Monthly Archives: October 2023

Special Guest Q & A with Sue Wallman

I am so pleased to welcome Sue Wallman back to my blog today as a special guest talking about her latest YA thriller, Every Word A Lie.

Sue has worked for a newspaper in Paris and for magazines in London, She then became a secondary school librarian for six years. Now she is fulfilling her dream of writing and doing writing-related events full-time.

Her journey to publication took eight years, and picked up pace when she won The Woman’s Prize for Fiction First Chapter Award in 2013. Her debut, Lying About Last Summer, was published in 2016. Seven years later she has seven books under her belt.

Her latest book, Every Word A Lie, is a nail-biting story of a catfishing prank that gets out of control and gets deadly. Two friends, Amy and Stan, plan revenge on their prankster friend Hollie by catfishing her as her crush. They only mean to do it for a day or two – but then Hollie ends up dead.

As the catfish continues to strike others, Amy needs to find out: who is really in control of the catfish? Can she trust anyone? And is she the killer’s next target?

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Hi Sue,

Welcome to my blog. It is great to have you back here and talking about your latest novel, Every Word A Lie. I think the last time you were featured on my blog was March 2020 talking about your research for your award-winning YA thrillers. I am sure Every Word A Lie will be just as popular.

Thank you for having me back on, Anita!

Tell us what was your inspiration for Every Word A Lie and why you decided to write a book about catfishing for the YA market?

This book came about because my editor, Linas Alsenas, asked me if I’d listened to the podcast called Sweet Bobby that everyone in the Scholastic office was addicted to. It’s a real-life story about a woman who’d been catfished over a period of years and it was completely shocking. Catfishing – when someone pretends to be somebody else online – is a huge thing right now, and so many people are affected by it, adults and young people alike. It takes many different forms, from dating and delivery scams to bullying and manipulation, to people trying out different identities or escaping their real lives. But whatever the reason, there is always a victim.

When I spoke to teenagers in my creative writing group about it, they didn’t necessarily know the term catfishing, but they all knew someone who it had happened to, or they had had experience of it themselves. The scary thing is that parents often try to help but can’t and even the police have limited powers.

In my young adult thriller, Every Word A Lie, Amy and Stan are best friends who are part of a friendship group that loves pranks. When they want to get back at their friend Hollie who signed them up to litter-picking as a joke, they message her as a boy they know she has a crush on. Things spiral, Hollie winds up dead, and Amy and Stan are devastated. But the deaths – and the catfish messages – keep on coming…

How do you manage to develop so many different relatable characters with their own unique back stories and traits?

I’m really pleased you think they are relatable. I start with the basic plot and work out what sort of characters I need. In my first draft, however hard I try, my characters are horribly two dimensional, but then when I know the story properly, I flesh them out as authentically as I can. It’s like chipping away to uncover something.

What is your secret to the way you always keep your readers guessing who the murderer is right to the end?

I have to misdirect the reader and hope that I’ve got the right balance of giving enough information but not giving too much away. Sometimes when I’m working on a later draft and there have been multiple changes and I’m in a muddle, and my editor is also too close to it, someone else in the Scholastic office will read it to check that there isn’t a major clanger in there and the murderer isn’t too easily guessed. Then I have to wait and see what readers think. There’s no better feeling than someone thinking it was a really satisfying read!

When you are writing an emotional difficult scene how do you approach it? Talk us through your writing process.

I just go for it and write it how I see it in my head. Often in later drafts when I’m polishing it, I can wring more emotion from it.

What are your favourite authors and how have they influenced your writing?

The authors who influenced me from way back are Anne Tyler, who writes for adults, who conveys so much in a few words. I was astonished by Meg Rosoff’s How I Live Now when it first came out (2005) and E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars (2014) – deceptively simple writing which resonates and is achingly poignant. I also think Holly Jackson is also a great writer and deserves her huge success.

Do you have a particular place you like to write?

I can write anywhere as long as there is coffee and preferably a few snacks to hand.

Now you have several more YA thrillers under your belt what writing advice would you give to people aspiring to be a children’s book writer?

Learn the craft of writing. I didn’t understand about all sorts of things when I started, even though I’d worked as a magazine journalist. Fiction is different. To improve, you need to know about show not tell, how the mid-point of a book is important, and so on. I read a few books about writing, and read successful fiction books, looked up free resources online, was a member of a critique group for a while and joined the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

Is there anything else you would like to tell readers about Every Word A Lie and writing for Young Adults?

Yes, this was the first title of mine that made it through the whole process! All my previous titles were ditched in favour of one thought up by my agent, editor or someone else at the publishers.

Thank you Sue for agreeing to be interviewed on my blog. It has been fantastic having you back and thank you for letting us into your secret to keeping your readers guessing.

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To read my previous interviews with Sue Wallman take a look at: An interview with… Sue Wallman and Another interview with… Sue Wallman.

To find out more about Sue Wallman and her novels visit her Website: www.suewallman.co.uk. You can also follow her on X: @SueWallman, Instagram: @suewallman and Threads: @suewallman.

You can buy copies of all Sue Wallman’s novels from your local bookshop, or online at uk.bookshop.org which supports local, independent bookshops.

Blog Tour – Feast of Ashes by Victoria Williamson

Today is my stop on the Ultimate Write Reads tour for the Feast of Ashes by Victoria Williamson.

Victoria Williamson grew up in Glasgow, Scotland, and has worked as an educator in a number of different countries, including as an English teacher in China, a secondary science teacher in Cameroon, and a teacher trainer in Malawi.

As well as degrees in Physics and Mandarin Chinese, she has completed a Masters degree in Special Needs in Education. In the UK she works as a primary school special needs teacher, working with children with a range of additional support needs including Autistic Spectrum Disorder, Down Syndrome, physical disabilities and behavioural problems.

She is currently working as a full time writer of Middle Grade and YA contemporary fiction, science fiction and fantasy, with a focus on creating diverse characters reflecting the many cultural backgrounds and special needs of the children she has worked with, and building inclusive worlds where all children can see a reflection of themselves in heroic roles.

Feast of Ashes is described as Book One in an explosive dystopian YA series, which is exciting news.

The publicity leaflet about the book says:

It’s the year 2123, and 16-year-old Adina has just accidentally killed 14,756 people. Raised in the eco-bubble of Eden Five, Adina has always believed that the Amonston Corporation’s giant greenhouse would keep her safe forever. But when her own careless mistake leads to an explosion that incinerates Eden Five, she and a small group of survivors must brave the barren wastelands outside the ruined Dome to reach the Sanctuary before their biofilters give out and their DNA threatens to mutate in the toxic air.

They soon discover that the outside isn’t as deserted as they were made to believe, and the truth is unearthed on their dangerous expedition. As time runs out, Adina must tackle her guilty conscience and find the courage to get everyone to safety. Will she make it alive, or will the Nomalies get to her first?

Blurb for Feast of Ashes by Victoria Williamson

Victoria Williamson is donating 20% of her author royalties from Feast of Ashes to CharChar Literacy, a charity that aims to improve literacy rates in Malawi.

My stop on the tour takes the form of a book review:

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Title: Feast of Ashes

Written by: Victoria Williamson

Cover design by: Anna Morrison

Published by: Neem Tree Press

Victoria Williamson once again shows us how talented and versatile a writer she is with this magnificent YA debut. I am always gripped from the start of a Victoria Williamson novel and this is no exception for it has one of the best opening paragraphs I have read in a long time:

“I’ll never forget the date September the third, 2123. How could I? that was the day I killed fourteen thousand, seven hundred and fifty-six people.”

Opening paragraph of Feast of Ashes by Victoria Williamson

Set in Africa in a biosphere called ‘Eden 5’ one hundred years in the future, Feast of Ashes is written in first person from sixteen-year-old Adina’s point of view. I am always impressed on how Victoria Williamson creates characters that are always very different and stand out as individuals. Adina starts off being a very selfish, self-centred character in the way many teenagers are, but as the story progresses we see her grow and change into a strong dynamic woman with a strong sense of right and wrong, until finally she makes the ultimate sacrifice to save her sisters and best-friend.

Reading Feast of Ashes is an emotional rollercoaster. It is truly a unique dystopian with a very plausible theme of large global corporations destroying the ecosystem for profit. There are a lot of important themes covered that make you think, such as greed, environmental sustainability and corporate corruption. Victoria Williamson has used science and technology to make the whole plot seem entirely believable and rather scary. So many times I stopped and exclaimed, “You What?” at the things the Armonston Corporation had done. So wrong but you can imagine it happening for real.

The book is written in two parts. Part One is the Beginning of the End which contains thirteen chapters which outline how Adina’s inconsiderate actions cause the catastrophe that brings about the end of everything as she knows it. I thought it rather poignant that Eden Five’s downfall started with the temptation of an apple. Each chapter counts down the hours to the biodome destruction.

Part Two is entitled Countdown and follows Adina and a small group of survivors for their twenty-seven days after the biodome explodes. They journey through the wasteland, a genetically modified world where the crops people used to eat contain pesticides coded into their DNA and the air mutates the blood so they have to constantly wear a biofilter. Searching for answers, they uncover the shocking truth of how far the corruption really goes.

I can imagine Feast of Ashes being a big screen movie in the same way as Hunger Games, Maze Runner and Divergent. I wonder who would play the roles of Adina and Dejen? Suggestions welcome in the comments.

I would recommend Feast of Ashes to all fans of YA dystopian novels.

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You can buy copies of Feast of Ashes by Victoria Williamson from your local bookshop, or online at uk.bookshop.org which supports local, independent bookshops.

To follow the rest of the tour check out the schedule below:

You can read my review of Norah’s Ark by Victoria Williamson also published by Neem tree Press here: Blog Tour – Norah’s Ark by Victoria Williamson

You can read my interview with Victoria Williamson about the writing of Norah’s Ark here: The Write Reads Ultimate Blog Tour – Norah’s Ark by Victoria Williamson.

You can read my review of another of Victoria’s books, The Pawnshop of Stolen Dreams published by Tiny Tree Publishing here: Blog Tour – The Pawnshop of Stolen Dreams by Victoria Williamson.

You can read my spotlight on The Whistlers in the Dark by Victoria Williamson published by Scotland Street Press here: Blog Tour – The Whistlers in the Dark by Victoria Williamson

You can find out more about Victoria’s books, school visits and upcoming events on her website: www.strangelymagical.com and follow her on X (formly known as Twitter) @strangelymagic

I would like to thank The Write Reads for inviting me to take part in this ultimate tour and Neem Tree Press for their superbly boxed book package with the review copy. Thank you.

I hope the lettuce seeds have not been genetically modified.

Cover Reveal – Arvia: Wings of the Wild

Today I am excited to reveal the cover for D. H. Willison’s fourth book in the Tales of Arvia series.

Arvia: Wings of the Wild is a humorous romantic adventure fantasy and will be released on November 22nd, 2023. The harpy-human duo are challenged as never before in this witty fantasy adventure. Before I reveal the cover let me tell you about the book:

Blurb

It’s easy to stand up for your friends. What about for anonymous creatures nobody else cares about?

With their homes apparently safe from the magical storms, Darin and Rinloh venture to an isolated elven village and another ancient mystery: ruins of an imperial city whose entire population vanished centuries ago.

The duo befriend a host of eccentric new characters, from a chipper ogress and hipster troll to a deadpan griffin. Yet the Forest of Nightmares challenges them as never before. Merciless carnivorous trees, subterranean horrors, ethereal creatures no mortal weapon can slay… and most sinister of all, the greed and ambition lurking within the human heart.

Darin and Rinloh’s empathic connection grows stronger the deeper into the wilderness they go, but will it be enough to stop a dark conspiracy from ravaging the land?

Arvia: Wings of the Wild challenges the harpy-human duo with their grandest adventure yet. They must balance their deepening relationship as they sharpen their skills and work together as never before to unravel a deadly new plot.

blurb for Arvia: Wings of the Wild by D. H. Willison

Now take a look at this fantastic cover designed by artist Papaya Style:

And the back cover too:

There is also a cute video which will tell you more about the series.

You can find out more about D. H. Willison and the Arvia series here: www.dhwillisoncreates.com and follow them on X (formerly known as Twitter) @dhwillison.

Cover Reveal – Midsummer Night Curse: Paranormal Misadventures

Much To Do About Writing is pleased to reveal the cover for Romanian author, Anca Antoci’s new paranormal mystery novel, Midsummer Night Curse: Paranormal Misadventures.

This exciting romantic urban fantasy focuses on Romanian mythology and is released on October 20th, 2023. It is available for pre-order from:

Amazon Goodreads

Here is the blurb:

Amidst the misty hills and ancient forests of Transylvania, Ella Martin thought she found a perfect place to escape from her old life. She’s a witch on the run from her coven and no one would think to seek her amid vampires at Count Dracula Inn. What could go wrong?

But locals don’t take kindly to outsiders, so when a teenage girl goes missing on the midsummer night at the inn, the villagers point their fingers at Ella. But then handsome Inspector Felix Goia starts digging into her past, suspecting she must be hiding something. And the witch knows she must find the missing girl to get everyone off her back. If she fails, she has to flee before everyone finds out she’s a witch and they turn on her.

Adding to the chaos, the recently appointed police captain, Radu Lupu, dove into the fray. Beneath his charming exterior lies a ruthless streak that few people have seen. They reluctantly work together to solve the case of the missing girl, and the jaw-dropping discovery they make leaves everyone speechless. Faced with magic, they resort to mischief to save the girl. But can they succeed in their paranormal misadventure?

And… drum roll please… here is the cover designed by Florin Antoci:

Anca told me:

“For my new series inspired by Romanian folklore, we decided on a different cover approach. Instead of showcasing the main character, he wanted to highlight symbolism and traditional motifs for an original, witchy vibe, deviating from our usual style crafted by my talented husband. Usually these motifs are embroidery patterns, stitches applied to traditional folk costumes. Then we played with cosmic symbols—the sun and the moon, symbols of regeneration, what has been will be again, repetition of seasons, death and rebirth of nature. I’m thrilled with how it turned out. My husbands insist on making the covers only after he’s read the book because he wants to infuse it with the right vibe. I know I’m biased because he’s my husband and my biggest supporter, but I think he did a terrific job.”

Quote from Anca Antoci

To find out more about Anca Antoci and her novels take a look at her website: www.summonfantasy.com and follow her on X (previously known as Twitter) @AncaAntoci.

Book Review: Tapper Watson and the Quest for the Nemo Machine

Title: Tapper Watson and the Quest for the Nemo Machine

Written by: Claire Fayers

Illustrated by:

Published by: Firefly Press

Tapper Watson and the Quest for the Nemo Machine is one of the best middle grade science fiction novels I have read for a long time.

Our two 12-year-old reluctant heroes are from very different worlds. Tapper Watson is from Erasia and is the youngest of sixty-eight cousins and has recently become the apprentice to Argo and Belladonna on their submarine at the insistence of Uncle Five. Fern Shakespeare is from Earth and works during the holidays with her volunteer dad in their submarine repair / guided tour shop in Swansea. She has a brilliant plant that talks using Morse code and helps them on their adventures through the Lethe. This is the river that connects the different worlds and contains all the memories of everyone who ever lived. Sometimes the memories in the Lethe appear as Echolings. Fern’s dad is the inventor of the Nemo Machine, which can retrieve these memories from the Lethe. The rivers only drawback is, it can make people lose their memories if they swallow any.

Tapper has an unusual talent that he can hear the Echolings. When one that is the spitting image of Tapper climbs out of the river to talk to Tapper, Argo throws a stone at it and the Echoling explodes, showering water over Fern’s dad who accidently swallows some causing Lethamnesia. His only hope is for restoring his memories is to find the Nemo Machine. Our epic adventurers go on a highly original, fast-paced quest to find the Nemo Machine before it gets into the hands of Cousin Twenty-Three, the claws of the Lobster Mobsters, or the tentacles of the innocent-looking Zymandian octopods.

The plot is action packed but not at the expense of the character development. I particularly liked the friction between Fern and Tapper. Their behaviour and reactions are very different from each other. In fact, every character is well-rounded with their own good and bad traits.  The different aliens were hilarious but my absolute favourite had to be the lobster monsters, Charybdis and Scylla. I liked the contradiction in character in that Scylla dreamed of being a language teacher. And is instead turning people to stone with his Medusa blaster. It was these little character touches that makes Tapper Watson and the Quest for the Nemo Machine such a great book.

I was impressed with how all the different segments of this amazing world and brilliant characters fitted together like a perfect jigsaw puzzle so the plot makes perfect logical sense.

The perfect book for all young sci-fi fans and readers who love adventures. Ideal for fans of another of my favourites, Interdimensional Explorers by Lorraine Gregory. I can’t wait to read more innovative middle-grade science fiction like these.

You can read my interview with Claire Fayers about the writing of Tapper Watson and the Quest for the Nemo Machine, which we did as part of her blog tour here: Blog Tour – Tapper Watson and the Quest for the Nemo Machine by Claire Fayers

You can read my review of Interdimensional Explorers by Lorraine Gregory here: Book Review: Interdimensional Explorers

You can buy copies of Tapper Watson and the Quest for the Nemo Machine by Claire Fayers from your local bookshop, or online at uk.bookshop.org which supports local, independent bookshops.

This review has previously appeared on NetGalley, Goodreads and Amazon. I would like to thank NetGalley and Firefly Press for accepting my request for a digital copy of the book.

Special Guest Q & A with Loretta Schauer

On my blog today I would like to welcome the renowned illustrator Loretta Schauer.

Loretta paints, draws and prints by hand in a variety of media, and finishes her artwork digitally. She is a self-taught artist and has won the Waterstone’s ‘Picture This’ competition in 2011. Since then she has illustrated picture books and fiction titles for a wide variety of publishers. Her first middle grade book as author illustrator is The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart, which is released on Thursday, October 5th 2023 by Anderson Press.

For Lil, life at the Squawking Mackerel inn couldn’t be more miserable. She’s tasked with the sloppiest, grottiest jobs and picked on at every turn. Her only friend is Augustus Scratchy, a cantankerous crow with a habit of stealing. When the dread villain Rotten Bob Hatchet and his gang of cut-throat highwaymen begin attacking travellers on the road, things get really dire.

Joining forces with a new servant boy, Ned, and armed with the contents of the inn’s lost property cupboard, a pocket full of revolting dumplings and some knicker elastic, Lil comes up with a plot to scare off Rotten Bob. And so the legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart the Demon Highwayman is born!

Dangerous highwaymen, furious crows, ludicrous underwear, and a turnip apocalypse – stand and deliver!

Blurb for The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart by Loretta Schauer

This amazing looking book will be released on October 5, 2023. So we only three more days to wait. I can’t wait to read it see the illustrations.

Loretta has kindly agreed to be interviewed about the inspiration and writing process for The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart.

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Welcome to my blog Loretta. Please tell us what inspired you to write a book about highwaymen?

Why Highwaymen? – Well, when I was a kid I had a big Smash Hits poster of Adam Ant on my wall so I guess my admiration for a dandy highwayman goes back to then… We see a lot of pirates in kids books but I’ve never seen a recent one featuring highwaymen.

How long have you been writing as well as illustrating for?

I’ve been illustrating for about twelve years. My first book as illustrator was published in 2012 and I became a full time illustrator in 2015. Crowheart is my first title as author and illustrator and it’s the first middle grade fiction title I’ve written – so it’s been couple of years now for the writing. I’ve experimented with a few picture book texts in the past but never quite got them to the stage where they were ready for submission. I also wrote a graphic novel script a long time ago, but again, never got round to submitting it properly – mainly because the pictures were so important to the story, and I never got further than making the first two pages!

For The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart, what came first for you the text or the illustrations? Talk us through your writer-Illustrator process.

The illustrations definitely came first – the characters and setting were there from early on, and that meant there was lots of sample artwork to send out with the story when it went on submission.

The idea for the book started with some character sketches. I love historical fashions so I’d drawn some 18th century ladies or “wig wafters” as I like to call them, and a crow character, Augustus Scratchy, who definitely needed to appear in a book. I had been playing with the idea of a young girl who uses a Highwayman’s disguise to go off on adventures too and somehow they all fitted together. (Must have been all the feathers!)

When I write, I tend to imagine various scenes and incidents, and quickly write them down in no particular order. Then I begin to expand on them; what happens before or after? What links them to the characters inner story? What elements do I need to write about more? This all helps set the tone and voice for the book. I then do some plotting; shaping the narrative, making sure the character’s motivations are clear, and working out where scenes should go, and what’s missing. There’s obviously a lot of cutting of scenes with this process, and I keep a working doc of bits that I “save for later”. They often end up discarded, but it’s all part of the process. I then do a “proper write” which becomes the first draft. Then it’s editing all the way! By this stage I already have a good idea of what I want to show visually, so once the text was approved, I went through the book and made a list of potential illustrations. There were rather a lot so I was expecting to cut most of them , but my editor and designer at Andersen said “let’s have them all!” so it ended up being a heavily illustrated tome!

What would you say were your main protagonist, Lil Scroggin’s best and worst qualities?

Lil is a little over-enthusiastic when it comes to her grand schemes – which gets her into trouble. As does her unfortunate habit of answering back! She tries really hard to fix the mistakes she makes, but the odds are stacked against her and things have a nasty habit of going from bad to worse. She’s brave and funny and deeply empathetic at heart. Her refusal to be taunted into being cruel is evidence of this, as is her relationship with Scratchy the crow and Ned the shy servant boy. She also takes no guff, and she practically runs things at the Squawking Mackerel, despite being on the receiving end of Ma’s temper and the other kid’s mockery.

As for the villain of the story, Rotten Bob Hatchet, would probably want to be just as ghastly and notorious as Jack.

What advice would you give to other illustrators wanting to write their first book?

For me, writing was quite an organic, instinctive process, so I’d say just give it a try. There’s no wrong or right way to approach it. Just as with your artwork, you have to experiment, and get words on the page. The idea is key, and your personal voice is what makes the story unique to you, just like your art. I know many people benefit from going on writing courses to learn about craft, and although I’ve not been on a writing course as such, I’ve definitely absorbed lots of wisdom and tips over the years being involved in the visual side of making books. My punctuation and grammar is terrible, but I write as if I’m telling a story, whether it’s from the character’s point of view (hello drama skills!) or from my own. And that’s the thing, we illustrators are natural storytellers, and illustration is all about communication – so I guess we’re already halfway there!

Do you play music while you work and, if so, what’s your favourite?

I don’t play music while I write, but I do play music or listen to podcasts while I draw.

If I’m feeling stressed and have a stack of deadlines looming I’ll go for some rousing like S.P.O.C.K, as it always cheers me up,  but if I’m feeling creative and want to get “in the zone” I’ll listen to something atmospheric and a little bit spooky like Lorn or Fever Ray.

I love listening to history podcasts, and lots of true crime. For some reason there seems to be quite a few kidlit illustrators who like to hear about serial killers while they are drawing fluffy bunnies. I’m not sure why.

Is there anything else you would like to tell readers about The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart?

This is a book full of the things I find funny about life in the 18th century. The second half of the 18th century was fantastically extravagant and thoroughly revolting in equal measure – especially for ordinary people who had to navigate the filth and grime on a daily basis. So if you want to be submerged into a world of ridiculous wigs, pestilential residences, and the indignities of highway travel, this is the book for you. (Spoiler – There’s a lot of mud!)

It’s also the perfect Halloween read, with a lot of creeping about in the woods, a flock of haunted crows and a horrifying demon highwayman on the prowl! Stand and deliver!

Thank you Loretta for your fantastic answers to my questions. It has been a privilege to have you on my blog and I hope we see you again here soon.

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You can find out more about Loretta Schauer, her books and beautiful illustrations on her website: Loretta Schauer – Author Illustrator. You can follow her on X (formerly known as Twitter @Lorettta_Schauer and on Instagram @lorettaschauer.

To purchase a copy of The Legend of Ghastly Jack Crowheart by Loretta Schauer you can go direct through her publisher Anderson Press here: or from your local indie bookshop, or online at uk.bookshop.org which supports local, independent bookshops.