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The Neptune Challenge (and some thoughts on dreams)

By on May 14, 2015   /   Author Interviews, For Kids, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, For Writers, Giveaways, Writing  

Polly Holyoke’s exciting new novel, The Neptune Challenge, is a sequel to her award-winning Neptune Project. Indiebound says:

“Genetically engineered to survive in the ocean, Nere and her friends are recovering from their treacherous journey to Safety Harbor, an undersea refuge founded by the scientists of the Neptune Project. But plenty of enemies prowl just outside the colony’s boundaries, and when two of the children are kidnapped, Nere, her loyal dolphins, and the other Neptune kids must set out on an expedition even more perilous than their first.”

neptune challengePolly stopped by the MUF to share some of her thoughts about writing and daydreaming:

On the Importance of Daydreaming

There’s no question about it. Daydreaming is an under-valued occupation in today’s society.

Look at how we treat our best daydreamers: our children. We over-schedule them with sports and after school activities and give them electronic gadgets that captivate their brains by the hour.  Worst of all, we chastise kids for daydreaming when we should be rewarding them for staring out the window and letting their minds wander. Chances are, the dreamy student in the back of the class is the person who someday may find the cure for cancer, or a new equation that will help us travel to the stars, or invent a formula that revolutionizes battery technology. If only we could encourage that child to daydream more.

Since I was fortunate enough to make the state reading list down here in Texas last year, I’ve visited EIGHTY different campuses and seen thousands and thousands of children. My Neptune books are about genetically altered teens struggling to survive in the sea. I’m amazed that kids in third to eighth grades rarely ever question the wild premise of my stories. Instead of asking skeptical questions, students stare rapt at the blow ups of my book covers that depict kids their age talking to dolphins and swimming through the ocean. They ask, what is it like to be pulled by a dolphin? Have I ever fired a spear gun myself? What does it feel like to breathe water?

Middle graders accept the impossible and the improbable, and they will happily join a writer on a journey into impossible worlds with improbable premises, as long as writers take the time to make that world rich and exciting and full of detail.  Young people’s minds are so open to daydreaming and new ideas. It is our job as writers, educators, and parents to keep providing our kids with books that fire their imaginations.

Daydreaming is natural as finding dragons and castles in clouds, but it is also a mental ability that one can hone with practice. I’ve been daydreaming ever since I was little (which does not, by the way, improve my driving skills). But I was lucky enough to live in a family and attend schools where writing and daydreaming were encouraged.  We need to schedule our children’s days at school and at home so they can daydream. I’m afraid if our kids don’t slow down and unplug, they will forget this vital skill that can benefit our entire society.

Now, I’m going to follow my own advice. I’m going to unplug from my computer, watch some clouds, and let my mind wander. Who knows what new story ideas may occur to me today!

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Thanks so much, Polly! To enter a giveaway for a signed copy of her new book, plus a dolphin bookmark/necklace, please leave a comment below.

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Why doing research no longer scares me

By on May 13, 2015   /   Book Lists  

Image 4Research. This word used to scare me. In fact, there was a time when I thought research was only something that non-fiction or historical fiction authors had to do—an arduous process involving hours spent in musty stacks, chasing down obscure citations. At writing conferences when there was a session on research, I would make sure to steer clear of this sort of workshop. Perhaps my fear came from deep seeded trauma over writing up my bibliographies for research reports in school. Yet over the years, I have come to learn to love research and it has become an important part of my writing process.

When I was writing a chapter book series that involved a character playing soccer, I tracked down a soccer coach and had him (very patiently) explain what “off-sides” meant and the difference between full-back and half-back. I needed to do this because I had never watched a soccer game (she blushes to admit this) and, of course, I needed to understand more than the basics in order to write about it. At the time, my oldest child was only 18 months and I hadn’t yet signed him up for soccer. Little did I know that a few years later, I would have three sons in soccer and two of them in travelling soccer. So yes, now someone could interview me about soccer. Okay, that might be a stretch. But I could be interviewed on what it is like to be a soccer mom!

For my first middle grade novel, Things Are Gonna Get Ugly, I attended a middle school dance. Sure, I had been to middle school dances, but had been decades ago. I wanted to see how they felt now. Honestly, except for the music, it was all the same. Sixth grade boys wrestling and chasing each other across the dance floor as if they were on a school playing field. Clumps of girls dancing together and only a few couples who actually were slow dancing. Yes, going to the dance helped me to re-remember what it was like.

When I was writing The Hot List, I visited middle school bathrooms. Why? Well, because the middle school bathroom is a key setting in that book, and once again I wanted to get it right. My forthcoming middle grade, Queen of Likes, is set in Portland, and I had fun, using the Internet to armchair travel. Although I’ve been to Portland a few times, it was through Internet searches that I discovered and Voodoo Doughnut and I just knew that my character had to eat their signature Voodoo Doll doughnut. My main character also ends up doing community service at a historical society. Naturally, I decided to spend some time at my local historical society in order to learn more about it. Suddenly, I was learning about ephemera boxes, Sanborne maps and the importance of archival boxes. I was learning right along with my character! I loved visiting the historical society so much that I think I might even attempt some historical fiction in the future.

Right now I’m working on a science fantasy novel, and while I’m not obviously able to take a space ship to another galaxy, I am researching Polar nights and electricity as they come into play in some way in my imagined world.

So, yes, I am now a huge fan of research. Whether it be interviewing someone, armchair traveling or pawing through a box of ephemera. In fact, I like it so much I have to nudge myself and say, Hillary, it’s time to stop researching and to start writing!

Hillary Homzie is the author of the forthcoming Queen of Likes (Simon & Schuster MIX 2016), The Hot List (Simon & Schuster MIX 2011) and Things Are Gonna Be Ugly (Simon & Schuster, 2009). She can be found at hillaryhomzie.com and on her Facebook page.

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Azalea, Unschooled—A Giveaway!

By on May 12, 2015   /   For Kids, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, Giveaways  

Azalea

First, it was a clothing boutique for pets in Pennsylvania. Then a breakfast buffet in North Carolina. Then an apple orchard in Connecticut. Now, Azalea’s dad says he’s going to drive a tour bus in Portland, Maine. 
Azalea’s sick of moving. She is determined to stay in Portland and call it home. But a mysterious bandit is threatening her father’s business. Can Azalea use her new freedom as an unschooler to save the day—and her family? In Liza Kleinman’s fresh and funny debut middle-grade novel, the author deftly explores, with poise and insight, the growing unschooling movement as well as the challenges of moving to a new home, making friends, and finding room for differences within a family.
*****
Azalea, Unschooled, by Liza Kleinman, illustrations by Brook Gideon, published on May 5.  Liza is giving away five signed copies of her delightful new book. Enter below!
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