Blake Hoena's Blog, page 17

How the Elephant Got His Trunk

My latest graphic novel, How the Elephant Got His Trunk, is now for sale

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Synopsis:In this retelling of Rudyard Kipling's classic tale, a curious young elephant tries to find out what the crocodile eats for dinner. He ends up with a whole new look.

This story is quite a hoot. Though I did struggle a bit with the retelling—there's a LOT of spanking going on in the original story. That could be a dangerous mix with sequential art, but I believe I found a creative way around it while still staying true to Kipling's tale. Enjoy!

If It's Really Cold . . .

and Other Weather Predictions.

The third book in my prediction series

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Body Text

The sky darkens as a storm sweeps in. You see gray puffy clouds churn overhead. Then, a brilliant flash lights up the sky. You wait . . . one one thousand . . . two one thousand . . . What happens next?

Prediction

You hear a loud Ka-boom! If you count the seconds between a lighting flash and a crack of thunder, you can guess how far away the lightning struck. Five seconds roughly equal one mile.

Supper cool!

Look what just arrived in the mail . . .

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Demand one for your Holiday stocking!

If You Have a Magnet . . .

and Other Science Predictions.

Here's the cover mock up and sneak peek at the second book in the "prediction" series that I'm working on.

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Body Text

Magnets aren't magic, even thought they perform a neat trick.

They pick up metal objects like cars and paperclips.

Now what would happen if hold a magnet over an apple?

Prediction

Nothing — apples aren't made of metal. Magnets cannot pick up living objects

like you or a cat or an apple. But they can pick certain metal objects like nails and pins

If You Plant a Seed . . .

and Other Nature Predictions.

I've been working on some concept books to teach kids how to predict things in nature and science. Here's a cover mock up for the first book with some sample text.

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Intro

Open your backdoor. Birds wing by,

and crickets chirp. Trees touch the sky,

and flowers bloom. Step outside

and explore nature's mysteries.

If you watch closely, you can predict

the wonders that will occur.

Want to give it a try?

The writing is someone poetic, and for this title, each entry will talk about a sequence of events that occurs in nature, from the sun setting to the change of seasons, ending with a question of "what of happen next?" Readers will then flip the page to see if their prediction is true.

Daily Cinquain

Decided that I need to get back to my roots—my Master of Fine Arts degree was in creative writing, with an emphasis in poetry. And while I'll never stop writing children's books (they just fit my off-kilter sense of humor and the subjects I like to write about), I still get the urge to dabble in poetry.

One of my favorite forms is the cinquain. Like Haikus, they have a set syllable count.

Line 1 — 2 syllables

Line 2 — 4 syllables

Line 3 — 6 syllables

Line 4 — 8 syllables

Line 5 — 2 syllables

Here's a sample:

Winter

Has left

a dirty white

sock along side the road

as Spring's rain and warmth chased him down

the street.

It's a metaphor for those grungy snowbanks that line roads as winter transitions into spring. Their dirtiness reminds me of a well worn sock.

So to keep dabbling in poetry, I have a goal of writing a cinquain a day—at least for the next year. To capture these small poems, I opened a Twitter account. The length of a cinquain and the character limit of tweets go hand in hand.

If you'd like to follow me and read what I'm tweeting, look my up at Daily Cinquain. I may also post some here from time to time.

Swamp Sting review

"Tina, Gillian, and Keely are reporters for their school newspaper, the "Elementary Angle," and they are hot on the trail of a rash of bizarre bee stings that have been happening around campus. Their instructions arrive via cell phone from their editor Carly, the shadowy figure who never reveals herself to them. Thanks to Carly's help and some quick thinking from the intrepid trio, the Angels might be able to figure out who's responsible. The bold and bright illustrations convey a modern setting right out of today's schools, and with digital tablets, cameras, and cell phones in hand, these characters will resonate with young readers who love technology or those who just enjoy getting to the bottom of a good mystery."

—Library Media Connection

Amplified

Some very cool news!

My Amplified story for the Tony Hawk's 900 Revolution series was approved by the Bird Man and will be sent to the printer this later month. And then by the end of the year, it will be on bookshelves near you.

As a little teaser, below is the bio for the new character I introduced to the series.

Theresa Davis

CODE NAME: Wren

AGE: 16

HOMETOWN: Minneapolis, MN

SPORT: Skateboarding

INTERESTS: Singing, Rock Music

BIO: Wren's a newb on the skateboard but a pro on stage. A lot of the local skaters are fans of her band The Verts, so she hangs out at the skateparks with them. One of her favorites is Bracket Skate Park in Minneapolis. Her band mates have even taught her some basic tricks like grinds and kick flips. If she's not on her board, she can be found on stage at one of the Twin Cities' underage clubs, belting out tunes that she wrote for her band—they play all originals. Currently, she's homeless because of an argument with her folks.

I'm often asked by writing students where I come up with names for my characters. I like to use derivatives of the names of people I know, like in this case. Theresa Davis is an homage to a favorite professor, Terry Davis, whom I studied under while pursuing my master of fine arts degree. I've also used my nephew's names: Ryan, Chase, Carter, and Gavin in many stories. And friends have appeared in many other books. While I don't model any of the characters off people I know, people do get a kick out of it when I use their names in a story.

Cyblis Awards nominations

Cool news! My graphic novel Swamp Sting has been nominated for a Cybils Award in the Elementary/Middle Grade Graphic Novel category. Along with that, Captain Boomerang's Comeback got the nod for the Early Chapter Book category.

Now, going up against the likes of Amulet and Amelia Rules, I don't expect a win, but just to be considered amongst those books is a treat.

Upcoming Events

For those in the Twin Cities area, there are two events of interest just down around the corner.

For comic book fans . . .

FallCon—10/15 from 10am to 4pm

State Fair Ground in the Progress Center

For literature fans .  .  .

Twin Cities Book Festival—10/15 from 10am-5pm

Minneapolis Community and Technical College

It's too bad these event take place on the same day, as it'd be tough to make them both. I'll be heading over to FallCon. Not just to see a few costumed superheroes, but because a friend has a booth. And then we can go over to the Source Comic Books & Games afterward, so I can catch up some of comics (RASL and Sweet Tooth) I've been reading.