Guest Post: author Susin Nielsen

SUSIN NIELSEN is the award-winning author of Word Nerd, Dear George Clooney: Please Marry My Mom, The Reluctant Journal of Henry K.  Larsen, We Are All Made of Molecules and Optimists Die First. She got her start writing for the original hit TV series Degrassi Junior High, and has written for over 20 Canadian TV series. Her books have won  critical acclaim and multiple awards both at home and around the world, and they’ve been translated into many languages. Her new novel, No Fixed Address, is out in September 2018. She’s been described as “the John Green of Canada,” and had a dream once that John Green was described as “the Susin Nielsen of the U.S.” She lives in Vancouver with her family and two naughty cats.

Twitter: @susinnielsen

Instagram: @susinnielsen
Facebook author page: 
https://www.facebook.com/Susin-Nielsen-Author-100205850063631/
Website: www.susinnielsen.com

won multiple Young Readers' Choice awards

How/why did you start to write?

I wrote from a very young age. I joke that my first “published” book was when I was 10 – they put the one and only copy of a picture book I wrote and illustrated, called “The Smallest Snipet of Snipeton,” into our school library, and four kids took it out. As for WHY I started to write – it’s always a bit of a mystery, isn’t it? I chalk part of it up to being an only child with a single parent mom – I was a latchkey kid, pre-internet, two channel universe, so I spent a lot of time in my own head, playing imaginary games. We also always had books in the house; my mom and I went to the library a lot, and I remember getting books as gifts on birthdays etc.

won the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Award

longlisted for UK's Carnegie Medal

nominated for the Governor General's Literary Award

How did you become an author?

I was a TV writer first, for twenty years, before I wrote my first original YA novel. So I’ve always been a writer of one form or another. I always had it in my head that I’d like to try to write a YA novel – why that age group, I honestly don’t know, except that I’d written for a number of TV shows for that age group, including Degrassi Junior High, and I think it’s a fascinating time of life – a time of so many firsts. Anyway, at one point about 12 years ago I was really fed up with the TV industry, and always being at the mercy of a handful of broadcast executives – and I realized one day that instead of moping and complaining every day, if I called myself a writer, I should simply WRITE. And write something completely different. The character from “Word Nerd” (my first published novel) had been talking to me for a while. So I set myself a goal of four pages a day, and off I went.

received starred reviews in Publisher's Weekly, Kirkus, The School Library Journal, and Quill & Quire

longlisted for the 2018 UKLA Award

nominated for the YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults List

an OLA White Pine Honour Book

What was your first published piece? Where was it published? How long ago?

Well, way back in the day I did write four of the Degrassi novelizations, for a flat fee. They just asked if I’d like to do it while I was working as a writer on the show. I wrote Shane, Wheels, Snake and Melanie. It’s a pity it was for a flat fee because those books sold around the world! ☺ But I remember thinking, “This is fun. One day I want to write an original YA novel.”

won the Governor General's Literary Award

won the Canadian Literary Association's Children's Literary Award

won the UK Literacy Award

was Rolling Stone's 27th pick for the "Top 40 Best YA Novels"

Please share your views on censorship--with regards to 

children's literature.

It’s completely wrongheaded. Let kids read what they want to read. I understand that it’s really hard to parent these days (I’m a parent myself). But reading novels – even novels with mature content – this is not going to scar your kids or mess them up for life. Most kids are remarkable at self-censoring, anyway – if something is beyond them, or  boring, or makes them uncomfortable, they put it down. Books are gateways into other worlds, other people’s POV’s – nothing but good can come out of being well-read. My books, especially Word Nerd, get formal challenges against them quite frequently. But the things that happen in my books are real, and happen, and they can either act as cautionary tales, or they can make a kid feel like they’re not alone. This is hugely important. To be honest I think there are so many more things to worry about as a parent – ultra-violent video games, the incredibly easy access to online porn – what is that teaching boys, and girls, about mutually respectful, caring, loving relationships?  Zilch. Empathy? Nada. Novels are all about forming a bond with a  protagonist, no matter how different he or she or they may be from you. Novels are all about empathy building.

won multiple Young Readers' Choice Awards

Why do you think it's important to include humour when writing for children?

I wouldn’t say I think it’s important in general, as every writer is different. It’s important to me, and not really because I’m writing  for children, but I think it’s just my outlook on life. I’d find it very hard to write anything without some humour. I generally, not always, like reading books with some element of humour in them as well.

What inspires you?

My inspiration comes from many places. Sometimes it’s stuff from my own childhood (my parents’ divorce, having half siblings, and now step siblings, a blended family), sometimes I get an idea from something else I read, sometimes an image just pops into my head. For my new novel out in September, “No Fixed Address,” I was in a Kelowna hotel room, between wake and sleep at 5 am, and suddenly thought, “I could write a book about a boy who has to live in a van with his mom.” And I wrote that down when I fully woke up, and that became the basis of my next novel, many months later.

will be published September 2018

Concerning writing for children, do you think it's an asset 

to be a parent? If so, how? If not, why?

No, I don’t think so. I’m a parent, but so many amazing writers for kids aren’t/weren’t. I don’t think either Maurice Sendak or Louis Fitzhugh had children, and they were brilliant at tapping into the kid psyche. I think it’s more about being able to tap into your emotional memories and feelings from that time of your life.

Concerning writing for children, share tips on how to achieve an age-appropriate writing.

I really don’t know how to answer this. I just try to write a good story. I never dumb down. I never try to change vocabulary, unless it’s a specific trait of my character. I suppose what I could say is that I think kids are less forgiving than adults; if you condescend to them, try to shove in a message, try to write a book you think they “should” read, or have long, boring passages of description – they will put it down and move on to the next one (or, god forbid, they WON’T move on to the next one because they’ve just been put off reading!). You have to write a well-paced novel and you have an obligation not to bore your reader. I’m pretty sure Neil Gaiman says that in his book “The View from the Cheap Seats.”

Thank you so much for visiting, Susin. I enjoyed getting to know you and your books.

Buy Susin Nielsen's books by clicking these links...

Susin Nielsen books in the Vancouver bookstore Kids Books, 

on Amazon and at Chapters Indigo

Guest Post: Maxine Sylvester, children's picture book author

"A NEW SHERIFF IN TOWN" and the name is "Ronaldo”

Ronaldo is a young flying reindeer cadet who someday dreams of becoming one of Santa's reindeer, just like his hero, Vixen. With the love and support of his friends and family and the great advice of his grandpa, he can face his greatest challenge yet, the Endurance Challenge. Ronaldo doesn't have a "traditional" reindeer name (like Dasher) so he faces some bullying from his peers. In the end, this little underdog gets to be a big-time hero. And despite all his slap-stick humour style clumsiness he gets to enjoy his success with pride.

1) How/why did you start to write?

I wanted a reason to illustrate; so I created a character; a young reindeer called Ronaldo and decided to write a short story about him going to flying school. Only thing was, once I started writing, I couldn’t stop! It turns out I had quite an imagination (courtesy of a lifetime of watching Disney movies). I now love writing as much as illustrating and enjoy flitting between the two. I feel my strengths are illustration and imagination, not grammar, so I use a professional editor on all my books. A good one is worth their weight in carrots.

2) How did you become an author?

In a very long-winded way! I loved art when I was younger but got sidetracked by travel. In my teens, I abandoned a career in art to work in Greece as a travel representative. I then sailed the ocean waves working in the gift shop and casino onboard cruise ships. I loved the exotic destinations but found my work uninspiring. I met my partner Mark onboard and after 10 years on ships, we decided to try our luck on land and accepted positions at a casino in Jericho, Palestine. It was a fascinating project but after two years the casino had to close due to political unrest.

Mark accepted a job in Moscow so we left the desert heat and relocated to minus 20 degree winters. By this time I had become very disillusioned with work. I never enjoyed any job I did and felt like I had missed my calling in life. I must have been a nightmare to work with as I never stopped moaning!

In Moscow, I took time out and went back to my roots – art. I enrolled in The College of Cartoon Art and was mentored by British cartoonist/caricaturist, Steve Chadburn. I then did an additional course in children’s book illustration. My passion for art was still there just like when I was a child and I was drawing round the clock and loving every minute.

Mark eventually decided to quit casinos and bought into a scuba diving business in Bali. This is where we are now and it’s where I wrote my first book.

3) What was your first published piece? Where was it published? How long ago?

I self-published the first book in the Ronaldo series, The Reindeer Flying Academy, three years ago on Amazon. I followed up with The Phantom Carrot Snatcher one year later. The third book in the series, Rudi’s Birthday Extravaganza, was published last month.

Reviews have been amazing. I am so grateful to everyone that reviewed my books; the comments have been so positive. A few reviewers for The Reindeer Flying Academy mentioned they would have preferred colour illustrations, so I took the advice onboard (important to listen to your readers!) and am now adding the final touches to the colour version. I am looking at publishing a colour edition of The Reindeer Flying Academy in November, ready for Christmas. I think children are going to love the colour illustrations. I had such fun bringing the characters to life. Thank you, reviewers, for your suggestions!

You can check out the first chapter of The Reindeer Flying Academy (colour edition) on the Ronaldo website.

https://www.ronaldotheflyingreindeer.com/first-chapters

4) Reflect on your writing process

I usually have an idea in my head and write notes each day as if I don’t write them down I forget. I tend to think of funny incidents that have happened to me or my friends over the years and weave them into the story.  I then sit at my computer and write. I do a very rough draft. I then find that once I get into writing more ideas keep flooding into my head. Sometimes I can’t sleep at night because my head is buzzing with ideas. I then fine tune the manuscript until I am happy with it. The last book, Rudi’s Birthday Extravaganza, took about one month. I then forward the book to my editor and wait for her comments. All three books have taken three edits.

I remember my first book, my editor pointed out that there were no strong female characters in the story, something publishers are very hot on at the moment. I am not a very girly female; I love football and rock music, so I naturally put male characters into the story. After careful thought, I changed Wing Commander Blitsen to a female and it totally changed the dynamic of the book. Now I can’t imagine her any other way.

5) What did you do before embarking on your writing career? Was it an asset to your writing?

My last job was as a Pilates instructor and it’s one of the best things I ever did. I’ve had back problems over the years and Pilates strengthens the muscles that support the spine. It’s brilliant! The body isn’t designed to spend long periods sitting at a computer, so I practice Pilates three times a week. I wouldn’t be able to write and illustrate without it. So, in answer to your question, Pilates is an asset to my writing.

I also did a lot of jobs over the years which I didn’t enjoy, working if shops, casinos, offices, etc. I don’t think I would appreciate what I do now as much as I do if I hadn’t have done those jobs. I really love being creative and am so grateful to have found a career that brings me such joy.

6) What inspires you?

Inspiring people! I love biographies about people I admire. I recently read a book about Walt Disney. He had so many setbacks but just kept going. I also love that he wasn’t perfect and made mistakes. He was a creative genius and had an incredible belief in himself. Disneyland is my favourite place on earth and it came from his vision.

I also love Dolly Parton’s attitude towards life. She’s renowned for being a very smart businesswoman, but her humour always shines through and she never forgets where she came from.

If ever I feel down, I read Dr Wayne Dyer. He had a difficult childhood but never doubted his books would be published by the right people and at the perfect time. I find his words caring and inspirational. I think he’s an essential read for any self-published author.

7) Please share one of your successful author platform building techniques

I am very fortunate with social networking as my partner, Mark knows way more about it than me! He has helped me so much over the last three years. As a self-published author, it is essential to get reviews. Mark found Twitter a very useful platform for finding people kind enough to review my books. He looks for ‘book bloggers’ and ‘book reviewers’, reads their reviews, checks if they have reviewed children’s books before or if they have children themselves, and then decides whether to request a review or not. That is the short version he said.

Maxine Sylvester was born in London, England. She grew up with a passion for Winnie the Pooh and Paddington Bear. She also loved anything Disney and enjoyed drawing the characters.
Maxine's love of 'fun' art grew and she had the privilege of being mentored by cartoonist and caricaturist, Steve Chadburn. She completed further studies in children's book illustration with talented artist and illustrator, Jan Nesbitt.
Rudi’s Birthday Extravaganza, the third in the Ronaldo series, was released 29th Sept 2017. She is now working on a colour version of The Reindeer Flying Academy in time for Christmas

Links,

Website:     ronaldotheflyingreindeer.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MaxineSylvesterAuthor/

Twitter:      @flyingronaldo

Pinterest:   https://id.pinterest.com/flyingronaldo/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maxinesylvester/

Guest post: Linda Marshall, children's author

First, thank you very much for inviting me to participate in your blog. What a joy the universe of children’s literature is! I’m so enjoying this new career. I didn’t start out as a writer. In fact, I started out as an Anthropologist with a strong interest in children’s development across cultures and in folklore. Prior to going to college, I’d spent several summers working with developmentally delayed children. That work inspired many questions, one of which was questioning how various cultures handle children who are different from the norm. In college, I studied cultural anthropology and early childhood education. Then, spurred by the nascent women’s movement, I began teaching in - and advocating for more - childcare centers. It was then that I discovered the joy of picture books. Wow! What an eye-opening. That’s when I met Swimmy, who helped all his friends work together to chase away the big, bad fish. And I met Max, whose mother still loved him - and kept his dinner warm - while he was angry and chasing wild things. And I met Frederick who, like me, wanted to gather sunbeams.

I continued teaching small children. Then, with children of my own, I began teaching parenting education. Writing came late - very late! I’d pursued (but didn’t quite finish) a Ph.D. in Anthropology. I opened (and closed) a bookstore. I raised (to completion, if the job can ever be considered complete) four children. I also had a flock of sheep, chickens, rabbits, cats, and dogs. 

Buy Rainbow Weaver

My writing grew from all of my experiences…and from the world around. I’m curious about almost everything…and I like to explore. I also love words. My article below, which first appeared in last summer's SCBWI Bulletin, describes my love of picture books…and how they can be used. 

 (Please click on image  to embolden)

I can be reached via my website: www.lindamarshall.com or 

on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/LindaMarshallBooks/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel

Twitter (which I rarely use) @L_E_Marshall

Guest Post Author Cindy Lapena

How/why did you start to write?

I started writing simple rhymes, stories, and essays when I was very young and had a whole notebook of poems by the time I was 10 years old. I knew I had a knack for it because the words came out very easily and the sentences just flowed. I never had problems with composition classes and enjoyed all my writing assignments as much as I enjoyed reading. I imagined, from a very young age, that I would be a novelist and a poet and read all kinds of literature for enjoyment and to remind myself that one day, my work would be in books that other people would read.

How did you become an author?

By the time I was in sixth grade, I decided I should be part of the school paper and contributed poetry. In high school and college, I was on the school paper and learned a lot about journalism and publishing, and continued writing for or editing newsletters and academic publications throughout my career as a teacher. In my work with theatre, I also wrote several feature articles, interviews, and press releases that were published in national newspapers and magazines.

What was your first published piece?

Besides all the work I published in school papers, my first professionally published work was a booklet published by the Fund for Assistance to Private Education in the Philippines. A friend of mine, who was also a professor and a published author asked me to write on one of the topics I delivered in seminar-workshops around the Philippines: How to Write Behavioural Objectives. It was my first paid work outside of school publishing and I was very proud of it.

Where was it published?

The funny thing is, while it was published in the Philippines, where I came from, I never saw a copy of the booklet. Apparently, it had been distributed all over the country in private schools mostly outside the National Capital Region. I only found out about that when, while giving a workshop in one of the southern provinces of the Philippines, I found out that most of the participants knew me by name, because of that pamphlet. It seems to have been a “bible” of sorts for teachers looking to improve their syllabi and lesson plans.

How long ago?

That was back in the mid-80s.

What did you do before embarking on your writing career? Was it an asset to your writing? How?

Writing has always been a big part of my life, just as reading. Unfortunately, when I was ready to choose a University course, there were no Creative Writing degrees available in the Philippines. I chose a course in Communications Research instead, which was the newest and hottest course related to writing—and would have brought me to a career in Communications, possibly journalism and broadcasting, or something of the sort. Two days into the course, I received a telegram from the National Science Development Board offering me a full scholarship with a full allowance and expenses if I took an Education degree in either Mathematics or Physics. It was my big opportunity to become independent, so I took Mathematics (I had a horrible experience with my high school physics teacher and I hated writing up lab reports) with Education. That, of course, had nothing to do with my writing, except that I became very active with school journalism during a time when freedom of speech was curtailed in the Philippines. (I was so close to getting arrested as a result of writing too freely.) Once I graduated, I was invited by the principal of the high school I had graduated from to teach, but she wanted me to teach English because she knew that it was my forte. That led to a Master of Arts degree in English Literature with a specialization in Drama and focus on Creative Writing. How that happened is another long story. Since then, I have taught High School, College/University, and adult/professional learners. I had a 5-year stint as an indexer and abstracter, writing material that can be found on online databases such as Infotext and Ebsco. I have worked in theatre in nearly all areas from acting to directing, almost as long as I have been a writer, although I have earned more from my writing than my acting or production work.

Around 2006, an old friend of mine, who had been my teacher in high school, then the principal when I taught there, and then the dean when I taught in the college department, asked me to join a team of talented teachers to write a series of textbooks in English and critical thinking. I co-authored the first volume with another friend and former co-teacher who had moved to Australia, so we completed the project via email with him in Australia, me in Canada, and my friend as series coordinator in the Philippines. The project is currently with a publisher and will, hopefully, be finally published for school year 2014-2015, after so many obstacles with the publishing industry that got in the way.

My first major success as a writer was winning the 3^rd place in the 2007 Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature, the biggest and most prestigious Literary Awards in the Philippines, for the full-length play The Piano. I submitted my entry in April 2007, then moved to Canada in July of the same year, so I never got to attend the Awards Gala because I received the news when I was already in Canada and I could not afford to go back.

Last year, I became a Canadian statistic when I was laid off from a full-time teaching job. I was taking on freelance writing and editing jobs online when I came across the National Novel Writing Month challenge and decided I would do it this year, since I had the time anyway. I completed my first novel as a result and am working on revising it while looking for a publisher. I have since decided to focus on my writing and my art full time and believe I am ready to launch myself as a business very soon. 

 Meanwhile, I took a manuscript I had completed in the Philippines (one of quite a few) that was a compilation of games, activities, and projects that I had used to make my English classes more lively and interesting. I have turned it into a 5-volume series: 101 Fun Games, Activities, and Projects for English Classes by Cynthia Lapeña that I very recently published in two editions: a Kindle edition, available on Amazon, and a full-colour print edition, available on both CreateSpace and Amazon. I also have a workbook series for Pre-School that I prepared when I was homeschooling my youngest son, and, because only the 1^st book of the 4-volume series was published, I plan to work on it for publishing as well on CreateSpace and Amazon as my next big project. I also plan to put together some volumes of poetry to bring to local publishers.

My first novel, The Lost Amulets, is the first book in the series that I call The Amulets of Pangaea. I tried to see how it would fare in the Next Best Author Series and, while I did not make it past the first of three rounds, I have received so much positive feedback from other authors that I know it’s just a matter of finding the right publisher. Besides being an adventure involving teenagers, it is a fantasy tale that brings to life creatures, characters, and stories from Philippine myths and legends. I intend to incorporate elements from Philippine myths and legends as an alternative to the current book offerings that are satiated with all kinds of vampire, werewolf, and zombie stories. My oldest son, Kitt Lapeña, is with me on this project, having agreed to create the cover art for the book.

Here’s the blurb:

If you are looking for something totally new, interesting, and awesome, The Lost Amulets is just the book you want to see. Ms. Lapeña makes use of folklore from the Philippines, where she was born. She wants to introduce a whole new class of fantasy creatures to the world while sharing myths, legends, folktales, beliefs, and superstitions from the Philippines.

The Lost Amulets is a YA fantasy adventure story about four teenagers who are recruited by Littlefolk to find their missing king and three amulets that will restore natural order to the parallel world Dapit-Adlaw where fantastic and mythical beings exist. They encounter these beings, both good and evil, and race against time to solve the riddles and find the amulets that will help to restore vital elements in Dapit-Adlaw. Their final mission is to release the God of the Hunt from a curse. As the children make many new friends and help defeat the followers of the evil Tasu Wey, they discover strength and build confidence and the 16-year-old lead character, in particular, learns to accept that mythical beings and magic do exist. 

The Lost Amulets is the first book of the series The Amulets of Pangaea.

And here is the awesome cover I designed with artwork my son created:

What inspires you?

Everything inspires, but mostly people and all the things they go through. I love people watching and write poems or makeup stories about them. I watch nature and I am inspired to write poetry. My life is so full of experiences and encounters of all sorts that it is an endless source of stories to tell. I have ups and downs and I write about those. I read almost incessantly—you can’t tear me away from books, and all those inspire me—either to write something better or something similar to what I like. Most of all, I love myths and legends, and my first novel makes use of those. I have so many ideas about books I would like to write that I will have things to write about well into my old age. I have also shared so much as a teacher that I want to share my inexhaustible collection of teaching ideas with other teachers, so I write teaching resources and textbooks.

Please share one of your successful author platform building techniques

The publishing industry today is very different from what it was before the Internet became huge. Nowadays, authors need to promote themselves using every possible means. So far, I began building my platform when I started a blog, then joined Facebook, and recently, Twitter. I connected with everyone I could whom I had met in the past and constantly try to build new connections, join groups, and make new “friends” and acquaintances. Once you’re online, you need to make yourself heard, so I keep on writing. Every time I write something, I publish it on my Facebook author page (Cindy Lapeña) and my blog (Cindy Lapeña: Creativity Unlimited) with over 14,700 views to date, and then post links to it in all my groups, on my FB wall, and on Twitter (@mimrlith). The trick is to keep on writing regularly, keep on publicizing, and offer something useful, entertaining, or thought-provoking each time.

Parting words

I always tell my students, workshop participants, mentees, and just about anyone who comes to me for help or advice to never give up because success does not always come instantaneously nor when it is there, does not stay by itself. You need to keep on working at it to remain successful. I believe in doing what I am passionate about, doing what I enjoy, and if it can become my source of income and support as well, then all the much better! Over and above that, I tell everyone that nothing is impossible as long as you can imagine it because your creativity is limited only by your imagination.