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The Jack-in-the-Box Writer

By on February 26, 2026   /   For Teachers, For Writers, Writing   /   Leave a comment

You turn the crank on the side of the colorful box once, then once again, and then wait. 

You turn it slower and slower, rapt in anticipation of that freaky clown’s surprise appearance when the lid springs open. With every turn, your heart beats faster, and your eyes get a little wider. The chime plays its tune, one slow note at a time, as you get closer and closer to the always surprising endgame, and then…

POP!

 

Cristian Bortes from Cluj-Napoca, Romania, via Wikimedia Commons

Developing a story idea is similar to operating a jack-in-the-box. The writer cranks the handle by outlining, drafting, and doing the somewhat shocking writer’s task of actually writing. One word follows another, forming sentences and paragraphs representing the writer’s thoughts and vision. When the time is right, the breakthrough comes, and the story “pops”. The pieces begin to fall in place. The once-scary, freaky clown smiles at your accomplishment.

Creators must go through the process every time. Each new work needs the slow crank of the story’s jack-in-the-box to get through the process of creating a satisfying story from an idea. This is how creative development works. 

You work toward a goal. 

You grind it out day after day to what often seems to be no avail. 

You get frustrated. 

You despair. 

Sometimes, you quit and throw the whole draft across the room in the general direction of the freaky clown hiding in his little, brightly painted box. But to those who keep turning the handle of their story’s jack-in-the-box with grit and determination, success will come. 

Plus, it never hurts to bring in outside eyes to look at the raw story and see it with a fresh perspective. That’s where critique partners and beta readers can help turn the crank handle when one feels stuck. Help is a wonderful thing and, at the very least, builds a friendly support crew.

Find a way to keep cranking the handle by whatever means necessary. You will improve. The story will improve.

It is inevitable.

The story will be forever grateful. 

One of the most important things creators can do is to see the potential in an idea and do the work to help the idea achieve its full potential. Ideas are as numerous as pennies, but a story is a bar of gold. One needs to keep working, researching, and turning their cranks of improvement until their story springs upward and shows itself.

Because if you keep cranking the story handle, it will eventually “POP!” and show itself to you and the world.

Just ask the freaky clown! 

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Mythspeaker – Interview with Debut Author Christopher Roubique

By on February 25, 2026   /   Author Interviews   /   Leave a comment

Cover for Mythspeaker by Christopher Roubique

What would you do if you were told at five years old that your destiny was to save the world? 13-year old Kyta has been wrestling with that question for a long time, but now he finally sees an opportunity to fulfill that destiny. But it may involve a lot more complications—and a lot more cooperation—than he bargained for.

Mythspeaker, the debut middle grade novel from Christopher Roubique, arrived in bookstores yesterday! Publishers Weekly called it “a rousing action-packed adventure” in their starred review. Please join me in welcoming author Christopher Roubique to From the Mixed-Up Files.

Interview with Debut Middle Grade Author Christopher Roubique

Katie: Christopher, thank you so much for joining us at From the Mixed-Up Files to chat about your debut middle grade book, Mythspeaker. It’s always a delight to chat with a fellow Wisconsinite!

First question, if you were at a school visit with a roomful of upper elementary kids, what would be your quick elevator pitch for why they should read this story?

Christopher: Hi Katie! Absolutely a pleasure to be here and with a Wisconsin neighbor no less!

As far as a quick elevator pitch just for kids:

Imagine that back when you were five years old, a living myth—a being as old as time itself—came to you and said you would have to save the world someday. That’s exactly what happened to Kyta. His whole childhood, he’s been stressing. Alone. Searching for a destiny he can’t predict. But now that he’s 13, it’s happening. Invaders have stolen the egg of the huge World Turtle he and all the tribes live on. So he’s going to steal it back. He has to before the turtle falls from the sky in grief.

There’s just one problem: he can’t do it alone. So Kyta has to make a team of other kids—misfits like him—and somehow lead them on the heist of a lifetime, past monsters and men, to save everyone. No pressure.

 

Katie: Kyta is such an interesting character, given the heavy weight of the prophecy he received when he was only five, and his desire to serve his community. Does Kyta have much in common with you as a kid? If not, where did you find inspiration for their personality?

Christopher: He absolutely does. As far back as I can remember, people called me special. It’s nice, in a way, but “special” is also really hard to carry as a kid. What exactly does special mean? Sometimes, it felt like adults really wanted me to save the world—to be or become something big and impressive and powerful that I had no idea how to be. I have this vivid memory of one of my elementary teachers telling my mom that I would be president one day. They were dead serious. And I remember thinking, “Oh no, I don’t know how to do that. I don’t know if I can do that.”

That feeling—that old burden—became a core part of Kyta. I loved the idea of telling a story where we get to honestly see how the “destined hero” actually feels. How he grapples with living up to something so much bigger than him. And I’m incredibly gratified that people seem to click with it. Most people—kids especially—have had that moment where they suddenly feel entirely out of their depth. I’m glad Kyta’s journey can be there for them because the answer he finds is the same answer I did: you don’t have to do it alone. (Also, I have no plans of becoming president. Sorry, Mr. K!)

 

Katie: Teachers often tell students to “Write what you know?” You mention in your opening author’s note that you created the culture and mythology of your story yourself. How have you been able to use “what you know” and your own life experiences to write creative fantasy?

Headshot of author Christopher RoubiqueChristopher: I love this question for a fantasy book because it’s complicated! How can any fantasy author be writing “what they know” when we’re out here describing fantastical creatures and ancient magics and worlds that have never been? But the answer is simple: for all their amazing trappings, even the most fantastic story is still about us. People. What connects us and allows us to live and learn and grow. Or what divides us and gets in our way. Sure, Kyta lives on a giant flying turtle and his best friend is a large hare made of branches and brambles older than dirt. But he’s also a kid determined to do something important and afraid he’ll mess it up. He’s excited and cocky and anxious. No matter what I’m writing, I always try to keep those very real feelings in mind because they’re what make even the most outlandish fantasies meaningful.

More specifically to the culture and mythology of Mythspeaker, I’ve always been fascinated with Indigenous American mythology as an exploration of my own heritage. There’s such beauty to how the tribes that have long called this continent home understood and explained the world around them. How some still do. Inspired by the spirit of those myths, the grandeur and wonder of them—I created something new that celebrates this piece of myself I adore.

 

Katie: Since this is your first middle grade novel, can you tell us a little about your path to publication? What led you to write for kids?

Christopher: Sure! Even though I’ve been writing for almost my entire life, I actually didn’t start writing books until just after college. I was a poet. Didn’t even think I could write a book. But my first job after graduating was so boring that I started writing an adult fantasy novel bit by bit on used fax cover sheets (which may be the oldest-sounding thing I’ve ever said). I tried querying that novel, and no agent wanted to read it.

That was 13 or 14 years ago.

Between then and finally landing my agent, Melanie Figueroa, I wrote six other books including a few middle grade novels. I started getting full requests from agents, but though I was often told my work was beautiful . . . none of them wanted to represent me. In the end, after querying for more than 8 years across 7 manuscripts and 200+ rejections, Melanie offered to represent me. She’d read 2 of my books and though she didn’t feel they would sell to a publisher, she couldn’t get my writing style and voice out of her head. So she took a leap of faith, choosing to believe in me and my potential. And I will always be grateful.

I wrote two more books—one of them middle grade—before everything finally clicked. The thing I’d been missing was a “high concept;” one of those terms that gets thrown around a lot in publishing but always felt arcane to me. The moment I finally cracked how to make a high concept, everything changed. The very first one I thought of was a high fantasy heist that I fused with my desire to write an Indigenous fantasy novel, which became Mythspeaker!

As for what led me to writing for kids, that’s easy. Pretty much all my favorite books ARE kids books. I firmly believe the books we read as kids, especially that middle grade range, are the most important books we ever read. I love writing middle grade books. And even though I’m working on some young adult and adult novels, too, I don’t intend to ever leave middle grade behind.

 

Katie: What advice would you give to fledgling MG authors?

Christopher: Don’t write to get famous or make money or be successful; that’s not really how this journey goes. Write stories that bring you joy. Stories that satisfy you. Learn from your mistakes and from the lessons others share. Ask other authors! Find your community. But the biggest thing to writing books—and getting into publishing, if that’s what you want to do—is perseverance. Don’t give up. Even when it’s hard. Grit and determination make an unbelievable difference. And when you pair grit with a willingness to learn, you can do a lot.

(But seriously, write things you would love to read. Writing a book is hard enough without trying to write something you don’t even enjoy.)

 

Katie: What are some of your favorite middle grade books or series?

Christopher: How much time do you have? My all-time favorite middle grade series is Broken Sky by Chris Wooding. I got the first book from a Scholastic book order in 5th grade and it made me want to write fantasy. I still have that copy on a shelf right next to me. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Chronicles of Narnia (especially The Magician’s Nephew) by C.S. Lewis, Red Bird Danced by Dawn Quigley, the Wilderlore series by Amanda Foody, The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill, and (this might be cheating) anything related to Gravity Falls by Alex Hirsch.

*takes deep breath* Okay, I’ll stop now.

 

Katie: Great list! The Girl who Drank the Moon remains one of my all-time favorites. Is there anything else that you would like readers to know about the book or about your upcoming projects?

Christopher: As far as Mythspeaker, this book is a love letter to the kid I was. It’s wondrous and whimsical, funny and exciting. I hope it reaches other kids out there looking for the same things I was, whether that’s an Indigenous fantasy or misfits finding where they belong or just really big, cool monsters. Mythspeaker has all that covered in spades.

And as for other projects, well, I can’t get into specifics, but let’s just say that this won’t be the last middle grade fantasy you see from me. In fact, if I have it my way, you’ll be seeing more from me for a long time!

 

Yellow graphic lightning bolt

No MUF interview is complete without a lightning round so …

Best jewel for a jewel horse?

White opal. That prism sheen in sunlight is too pretty. Garnet is second place.

Favorite fictional character you would include if planning a heist?

If I want it to go well, Joker from Persona 5. If I want it to go well but also completely off the rails, Gandalf.

Dream job when you were a kid?

Briefly archaeologist. Then writer all the way.

Superpower?

Controlling electricity.

 

Katie: Finally, where can readers find you if they want to reach out?

I’m on Bluesky and X as @Dreamertide.

You can also find me on my website: christopherroubique.com

 

Official bio for Christopher Roubique

Headshot of author Christopher RoubiqueChristopher Roubique grew up in rural Wisconsin and filled his time—and his heart—with the joys of fantasy and science fiction. His own books leap from those same joys, folding in his Cajun and Indigenous heritage, passion for mental health, and plenty of fantastical creatures. He still lives in Wisconsin and has squeezed his wife and daughter beside all those stories in his heart too.

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STEM Tuesday– Chemistry– Author Interview

By on February 24, 2026   /   Chemistry, STEM Tuesday   /   Leave a comment

We are excited to be talking with Jon Chad, author/illustrator of the Physics of Life  SCIENCE Comics,  and the new Solvers comics about Math.

Jon Chad

 

Because this month’s topic is chemistry,  we are specifically talking about this book:

                                            Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements

                                                                                                      Periodic Table Comic by Jon Chad

 

 

JS: How did you get the idea to write this awesome book and why did you choose to make it a graphic novel? 
Jon C.: I was asked by my publisher, First Second, if I would be interested in doing a Science Comic about chemistry, specifically the periodic table of elements.  I find chemistry extremely fascinating, and I was eager to tackle it in a way that could connect to young readers.  When I make a STEM comic, I like to play around with genre and narrative as not only a way to make the work have more appeal and excitement, but also as a way to create stakes and tension in a way that draws the reader in.  There isn’t a need to fully silo off nonfiction from fiction in comics.  Readers are astute enough to know the difference between the two.  

 

When I am figuring out what sort of narrative framework I will use in a book, I try to find some sort of connection between the genre and the topic.  As I researched and thought about the periodic table, I was ensorcelled by how distinct the different sections are.  I started to view the table as a thing to explore, rather than look at.  That thought, plus the realization that the table itself looks like a top-down map from old dungeon-delving games like The Legend of Zelda, gave me the idea to frame an exploration of the periodic table and its distinct, interesting sections as a dungeon crawler.  From that point, I started working out who would be the hero, who would be the villain, and what sort of narrative beats I could map onto the conveyance of information to keep the reader hooked.

 

JS: Do you think graphic novels are a good way to help kids to understand difficult topics?  And if so, why? 
Jon C.: I think there is tremendous value in using comics to communicate STEM ideas; from the large complex ones, to the smaller, less complex ones.  Everybody’s brains are wired differently, and people connect to, and retain, facts in different ways.  Personally, I have a difficult time reading.  I struggle with mistakenly rereading the same word or line over and over.  Information presented solely through text is not an efficient way for me to learn.  Seeing pictures/diagrams/examples in conjunction with text is a much more accessible way for me to retain information.  It is why my research always includes documentaries and interviews with living scientists/experts.  Making STEM graphic novels have the ability to connect to a reader that might otherwise not engage with a topic.

 

JS: Clearly you are both author and illustrator of this book. What advice would you give to authors who want to write graphic novels, but won’t be the illustrator?
Jon C.: My biggest piece of advice would be to practice thumbnailing your own comic pages as you script them out.  Thumbnailing is the stage of comics making where you make a quick, small drawing of what a page might look like, where the dialogue might go, how many panels there are, etc.  Even if it is just a bunch of stick figures and simple shapes for the background, thumbnailing can help you figure out whether your vision of a panel or page is doable by an artist.  Even if you don’t turn those thumbnails over to a cartoonist, you will have considered the flow and density of your work during its creation, and that will pay off big time. 

 

JS: How hard is it to condense complex topics to the format of a graphic novel?
Jon C.: On the whole, the process for creating a comic about a complex topic, and one with less complexity is almost the same.  The biggest difference is what is my own personal level of knowledge on the topic upon starting the comic.  When I’m making a STEM comic, long or short, I am trying to communicate some larger takeaway about a topic.  It’s impossible for me to say everything I want to about chemistry in 122 pages of comics, so I make sure that everything I’m putting into the book funnels back to my one core takeaway.  In my volcano book, it was how volcano shape and eruption strength were all on a spectrum that was dictated by magma viscosity.  In my periodic table book, my core takeaway is about identifying periodic trends and the characteristics of each section of the table, rather than a deep dive on each individual element. As long as I’m keeping that core, digestible takeaway in mind, I can tackle very complex topics.

 

JS: What would you like readers to get out of this book?
Jon C.: For my book Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements, I want to get young readers excited about chemistry, and what makes up the world around us.  There are a lot of stand-out elements to fawn over in the book, but as I eluded to before, the most important takeaway are the periodic trends that I illustrate near the end of the book.  Having an understanding of the periodic table and trends as a whole can give us an idea of the properties of a given element just from their position on the table.  You can also use these trends to predict whether an element will be stable or reactive, malleable or rigid, solid or gaseous, etc.

 

JS: How would you like teachers/librarians to use this book?
Jon C.: My hope is that educators and librarians use this book either to engage readers that are having a hard time connecting with prose or spoken instruction, or as gateway material for a reader who is interested in science and is not quite at the grade level where a full chemistry curriculum is taught.

 

JS: Can you give any tips to writers who want to break into nonfiction children’s books?
Jon C.: Good question!  The first thing that jumps to mind is to familiarize yourself with different national- and state-based standards and curriculums.  I’ve found these resources invaluable in figuring out what sort of topics young readers will have potentially been exposed to, based on their grade.  I’ve also used these sorts of guides in seeing what sort of information is taught in the subsequent grades.  I like to include information in my books that is one step above the intended grade levels of my books.  Even if the topic that I am writing about is not actively covered in the target grades that my publisher is aiming for, I can still use something like the common core to see what they are learning.  I can extrapolate trends from that, and approach my topic the same way.
I would also recommend finding any combination of adults, experts, and young people to give your writing a once over, even in the preliminary steps. Getting the right measure of information that is clear and not bogged down in specifics and still accurate can be a real balancing act.

 

JS: What are you working on now?
Jon C.: I just wrapped up a wild west true crime story written by Steve Sheinkin called DIAMOND FEVER that comes out in May that I’m very excited for people to read.  I’m also in the middle of a book about veterinarian sciences, and one about the Voyager spacecrafts.  It’s been fun to work on such a wide array of nonfiction topics!

 

Jon, thanks so much for stopping by and chatting with us today! Check out Jon’s other awesome books and learn more about him Here:  https://www.jonchad.com/
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