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Spooky Roundtable: Oh, The Horror!

By on October 12, 2018   /   Articles, Author Interviews  

To honor the very scary month of October, we asked five frightening fiction writers (well, their books are, anyway) to talk about writing novels sure to give middle grade readers the willies.

Marina Cohen is an elementary school teacher with a Master’s degree in French literature; she’s the author of several award-nominated middle grade and upper middle grade horror novels for children and young teens including THE INN BETWEEN, THE DOLL’S EYE, GHOST RIDE, and coming in 2019, A BOX OF BONES.

Josh Berk has written four books for kids and teens. Author Saundra Mitchell is his co-author for the comic horror story CAMP MURDERFACE, due out Spring of 2020, about two kids who go to a camp in 1980s Ohio that has a mysterious and terrifying past that refuses to stay buried.

Robert Kent writes middle grade novels under the name Rob Kent: BANNEKER BONES AND THE GIANT ROBOT BEES and the upcoming BANNEKER BONES AND THE ALLIGATOR PEOPLE. He runs the popular blog for writers, MIDDLE GRADE NINJA.

Michael Dahl lives in a haunted house in Minnesota. He is the author of more than 100 books for kids, including the series LIBRARY OF DOOM, RETURN TO THE LIBRARY OF DOOM (too bad there wasn’t a Son of Library of Doom!). His new newest series is the SCHOOL BUS OF HORRORS.

S. A. Larsen loves to explore imaginary passageways to hidden worlds with all sorts of creepy creatures. She also thinks cemeteries are cool. Her work includes the award-winning middle grade fantasy-adventure MOTLEY EDUCATION, and she has just finished Book 2 in the series, DEAD ALLEY, which will be out next year.

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What made you want to write scary stories?

Michael: I’ve always read kids’ books, and still do. That’s my favorite area of literature. And I started horror because I myself am frightened of lots of things. Lots. From jewelry to airplanes to wet paper to monkeys. I knew I could draw on those strong emotions to write something real and genuine.

Marina: I think a story can be exceptionally creepy when told through the point of view of a young protagonist. There’s a greater contrast when you juxtapose innocence with evil, don’t you think? Although my novels are middle-grade, beware—my stories can have some pretty dark elements.

S.A.: I’ve always been drawn to the intrigue that lies beneath the surface of scary books and films. I guess it made me feel brave. Plus, I love cemeteries. In high school, I’d walk around our local cemetery taking in all the names of those who’d passed on and wonder who they were and what kind of life they led. Of course, my mind would play tricks on me, making me think I saw something move from a nearby tree or gravestone. And crypts have always fascinated me. We think we know what’s in there, but do we really?

Rob: The scarier stories were always my favorites growing up. Scary stories aren’t always good, but they’re rarely boring. Now that I’m an adult writing books for kids, I’m mindful to write the books I would’ve most wanted to read when I was a kid dreaming of growing up to write books for kids. Not to compare myself to J.K. Rowling (dream on, self), but I think some of the scariest books for MG readers are the Harry Potter books. I always thought the scariest thing in the whole series was that Ron’s pet rat was secretly a grown man in disguise for years sleeping in his room.

Why do you think kids like to be scared?

S.A.: There are a lot of areas of real life that can be scary. I think being spooked with fictional horror can feel safe and even funny at times for kids. The anticipation of what’s coming next is a big draw. It feels like risk-taking, thus making them feel brave. I remember watching scary movies with my best friend in junior high. We’d hold pillows to our faces in anticipation of what was coming, scream once it came, and then laugh silly right after.

Marina: It’s fun! That is, for those of us who enjoy heart-pounding edge-of-your-seat-thrills. Truthfully, I believe there is science behind it. (I love science and fit it into my stories whenever I can!) It has to do with neurotransmitters and the hormones released when the body feels fear. You can get a huge rush out of feeling scared when your brain actually knows you’re completely safe. For some people, being scared simply makes them happy.

Josh: Life is scary, so if things get really scary in the book/movie/whatever but then work out okay, that can give you hope for life doing the same. It’s controlled fear, fun like roller coasters. If you felt like a roller coaster would actually kill you, I think attendance at amusement parks would be much lower. That’s just a guess, as I can’t go on roller coasters, as anything spinnier than an office chair makes me barf. (Also please don’t spin my office chair too quickly.)

Rob: There are very real reasons to be afraid of the world and anxious about our tenuous position in it. Lots of bad things could happen to us at any minute and from time to time, they do. Whatever our problems are, usually they’re not as bad as someone being chased and possibly devoured by a monster. And if your problems are that bad, you should be running to safety, not reading.

Who/what is the scariest character in your book?

Michael: In the School Bus of Horrors it’s the bus. And the bus driver. This strange bus shows up at different schools on different days, maybe for a field trip, or it’s the after-school bus, or it might be the bus taking the high school football team home from an away game. No one can really see the driver. He sits behind an opaque, plastic security wall around the driver seat.

I’m sure the book is super scary, but the cover for FRIDAY NIGHT HEADLIGHTS totally cracked me up.

S.A.: Seeing how MOTLEY EDUCATION utilizes creatures from Norse mythology, some readers might think it’s the fire giant that chases the kids through the boneyard (aka cemetery) or the ginormous serpent that invades Motley’s gymnasium. Maybe even Fenrir the wolf, whose paws are the size of small trucks. But I’d say it’s the doors that keep appearing to Ebony Charmed, the main character. She never knows what she’ll find behind each door.

Josh: In CAMP MURDERFACE, there are ghosts and murders and a near drowning in a pit of dry bones. But the scariest thing has to be the Vampire Devils. I honestly don’t like talking about them too much as I have sort of convinced myself that they are real, and I am afraid of them.

Marina: I try to layer my stories with all sorts of creepy characters and concepts. What kids find scary in my stories is not as scary for adults. What adults find most frightening seems to slip past my young audience. In THE INN BETWEEN, young readers find the basement scene and the character they discover there creepiest. Adults find Emma’s disappearance far more frightening, as it’s unfortunately far more real. Similarly, in THE DOLL’S EYE, young readers find the kobold and the dolls scary, whereas adults know it’s definitely the father character who is creepiest.

Rob: The giant robot bees in Banneker Bones and the Giant Robot Bees. I’ve been unusually afraid of bees since I was a kid and I’ve long had a recurring nightmare about being chased by all-metal bees the size of cars. They’re the scariest monsters in any of my books for any age group, and Banneker Bones is the only character I’ve written about who’s brave enough to face them (with a jet pack and smoke bombs and a bunch of gadgets).

What was deliciously scary for you as a kid?

S.A.: We used to spend summers up to camp when I was a kid. Our nights consisted of a fire, roasting marshmallows, and playing hide and seek. I loved playing hide and seek in the creepy woods.

Josh: I was a very anxious child (and adult) and to be honest don’t really know what “deliciously scary” feels like. I know it’s a thing that other people have experienced but I do not recall such a feeling.

Marina: I’ve been drawn to scary things ever since I can remember. My mother used to read to me from an old book of German fairytales that were pretty dark. Even at a super young age my favorite Saturday morning cartoon was Scooby-Doo. But I’d say what frightened me most as a kid—and even now as and adult—was what was not said. Not seen. What was left to the dark recesses of my imagination. In seventh grade my teacher took our class to see a high school performance of The Monkey’s Paw. That slow knock, knock, knock leaving me to imagine what might await me on the other side of the door was most deliciously frightening.

Oh my gosh, I had the same experience with my mom reading me The Monkey’s Paw!

Rob: The Witches by Roald Dahl. I can’t imagine anything scarier than being a boy trapped in the back of a hotel conference room and discovering the women occupying it are actually witches (unless they were bees disguised as witches). I’ve written a long review on my love for that book and discussed it in a podcast.

Michael: I loved monster movies: Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy, Godzilla. The Wicked Witch and her flying monkeys in Oz. And I was a huge fan of “The Twilight Zone” and “The Outer Limits.” My cousins and I watched that TZ episode one night with William Shatner trapped on the plane with a monster out on the wing — “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” — Yikes! We watched it at my cousins’ house, which was a former logger boarding house in the middle of nowhere in northern Minnesota. Nothing around but miles and miles of fields and trees. And anything lurking in the darkness.

That particular TZ episode has stuck with me for oh, half a century now. I still sometimes think I’ll see that creature when I’m flying at night!

What was too scary for you as a kid?

Josh: Oh, everything.

Rob: I was frightened of Darth Vadar, the Audry II from Little Shop of Horrors, and even Large Marge from Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. I was embarrassingly easy to frighten, which probably led me to writing horror as an adult. Horror is more fun when you get to be the one doing all the scaring. Scares you receive when you’re a child stay with you the rest of your life. Writing scary stories for kids is a big responsibility.

S.A.: One night when I was eight or nine years old, I tiptoed downstairs to catch a glimpse of the scary movie my mom was watching. It was The Shining by Stephen King. She was pretty angry when she found me, and I think I slept in my parent’s room for a week after that.

Michael: I watched an old TV movie about the pharaohs and the building of the pyramids. At the end of the movie, an evil queen gets trapped, buried alive inside the pyramid by giant slabs of stone blocking all the passageways. I was sure a stone slab was going to come down through my doorway and trap me forever in my bedroom! I still get nightmares about that.

Writing horror for middle grade, how do you tell when scary becomes too scary?

Josh: I am a bad judge of this because as I might have mentioned, everything is too scary for me. I was legit terrified by ARE YOU MY MOTHER? as a kid. Is it just me? Probably. But that bird loses his mom and then his mind?! No, a lion is not your mother, bird–you’re a bird. Neither is a construction vehicle. You are clearly delusional and mad with grief. He seems forever destined to wander around as a deranged orphan.Who wrote this, Cormac McCarthy? The happy ending doesn’t make up for all the trauma, P.D. Eastman!

Marina: Not every book is right for every kid, and not every kid enjoys scary things. But those who do can handle more than adults often give them credit for. Readers bring their own experience to a book, and adults can forget they bring with them a deeper knowledge and understanding of the world than younger readers who experience the darker concepts at a far more superficial level. What you won’t find in my books is graphic violence and gore or language and content inappropriate for middle grade readers. What I promise is more than a few shudders and shivers and hopefully some deeper messages to ponder about life and death, survival, tradition, choices and consequences, bravery, and humanity.

S.A.: I tend to write these scenes with more creepy description than action, which feels safer, and I always interject humorous dialog from the characters to balance out the horror or scary parts. I also make sure to give the characters an obvious way out or rescue from the scene, even though I rarely let the characters use it. This comforts the reader that the characters will somehow make it out.

Michael: There are certain things I decide outright that I will not include in a scary story. Kidnappings, gore, abusive parents, anything to do with the Slender Man. This is my own personal list of taboos. I don’t have a lot of pain in my stories. They are creepy and chilling and unsettling and sometimes, gross. But I make sure to not cross the lines that I have set for myself. And I visit schools throughout the country, so I can talk with students, and most importantly librarians and teachers, to see how the kids are reacting to my books. So far, so good. And at every school, when I ask the kids if they want to hear a scary story, from Kindergarten to 6th grade, they all raise their hands!

Find these chilling authors on Twitter:
Josh & Saundra:@joshberkbooks @SaundraMitchell
Marina @marinacohen
SA @SA_Larsen
Rob(ert) Kent @MGNinja

 

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The Many Hats of Tamara Hart Heiner

By on October 5, 2018   /   Articles  

I’m so excited to introduce my friend, Tamara Hart Heiner. We met about a year ago in one of the many online author groups that we both belong to. In fact, we’ll be meeting in real life soon! We’ll be roommates at a writing retreat and conference in Edinburgh, Scotland! I visited Edinburgh last year and quickly understood why it provided so much inspiration to J.K. Rowling.  So when the opportunity arose, I just knew I was going to seize it. And now it’ll be even better with new friends to enjoy this journey!

Tamara Hart Heiner lives in Arkansas with her husband, four kids, a cat, a dog, and a
bird. She would love to add a macaw and a sugar glider to the family collection. She
graduated with a degree in English and an editing emphasis from Brigham Young
University. She’s the author of the young adult suspense series, PERILOUS,
INEVITABLE, the CASSANDRA JONES saga, and a nonfiction book about the Joplin
tornado, TORNADO WARNING

Amie: Welcome Tamara! So great to have you here on The Files! I’ve learned that you wear many hats as an author, an editor, and the chair of a conference. Let’s start with your publishing journey. Your began this journey as a traditionally published YA author. Tell me a little about that experience.

Tamara: Yes, I got started in YA with WiDo Publishing. I had originally written what I considered a very niche book, a Christian suspense novel. With that in mind, I only queried publishers that I thought could reach that market. WIDo could, at that time. During the course of my contract, however, WiDo changed focuses slightly to include a national market. My book, by course of events, went from being a Christian suspense to a thriller suspense (almost the entire Christian element was removed.)

At first it was a rather bitter pill to swallow, but in the end, the changes they made opened up a new world to me and turned me into a suspense writer.

Amie: I guess that’s a bit of a happy accident, you could say. How many books are in your YA series? Are they appropriate for the upper age limit of middle grade?

Tamara: That YA series, the Perilous series, has four books in it. The main character is 15 in the first book, and though the topics are mature, they are appropriate for upper-level MG. (I conceived of the idea and wrote the first draft in seventh grade, so . . . there’s not anything too dicey in there.)

Amie: I love that you started writing it when you were in middle school. So many kids become inspired to write at that age and with the correct tools and some mentoring, that writing can be molded into a career. At what point did you switch to writing Middle Grade books?

Tamara: Writing Middle Grade was a total surprise for me. I thought I wasn’t capable of capturing that voice; it often felt just a little too far away from my comfort zone. When I decided to write the Cassandra Jones series, I had a very clear idea in mind for this girl’s life (which often parallels the difficulties I went through moving from a big city to a rural town!). I didn’t think the series would really take off until it hit YA-age, but I knew Cassandra’s story started much younger than that. It was a total shock to me that the series took off.

Amie: That’s great! Sometimes the best things happen when we least expect it. What do you like most about writing for this age group?

Tamara: It’s very freeing. Once I learned how to let my inner child out, I loved how much fun it was to vocalize the world kids see. I loved being able to speak out about injustices I saw and right some of the wrongs I experienced–and some of them don’t get righted, which becomes a learning experience for the reader as well as the character.

Amie: Agreed. You chose to go indie with your MG series, why? What’s that experience been like?

Tamara: The number one reason I decided to go indie with my middle grade series is I knew I wanted to tell the story in serials. I knew I would never find an agent/publisher who had the same vision and would let me have the freedom I needed to break the story up the way I wanted to. I’d already ventured into the indie world with another YA series, and I found the freedom and the ability to make my own decisions very liberating. The experience has been so marvelous for me. I love being my own publishing team.

Amie: Like you, I’ve experienced both paths. I’ve learned there’s many reasons to select indie publishing and it’s definitely not because it was a last resort.  What made you decide to publish your middle grade series as mini-serials? Do you think your books would have been more/less successful if you’d published them differently?

Tamara: From the very beginning, I wanted my books to mimic a television series. I loved Pretty Little Liars and Gossip Girl and wanted to tell a middle grade story in much the same way. Books when I was a kid were similar, from Sweet Valley Twins to The Babysitters Club. But eventually it began to annoy me that the twins and the babysitters never grew out of the sixth grade, no matter how many books there were.

So I broke Cassandra’s life into years (seasons), and each year is broken in six episodes. This makes it very easy for me to keep track of, and it allows me to include characters and story lines that would be cut from a book as extraneous if I only had one book per year. Also, I can provide multiple formats to meet different readers’ needs. For my early readers who like big font and lots of white space, each episode has its own book. For my more advanced readers who oogle the thicker books, each season also has its own book. If a publisher had been able to catch my vision for this series, I’m certain they could make it even more successful than I have. But I know for certain none of them would have humored my pitch for six books a year for the next fifteen years. 🙂

Amie: That certainly would have been a difficult pitch! Switching gears here, let’s remove the author hat and discuss some of your other roles. You’re also a freelance editor as well as an editor at WIDo publishing. You’re the chair of the SMIAH conference. Finally, you’re the chair of  The Indie Author Hub, an author guild. Tell me how you juggle all of these many hats.

Tamara: Heavens, most days it feels like I don’t! Which reminds me . . . I still need to contact the hotel to set up our contract for next year’s conference . . . yeah, anyway! Editing used to be my bread and butter. I love editing. I minored in it in college. I always figured I’d be able to make room for editing no matter what my writing schedule, but lately I’ve found I don’t want to edit as much as before. I’m enjoying the writing process too much. So I only take on two editing clients a month. It helps give me a break sometimes but doesn’t take away from my time. As for the conference and the guild, I have wonderful committees that support me and do most of the legwork. I could not do this if it were a one-man show!

Amie: Alright, we’re in the homestretch. Goobers or Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans?

Tamara: Bertie Botts. That’s the lesser of two evils.

Amie: Are you sure about that? I think I’d take my chances with the chocolate covered peanuts than earwax flavored jelly beans. Haha! Okay, skunks or porcupines?

Tamara: Porcupines. They’re like a bigger version of hedgehogs, and hedgehogs are so cute.

Amie: Good choice! Alright, now, which one? Skateboards or surfboards?

Tamara: Surfboards!!!

Thanks for joining us here today, Tamara. Best of luck to you and see you in Edinburgh!

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5 Questions for Hillary Homzie

By on October 3, 2018   /   Articles, MUF Contributor Books  

Middle-grade author and MUF blogger Hillary Homzie celebrates the publication of her latest MG novel, APPLE PIE PROMISES (Sky Pony Press, October 2). Here, she chats with fellow MUF blogger Melissa Roske about the writing and researching process, haunted houses, and strawberry-rhubarb pie. 

1. Your latest MG, APPLE PIE PROMISES, is about Lily, a seventh grader who is sent to live with her father, stepmother, and half-sister while her mother is on an academic fellowship in Morocco. Where did you get the idea for the premise, and what kind of research did you do?

After I finished Pumpkin Spice Secrets, which was the first book in Sky Pony’s Swirl line, I discussed with my editor the possibility of writing about a seventh grader who must live with her new stepfamily after her mom earns a fellowship abroad. Immediately, I thought of having the mother travel to Morocco. My father’s family is from North Africa, and I knew it would be a wonderful opportunity for me to explore that part of the world. I scoured travel blogs and articles about Morocco. I asked friends who were going or had just come back from a trip there. I became an inveterate armchair traveler, falling in love with the sights and sounds of the country. I had so much fun having Lily’s mom write dispatches from Rabat, the gorgeous capital city, sitting along the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the river Bou Regreg. Oh, I really want to go! Of course, the main action takes place in the States, in Tacoma, Washington, but Lily (and the reader) will definitely learn a bit about Morocco, and especially Rabat.

I also spent time researching Tacoma. I’ve been to Tacoma and have spent time in the general Seattle area, which I love. However, I haven’t lived there, so I watched vlogs of Tacoma residents, as well as immersed myself in reading about the city through books and blogs. And yes, I fell in love all over again with the Northwest. I set my middle-grade novel Queen of Likes (Simon and Schuster/Aladdin MIX, 2016) in Portland, another quirky, cool, beautiful Northwestern city. Also, I found myself researching haunted houses. Not real ones, but the kind that students and the PTA assemble for school fairs. I’ve put together a few haunted houses in my day, but it was fun to read about different themes out there. In Apple Pie Promises, Lily works on a haunted house for the fall festival with her stepsister, as well as her crush. Let me tell you, I spent quite a few Google searches investigating zombie makeup and funny sayings and names on gravestones. You know, like Ben Better and Ann M. T. Grave. I love research assignments that make me giggle like a madwoman.

2. Baking is a huge part of this book, as Lily is an avid baker. She even Skypes with her mom while she’s baking. Are you a keen baker? If so, what is your favorite dessert to bake, and why?

True confession. I’m not a baker, but I love pies (strawberry rhubarb and tart apple pies are my favorite), so I had to read about pie baking, watch videos and cajole a friend who is actually a gifted baker to tutor me (it was so terrible. I was forced to sample pies. Ah, such cruel hard work). The hardest part is undoubtedly the crust, and my friend taught me a few tricks, which I attempted to repeat. My son filmed my tutorials and I plan to post some of it online (even the fails) to help non-bakers like me get over their baking phobia.

3. Pranks weigh heavily in APPLE PIE PROMISES. What is the silliest/craziest prank you’ve ever pulled? 

I’ve done quite a few pranks, from kidnapping stuffed animals to tying strings to closet doors, but probably the silliest happened in college. I was living in the French House (La Maison Française, at University of Virgina), and a friend purchased une crotte—basically, a piece of brown plastic that looked remarkably like a turd.  We’d drop it on the bathroom floor and then wait to hear a piercing cry, and cursing in French. It gave a whole new meaning to “Pardon my French.”

4. Do you have a specific writing routine? If so, can you tell us about it? 

Well, my writing routine first involves non-writing. Getting up. Feeding the dog. Feeding the child. Packing the child’s lunch. Walking for about 40 minutes up and down a steep hill with my husband, who is disciplined about these things. This is lucky for me, because I’m lazy and would much rather stay in bed and read. Then I check email and see what’s going on with the news (which can be dangerous since there’s a lot going on, so if I’m strategic I don’t do this, but I’m not often strategic). But somewhere around 10:00 a.m., I do start writing. And then take a break around lunchtime. Then write some more. Of course, not every day is writing. But I feel much better about my life if I can get a couple of hours in or more. Oh, and I do take social media breaks and scan to see what’s going on with my writing friends. In truth, I’m most productive when I’m on a tight deadline, and I’ve had some crazy deadlines. When a deadline looms large, I don’t even need to use Freedom (which shuts off my internet access) in order to make my goals.

In a strange way, when life interrupts due to family obligations and other responsibilities, it only makes me hungrier to write when I do finally sit in front of my computer. And often literally hungry. I confess to liking snacks when I write. I’m trying to switch to drinking more tea though.

5. What advice would you give to aspiring writers? And how about to aspiring bakers?

Finish what you write. I can’t tell you how often I’ve gotten bogged down by the first three chapters—obsessively rewriting them. I would say just write on through to the end, and only after you’ve finally gotten your armature in place, then spend time fine-tuning. After all, you might have to throw away your opening—perhaps starting later or earlier. Also, be careful of overcomplicating things. I’m famous for over-plotting, and then having to scale it back to spend more time on characterization. For aspiring bakers, don’t be afraid to throw away your too buttery pie dough. It’s no different than for writers—throw away your darlings, if it will make a better book (or pie!).

HILLARY HOMZIE is the author of the upcoming Ellie May chapter-book series (Charlesbridge), as well as contemporary middle grade novels, including Apple Pie Promises and Pumpkin Spice Secrets (Sky Pony Press), and Queen of Likes, The Hot List and Things Are Gonna Get Ugly (Simon & Schuster/M!X). She is also the author of the humorous chapter book series, Alien Clones From Outer Space (Simon & Schuster/Aladdin). Hillary lives in California with her family, and teaches at the children’s writing MFA program at Hollins University. You can find out more about Hillary her  website and follow her on Twitter.

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