not too long. You do not want them to get frustrated or bored with reading. With that in mind, here are some book ideas you may want to try to get your child to take a look at. Depending on their genre tastes, they may find a new favorite.

1.    Monster of the Year by Bruce Coville – A fun and funny book for all ages, Monster of the Year is the tale of two boys who accidentally start a monster competition in their town. When the real monsters start showing up, the boys must think fast to avoid unpleasant circumstances. Between Dracula’s taste for warm V-8 juice and the Monster from the Black Lagoon’s bathroom issues, kids will be rolling on the floor with laughter. They will also be surprised to learn who ends up winning the completion for the most monstrous of them all.

2.    Chamber of Horrors: Amulet of Doom by Bruce Coville – Would you trust a demon? That is the question kids have to ask themselves in this spooky tale. When a girl inherits a strange ancient amulet, she is in for more than a piece of jewelry. The demon trapped inside asks her to make a terrible choice. Trust him and set him free, or condemn herself to a lifetime of guarding the dangerous receptacle. The content may be scary for some children, so it may be better to wait until they are a bit older for this book.

3.    Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville – When Jeremy comes across a beautiful iridescent egg in the magic shop, he must buy it. He carefully follows the shop owner’s directions on how to care for the egg and is rewarded when something begins to hatch. That something turns out to be a dragon. Easy to hide at first, the dragon grows and grows and grows until he is no longer something that Jeremy can keep hidden. Can Jeremy find a safe place for his dragon or is it going to be taken away from him to be studied? Kids will have to read the magical tale to find out!

4.    Being of Two Minds by Pamela Service – When two children from two different continents, one a regular American girl and the other a prince, discover they have the power to see into each others' lives, no one believes them. Not even their parents. But when the prince is kidnapped, the girl has no choice but to go to Europe to find and rescue him. Their adventure will uncover plots and places no one ever knew about.

5.    The Reluctant God by Pamela Service – The daughter of a famed archeologist always helps her father out during the summer. Only this summer he really found something. Uncovering an ancient tomb, the sarcophagus is removed and brought to the museum to be studied. During the night a lightening storm brings the mummy to life. The girl encounters the mummy who asks for her help to retrieve something that was stolen from him long ago. Without it, his spirit cannot find rest. The two young people go off on an adventure to recover his treasure and return to Egypt before his time is up. A great adventure story with a touch of romance and a lot of history.

6.    Weirdos of the Universe, Unite! by Pamela Service – When the two weirdest kids in school team up for a class project, you know it is going to end up being odd. But stranger things happen still when a lighting strike at the library brings their search of ancient myths to life. From dark and scary witches of Russia to Tribbles, their fables come alive just in time to save the Earth from invasion. Will the children and the fables succeed in stopping the aliens, or will the Earth and everyone on it be destroyed?

7.    Vision Quest by Pamela Service – After her father’s sudden death, a young girl and her mother move to a desolate mining town. There the girl finds a strangely inscribed rock that allows her to communicate with a Native American boy in the past. Together they must solve an ancient mystery and bring peace to the spirit of the shaman.

8.    Storm at the Edge of Time by Pamela Service – The dark is rising, and only one man can stop it. Using his magic powers, he brings forth three guardians from diverse eras in time. One from the past, a Viking boy, one from the present, abrainy girl, and one from the future, a half-alien teenager. Together they must fight the darkness in each age and return the universe to harmony. Along the way they learn about how similar they really are.

9.    Under Alien Stars by Pamela Service – When aliens take over the Earth, most people just give up. But one boy decides he is not going to take this lying down. He tries to kidnap the daughter of the head alien, only to discover there are worse aliens out there, and that she may be Earth’s only hope of survival. They team up to fight their common enemy and end up finding out they have a lot more in common than they ever thought possible.

10.    The BFG (Big Friendly Giant) by Ronald Dahl – The adventures of a little girl who sees something she is not supposed to. One night she sees a giant blowing his trumpet into bedrooms. He notices her and takes her home to where the giants live, explaining he is the only good giant who does not eat people but rather gives children good dreams. The little girl convinces him to give the Queen of England a dream about the bad giants to stop them from eating people. The story is a fun filled fantasy with plenty of potty humor to keep the kids laughing.

11.    The Borrowers by Mary Norton – What happens to all the little things that get lost around your house? Well, they are never really lost at all, merely borrowed by the tiny people that live in your walls. That is the story behind The Borrowers, a tiny family that lives in someone’s house and borrows what they need to survive. Children will enjoy the adventures of the tiny people in a big world.

12.    Charlotte's Web by E. B. White – Everyone knows the story of Charlotte’s Web. When a spider saves a pig’s life, everything will change. This heartwarming tale of friendship is a classic that everyone should share with their children.

13.    From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg – The book with a very long name, this humorous tale is all about two run away children. The oldest, a girl, decides she wants to run away in comfort to the Metropolitan Museum of New York. She brings along her little brother because he has all the money. The two children live comfortably there for a little while until they try to solve the mystery of the creation of a beautiful statue. They travel to Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler’s house to uncover what the elusive widower knows about the statue she donated. Eventually they solve the mystery and get their reward. A great story full of learning and adventure.

These are just a few of the great titles every child should read. There are so many great books to choose from that it is difficult to know where to start. Find out what genre your child is interested in and start from there. Once they learn to love reading, nothing can stop them!

Author Bio
Heather Smith is an ex-nanny. Passionate about thought leadership and writing, Heather regularly contributes to various career, social media, public relations, branding, and parenting blogs/websites. She also provides value to www.nanny.net/ service by giving advice on site design as well as the features and functionality to provide more and more value to nannies and families across the U.S. and Canada. She can be available at H.smith7295 [at] gmail.com.

A few options from Robyn Opie Parnell:  

Black Baron   BUY NOW
The story of a great escape by the king of the cockroach racing world and the desperate race against time to save him from extermination!

Black Baron, Jake’s champion racing cockroach, hasn’t lost a race and Jake is on top of the world. But then his “clean freak” mum decides to clean up his bedroom and discovers Black Baron in a shoebox under Jake’s bed. Mum is aghast – how could Jake keep such a filthy pest? Black Baron escapes from his shoebox home, but Jake's mum is not deterred; she calls the pest exterminator and an hilarious slapstick tale ensues.

Stop! Do Not Read This Book

Kindle Price $2.99   BUY NOW

Sam hates to read. She hates books.
Unfortunately for Sam, her family are bookworms, her mom writes children's books and her teacher thinks reading is important.
Every day is a battle for Sam to avoid reading and to keep her secret. Life gets so bad, Sam is ready to move to Antarctica.
Instead, Sam is about to have the most embarrassing experience of her life. Will she survive?
Stop! Do not read this book -- and help Sam keep her secret.

Maya and the Crystal Skull
Kindle Price $2.99   BUY NOW

Move over Indiana Jones... Maya's life has changed. Her mother is dead, killed in a car accident; she's befriended by Ethan, a boy who claims he's from the spirit world; and now her father is missing. What does the legend of the crystal skulls have to do with her father's disappearance? Will Maya travel to Mexico to save him? How can Maya's destiny have anything to do with the future of humankind? The Mexican jungle, ancient Mayan ruins, dangerous bounty hunters and evil kidnappers... Yes, Maya's life has changed. The fate of the world now depends on her.