Chris d'Lacey's Blog, page 11

This week's word is: SNOW

As in, hooray! We've got some. Dragons LIKE snow. Fans of the Chronicles will know why, of course.  When Gawain, the last dragon in the world cried his fire tear, it fell into a northern ocean and formed what you know as the Arctic ice cap.  The ice from that region therefore contains small traces of dragon auma, which has gradually spread into the atmosphere and sometimes falls in flakes… So when we heard that the recent cold 'snap' over the UK had blown in from Siberia, we were all very happy and putting our paws out of the windows, hoping to catch a flake or two so we could commingle with the memory of the great dragon.  All the author wished to do, however, was try to break the record for the most T-shirts, sweaters and coats a man can wear at one time.  The last I saw of him he was muttering about something called anti-freeze for his car.  I shake my scales in despair.  He's been in a funny mood lately.  He really wants to get started on THE FIRE ASCENDING, but 'life' as he puts it, keeps getting in the way.  This is the eternal conundrum for a writer.  They will do anything to put off sitting at the keyboard and opening themselves up to the creative universe, but they also get very twitchy if they don't write for a while. Fear not dragon fans.  I'm not like that.  Little does the author know that during this period of what he calls 'inactivity' I have been gently commingling with his consciousness, dropping a few ideas into his brain.  Almost as if I've been snowing in there J.  Mind you, there's plenty of room.  If you look through his ears (G'reth and I can do this, of course) all you'll see is tumbleweed and windmills (and a shredder – honest, you can hear it going when he's asleep).  Rumour is there's a tiny kitten in there as well that likes to poot a small ball around his skull now and then, but it seems to sleep in one of the windmills and doesn't come out very much.  Anyway, my ideas haven't quite crystallised yet, but when they do, he will find himself writing about the history of Gawain and a rather important character called Agawin, whom you will meet – or learn of – in the next book.  I have also found myself doodling the name 'Voss' on my pad just recently, and it chills me to look at it.  I think there could be a connection to Gwilanna there.  Hmm.  Time will tell.  Next week, a report on Agent Ed, who is coming to speak at the author's writing group.  Ed is rather upset that no photograph of him has appeared on the blog yet.  We plan to put that right.  Until then, happy reading – and don't forget, it's only FORTY days now until FIRE WORLD comes out in the UK.  Hrrr!

This week's word is: HORACE

Hello dragon fans.  We don't usually talk about anything other than the Dragon Chronicles on the blog these days, but we had to put in a mention this week for one of the author's older books, 'Horace', which has just come out in a Japanese edition.  Horace is one of those stories that he affectionately calls a 'domestic drama'.  In other words, a story about general home life that might happen to any ordinary boy or girl.  In the book, a young boy finds an old teddy bear (called Horace) in a charity shop.  He wants to buy it but the shop won't sell it to him because it doesn't have a safety label on it.  So the boy and his mate nick it from the charity shop trash after the shop has closed.  This gets them into all sorts of trouble - especially when they find out that the bear is worth a cool £30,000.  We love Japanese covers (remember the brilliant ones we showed of the dragon books?) because they always pick up on the various aspects of the story.  So we have a drawing of a girl with a broken leg, a confused policeman and an ice cream millionaire.  If you're wondering how it all fits together, get the English version of Horace from the library.  It's a good read.  One of the author's favourites.
Nothing significant to report from Wayward Crescent this week, though on the theme of foreign editions it appears that the dragon books are going to be translated into Turkish.  As soon as we have a cover image to show you, we will.  Now that FIRE WORLD is all done and dusted it's really just a question of blowing a few smoke rings while we wait for it to appear.  Scales are rattling in feverish excitement all through the house because we think this is the book of the series - so far.  The author's publishers clearly think so too.  In the UK, 1,000 advance copies of the book will be going to reviewers and librarians, while in America that figure is something like 2,000.  Don't forget, the book comes out in the UK during the first week of January .  That's about SIX WEEKS from now, and the US release won't be far behind that, in May.  We are all looking forward to seeing what you make of it because it's so, so different from the rest of the series - and yet so familiar too.  No clues.  You have to just wait and see.  Love those firebirds!  Till next time, hrrr!

This week's word is: SCBWI

Ssssh, we've just come back from the old cathedral city of Winchester (which used to be the capital of England at one time, ooh err) and Gadzooks is napping - listen... zzzzhrrr, zzzhrrr - so I'm doing the blog this week.  (Mrs Author has just lain him down on a cushion. Aah.) He's had a very busy two days observing writers and illustrators doing what they do best - hanging out with other writers and illustrators at a conference.  The acronym SCBWI means Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators - but no one calls it that of course.  They shorten it to 'Squibby' or 'Scooby' (I never did quite work it out, and it felt impolite to ask).  Anyway, what does an author like me do at a conference like 'Squibby'?  Well, one thing all you budding scribblers will quickly discover is that writers like to be with like-minded people.  Writing is a solitary business.  So it's fun to breakaway from the 'typeface' sometimes and just go and share your experiences with people you know will understand them.  And the sweet thing is, you never get bored, because although we all know the basic stuff, the building blocks of how to put a story together, we are endlessly fascinated by how other people go about it.  Remember this next time you lift a pen: there are as many different ways of writing as there are people out there doing it.  Okay, that sounds a bit Yoda-ish.  (Well, no, this sounds a bit Yoda-ish: different ways of writing there are, doing it many people.)  But this is the appeal - for me - of a conference.  It's just interesting to mingle with fellow authors and see how much planning they do, for instance, or how much research, or how they deal with writers' block, or how much time they spend on their blogs or their facebook pages or on twitter (41 followers now. Keep them coming!) And you can sometimes mingle with influential people, like editors or agents.  OR you can simply make friends with pleasant folk who happen to share your passion for drawing or telling a story.  And that's the point I really want to make.  All you youngsters reading this will be thinking: Yeah, but, I'm only twelve. How would I get to anything like a Scooby conference?  Well, you won't, sorry.  But there's nothing to stop you getting together and swapping stories with friends.  It can be very rewarding.  If you want to be a little bit nerdy, try creating a powerpoint presentation about how you came to write your latest story - then show it to your mates.  Have your own Squibby, and you too can experience, in miniature, that particular aspect of being an author.  Until next time, when Gadzooks will be back, happy reading.  Oh, and thank you to everyone at Squ- SCBWI for a fabulous weekend.  Hi to all the lovely people I met - and thanks for all the unexpected name checks! (You had to be there.)  Hrrr!

This week's word is: TWITTER

Hello dragon fans - wait!  Was that a bird?  Was it a plane?  Was it G'reth doing figures of eight around Bonnington's ears?  No, it was the author TWEETING.  Yes, fans of our hero can now follow his daily routines on Twitter (he is @chrisdlacey, whatever that means).  We wait with bated snorts to see what pearls of wisdom will come off his phone.  "Itch on my knee, just scratched it."  "Run out of milk, popping to the shop." He's just seen me writing that and has assured me that he won't tweet anything banal.  He will only use the service to say something interesting (what, we really have run out of milk???) or to keep fans (sorry FOLLOWERS) up to date with current book developments.  He thinks I've got the hump because my blog might become redundant.  No chance!  Where else can you see pics of the covers or photos of events etc.  By the way, we've just had the proper cover run outs for FIRE WORLD and they look AMAZING.  Even though I say it myself, this is just the most fantastic book.  Dare I say it, the best in the series.  Hrrr!  The author is currently reading through the American proofs, which means that will be in production soon.  Very exciting.  Then, of course, it's full puffle ahead for THE FIRE ASCENDING.  More on that in the posts leading up to Christmas (47 shopping days to go).
Last week, the author had a fantastic time up in Scotland. It was a delight to visit George Watson's school in Edinburgh again (hello Alison!) and the primary in Cumbernauld whose name annoyingly escapes me.  Lovely children.  Great audiences.  For the first two days, the author was the guest of the wonderful Scotia Books (thank you Linzi, Anna & Jim) and got to stay in the fantastic Boathouse Hotel in Kilsyth. Scotland, like Wales, is a country with stunning scenery.  We particularly enjoyed the train ride from a little station called Croy to the city of Dundee on the east coast.  Wish we could have got a photograph of the Wallace Monument in Stirling to show you, but it was too dark (google it up).  In Kilsyth, the author went out to dinner at a superb Chinese restaurant where one of the waiters gave him a dragon! There's a picture of the dragon below.  He looks a bit regal, but he's very friendly when you get to know him.  On the third day, we visited The High School of Dundee.  Very spectacular.  What a place to go to school!  Great kids and two brilliant librarians in Catherine and Julie.
Anyway, for now, back to the proofs.  Until next time.  Happy reading.  Hrrr!

This week's word is: ABOOKANDAHUG

Hello dragon fans.  No doubt there are those among you who think that ABOOKANDAHUG is not technically a word.  That it's really five words contracted into one.  Well, hrrr, to that.  It's my blog and I decide what's a word and what isn't!  Actually, it's the name of a fantastic website run by a lovely lady called Barb Langridge, who interviewed the author during his tour of the United States in May.  We feature it on the blog today because the interview was filmed and has just gone live on the site.  This one is a little different from the last one we posted, because Barb grills our hero about altermative universes and creative techniques.  If you want to see it - and we thoroughly recommend you do - go to www.abookandahug.com and click on the Books Alive tab at the top of the screen.  You'll see the author's interview listed alongside a whole list of others (including Christopher Paolini, author of 'Eragon').  ABookandaHug is a wonderful site, dedicated to reading and the promotion of books.  We were terribly impressed by Barb, because not only did she ask some searching questions, but she'd read all five books in some detail.  We wish her well with the site.  Hrrr!
This week, the author travelled to London for a meeting with his UK publisher, Orchard Books.  There he ate several chocolate mini-rolls, ahem, and chatted about promotional plans for FIRE WORLD, which are likely to include a competition of some sort and something called a 'blog tour', which I am particularly excited about.  More on that in future posts.  The publisher is very keen for him to have a greater online 'presence'.  The subject of Twitter was raised.  Gwendolen, everybody's favourite IT dragon, is looking at the possibility of getting the author 'tweeting'. All we will say for now is 'watch this space'.  There may be an announcement about this soon... 
It is, of course, Halloween today.  Normally, we don't 'celebrate' this as such in case Gwilanna comes round trick or treating, but we all got a shock yesterday when the author opened his mouth to reveal a fang.  We thought at first that he was genuinely morphing into a dragon, but it turned out that all he'd done was broken one of his incisors on a ginger biscuit! We told him, as he rushed off for an emergency appointment at the dentists, that he should have stuck to mini rolls - they're a lot softer (and he didn't even bring one home for us).  Until next time.  Happy reading.  Hrrr!

This week's word is: COVER!!

Hello dragon fans,
At long last it's here! The fantastic cover for FIRE WORLD.  Some of you may have already spotted it online at the Amazon website, but that one has the wrong typography.  This is the official version, which will soon replace all others.

The creature shown in the dragon's eye is a firebird, not a phoenix as many people first think.  I can't tell you too much about the firebirds yet, except to say they are related to dragons via eagles ... mmm.  Once again, Angelo Rinaldi has painted the cover, and this book is dedicated to him in grateful thanks for his hard work (and genius) over the years.  The full cover, laid out, looks like this (though it's still being edited):

You probably won't be able to read the blurb from that, so here it is too:
Aurielle looked at the woven picture and sighed. So beautiful, with its wide green hills and its dragons flying gracefully around the valley. And yet so menacing, too. It seemed to tell the story of a great battle… But what did it mean?
In the great librarium on the world of Co:pern:ica, an ancient tapestry, guarded by firebirds, is about to have its secrets unravelled – a process which will bring together the ec:centric boy, David, the evil Aunt, Gwyneth, and a dangerous force from the other side of time… Isenfier is about to begin, and the worlds around it may never be the same again...
Aurielle is the firebird in the dragon's eye, and Isenfier is the name given to the battle that David and the dragons had with darklings over the Vale of Scuffenbury.  The rest you will just have to wait for, sorry...  Until next time.  Happy reading.  Hrrr!







This week's word is: INTERVIEW

Hello dragon fans.  Here's a little treat for you - a rare interview with Mrs Author!  The very first, in fact.

The author has been away for two weeks doing events, did you miss him?
Not half as much as the dragons did! It was all I could do to stop fire tears being cried left, right and centre. Chris forgot to tell them he'd be back soon…
Will you ever do any events yourself?
It's unlikely that I'd do any, solo, but I often go with Chris to sell books. So it's not beyond the bounds of reason that I might add my two-pennyworth to his talks at some point.
How much of Rain & Fire did you actually write?
It's easier to say what I didn't write. Chris wrote the preface (the story of how David first arrived at Wayward Crescent) and obviously all of the pieces quoted from the novels. He had also already done some of the major character profiles for his Australian publisher's website. I pinched these and elaborated on them, as well as adding in some more minor ones. All of the rest was Mrs Author's own work!
Do you have a favourite part of R&F?
Chapter 9. It's called 'Whistlers, Wastrels and Woebegones' and contains the only known photograph of David Rain!
Was it easy, writing about someone you know?
Easy-peasy lemon squeezy! I've got 32 years' worth of our shared history to draw upon.
Did he try to interfere with the book?
Yes! But I'm more than a match for him and warned him off in no uncertain terms. I can be a bigger dragon than all the Pennykettle ones put together.
Talking of which, who is your favourite dragon?
Well, of course, it has to be you, Zookie. How could you ever think otherwise?
Which is your favourite Chronicles book and why?
TFE. The Fire Eternal is brilliant because its hero doesn't even appear in it. Weird or what? I love the strength of the female leads. Liz and Zanna's journey through loss and grief to their ultimate triumph over adversity is tremendously inspiring. (Instead of using stars as review symbols, I use tissue boxes. TFE was a five-box classic.)
Who's your favourite non-dragon character?
Can I pick two or three? David, of course, has to come top of the list because he's based so heavily on Chris, my ever-loving. I also have a soft spot for Russ the helicopter pilot in Fire Star, as well as Tam (cor!) Farrell – love his fashion sense! Oh, and Winston the teddy bear. Superb bit of casting.
Will you be writing any more books about dragons in the future?
Assuming that this book is well-received, I trust I shall in due course be writing a couple of update chapters for a revised version of it, once books six and seven have been published and the series is complete. Other than that, watch this space.
You've read Fire World. Can you tell the readers anything about it?
I've read it many times as I do the first-line editing and proofing for all of Chris's books before they go to his publisher. It gets better and better after each reading. It's really unusual in that, six books into the series, it can be read entirely as a stand-alone story as well as part of the Chronicles as a whole. I don't think I'm giving too much away if I let you into the secret that this part of the story takes place in a parallel dimension to Earth. That may sound peculiar, but it will all make perfect sense by the time you get to the end of book seven.
Have you any last comment to make to the author's fans?
Just hope you enjoy the guide book as much as I enjoyed writing it. Hrrr!

This week's word is: OCTOBER

Hello dragon fans. You may think that's an unusual word to put on the pad this week: October. Is it Zookie's birthday? you might be wondering. Is it because squirrels are very active in October? Does he just like the sound of the word? Well, it's none of these things, actually. October is very significant for myself and the author because traditionally, on the first day of this month, we start a new book…
This all began waaaaay back in 1986, before most of you reading this were even born, I suspect. On October 1 of that year, our hero sat down in what was then his dining room, opened an A4 notepad on his glass-topped dining table, clicked on a pen and began to write a novel – about polar bears. At that time, it had no title. In fact, it was well into the following year before he thought to call it White Fire. Ring any bells? He sat at that table every weekend, and many week nights too (he was working during the day, looking down microscopes at Leicester University) and after two years and two months he had a story - a saga, no less - of some 250,000 words. It was a ramshackle epic that got better as it went along – but he didn't have me to help him then. I came into his life shortly after White Fire was written.
The October 1st just gone is highly significant, of course, because he was beginning the final book of the Chronicles. It was quite an emotional moment when he sat down and wrote the first line. How will it feel when he writes the last? His publisher once told him to go away and write as many of these books as he liked – ten, perhaps twelve, they said. But he and I both know that the Chronicles have probably run their course, though there is still a great deal to tell about David, the Pennykettles, and the last great dragon on Earth, Gawain. My pencil will not be idle this year. As always, we have a working title. As always, you, the followers of the blog get to hear of it first. We tinkered with the idea of calling it White Fire, but have settled for the moment on
The Fire Ascending
That may change. But for now, remember where you saw it first. Until next time. Happy reading. Hrrr!

This week's word is: CHAMPERS!

Hello dragon fans.  At last, it's here!  Mrs Author's guide book to the Chronicles is published!  It was due out on October 7th, but the publishers in their wisdom have seen fit to release it early.  In case you can't remember it (as if you wouldn't) here's the stunning cover. 
Brilliant, isn't it?  We really like it.  Gretel says she posed for it (which is not true, but we're not going to argue with her).  The guide book is packed full of interesting things about the author and how 'he' came to write the Chronicles.  Plus there's a character list, which many of you ask him for, and a glossary of all those strange words like 'auma', which get you confused from time to time.  There are also three or four lovely illustrations of scenes from the books.  I can't show you one here because it wouldn't be fair to publicise them on the blog before the public have had a chance to see them within the pages of the book.  But give it a couple of months and I'm sure we'll get permission to put one up.  Sadly, you can't get the book in the USA at the moment.  That situation may change, but for now all you ardent fans across the Atlantic would have to import it.  As far as we're aware, the book will appear in Australia, though.
If you buy Rain and Fire, look for the sneak preview of Fire World.  It is only a small extract, granted, but enough to give you a flavour of what the next book is like.  AND you get a reminder of the fab competition that the author's publisher is running, which will allow one lucky fan to have DINNER with our hero.  You don't have to buy the book to enter the competition, you can simply visit the Chronicles website at www.thelastdragonchronicles.com.  However, you DO have to be a resident of the UK or Ireland to enter.  This is because we live in England and it would be quite a feat of organisation to fly in a fan from overseas.  Sorry.  At least the competition itself is easy.  You just have to visit the website and answer what the title of the first book in the series is.  I can't tell you, but I can give you a clue: it's got FIRE in the name!!
So, Mrs Author, having worked quietly in the background for years, reading manuscripts, proofing texts, talking through plots and generally supporting me while I try to inspire the great d'Lacey has finally got the chance to have her name in lights too.  She's not the type for the red carpet.  And champers (that's short for champagne by the way) is hardly likely to pass her lips either (though she might be sent some from the publisher).  No, what Mrs Author would want is whether or not you enjoyed the book.  So if you buy it online anywhere and want to put up a review of it, please do so.  She'd be glad to see your comments.  Until next time.  Happy reading.  Hrrr!

This week's word is: SUBBUTEO

Hello dragon fans.  I've given Zookie the day off this week as things are pretty quiet right now.  So he is being a dragon of leisure and I'm doing the blog entry.  He has asked me to remind you that Mrs Author's guidebook, RAIN AND FIRE, is due out in the UK on October 7th, but we'll be flagging that up specially around the first week in October.
A couple of weeks ago, someone wrote to me asking what my favourite game was when I was a boy.  Well, that was easy to answer.  I've always been a soccer fan.  I grew up watching legends like...well, most of you would never have heard of them.  So let me tell you about a table top soccer game instead.  It was called Subbuteo, and it involved flicking plastic figures around a green baize soccer pitch, after a ball that in some cases was almost as big as the players themselves.  People were seriously passionate about this game.  I used to play in a league with my schoolfriends.  I never won the league, but I really enjoyed travelling to my friends' houses for away games.  One friend, Karl, had a lava lamp in his lounge.  That was always a special fixture!  When I grew up and started writing, I began to write about the things I loved.  And shortly before the dragon books came along I wrote a story about Subbuteo called 'The Table Football League'.  Sadly, you can't get the book any more.  And the game itself has gone out of production thanks to the advent of video games.  But all around the world, aged enthusiasts (who play World Cups, would you believe?) keep the game alive.  If you've never tried it, I totally recommend it.  It's quite amazing.  I would love to see it make a comeback.  Interestingly, 'The Table Football League' was illustrated by Philip Reeve, before he became famous for his wonderful 'Mortal Engines' series of books.  Maybe I should challenge him to a game one day?
So, what's happening in dragon world?  Well, I am waiting for what we call 'proof'' copies of Fire World from both my UK and my US editors.  A 'proof' is simply a copy I have to read through, to check for errors.  And any day now, I will begin work on the seventh and final book of the series.  I have a title in mind, but I'm not going to put it out until I'm completely sure.  But, as always, this is where you'll see it first.  Till next time.  Happy reading.  Hrrr!