Suzy Davies's Blog: Book News - Posts Tagged "conversations"

If you ask me what makes a good children's book, my answer is that good kids' books are fun and educational with wonderful artwork. But, there is more!

It is my belief that good children's books arouse wonder, and thus curiosity in the reader, and just like in Alice in Wonderland, little readers become "curiouser and curiouser."

Children delight in treasure hunting, and the journey in a good book is a bit like a fabulous treasure hunt, with clues, and lots of exploration. Inevitably to find answers to the "clues" or "signposts," young readers will try to work things out for themselves, reading the story along with the illustrations that will provide a visual guide.

Along the way, readers who are supported by older siblings, parents, and significant others will ask the question, "Why?" and good books always involve engagement with others and good conversations. I always map out my books so that they pose questions to the reader.

Children's books that arouse curiosity are a good thing since scientists, artists, businesspeople and inventors of tomorrow will have curiosity in bucketloads!

Good kids' books provide a safe rehearsal for negotiating difficulties and obstacles that we all meet on the journey that is life. They instill good values in children, showing them how to make friends, and to value things that make a successful and happy life.

Social and emotional learning is valuable in books written for children since research shows that this kind of learning is just as important as other kinds. I like to foreground characters in my children's books who inspire kids and act as good role models.

The emotional atmosphere of a book is so important. A positive mood and a happy ending satisfy kids that all will be well in the end. A satisfying ending for me is one in which the characters are good and true; finding their own answers and their OWN path, and being true to themselves.

My guest author today is Paul Stanton.

1. What made you decide to become a writer, and when did you begin writing children's books?
 
At the age of 15 I submitted an essay to my English teacher of which I was most proud. Upon its return she had written across it in large red pen “Imagination without the power to express it.” Those chilling words prompted me to prove her wrong. I then read every word in Websters Universal Dictionary, making notes as I went. I then wrote and wrote, honing my craft and skills as I went. At first, I wrote children’s books, plays, anything that sparked my imagination.

2. What other genres do you write in, if any?

I write mainly in Urban fantasy now, but have written in Sword; Sorcerer, children fantasy, humour, and of course the Smileymoo books.

3. How long did it take you to write your most recent book, and are you a plotter or a pantser? 

I will often commence a book, leave it and return to it when the mood comes over me. It is difficult to assess how long each one takes. I rewrote A Festive Juxtaposition a total of fifteen times before I was happy with it. A plotter or a punster? A bit of both I would say.

4. How do you choose the titles of your books? 

Very often a title will come to me and I will write a book around it. This happened in the Sorcerer’s Dogsbody series. Once a title has been determined ideas come thick and fast.

5. Who is your favorite character in your most recent book, and why?

Undoubtedly the Devil. He’s a particularly complex character with unfathomably hidden depths.

6. What kind of books do you enjoy reading? 

I enjoy a wide range: sword; sorcery, murder mysteries, cosmic horror, classics, non-fiction.

7. How do you get inspiration for a new book? 

I will invariably sit and go into a sort of revery. Inspiration then seems to well up from within the untold depths of my subconscious.

8. Who are your favorite writers, and why? 

I love classic authors, Conan-Doyle, Dickens, PG Wodehouse, HP Lovecraft, Colin Wilson, Clark Ashton Smith, Kenneth Graham. Peter Ackroyd. I love these writers because they are all phenomenal wordsmiths in their own right. Peter Ackroyd is, in my opinion, head and shoulders above most modern-day writers.

9. What do you enjoy most about writing? 

Enjoyment comes from the knowledge that you have committed your thoughts, drawn from imagination and laid them before your readers like a tapestry composed of words that paint vivid pictures.

10. What, if anything, do you find difficult about writing? 

I don’t find writing difficult. It’s all the preparation. Very similar to decorating. If the preparation is done correctly the book will flow. It’s inevitable.

11. What are your hobbies when you are not behind a book? 

I am a qualified carpenter and do a lot of DIY, fixing things. I love to read, watch movies, plays, walking.

12. What advice would you give to a new writer? 

It is difficult to give advice, for what applies to one cannot necessarily apply to another. Writing as far as I am concerned falls mainly into two categories: 1) Those that have to write and cannot not write and 2) Those who think it might be a fun thing to do. Everyone seems to have a book in them.

13. What is your favorite book of all time, and why? 

My favourite book/s are Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and Kenneth Grahams A Wind in the Willows. Both classics and the products a writing so pure and so refined they are virtually unsurpassable in their literary quality.

14. What plans do you have for a new book, if any? 

I am still currently working on revising Festive 3,4,5,6 and need to edit The Hapax Legomenon – a 350 page epic fantasy – vol 1.

15. Where can readers find you and your books? 

My books are to be found on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Waterstones, Austin Macauley.

Thank you Paul for a most interesting interview.