Claire Fayers's Blog, page 6

Storm Hound

It’s been a busy and exciting few weeks.  First a trip to visit the wonderful Tales on Moon Lane bookshop in London for a pair of school events. Then a visit to a two Cardiff schools. I had great fun talking about the three essential P’s of storytelling, and leading workshops on fictional settings, heroes and villains.

I often find villains more interesting than heroes. Villains are the ones who come up with the plans, who cause the problems the heroes need to step in and solve. My own favourite villain is still Marfak West from my pirate books, because he gets to say all the sarcastic things that other people are too polite to say out loud. Though Mirror Magic’s Lord Skinner comes a close second. He is someone who never set out to become a villain, but he took the easy way out once too often.

Which brings me to my favourite hero and my other exciting news. Proof copies of Storm Hound have arrived and they are glorious. Here they are, guarded by my very own storm puppy, knitted by a lovely friend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here’s a sneak preview of the first page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Storm is my kind of hero. He’s fierce, he’s brave, he throws himself at every new challenge with gusto. And he’s constantly frustrated that NO ONE WILL TAKE HIM SERIOUSLY!!!! Just because he looks like an adorably cute puppy.

Storm Hound will be out in February. I’ll have more news soon, including a look at the final cover by the super-talented Becka Moor. In the meantime, a big thank you to Macmillan Children’s Books, Literature Wales, and everyone who has contributed to making this book so special.

 

How to Write a Newspaper Story

Hello! You may have seen the newspaper that goes with my book, Mirror Magic. It’s called the Wyse Weekly Mirror and you can download a copy here.

I had fun writing all the articles so I thought I’d share a few tips for writing newspaper stories. You might want to write about your holidays, your family, or even invent some spooky articles for a Halloween newspaper.

You can download this guide and print it out by clicking on this link.

 

How to Write a Newspaper Story
Step 1 – Plan your Story

Who is your story about?

What happened?

Where did it happen?

When did it happen?

Why did it happen? (This one can be quite hard to answer, but it will make your story more interesting.)

 

For example, here’s something that happened on my last holiday.

Who – two small dinosaurs, Sir Boris and Sir Doris.

What – They were accused of stealing a kite and imprisoned without trial. This caused a public outcry. The two dinosaurs made a daring escape in a flying pirate ship kite.

Where – The International Kite Festival in Dieppe, France.

When – September

Why – Because the dinosaurs’ human owner was being very mean.

 

Step 2 – Write Your Story

Two dinosaurs, Sir Boris and Sir Doris, were wrongly imprisoned in Dieppe, France, after they were accused of stealing a kite from the International Kite Festival in September.

Their human owner, the author Claire Fayers, said she was going to keep the dinosaurs in prison until they’d learned their lesson.

But Claire’s friends all said she was being mean and she should free the dinosaurs. They sent many messages of support on Facebook, and some people even sent gifts of chocolate to the dinosaurs.

The situation was resolved when the dinosaurs escaped dramatically one morning, sneaking out of prison and flying away in kite shaped like a pirate ship.

 

Step 3 – Edit your Story

All writers have to edit their work, sometimes many times over, until they get it right. Is your story the best you can make it?

Tips:

Keep your story short. Can you cut out any words? See how short you can make it (you can always add some words back in).

Think about the words you’re using. Can you change any of them for more interesting words?

Can you add any pictures or quotes from the people involved?

 

My finished story

 

Two dinosaurs were falsely imprisoned this September, accused them of stealing a kite from the Dieppe International Kite Festival in France.

 

Sir Boris and Sir Doris, both brontosauruses, denied the charge and soon their supporters were calling for their release. “I don’t like seeing innocent dinosaurs jailed,” said Sam on Facebook, while Brandon shouted “FREE THE DINOS!”

But the dinosaurs’ owner meanly put them on bread and water rations.

On their third day in prison, the dinosaurs escaped, wearing hats knitted by one of their supporters.

The brave duo were last seen flying away in a pirate ship kite.

 

Book party

Hello all!

You are invited to a party. I am delighted to be joining the awesome Stephanie Burgis once again, this time in Waterstones, Abergavenny.

We will be celebrating our new books – Mirror Magic from me, and The Girl with the Dragon Heart from Stephanie.

Do check out the details on our facebook page. There will be book chat, chocolate, children’s gifts, chocolate, book readings, chocolate…

The event is open to everyone and there’s no need to let us know in advance if you’re coming, (but if you do we will become especially excited and look forward to seeing you.)

Come and join us! We’d hate to eat all that chocolate by ourselves.

 

Mirror Magic Blog Tour Round-Up

It’s been a quiet month since Mirror Magic launched. But never trust a quiet writer – when we’re silent, we’re plotting.

I’ve been finishing off my latest draft of Storm Hound, due out next February, thanks to Literature Wales and Macmillan’s Children’s Books. And I’ve had my first glimpse of the cover. It’s still top secret at the moment, but I love it.

I have quite overwhelmed by the love and support for Mirror Magic. The blog tour in particular was great fun, and in case you missed any of the stops I thought I’d collate them all here in one handy guide to the Unworld. My thanks once again to everyone who took part, and to Karen Bultiauw for organising.

STOP 1 – THE READER TEACHER – Review and Guest Post, If Rome had Magic

‘Claire has conjured up a story that’s a richly magical, mid-nineteenth century myriad of mirrors and mystery. Her writing not only transcends beautifully between magical realms but in the real world too… This is definitely my most favourite of Claire’s yet!’

STOP 2 – IN PURSUIT OF WONDERLAND – Review

‘As a kid I used to wonder whether there was something on the other side of the mirror – and still do sometimes if I’m honest.’

STOP 3 – DRAWING ON BOOKS – Interview

‘Some people fear the unknown, but in the end it’s always better to be shaped by our kindness than our fear.’

STOP 4 – BOOK MURMURATION – Guest Post, If William the Conqueror had Magic

‘Inhabitants of southern England are today being urged to remain calm amid rumours that William, Duke of Normandy, is planning an invasion of the Kent coast. Normandy is well known for its enchanted apples and it is feared that Duke William has singled out Kent as suitable land for an extension of his vast orchards.’

STOP 5 – A LITTLE BUT A LOT – Review

‘Serious fun with some brilliant characters!’

STOP 6 – NO SAFER PLACE – Guest Post, If the Middle Ages had Magic

‘King William 1 of England has confirmed that the Doomsday Book will contain information on the mortal world only and will not include the corresponding Unworld towns… The Unworld welcomed the news with its usual indifference. “Your king does not rule the Unworld,” one blue-haired man said. “He can count what he likes. It makes no difference to us.”’

STOP 7 – THE UNTITLED BOOK BLOG – Review

‘This book couldn’t be any further up my street if it lived in my house.’

STOP 8 – TALES OF YESTERDAY – Guest Post, If Henry VIII had Magic

‘King Henry has shocked England by marrying his Unworld mistress, Anne Unboleyn, in a secret ceremony.’

STOP 9 – KELLY’S RAMBLES – Review

‘A truly magical and captivating adventure that will have young readers itching to jump through mirrors to visit the otherworld.’

STOP 10 – A CUP OF WONDERLAND – Review

‘I often used to imagine that there was a world similar to my own but perhaps had some magical qualities which belonged to that world.’

STOP 11 – GOLDEN BOOKS GIRL – Guest Post, the 17th Century with Magic

‘Sir Walter Raleigh has been arrested for treason following his latest expedition to the Unworld.’

STOP 12 – MINERVA READS – Review and Guest Post, the Industrial Revolution with Magic

‘The wonder of magic, of course, is that you can make anything happen anywhere. What makes it work within a novel is a basis in reality and familiarity, and the ability to exploit its comic as well as dark potential.’

STOP 13 – BOOK LOVER JO – Guest Post, What if We Had Magic Today?

‘The London Marathon once again ended in chaos as some runners used magical shortcuts through the Unworld and others took magical potions for extra speed and energy. Fifty runners were disqualified for using winged costumes.’

STOP 14 – MR RIPLEY’S ENCHANTED BOOKS – Interview

‘You have to be careful in Wyse as nothing is how it seems.’

STOP 15 – THE FAMILY BOOKWORMS – Video interview

‘What can you tell us about Mirror Magic?’

‘Um.. It’s called Mirror Magic and it’s got a cover…’

(The interview does get better after that – stick with it!)

I have added all the guest posts to my resources section, along with the Wyse Weekly Mirror and a newspaper template for you to print out and create your own ‘what if’ newspaper. Please do take a look!

Dang! Missed it!

I had the strangest feeling yesterday that something important was happening but I couldn’t quite remember what it was. Then today, I woke up and remembered.

Mirror Magic is here!

Hurrah! Confetti! Magic! Firework! Cake! Cake! Cake!

Here’s some cake I finished earlier.

I had a wonderful two days with Booka Bookshop in Oswestry, travelling around schools to talk about books and writing. At my first event the three schools held a ‘what happens next’ writing competition based on a passage from Mirror Magic, and I hope they’re not disappointed when they read what really happened next because some of their ideas were genius.

I’m visiting Crickhowell Primary School today with Bookish Bookshop. Bookish also does excellent cake so I may well have to try a piece just for the purposes of scientific comparison, of course. The two best things about being a writer, I’ve found, are visiting schools and eating cake.

The Cardiff launch of Mirror Magic will take place on Saturday, 2pm at the Wellfield Bookshop, Wellfield Road, Cardiff. Please do pop along if you’re in the area. (There will be more cake!)

 

 

 

One Week To Go!!!

Only one week until Mirror Magic is officially published.

Here is a word from The Book.

Hello, I am The Book. I see everything that will happen in your world. Well, I see most of it. Well, I see some of it. If I’m paying attention. You try being a magical book of prophecy and see how you get on keeping track of everything.

Anyway, some person has presumed to write about what happened in Wyse in the fateful year of 1842 and this person will be visiting various places on your human Internet telling you what history would have been like with magic, and answering questions about how she wrote her book (I can tell you she won’t admit she stole it all from me.)

Drop by any of the stops on the tour if you’d like to know more. I predict you will.

The Book

 

 

A huge thank you to all the lovely bloggers taking part in the tour. I can’t wait to visit you all.

And, readers, what if our world really did have magic, and that magic was dying? Would people try to bring it back, or would they not care? What would you do?

I hope you have a magical weekend, and see you next week!

Two Week Warning!

Only two weeks to go!

Today I am off to the Hay Festival, attending an industry day courtesy of Literature Wales. I will not be thinking about Mirror Magic at all…

Except to say, details of the book are now on my website.

Lord Skinner says you can pre-order the book from your local bookshop. Lord Skinner is a fine gentleman and you should do what he says.

Three Weeks To Go!

The Mirror Magic countdown continues. Only three weeks until publication day.

 

There will be a blog tour!

There will be an actual tour along the Welsh Marches looking for the magical town of Wyse.

I’m hoping there will be lots of tea and cake.

And, on Saturday June 16th from 2pm-3pm, there will be a book signing at Wellfield Books, Wellfield Road Cardiff. I love this independent bookshop and it’s a few minutes from a lovely boating lake and the best ice cream in the city. Everyone is welcome. The Book has predicted that the sun will be shining and there will almost definitely be cake. (The Book may be wrong. Fairy magic is unpredictable and any predictions are not guaranteed to happen exactly as stated.)

THREE WEEKS TO GO! THIS IS YOUR THREE WEEK WARNING!!!

Four Week Count Down!

I can’t believe it’s only four weeks until the launch of Mirror Magic. I am so excited.

I’m busy working on Storm Hound at the moment (coming in 2019) and preparing some fun Mirror Magic resources to download. There will also be a blog tour starting on June 9th. I’ve never done a blog tour before and it promises to be great fun. I’ve been writing lots of guest posts imagining what history would look like if we had magic.

Early copies of Mirror Magic are making their way into the world and I’ve had some lovely responses from reviewers and bloggers already. Thank you all!

You can see a sneak preview of Mirror Magic on Amazon, including a look at the first few pages.

And now, just for fun, a few photos from my latest Accidental Pirate events around the country.

An unexpected snowfall on March 1st meant St David’s Day came late at this book festival.
I’m a dragon!
And a sheep!
Getting creative with settings at the Cardiff Children’s Literature Festival
The pirates are coming! Lovely hand-made cut-outs from the Merthyr volunteers

Getting to the exciting bit…
Tallis is taking his book guarding duties very seriously.

Thanks to my husband, Phillip, for taking these photos. See you all again soon for more Mirror Magic news.

Festival time!

April and May are busy months with Mirror Magic coming in June. I’ve just received an actual, real copy of the book and it is beautiful inside and out. Here’s a sneak preview of the first pages.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ll be announcing launch plans soon, but in the meantime if you fancy a quick trip to South Wales, I’ll be at two terrific festivals in Cardiff and Pontypridd, where I will be talking about pirates, props and magical places.

On the 25th April I’ll be at the Cardiff Children’s Literature Festival, chairing a discussion on writing for children and how to get published with author Horatio Clare and literary agent Philippa Milnes-Smith. And on Saturday 28th April, the giant pirate hat will be coming out for my children’s session on imagination, stories and adventure. Tickets are available here

If you can’t make it to Cardiff, I’ll be at the brand new Pontypridd Children’s Book Festival on the 12th May, signing books and teaching a writing masterclass. I’m really looking forward to this one. There are lots of fantastic authors going and there’ll be board-games, market stalls and lots more. It’s shaping up to be great fun. Tickets for my masterclass are selling out fast, so book soon!  https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/pontypridd-childrens-book-festival