Showing posts with label children's authors. Show all posts

Children’s Writers Who Teach Adults, guest post by Jessica Freeman

Tell me about the favorite book of your childhood, and I’ll tell you about your dreams. I’ll tell you about your values. Would you pick Alice in Wonderland? Then, I would say you’re an adventurist, dreamer, and risk-taker. Was Peter Pan your favorite character? Then, I would say you have a goal to stay in touch with your inner child, forever and ever.

Children’s books form our characters. Although today’s kids are more into iPads and cartoons, parents are still finding ways to get them interested in reading. Why? Because reading the right books can help them form the right characters.

Children’s Books from an Adult’s Perspective

If you were reading a lot when you were a child, that habit helped you develop skills of critical and creative thinking, as well as writing. Instead of ordering papers from AustralianWritings like most other students do, you probably had the capacity to write your own essays and research papers. In addition to skills, those books also helped us form moral values.

Have you thought about going back to the favorite books of your childhood? There’s a good reason to do that: when you read children’s books as an adult, you see them from a different point of view. You’ll have a reality check: how far have you gone from those values?

Children’s Writers Make Us Grounded

The Little Prince is seen as a children’s book, but Antoine de Saint-Exupéry thought of it as an allegory of his own life. He was searching for his inner peace and childhood certainties.

If you read The Little Prince now, you’ll realize this is one of the most philosophical books ever written. It’s about friendships, belief, kindness, growing up, and maintaining moral values. It makes you realize: children’s logic is the ultimate achievement of wisdom in life. Why do we distance ourselves away from it?

Many other children’s books can return us to the lessons we shouldn’t have forgotten. In addition to The Little Prince, here are four other suggestions of books you should reread as a grown-up.

1. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

“It’s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.”

That quote grasps the whole essence of this book. No matter how tightly we try to hold onto the past, we can never get it back. That is not a tragedy. Time goes by so we can change, grow, and evolve into better persons.

2. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

“Sir, with no intention to take offence, I deny your right to put words into my mouth.”

This classical adventure made us spend sleepless nights. We remember the adventure part, but do we recall the moral of the story? Treasure Island represents the good old theme that we face every day in our lives: Good vs. Evil. The pirates don’t end up well, and the good characters get the treasure.

But, what about Silver? The conflict in this character makes us realize: there’s no absolute good and there’s no absolute bad. A man’s soul is a battlefield among these two extremes. Just like Dostoevsky said in his famous Brothers Karamazov. The only difference is: we learned that lesson when we were kids, reading Treasure Island.

3. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe

“Thus, fear of danger is ten thousand times more terrifying than danger itself.”

If we were asked to define this book in a single sentence, this would be the answer: “it’s a novel about bravery.” We loved Robinson Crusoe when we were kids, since he taught us about believing in ourselves and not giving up. He taught us that having faith was an important aspect of reaching our goals. It’s time to remind ourselves of that lesson.

4. Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

“Reflect upon your present blessings -- of which every man has many -- not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.”

First of all, this book taught us to learn from the mistakes of others. We don’t want to become our own versions of Ebenezer Scrooge, do we? Greed leads us to loneliness. The book teaches us how to love not only our close ones, but all people. Everyone has misfortunes, but blessings as well. When we focus on the good things, we see more of them.

As you were growing up, your tastes for literature changed. That’s the natural thing to happen. You progressed towards ‘books for grownups’ and now you’re probably expecting the next chapter of A Song of Ice and Fire to come out. While you’re waiting for that to happen, why don’t you go back to the favorite books of your childhood? Trust me: you’ll see them from a whole other perspective as a grown-up.

Jessica Freeman is a professional journalist and a freelance content writer from Sydney, Australia. She focuses on education, literature, and academic topics. She considers content writing to be her passion. You can follow her on Facebook and Google+.

What genre do you write and why?

I write for children; picture books mostly, but I’ve finished a middle grade Christian story and have a middle grade historical in the works.

Tell us about your latest book.

A Christmas Kindness is the story of eight-year-old Robert, who visits the mall Santa on Christmas Eve. He’s got a long wish list tucked in his pocket, but when he meets Glenn and hears the boy’s one wish for Santa, Robert wonders if he can cast aside his wants to ask Santa to bring Glenn something special.

What marketing methods are you using to promote your book?

This has been a tumultuous year for our family, so I’ve focused mainly on a virtual book tour to promote A Christmas Kindness. I also plan to send out a notice to our local paper and bring a few copies with me to our church’s annual Christmas bazaar.

What formats is the book available in?

The printed version came out last year. After much consideration, I opted to release the digital version of A Christmas Kindness under my real name, Cheryl C. Malandrinos. The original plan was to keep my secular projects separate from my “Faith-filled Journeys for Kids” brand; but this book is also message-driven fiction, so it makes sense to brand them together. Eventually, I hope to release the printed version under my real name too.

Who are your favourite authors?

They are too many to count, but here are a few: Laura Ingalls Wilder, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Jerry Jenkins, Stephen King, Kathi Macias, Marilyn Meredith, Charlotte Hubbard, and Karen White.

What advice do you have for other writers?

Join a critique group. I find I’m a horrible self-editor, even though I can pick up errors and inconsistencies in other people’s writing with ease. I feel it’s important to have a small group of people to help you brainstorm ideas and to provide feedback on what you’ve written to make sure your writing is the best it can be.

What's your favourite quote about writing/for writers?

There are several, but here’s one I feel is important to remember.

“No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.”
― Robert Frost

What's the best thing about being a writer?

That I’m following a dream I’ve had since I was a little girl.

Where can people find out more about you and your writing?

One of my friends once said, “She’s all over the Internet.” I still don’t if that was a compliment. I have two websites: http://ccmalandrinos.com and http://ccgevry.com and numerous blogs.

Who is your favorite character in your book and why?

Glenn’s brother, Nathan, is my favorite. He doesn’t say anything, but his situation is what gets Robert to thinking about what he can do for Glenn and his family.

Why do you think readers are going to enjoy your book?

It’s a sweet story with a heartwarming message. That’s why I wrote it. I wanted to teach my girls there is something more important than the gifts under the tree on Christmas morning.

How long did it take you to write your book?

The first draft was done rather quickly—probably a week or so. It took me a few months and several reads from my critique group before I was comfortable pitching it to the publisher.

Who designed the cover?

The beautiful artwork is from Caroline Mabey and 4RV Publishing designed the cover.

Did you learn anything from writing your book that was unexpected?

Every book is a learning experience. With this one, I knew right away the story I wanted to tell and even had the main character’s name picked out. A Christmas Kindness gave me the opportunity to work on blending a subtle message into a story. You want to empower kids, not preach to them.

Where can a reader purchase your book?

The printed version is best purchased directly from http://www.4rvpublishingcatalog.com/cheryl-c-malandrinos-or-cc-gevry.php because the price includes shipping. Here are links to where else you can pick up the printed or digital versions of the book. It should also be on Apple/iTunes soon.

Amazon

Amazon Kindle

Barnes and Noble

Barnes and Noble Nook

Kobo

What are you doing to market the book?

In addition to my virtual book tour, I have my website, a Twitter page, and can be found on Facebook.

Who inspires you?

My children are my largest source of inspiration.

How do you research your books?

I don’t have to research all of them, but when I do perform research, I start with the Internet to see what I can find. Then I request additional materials from the local library. I couldn’t write books without my friendly children’s librarian. They once went into the basement and dug out books from storage so that I could perform market research.

What is your work in progress? Tell us about it.

I’m in between projects right now. I’ve written six picture books this year so far and I’m working on getting those into shape and ready for submission.

What are your thoughts on self-publishing verses traditional publishing?

I’ve been wanting to give self-publishing a try, but simply haven’t been able to get my hands around how best to go about it. I don’t feel self-publishing has the stigma it used to, and I’m excited to think about the possibilities out there. That said, I’m still looking for an agent. I feel an agent’s expertise can help me move forward.

Who or what inspired you to become a writer?

My desire to write came out of my deep love of books. I’ve been an avid reader since childhood. I love Laura Ingalls Wilder’s keen eye for detail and Lucy Maud Montgomery’s ability to paint beautiful pictures for readers, so I study their work as often as I can.

Does your family support you in your writing career? How?

My children do, but my husband isn’t a fan. The kids are always excited about what I’m working on and congratulate me on each newly published book. The husband keeps hoping I’ll find a “real” job.

What are you currently reading?

Winter of Wishes which is the latest novel in Charlotte Hubbard’s Seasons of the Heart Amish romance series. For children’s books, I’ve just received a beautiful copy of The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry and Sonja Danowski.

What books or authors have most influenced your life?

Definitely the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. It’s funny that as a child I didn’t enjoy these books. I tried reading one of them and couldn’t get through it. I loved the Little House on the Prairie television show from the 70s and 80s, which eventually led me to read the books in my late teens. I loved them so much, I went on to read spin-offs like The Rose Years series by Roger Lea MacBride about Rose Wilder Lane’s childhood, The Caroline Years by Maria D. Wilkes and Celia Wilkins about the childhood of Laura’s Ma, Caroline Quiner, and The Charlotte Years by Melissa Wiley, which covers the childhood of Laura’s maternal grandmother, Charlotte Tucker. I also own and have read many books on the real Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family members. In the early days of my writing career, I wrote Little House on the Prairie fan fiction stories; mostly based on the show, but some that included details of Laura and Almanzo’s real life.

When you’re not writing, how do you spend your time?

I read every night. Stephen King once said, “If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time (or the tools) to write.” I truly believe that. Reading not only helps make me a better writer, it is great market research. Sometimes I simply browse new releases in the bookstore to see what’s popular.

In addition to reading, I spend a fair amount of time in my garden. I like to cook and bake. I’ve been a Sunday school teacher for 25 years and I’m the treasurer at our church.

Children’s Books from an Adult’s Perspective

Children’s Writers Make Us Grounded

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