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Cover reveal! Lisa Schmid’s HART & SOULS

A special treat today: A COVER REVEAL Hart & Souls, written by my friend and fellow Mixed-Up Files contributor, Lisa Schmid! Out 7/23/24!

Now, before we reveal the cover…

Hart & Souls: A summary

After getting bullied at Figueroa Elementary, Stix Hart wants nothing more than to be invisible as he starts middle school. He’s heard all the horror stories, but none involved ghosts.

On Stix’s first day of sixth grade, his anxiety is off the charts. It doesn’t help when he encounters an older kid who reminds him of his old nemesis, Xander Mack. Soon after, he encounters two other students who take a keen interest in him. He quickly learns the spooky truth—the trio are ghosts in need of a solid. They are stuck in middle school and cannot move on until they resolve their unfinished business. It’s up to Stix to figure out how to help these not-so-normal new friends. To succeed, he must use his unique abilities: drumming talent, a big heart, and anxiety to sort out this paranormal predicament.

COVER REVEAL!

(Isn’t it a beauty?)

Interview with Lisa Schmid

MR: Congrats on the upcoming publication of your spooky MG, Hart & Souls (7/23/24)! I’m honored to host your cover reveal—especially on Friday the 13th 🙂

LS: Thank you so much! I am giddy to share my new cover with the world. I’m especially delighted that you signed up for hosting duties. I feel like we’ve been on this author’s journey together and have so much in common—one might even say we are soul sisters.

 MR: Ooh, I LOVE that! Now, tell me: What was the inspiration behind Hart & Souls

LS: The idea for Hart & Souls came to me after encountering the local “school bully” at Target. He was on the phone at the front of the store, frightened and crying. After eavesdropping, I learned no one had picked him up from school, and he didn’t know where else to go. It was heartbreaking. I kept an eye on him until his dad arrived, but it got me thinking. An important lesson I’ve always taught my son is that when somebody is unkind, it usually means they’re fighting a battle we know nothing about.

At that moment, I knew I had my next book. By the time I finished shopping, the title HART & SOULS was swirling around my brain. While sitting in the parking lot, I figured out how the story would begin and end. I’ve never veered off course—I knew I had something special. I actually recreated the Target scene in my book through the eyes of Stix. It still makes me tear up when I read the chapter.

MR: How long did it take you to write the novel, Lisa?

LS: It took me about a year and a half to write. I am a card-carrying Pantser, so I work out the details as I go. Unfortunately, I always get stuck when I reach the “mushy” middle. Sometimes, I need to let things percolate before moving forward. I hit a couple of bumps in the road, but in the end, much like my lost souls, I found my way home.

About the Artist

MR: Since this is a cover reveal (!!!), I’d love to know more about your gorgeous cover—and about the artist, Carolina Vázquez.

LS: I am so in love with this cover! Carolina totally captured the heart and soul of this story. The expression on Stix’s face makes me giggle—it personifies his state of mind to a tee. And the three ghosts are just as I had imagined them to be. I want to hug each one and let them know everything will be all right.

I am also obsessed with the details that make it so extraordinary. Little nuances like the talent show flier on a backpack, and my favorite: the ghost’s individual auras reflecting off Stix. It makes my heart sing!

HART & SOULS is Carolina’s debut middle grade cover, and I think she knocked it out of the park.

Fun fact: her debut picture book cover, TANGO RED RIDING HOOD, was written by a local author, Rachel S. Hobbs. I recently connected the dots and will attend Rachel’s book signing next week.

What a small world—A fabulous illustrator from Argentina ends up working with a pair of California girls on her first two books.

I can hardly wait to take a picture of us together and share it with Carolina.

MR: What was the process like in choosing the cover? I know it’s different for every writer, and every artist.

LS: I am so lucky that my AMAZING agent, Leslie Zampetti, found the perfect home for my little ghost story. Andrews McMeel Kids is a fantastic publisher that encourages a collaborative experience. My wonderful editor, Hannah Dussold, and I threw out a couple of ideas for Carolina, and she came back with this gorgeous cover.

There were, of course, minor tweaks and changes, but overall, Carolina nailed it. I am so grateful for her patience and creativity. And the good news . . . she’s creating thirty interior illustrations, so you will be seeing a lot more of her art!

MR: Congrats again, Lisa, on Hart & Souls. I can’t wait to read it. And I encourage Mixed-Up Files readers to pre-order it!

LS: Thanks so much. And thank you to everybody for pre-ordering my book. I truly hope you enjoy my ghost story. I loved writing it for you.

Author bio

Lisa Schmid is an author and co-host of the podcast Writers With Wrinkles. When she’s not scaring up ghostly adventures, she’s most likely visiting schools to talk about writing and books. She lives in Northern California with her husband, son, two dogs, and one very sneaky hamster. Learn more about Lisa on her website and follow her on Twitter and Instagram.

Artist bio

Carolina Vázquez was born in 2000 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She was endlessly inspired by books and animation from an early age and started taking drawing classes when she was thirteen. She graduated from Palermo University with a degree in Illustration Design in 2021. Since then, she has been working on children’s illustration projects such as picture books, magazines and board games. Learn more about Carolina on her website and follow her on Twitter and Instagram.

WNDMG Wednesday – Introducing Isi Hendrix

We Need Diverse MG Logo hands holding reading globe with stars and spirals floating around

We Need Diverse MG Logo hands holding reading globe with stars and spirals floating around

Illustration by: Aixa Perez-Prado

 

Introducing Isi Hendrix

Hello, WNDMG Wednesday readers … I am so excited for this month’s post. I get to introduce you to the amazing Isi Hendrix, author of the Afrofantasy MG Adia Kelbara and the Circle of Shamans. (HarperCollins – USA and Usborne – UK, September 2023) It’s such a high-profile debut novel, it got TWO debut days: one here in the USA and one in the UK!

About Adia Kelbara

Adia Kelbara USA book cover

United States Cover

Adia Kelbara cover illustration

United Kingdom Cover

Life is tough for twelve-year-old orphan Adia. Her aunt and uncle believe she’s an ogbanje, a demon-possessed child that brings misfortune wherever they go, and Adia can’t disagree—especially when she suddenly manifests mysterious powers that she can’t control, causing an earthquake in her village.

So when Adia is offered a kitchen apprenticeship at the faraway Academy of Shamans, she flees with nothing but a pouch of change, her cat Bubbles, and the hope that someone there can figure out what’s wrong with her—and fix it. But just as she’s settling in, Adia stumbles upon a shocking secret: Unlike her, the kingdom’s emperor really is possessed—by a demon more wicked than any other. And he’s on his way to the Academy for a visit.

Joining forces with a snarky goddess, a 500-year-old warrior girl, and an annoying soldier-in-training, Adia must travel through hidden realms to exorcise the emperor and save her kingdom. But to succeed, she first must come to understand the powers inside her….

The fate of the world hangs in the balance.

Interview with Isi Hendrix

WNDMG: Welcome to the We Need Diverse MG (WNDMG) series. We’re honored to have you here!

First off, I have to say, I absolutely loved Adia Kelbara and the Circle of Shamans. Your debut novel is the definition of propulsive reading. Adia is so easy to root for and connect with—plus, she’s wry and funny. This is a really hard mix of character traits to pull off, and I’m so impressed!

Developing Adia

WNDMG: What influences helped you develop Adia Kelbara herself?

author headshot - black woman with long curly braids framed by flowering plants

Monique Cooper Photography

IH: Adia is a twelve-year-old orphan living with her aunt and uncle. She doesn’t fit in with her family or anyone in her village of the Swamplands, which is currently overrun by missionaries. The missionaries showed up years ago and told Adia’s people that everything they believed in was wrong, and that to be good, they had to follow the beliefs of the people behind the Sunless Mountains. But Adia questions what she’s told.

I’m borrowing from real life with that aspect of Adia’s personality. My family’s conservative religion (introduced to my tribe by Western missionaries) absolutely did not feel right to me and I was her age when I began to question things and where this religion had even come from because it certainly wasn’t anything that was native to the Igbo people. So, for me, Adia represents the strength of indigenous wisdom and the ancestral knowledge that’s woven into our DNA that no invader or colonizing force can ever erase.

Adia Kelbara character art black tween wearing yellow dress in forest with orange cat

The Guardian Deity

WNDMG: What was the inspiration for Ginikanwa?

IH: Ah, Gini. My snarky Goddess. I’ve always loved the older, powerful mentor in fantasy novels, like Gandalf. Thankfully times are changing, but for far too long that role was almost always exclusively delegated to a grey bearded white man. So, I knew that I wanted Adia’s teacher and mentor in these books to be a woman, specifically an African goddess or an Alusi—a guardian deity of the Igbo people.

Book Banning and World Building

WNDMG: Your themes are so current and relevant, this book is almost contemporary. You tackle topics like religion, colonialism and mental and emotional health with grace and passion. Was this always going to be a book about colonialism or did that piece reveal itself to you as you wrote?

 IH: It revealed itself to me as I was writing it. I wrote my first draft before this book banning atrocity America is currently dealing with was in full swing, and even then I assumed I was writing something that would be banned. But once I saw what was coming out in this story, especially the commentary about religious colonization which is very personal to me, there was no turning back.

Blurb graphic adia kelbara

Let the Story be Born

WNDMG: As a writer, I am always curious about how authors choose genre. What was your process for deciding the best way to tell Adia’s story?

IH: I read widely, but (so far) every time I try to write a story it comes out as a fantasy story. So, I don’t fight it. I let the story that wants to be born be born. And I’m so glad it came out this way. Using a fantasy setting lets me explore these heavy themes in a way that—I hope—is accessible to children and also just a fun adventure story.  I re-read books now that were my favorite as a child like A Wrinkle in Time, and I’m in awe at how L’Engle and authors like her wrote these profound books that you could write a whole doctorate thesis about, but it’s also a book I probably read fifty times before I was ten years old. So, I think speculative fiction is a great way to explore big ideas and themes with young readers. Madeline L’Engle said one of my favorite quotes on writing. “You have to write the book that wants to be written. And if the book will be too difficult for grown-ups, then you write it for children.”

((If you’re enjoying this interview with MG fantasy author Isi Hendrix, you might also like this archived WNDMG Wednesday interview with fantasy author Kaela Rivera)) 

Changes, Challenges, and Easter Eggs

 WNDMG: From the time you drafted Adia to the time you got your publishing deal, what has been the biggest change in your manuscript?

 IH: Ah, that’s hard to say without giving a huge spoiler! I’ll just say that a character I’d originally given an almost forgettable role to, ended up playing a major part of the story.

WNDMG: What was the hardest part of the book to write?

IH: Character-wise, I always struggled when my mentor or agent or editors wanted me to dive deeper into a character I don’t particularly like. The way I can’t stand this character you’d never think I was the one who created him. So, in my early drafts I tended to just blow him off as an irredeemable jerk. But everyone asked for the motivation behind why he behaves the way he does so I had to tap into that, and the story is all the better for it. Yes, I would have had an easier time writing a full-on villain, verses someone who’s morally gray. But the morally grey ones make for complex characters in the end.

WNDMG: Do you have any Easter Eggs in there?

Adia’s name is Swahili for gift and very fitting. But it’s also from one of my favorite song, “Adia” by Sarah McLachlan, and the song’s chorus is also extremely fitting for this character. It keeps repeating that “We are born innocent. Believe me, Adia, we are still innocent.” So I love that her name has a lot of layers in there. Naming every other character in this book took me a minute, but I knew Adia’s name right away.

character art Adia in purple dress surrounded by flowers

(There also may or may not be a Mean Girl’s reference somewhere in the book, because this book definitely has a mean girl in it.)

The Final Battle

WNDMG: Is there one scene you can point to that is the most important scene to you?

IH: The final battle scene. I’m not a visual writer. I don’t see everything in my head like a movie (and I wish I did). But that was the one scene that I watched play out from beginning to end. I was walking one evening and this download came out of nowhere. I froze on the sidewalk and was almost in tears. Then I ran home to write it all out.  I even had to go back and rewrite a lot of the book because I understood that was how it had to end. So that final battle scene where Adia goes up against the antagonist will always be what I consider the most important.

What’s Next

WNDMG: This is the first book in a planned trilogy. Can you tell us anything at all about what we can expect from Adia in Book Two? (Yes, this is definitely the sign of an impatient reader asking!)

IH: You’re going to find Adia back at the Academy of Shamans, this time as a student! But as always, everything goes sideways whenever Adia is at that school. So you’re going to see her dealing with a mysterious illness that’s plaguing the students and the kingdom.

WNDMG: Is there anything I haven’t asked that you would like to share with our readers?

IH: Read widely and read banned books!

WNDMGSo many congratulations to you from all of us at WNDMG and From the Mixed-Up Files … of Middle-Grade Authors!

Isi Hendrix author photo smiling Black woman with long braids wearing gold dress holding gold UK edition of book

About Isi Hendrix:

Isi Hendrix is a Nigerian American children’s book author who has been lucky enough to live and work all over the world, from the Himalayas to the Amazon rainforest, during her past life as an anthropologist. Now she’s based in her hometown of Brooklyn, NY, where she lives with a rotating roster of foster kittens and a stubborn refusal to accept that she is highly allergic to cats.

Isi’s debut middle grade novel, Adia Kelbara and the Circle of Shamans, released in September, 2023.

To Buy Adia Kelbara and the Circle of Shamans:

Bookshop.org

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Stay in touch with Isi via her website!

STEM Tuesday — Spooky and Scary Science– In the Classroom

 

I admit it, I’m a wimp. There were some books on this month’s list that I didn’t even attempt. I read a book about yellow fever years ago, and it kept me awake at night. There was no way I was going to try tackling American Murderer.

I’ve also learned that you can’t always predict what’s going to make you squeamish. I researched different animals for a book series a few years ago. I thought the spider book was going to be a problem – it wasn’t. Turns out peacock spiders- and jumping spiders, in general – are super cute. I didn’t anticipate having a problem with walking stick bugs. They ended up sending shivers up my spine and getting visions of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom stuck in my head. (Don’t know what I’m talking about? Check out this clip: https://youtu.be/WQXqhk-8h7o?si=fjxkqXlLPKXBBc5B.)

As you work with this month’s list, don’t forget that everyone has different phobias as well as different spook thresholds. Here are the books I read.

Zombie makers: True Stories Of Nature’s Undead
by Rebecca L. Johnson

This book explores what can cause a variety of animals to behave like zombies. This was definitely the creepiest of the books I chose to read this month. In addition to interesting info about zombie-makers, it’s got lots of photographs and information about the scientist who discovered and/or studied the creatures.

 

Spi-ku: A Clutter of Short Verse on Eight Legs
by Leslie Bulion, illustrated by Robert Meganck

I love creative ways to convey facts. So, of course, I had to read this book. I loved learning about different types of spiders. I also enjoyed seeing all the different poetic forms used to describe them.

 

Yuck, You Suck!: Poems About Animals That Sip, Slurp, Suck
by Jane Yolen & Heidi E. Y. Stemple, illustrated by Eugenia Nobati

Here’s another book that uses poetic form to present information. This one focuses on animals that suck, one that doesn’t (although people think they do), and another that has suckers but doesn’t suck.

 

Monster Science: Could Monsters Survive (and Thrive!) in the Real World?
by Helaine Becker, illustrated by Phil McAndrew

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book, but the title had me intrigued. Turns out, it mixes history, mythology, and science, which makes it a winner in my mind. It had some added bonuses, too, First, it has lots of variety – both in monsters and in the science covered. Second, all the science cast doubt on the existence of all the different monsters covered in the book.

 

As always, I can think of lots of great things to do along with reading these books. Here are a few that really struck a chord with me.

Explore Spiders

Spi-ku includes lots of different spiders. Pick one of them – or one of the many spiders not covered in the book – to research. Then create a poster or slide show to convey what you learned about it.

Print or color a life-size picture of the spider. (This might be difficult with the tiny ones.)

Find different ways to group and order the spiders.

Line them up from smallest to largest or vice versa.

Place them on a map of the world so you can see where they live.

Figure out their leg to body ratio (size of leg: size of body) and order them that way.

What other ways can you come up with?

Get Poetic

Both Yuck, You Suck! And Spi-ku use poetry to present information. I love that Spi-ku includes back matter that explains the poetic forms used in the book. I thought it would be fun to explore some poetry as an activity.

Turns out, there are some great resources for poetry.

First, I found a collection of Halloween related poems that – according to the Academy of American Poets – are good for young readers. Here’s that list, with links to the poems: https://poets.org/text/halloween-poems-kids

I found another post that provides a list of easy poetic forms, along with examples of each. This is from Teaching With Poetry and can be found here: https://teachingwithpoetry.com/easy-poetry-forms-for-kids-grades-1-6

If that’s not enough, check out a list of 168 poetic forms, compiled by Robert Lee Brewer on Writer’s Digest: https://www.writersdigest.com/write-better-poetry/list-of-50-poetic-forms-for-poets. Each of these includes a link to a more detailed post about the poetic form.

So now that you have the details on different poetic forms, here’s the challenge. Pick a spooky, scary topic – perhaps something from one of this month’s books. Do some research on that topic. Then present what you’ve learned in a poetic form.

You might want to start by writing down words and phrases that capture the most important – or interesting – things you learned about your topic. Then reword and reorder those thoughts into your chosen poetic form.

Monster Ethics

While reading Monster Science, several ethics questions were raised. In several places, there were mentions of the ethics of genetic engineering. I also remembered having heard some controversy around HeLa cells.

Before delving into a specific topic, it might be good to talk about what ethics are.

There’s an interesting worksheet from Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs that looks at norms, morals, and ethics. That can be found here: https://www.carnegiecouncil.org/explore-engage/classroom-resources/lesson-plan-ideas-film-reviews-syllabi-and-more/normsmoralsethics

There’s also some good information on New Zealand’s Science Learning Hub: https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/2150-teaching-ethics.

On to the specific topics from Monster Science.

There is a whole section of the Johns Hopkins website dedicated to Henrietta Lacks: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/henrietta-lacks. This includes a page called “Upholding the Highest Bioethical Standards”: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/henrietta-lacks/upholding-the-highest-bioethical-standards. This shows how things have changed between the 1950s – when Henrietta Lacks’ cells were taken – and today.

There are also questions about the ethics of genetic engineering. Here’s one summary of the ethical concerns of genome editing from the NIH National Human Genome Research Institute: https://www.genome.gov/about-genomics/policy-issues/Genome-Editing/ethical-concerns

If you’d rather have a philosophical debate, how about discuss/debate the following.

What is a monster?

Are robots alive?

Or maybe there’s another topic in these books you’d rather sink your teeth into (pun intended).

 

Janet Slingerland is the author of more than 20 books for young readers. To find out more about Janet and her books, check out http://janetsbooks.com.