Justin Christopher's Blog, page 4
January 5, 2021
More great pics of Freakout Island!
Today I found a birthday card from my daughter. She drew the pictures as I was writing Freakout Island. A few of the characters still feature in the published story, namely Dr Vayne, and Leo with the bubble for a butt! Pip, who swallowed a watermelon and therefore grew a watermelon oout her head will have to wait to be another version. Felix is pictured, the boy whose brain fell out as he picked his nose. Knotty, the girl with a bird’s nest for hair, became Harriet, and the vomiting Komodo Dragon is still in the story! You can read the first chapter of this book on my Freakout Island page here. Enjoy!
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December 29, 2020
My Twin Brother
I put this pic online a few days ago and a few of my friends thought I looked a lot like my friend in the bike basket. How rude! When I was your age I loved the movie E.T so much it made me want to create my own alien world. And now we’re lucky enough to have Stranger Things, which some say is even BETTER than E.T. What world do you want to create? Go ahead and do it!
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December 28, 2020
Hey there, Storyteller!As an author, I’m often asked very...
Hey there, Storyteller!
As an author, I’m often asked very similar questions – here are some answers.
How do you think of new characters?
Think about the characters in Roald Dahl’s books – they are hilarious, gross, or really super lovely. Feel free to exaggerate your own characters, you are the teller of the story. Readers won’t care about characters unless they are believable. Think about if you were your character, how would you feel? What you like in them is a part of you; you’ve got to recognize it before you can use it.
Where do you get your ideas?
Go with those ideas most alive in you. Which ones evoke the most energy and passion?
How do you start a story?
You write. Write when you’re tired and when you don’t want to write. Try to write for an hour a night instead of watching TV. 100 words become 1000, becomes a manuscript. The first draft will always be rubbish, it always is, but keep going!
The post appeared first on Justin Christopher Author.
Hey there, Storyteller!
As an author, I’m often asked ver...
Hey there, Storyteller!
As an author, I’m often asked very similar questions – here are some answers.
How do you think of new characters?
Think about the characters in Roald Dahl’s books – they are hilarious, gross, or really super lovely. Feel free to exaggerate your own characters, you are the teller of the story. Readers won’t care about characters unless they are believable. Think about if you were your character, how would you feel? What you like in them is a part of you; you’ve got to recognize it before you can use it.
Where do you get your ideas?
Go with those ideas most alive in you. Which ones evoke the most energy and passion?
How do you start a story?
You write. Write when you’re tired and when you don’t want to write. Try to write for an hour a night instead of watching TV. 100 words become 1000, becomes a manuscript. The first draft will always be rubbish, it always is, but keep going!
The post appeared first on Justin Christopher.
December 27, 2020
The post appeared first on Justin Christopher Author.
The post appeared first on Justin Christopher Author.
December 26, 2020
Give me that stick!
My dad’s dog Charlie is no longer with us, but he was a real character! RIP Charlie. ;(
The post Give me that stick! appeared first on Justin Christopher.
December 25, 2020
Freakout Island In Pictures
When I was writing Freakout Island my daughter Sophie was busy drawing characters for the story. (She’s so cool.) The original draft had some characters that didn’t make it to the published book, like Jack Russell (who only ate dog biscuits and turned into a dog.) There was also Pip who ate too many watermelon pips and her head turned into a watermelon. Leo’s original name was Chudd and the first draft also featured twins, Jimmy and Francis. But you will also notice that Dr Vayne and the Komodo dragon were in an early draft and became the main characters in the story. This is a good example of how a story can change.
The best advice I ever got? Just start!
You can do it.
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December 19, 2020
Do you love Dr Seuss? Me too.
Well guess what, he was a kid once too. He’s the one wearing shoes, in case you were wondering. Oh, and if you’re new to Dr Seuss check out some of his wonderful books – The Cat In The Hat, The Lorax, and Green Eggs and Ham. He was a gentle genius.
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‘If you dedicate your next book to me I’ll give you $1.20!’
A boy named Kit once said this to me after a school talk. He was reading my new book My Best Worst Year. At the time, my nine-year-old daughter Sophie was having this book read to her class. She came home and said, ‘Dad, even the bullies love this story – and they never share their feelings!’ I hope you like the book. (Link).
Oh, I did dedicate a novel to Kit, but I have not seen any money yet!
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