Posts Tagged middle-grade nonfiction

Today, let’s give an enthusiastic Mixed-Up Files welcome to writer and screenwriter Simon Stephenson, author of the debut MG novel, The Snowman Code. The novel, first published in the U.K. in 2024, and illustrated by Reggie Brown, has been praised by The Guardian as: “Sparkling, humorous, and poignant.” It’s out tomorrow (!!!), December 16, from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

THE SNOWMAN CODE: A Summary

It’s March, and London is experiencing its longest winter since 1773. The ground is covered in snow, and ten-and-a-half-year-old Blessing hasn’t gone to school in months. The horrible Driplet Triplets have made sure of that by bullying her mercilessly. If Blessing’s mom weren’t so sad all the time, she might be able to help; but Mom won’t get out of bed, or even go to work. And the longer the winter goes on, the more depressed she becomes. Blessing is scared that she’ll be separated from her mom—again.

Just as Blessing is about to lose hope, she meets an unexpected new friend: Albert Framlington, a six-hundred-year-old snowman. Albert holds the key to solving Blessing’s problems, but he has a problem of his own, and he needs a human’s help. Can this unlikely duo find a way to help each other, and to overcome the never-ending winter? Or is it too late?

Interview with Simon Stephenson

MR: Welcome to the Mixed-Up Files, Simon, and huge congratulations on the U.S. publication of your debut MG novel!

SS: Thank you! We are now one day out from “Snow Day” and I am excited.

MR: Can you tell MUF readers a bit about The Snowman Code, as well as the inspiration behind it?

SS: I think you summarized it brilliantly in your introduction. The Snowman Code is the story of a ten-and-a-half year old girl, Blesssing, and the six-hundred-and-something-winters-old snowman, Albert Framlington, she befriends. The story takes place during the longest winter London has ever known and they must team up to try and end it.

The inspiration comes from a few places. In my previous job as a children’s doctor, I’d worked with kids like Blessing and since that time I’d always wanted to write something they might see themselves in. Likewise, growing up in Scotland, snowmen featured regularly in my childhood. Writing films for young people finally gave me the confidence to tell this story.

A Real Blessing

MR: Blessing is an incredibly likable character, with highly relatable problems—including getting bullied at school and dealing with her mom’s depression. What is the secret to writing such real, three-dimensional characters?

SS: I appreciate that. I think when you are writing something with fantastical elements – i.e., a talking snowman – it helps to keep everything else as plausible as possible.  I think for me, as much as anything that tends to involve mixing the light with the dark. There is a version of a snowman story where it is all happy-magical-fantastical-unicorn-land and there is a version of Blessing’s story where it is all sad and downbeat. In life I think the truth often lies somewhere in the middle, and that is where I try to land. The way Blessing encounters her problems is the way kids do: those problems are a part of their life, but not the whole story. At heart, all kids are just kids.

MR: Blessing forms a deep friendship with Albert, a six-hundred-year-old snowman.  On the surface, they have little in common, but their bond is strong. What were you trying to say about the pair’s unlikely friendship, and about the nature of friendship in general?

SS: I liked the idea of two headstrong characters – a kid who knows she is usually right, and a snowman who usually thinks he is right – teaming up on an adventure together. I never set out to talk about friendship in general, but it does always seem to come out in my work. I think perhaps it is just one of the most important parts of life as a human, and if you are going to write about humans – and even snowman – it is inevitably part of that.

The Impact of Climate Change

MR: Another overarching theme in the book is climate change. We see this in London’s “broken weather,” where the city is experiencing the longest winter since 1773. What sparked your interest in this topic, and what do you think the takeaway is for readers?

SS: Sadly, I think climate change is just a fundamental part of our lives now, and it’s part of the conversation about seasons. I remember every winter of my childhood as having at least one good snow, and now we are lucky in Scotland if we get one every couple of years. In the specific world of the book, I think this goes back to the idea that if you are writing about something magical, it helps if it has a dose of reality to it.

British vs. American Editions

MR: Setting is another important aspect of the book. What made you choose London? (I know you lived there, as did I.) Also, The Snowman Code was first published in the U.K., in 2024. Are there any notable differences between the British and American editions?

SS: I miss London! I worked with kids like Blessing when I lived and worked in East London, and so it seemed the natural place. Victoria Park, where Albert lives, was my local park and everything else in the book — the canal, the flower market, the hospital – is drawn from life.

The UK and American editions I think are the same except for some spelling changes. But after 12 years of living and working in America I did recently discover that we use the word “quite” in different ways. In British English, “quite” means somewhat, whereas in American English it means “very.” A phrase like “quite good” therefore means either “somewhat good: or “very good,” depending on which side of the Atlantic you are on. This seems important information and I think they should tell you it on the plane.

MR: I totally agree! 🙂 

The Leap to MG

MR: This is your first MG, but not your first book. You’ve written several for adults, including Set My Heart to Five (2020), which is being adapted into a movie and for which you’ve written the screenplay. What prompted your decision to take the leap from adult books to MG? 

SS: I’d always wanted to write for young people, and it just took me a while to get there. After working on the movies Luca and Paddington 2, I got sent a lot of children’s books as potential adaptations and it just seemed like it’d be fun to write my own.

Writing for the Silver Screen

MR: This brings us to your movie-writing career: As above, you’ve written for Pixar’s Luca, Paddington 2, and The Electrical Life of Louis Wain. How does your job as a screenwriter influence your writing?

SS: I think one thing screenwriting teaches you is economy. A screenplay is only about fifteen or twenty thousand words, so every word has to count. I try to bring that to my prose and edit pretty ruthlessly. (F. Scott Fitzgerald cuts everything he writes by half, and that seems about right.)

MR: Speaking of movies, are there any plans to adapt The Snowman Code for the silver screen? I can see it as a gorgeous, animated feature. (I’m guessing you can too. 🙂)

SS: Yes! We are currently having some interesting conversations about this, so watch this space.

Simon’s Writing Routine

MR: What does your writing routine look like? Do you have any particular habits or rituals?

SS: Get up. Drink coffee. Bang head against desk. Repeat.

I do my best to eliminate distractions, so I block the internet on my computer and turn off my phone. I work best in a quiet coffee shop and luckily there is one right near where I live.

MR: What are you working on now, Simon? Enquiring Mixed-Up Files readers want to know…

SS: So, currently there are a few different things on the boil: adaptations of my two previous adult books, and then some screenwriting things besides. My ambition for 2026 is to write another book, so hopefully will be settling down to that in early January.

Lightning Round!

And finally, no MUF interview is complete without a lightning round, so…

Preferred writing snack? Gummy bears. Not just my preferred writing snack, but also my preferred meal.

Superpower?  Flying would be pretty great, but I will happily take whatever is available.

Favorite season? I mean, I think I had better say winter. (I live in southern California, so it is no great hardship here.)

Zombie apocalypse: Yea or nay? Absolutely. If we are going to have an apocalypse anyway, we might as well go all in, right? Here in LA, many people keep “earthquake kits” – grab bags containing water, flashlight, batteries etc. I have a joke with my friends that mine just contains zombie make-up, because that would be fun and a good way make sure nobody bothers you.

Favorite way to dress a snowman? I’d better cite Article 4 of the snowman code, which stipulates that a good disguise consists of a raincoat, waterproof trousers, sunglasses, a hat, a scarf and a pair of gloves. (Pictured here: Simon’s late brother, Dominic, the subject of Simon’s memoir, Let Not the Waves of the Sea.)

If you were stranded on a desert island with only three things, what would they be? My fiddle so I can finally get some practice in, a bicycle of some sort, and Moby Dick so I can finally find out what happens in the end.

Favorite place on earth? The west coast of Scotland in the summertime, which is three days in June and you can never predict the three days.

MR: Thank you for chatting with us, Simon. It was a pleasure to learn more about you and your books, and I’m sure MUF readers will agree!

Thank you for having me! I’m grateful for your support (and Albert and Blessing are too!)

All About Simon

SIMON STEPHENSON is a writer for adults and children, and is a screenwriter. Before he became a full-time writer, Simon was a physician. His latest novel, Sometimes People Die, was published in 2022.  Simon has written two other books, Set My Heart To Five (2020), and Let Not the Waves of the Sea (2012), a memoir about losing his brother. The book won Best First Book at the Scottish Book Awards and was serialized on BBC Radio 4. Simon has also worked as a writer on various films, including Pixar’s Luca, Paddington 2, and The Electrical Life of Louis Wain. Like every other Hollywood screenwriter, he has a drawer full of unproduced scripts and forgotten promises. He lives in Los Angeles. Learn more about Simon on his website.

Melissa Roske is a writer of middle-grade fiction. Before spending her days with imaginary people, she interviewed real ones as a journalist in Europe. In London she landed a job as an advice columnist for Just Seventeen magazine. Upon returning to her native New York, Melissa contributed to several books and magazines and selected jokes for Reader’s Digest. In addition to her debut novel Kat Greene Comes Clean (Charlesbridge), Melissa’s short story “Grandma Merle’s Last Wish” appears in the Jewish middle-grade anthology, Coming of Age: 13 B’Nai Mitzvah Stories (Albert Whitman). Learn more about Melissa on her Website and follow her on Facebook and Instagram.