Ask the Author: Terry Lynn Johnson
“I love dogsledding questions!”
Terry Lynn Johnson
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Terry Lynn Johnson
Thanks for your enthusiasm, Sydney!
I wanted to be a musher since I learned about this thing called dogsledding. I'm guessing it was when I was about 10. I wasn't allowed to have sled dogs though. I had a hamster. Named Snickers.
I had to wait till I grew up and then I got my own small team. I started by working for a musher and learning how to do it. It takes a while of apprenticing to learn everything the dogs need and to run a team safely.
I hope you are able to get out for a ride with a good musher and see what it's all about!
I wanted to be a musher since I learned about this thing called dogsledding. I'm guessing it was when I was about 10. I wasn't allowed to have sled dogs though. I had a hamster. Named Snickers.
I had to wait till I grew up and then I got my own small team. I started by working for a musher and learning how to do it. It takes a while of apprenticing to learn everything the dogs need and to run a team safely.
I hope you are able to get out for a ride with a good musher and see what it's all about!
Terry Lynn Johnson
Hi there! Thanks for this question.
They did change Madi's shirt from green to purple before printing, so the cover is the cover. But if you wanted to see the alternate version, I'd be happy to share it with you via email. You'd just need to contact me that way. Email on my website.
They did change Madi's shirt from green to purple before printing, so the cover is the cover. But if you wanted to see the alternate version, I'd be happy to share it with you via email. You'd just need to contact me that way. Email on my website.
Terry Lynn Johnson
The best advice for training is to focus on positive reinforcement - not discipline. Simply paying attention to them when they are doing something you want to encourage, and not paying attention when they are doing something you do not want to encourage. The key is to do it immediately. As example, if you don't want them to jump up, do not pet them when they do, but rather immediately turn away from them, and then praise them when they are back down on the ground. Good luck!
Terry Lynn Johnson
Thank you so much! I do free Skypes with book clubs if you are interested. Send me an email with a mailing address if your students would like some stickers or bookmarks.
Terry Lynn Johnson
Hi, thanks for the question. I know how you feel - sometimes I have a hard time seeing the path through a storyline. The thing is, what works for some might not work for others. Writing tips are hard because everyone has a different style. But for me, I've found that if I go for a hike, it gives my brain a chance to find a solution. Whenever I have writers block, I get moving. Get off the chair and do something else. I hope that might help for you too! Good luck!
Terry Lynn Johnson
Hi, thanks for your enthusiasm! That was a short story - my first - that published with a very small press. It's no longer in print. I do have a brand new dogsled novel that's easy to find, DOG DRIVEN. I hope that may interest you!
Terry Lynn Johnson
When I gave dogsled rides, or people came to my kennel, they would always ask questions that I thought were obvious such as "they all have names?" or "how can you tell them apart?" It made me realize that not everyone understood all the awesomeness that is dogsledding. I wanted to show the special relationship mushers have with their dogs. And I wanted to share the magic of running silent along a trail behind a team. I hope that I did that. Thanks for the question!
Terry Lynn Johnson
Thank you, Susan! I'm so glad to hear you liked Ice Dogs! I love dogsledding too - it's something I got involved in 20 years ago and it still holds my heart. Some of my own dogs' personalities made their way into the characters in Ice Dogs. Bean turned out to be a lot like my own lead dog, Apollo.
I do have a few more books about to come out to choose from. Falcon Wild will release on Tuesday Sept. 19! It's a another survival adventure like Ice Dogs, but with Falconry. If you're looking for more dogsledding, I have Sled Dog School coming out on Oct.3. It's a bit younger than Ice Dogs. Hope you enjoy!
I do have a few more books about to come out to choose from. Falcon Wild will release on Tuesday Sept. 19! It's a another survival adventure like Ice Dogs, but with Falconry. If you're looking for more dogsledding, I have Sled Dog School coming out on Oct.3. It's a bit younger than Ice Dogs. Hope you enjoy!
Terry Lynn Johnson
I am so glad you enjoyed Ice Dogs. That is a stand alone novel, meaning there won't be any more books about those characters. But I have several upcoming novels. I hope you may check them out. Falcon Wild is another survival story with falconry. That is coming out next fall. Sled Dog School is another novel about dog sledding, but slightly younger coming out winter next 2017.
Terry Lynn Johnson
Our border collie, Lady, had her name already when we adopted her. My past dogs' names:
Apollo
Denali
Soho
Belle
Sitka
Mukluk
Ulu
Orbit
Doppler
Elsie
Tarzan
Nitro
Little Doe
Gonzo
Blaze
Vinny
Jade
Destiny
Tundra
Taiga
Tanzer
(She is the white dog pictured here in my bio pic with the crazy eyes)
Apollo
Denali
Soho
Belle
Sitka
Mukluk
Ulu
Orbit
Doppler
Elsie
Tarzan
Nitro
Little Doe
Gonzo
Blaze
Vinny
Jade
Destiny
Tundra
Taiga
Tanzer
(She is the white dog pictured here in my bio pic with the crazy eyes)
Terry Lynn Johnson
Thank you. Yes, my border collie keeps me busy!
Terry Lynn Johnson
Hi Alyssa! I'm so glad you enjoyed ICE DOGS. Yes, I have a few more books coming out next year! One is about falconry, another is about dogsledding! Hope you enjoy them too!
Terry Lynn Johnson
Thanks for looking forward to it!
The advanced reader copies (ARCs) will be out on October 15, 2016.
The exact release date isn't finalized, but it will be fall 2017.
I will be posting a sign up sheet for ARCs on my blog soon.
Thank you! I am so excited for this book to be out in the world!
The advanced reader copies (ARCs) will be out on October 15, 2016.
The exact release date isn't finalized, but it will be fall 2017.
I will be posting a sign up sheet for ARCs on my blog soon.
Thank you! I am so excited for this book to be out in the world!
Terry Lynn Johnson
When I wrote ICE DOGS, my stepdaughters were teenagers. Victoria's character was shaped from my experience of how some teens act and speak and what they know. Memories of my own upbringing helped as well. But I mostly just tried to write an authentic dogsledding story without worrying much about age.
Terry Lynn Johnson
thank you for the question. I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed Ice Dogs. Sadly, it is a standalone - there will be no more adventures for Bean or Victoria. But I'm hard at work on something new.
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