Robin Stevens's Blog, page 54
July 19, 2016
Announcement: I’m writing the London Eye Mystery sequel!
Part of being an author is learning how to keep quiet about exciting news. Some of it I’m allowed to let people know a bit about – like the cover and title reveal for book 5 (it’s going to be called Mistletoe and Murder, it’s coming on October 20th this year, and you can see the cover HERE) – and some I have to keep absolutely secret.
So I can only now tell you that I’ve been keeping a very big secret for a VERY long time – because I’m allowed to let it out at last!
I know that a lot of you are already fans of Siobhan Dowd’s The London Eye Mystery, a story about a boy called Ted whose cousin Salim mysteriously goes missing while riding the London Eye. It’s a book that I recommend all the time, and it’s coming up to its 10th anniversary next year. Siobhan was an absolutely brilliant writer, and when she wrote The London Eye Mystery she always meant to write its sequel. Tragically, she died before she could begin it, and her Trust has been looking for an author to carry on Ted’s amazing story ever since. And last year … they asked if I’d like to do it!
The scene of the first crime!
Ted is very different to Hazel (for starters, he’s from 2007, not 1935!), but he’s a brilliant detective and a wonderful narrator – if you haven’t already, go read The London Eye Mystery. I think you’ll love it! I’m such a big fan that I recently took a trip on the London Eye myself with a certain mysterious book …
Riding the Eye with a very special book!
The Guggenheim Mystery (that’s its name) is going to be a book about a mystery, just like The London Eye Mystery – but it feels as though it’s already a mystery in itself. All I have to go on are the three words of the title, and from those I have to guess what Siobhan might have been imagining, and where she wanted to take the characters she created in The London Eye Mystery. It’s an honour, and I’m so excited to sit down and take on the challenge of creating a brand new New York mystery story. But it’s also a big responsibility. I know I need to get this book right – Siobhan is a huge act to follow, and I’m going to do my best to create something that I think she’d be happy with. I’m going to be working very hard on the manuscript over the next few months – keep checking back here, and on my Twitter and Instagram, for my progress!
The Guggenheim Mystery will be published in August 2017, 10 years after The London Eye Mystery was first released. Murder Most Unladylike 6 will be out in the winter of 2017 – but if you think you won’t be able to wait until then, we’ve got you covered! A lot of you have been asking when the short stories I’ve been writing will be available in a book, and I’m delighted to say that the answer is: April 2017! We are creating the first ever Murder Most Unladylike bumper book, featuring the three short stories I’ve already written (Lavinia’s Missing Tie, Blue Violet and Deepdean Vampire), two BRAND NEW short stories, and loads of puzzles, activities, recipes, quizzes and much more. It should satisfy even the most ardent Deepdean fan! It’s going to be called Cream Buns and Crime, and I’ll be working on it this autumn.
I’ve got a busy six months ahead of me, and I can’t wait to get started!
July 15, 2016
Book 5 – Title and Cover Reveal!
You’ve all been so patient – but the time is finally here. Today we’re finally revealing BOTH the title AND the cover for the book formerly known as Murder Most Unladylike Book 5.
Are you ready?
Are you sure?
Here goes …
The book will be called …
MISTLETOE AND MURDER
And its stunning cover, by Nina Tara, is below:
It’s Christmas in July! Look at those coats, and the fairy lights! Look at the mince pies!
As you can tell from that cover, Mistletoe and Murder will be Hazel and Daisy’s first Christmas adventure. This time they’re in snowy Cambridge, visiting Daisy’s brother Bertie at Maudlin College. But something’s not right at Maudlin, and when the girls hear stories about a series of dangerous pranks they decide to investigate. Except they’re not the only detectives on the case. Alexander (remember him from First Class Murder?) and his best friend George are also in Cambridge – together they’re the Junior Pinkertons, and they’re determined to solve the mystery before the Detective Society.
What happens next? That would be telling. But I can promise mince pies, mistletoe and plenty of murder.
Mistletoe and Murder will be out on 20th October, and you can pre-order it NOW from Waterstones, WH Smith, Blackwell’s, Hive and Amazon. So, what are you waiting for? It’s only 96 days until Murder Most Unladylike Christmas!
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July 1, 2016
The Case of the Deepdean Vampire
I’ve got a lot of really exciting news to share with you this month – I’ll be revealing the cover and the title for Murder Most Unladylike Book 5 in just a few weeks! But today I’ve got an exciting update about the second Murder Most Unladylike Mini Mystery, which will be coming out in the UK and Ireland on the 8th of September 2016.
Just like the first Mini Mystery, The Case of the Blue Violet, it’s going to be available as an ebook only for the time being, and just like Blue Violet it’s not a full-length murder mystery, just a 5,000 word short story about a smaller mystery. It’s narrated by Daisy again, and takes place after the end of Jolly Foul Play, so it’s the perfect thing to tide you over until Book 5 publishes in October!
Because it’s publishing quite close to Halloween it’s got a lot of supernatural elements – there are ghosts, werewolves and (of course) the Deepdean Vampire herself …
Today I’m able to reveal its gorgeous cover, below. It’s another stunning job by the talented Nina Tara – I love that I’ve got a book with a creepy ghost-story candle on its cover! Its official description is also below. I can’t wait for you all to read it – I’m a huge Dracula fan, and I had an amazing time working vampires into a story about Hazel & Daisy!
Of all the mysteries that Hazel and I have investigated, the Case of the Deepdean Vampire was one of the strangest. It was not a murder, which was a pity – but I did solve it very cleverly, and so I decided it ought to be written down, so that other people could read it and be impressed.
Camilla Badescu is in the fifth form, and has pale skin, dark hair and red lips. She comes from Romania (which is practically Transylvania). She doesn’t eat at meals. And she seemed to have an unhealthy influence over another pupil, Amy Jessop. Now, I do not believe in vampires – I am the Honourable Daisy Wells, after all. But when I heard the rumour that Camilla was seen climbing head-first down a wall, I knew it was time to investigate…
You can pre-order The Case of the Deepdean Vampire from Amazon now – and it’ll be coming to your Kindles on 8th September!
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June 30, 2016
Deal Announcement – Daisy and Hazel are taking on Poland!
Some great news for my detective duo today: we’ve sold Polish language rights to Murder Most Unladylike and Arsenic for Tea to Grupa MAC S.A!
This is the seventh territory the books will be published in (I’m guessing at some time in 2017) – Daisy and Hazel’s adventures are also on their way (or already available) in America, France, Germany, Italy, Vietnam and Taiwan.
I’m so proud of my globetrotting heroines, and I hope Polish readers will love Daisy and Hazel as much as I do!
June 29, 2016
Poison is Not Polite – SLJ Review
Remember I said that Poison is Not Polite has had two wonderful new reviews? The first was from Shelf Awareness, and here’s the second, from School Library Journal!
Lisa Nabel says: ‘Detectives Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong are back to solve another mystery, but this one hits a little closer to home for Daisy. While on school break, bossy Daisy and levelheaded Hazel are staying at Daisy’s family home, where her mother is throwing Daisy a children’s birthday tea party. Fourteen-year-old Daisy is appalled that she is having such a childish fete, especially since her mother has invited family, school friends, and her “gentleman friend” Mr. Curtis. The house is full of suspects when, during the party, Mr. Curtis is poisoned and later dies. Mr. Curtis is truly an unlikable individual, so the list of suspects is large, and most are people Daisy has known her whole life. Daisy and Hazel’s skills are tested as they narrow down the list of possible murderers. The countryside has flooded, and the arrival of the police is delayed by days. Daisy and Hazel’s unlikely friendship balances out the strengths and weaknesses of their personalities; Daisy is pushy and clever, while Hazel is cautious and practical. VERDICT An English import with a good mystery that will keep readers’ attention, this second volume of the trilogy is strong enough to be a standalone title.’
June 28, 2016
Poison is Not Polite – Shelf Awareness Review
We’ve had a few more lovely reviews of Poison is Not Polite (the US edition of Arsenic for Tea)! The first is from Shelf Awareness, in a review called (wonderfully) The Pleasure of Cosy-Dangerous.
Ali Davis writes:
‘It’s just a few steps from the cozy-dangerous boarding school of Harry Potter to the cozy-dangerous drawing rooms of classic British murder mysteries, via the witty, thoughtfully plotted middle-grade Wells & Wong novels. Robin Stevens’s series, originally published in England, follows the two brightest students of Deepdean, an isolated 1930s girls’ school.
The first two books, Murder Most Unladylike and Arsenic for Tea, have been released in the United States by Simon & Schuster with some light vocabulary changes for an American audience–they’ve been re-titled Murder Is Bad Manners and Poison Is Not Polite, respectively–and the U.S. versions retain their agreeable British flavor.
Daisy Wells, the 13-year-old self-appointed president of the Wells and Wong Detective Society, takes the Sherlock Holmes role, chasing her cases “like a dog after a rabbit” and, she claims, the pure facts. But narrator Hazel Wong is often just as keen an observer, and she never loses sight of death’s awful emotional costs.
Wong comes from Hong Kong, and she brings a welcome perspective as an outsider explaining the quirks of boarding-school life, such as the importance of “bunbreak” and of sometimes failing at lessons so as not to be a “swot.” She’s also frank about the difficulties of being best friends with the tall, blonde and beautiful Daisy, something many junior-high girls will identify with.
Though solving the crime is always the bottom line, Stevens’s books satisfyingly explore the forging of a friendship between the two girls, and quietly make the point that adulthood involves facing uncomfortable facts. Even if you’re an adult fan of classic mysteries, these lightly gruesome tales are highly enjoyable bunbreak reading.’
I’m really delighted to see my books getting more recognition in the States – thank you so much to Ali and Shelf Awareness!
June 13, 2016
Festivals and Fun: May Author Events
I’ve had a very busy and exciting May! I’ve visited schools from Richmond to Grantham, and festivals from Brighton to Linton. There’s almost too much to share – below are just a selection of my favourite moments from May!
All school visits are special, but being asked to visit the Royal Ballet School in Richmond Park was particularly incredible. I had an amazing time talking to the year 7s and 8s – here we all are at the end of the talk!
On the 15th May I visited Barnes for their children’s festival. It was a wonderful event, and I was particularly impressed by my two introducers, Loulou and Lauren.
… And just when I thought my Barnes event couldn’t get more exciting, I saw a Deepdean pupil in the front row! She even had a piece of string in her pocket for carrying out detective missions. A true member of the Detective Society!
Photo credit: Ruth Keys
On the 22nd May, I went to the lovely Linton Book Festival. I spoke about the new kids’ crime anthology Mystery & Mayhem with fellow Crime Club member Helen Moss (read Helen’s brilliant write-up here), and was part of their writers’ panel – it was such a fun day!
I also teamed up with Crime Club members Julia Golding and Katherine Woodfine to hold a Mystery & Mayhem event at Bookfeast Oxford. I love being part of a team on stage – it makes staring out at an audience slightly less terrifying! If you ever wondered what an author sees when they get up on stage, take a look at the picture above …
My last May event was Brighton Festival on the 28th, and it was an amazing way to finish the month! I had an incredible signing queue afterwards, and some of them even brought me presents. Thank you Stephanie, Molly and the rest of the audience for being so thoughtful – I loved my bunbreak!
I’ll be back out on the road in July (see my upcoming events here), but this week I’m editing, making final tweaks to my fifth book. Watch out for the title and cover reveal coming in July as well. You can already pre-order it here, though, and it’ll be out in UK shops on 20th October, just in time for Christmas!
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June 10, 2016
Daisy and Hazel arrive in Taiwan
I had a very special delivery today: the Taiwanese edition of my first book, Murder Most Unladylike! It’s the second foreign language edition that I’ve seen (if you missed the gorgeous Italian hardcovers of the first two books, check them out here) and the first to be written in a language that I can’t read a word of. Daisy and Hazel have travelled completely beyond me – it’s a magnificent and bewildering feeling.
I’m completely in love with the cover. It looks like I’ve written a really elegant horror movie, possibly a boarding school version of the Ring. Daisy and Hazel appear to be balancing on the edge of a knife, which is actually very appropriate. And look at the maps!
I’m so honoured to see my book travelling to so many countries – next up will be the French edition this summer. If you see any foreign editions in the wild, let me know!
May 31, 2016
A note on school visits
Note: I edited this on June 2nd to clarify that I’m only referring to school events I book myself, and that this decision does not affect all of my other events!
It’s been six months since I made the decision to leave my job at a children’s publisher and become a full-time author. It’s been an incredibly exciting, strange thing to navigate, and I am so glad that I did it – I know I wouldn’t have been able to write my fifth book without making the change. I’ve had time to visit more schools, and go to more literary festivals, and write more emails and hold more public events…
But about two months ago I began to notice something. I was very tired, all of the time. I could not work out why this was happening. I didn’t even have another job any more! I was probably not trying hard enough, and this was bad.
But then I looked at my schedule, at all of those school events and festivals and signings, and noticed something. I haven’t had more than one day off per week since I left my job. In fact, there have been some weeks (some months) where I’ve had no days off. I’ve been writing and visiting schools five days a week, and then travelling to festivals and signings every weekend. And I suddenly realised why I was so tired.
This lightbulb moment came at almost exactly the same time as I saw my editorial schedule for the next year. I’ve got Book 5 to finish by the end of June, and then a lot of exciting projects (more about these very soon, I promise!) to work on before the end of the year. And that’s why I’ve decided to close to (self-booked) school visits until the end of the year. I’ll be taking school event bookings in the New Year, and can’t wait to be back on the road meeting all my brilliant readers for World Book Day 2017.
What does this mean? Not much, actually! I won’t stop writing, or doing events, or meeting my fans. On the contrary, I’m making this small change to my schedule to allow myself to spend time with you and time with my books. I think it’s the best way forward! To find out more, read the handy FAQ below.
Q: What are self-booked school visits? Does this mean you’ll stop visiting schools?
A: By self-booked I mean visits that I organise directly with a school. I won’t be taking any more bookings until the new year – but I will of course be doing school visits organised by my publisher. I’m doing a big five-day tour of schools in November to promote my fifth book, and I’ll go on another tour of schools in the spring. So you might just get a visit from me anyway!
Q: I love your books! Does this mean you won’t be doing any more events?
A: No! Closing to school visits means that I can keep on doing public events in bookshops and at festivals. There will be a regular programme of public events around the release of the fifth book – keep checking the calendar at the bottom of my About Me page to see where and when I’m appearing. I’ve updated it with my schedule for the summer already!
Q: So you’ll still be promoting your fifth book?
A: ABSOLUTELY! That was never in doubt, and I’ve already got lots of events in the pipeline. If you want to meet me, there’ll be lots of opportunities.
Q: Will you be at any festivals this summer?
A: I’m not going to be at Hay or Edinburgh, unfortunately – but check my schedule to see where I will be appearing!
Q: I’m a librarian or a teacher and we’ve already agreed a date for an upcoming self-booked event. Will you still be coming?
A: Yes, I will. I’m going to honour all of my existing commitments – anything else wouldn’t be fair.
Q: I’m a librarian or a teacher and we’ve been in contact about a self-booked event – but we haven’t yet agreed on a date. Can we still go ahead?
A: Please email me about this – I’ll work on a case by case basis, and try to accept what I can! Don’t panic yet.
Q: I’m a librarian or a teacher and I’d like you to come visit my school for World Book Day, or later in the spring. Are you open then?
A: I’ve got a few slots free for the week of WBD, so it’s worth trying – but I can’t commit to anything else in the spring of 2017 until the new year.
Thank you all for being so understanding and lovely. I have the world’s best fans – and I know you deserve the best books I can write!
An announcement – school visits
It’s been six months since I made the decision to leave my job at a children’s publisher and become a full-time author. It’s been an incredibly exciting, strange thing to navigate, and I am so glad that I did it – I know I wouldn’t have been able to write my fifth book without making the change. I’ve had time to visit more schools, and go to more literary festivals, and write more emails and hold more public events…
But about two months ago I began to notice something. I was very tired, all of the time. I could not work out why this was happening. I didn’t even have another job any more! I was probably not trying hard enough, and this was bad.
But then I looked at my schedule, at all of those school events and festivals and signings, and noticed something. I haven’t had more than one day off per week since I left my job. In fact, there have been some weeks (some months) where I’ve had no days off. I’ve been writing and visiting schools five days a week, and then travelling to festivals and signings every weekend. And I suddenly realised why I was so tired.
This lightbulb moment came at almost exactly the same time as I saw my editorial schedule for the next year. I’ve got Book 5 to finish by the end of June, and then a lot of exciting projects (more about these very soon, I promise!) to work on before the end of the year. I have to admit defeat – I can’t write these books and do as many events as I’ve been doing. I am not actually magic. And that’s why, with heavy heart, I’ve decided to close to school visits for the forseeable future.
What does this mean? Check out the handy FAQ below. But know that I want to make sure I can be available to my wonderful fans and get my books delivered on time, and I think that this is the best way forward. I hope you’ll understand!
Q: I love your books! Does this mean you won’t be doing any more events?
A: No! Closing to school visits means that I can do public events – in bookshops and at festivals. There will be a regular programme of events around the release of the fifth book – keep checking the calendar at the bottom of my About Me page to see where and when I’m appearing. I’ve updated it with my schedule for the summer already!
Q: So you’ll still be promoting your fifth book?
A: ABSOLUTELY! I’ve already got lots of events in the pipeline. If you want to meet me, there’ll be lots of opportunities.
Q: Will you be at any festivals this summer?
A: I’m not going to be at Hay or Edinburgh, unfortunately – but check my schedule to see where I will be appearing!
Q: I’m a librarian or a teacher and we’ve already agreed a date for an upcoming event. Will you still be coming?
A: Yes, I will. I’m going to honour all of my existing commitments – anything else wouldn’t be fair.
Q: I’m a librarian or a teacher and we’ve been in contact – but we haven’t yet agreed on a date. Can we still go ahead?
A: Please email me about this – I’ll work on a case by case basis, and try to accept what I can! Don’t panic yet.
Q: I’m a librarian or a teacher and I’d like you to come visit my school for World Book Day, or later in the spring. Are you open then?
A: I’ve got a few slots free for the week of WBD, so it’s worth trying – but I can’t commit to anything else in the spring of 2017 at the moment.
Q: I’ve emailed you, and you haven’t responded yet. Why?
A: I’ve been so busy with the fifth book, and with events, that I haven’t been able to take the time to respond. I want to write back properly to everyone who contacts me, and that sometimes takes a while. Be patient – I promise that I will get to you!
Thank you all for being so understanding and lovely. I have the world’s best fans – and I know you deserve the best books I can write!
