Greetings everyone. I am disappointed about having to cancel the Back to School Blog Tour this year. But I have found a way to be supportive by giving a type of shout out to new books that I’ve discovered from great, new Indie Children’s Authors. I know how many teachers need to stock their class libraries right now, and how parents want to support their child at home with quality reading material.
So, here is the first introduction to help build your Back to School Buying List.
GENRE: Children’s Middle Grade Realistic Fantasy
His Silent Killer
by Rich Unkel
Special things are to be cherished and protected. For Burton, this held a different sentiment. He had a treasure that was from the past, but it measured his future. It calculated his life through pain. The more pain he experienced, the more his treasure let him know he was closer to his mortality. He could not escape this faceless clock that kept track of his past, present, and future. That is until the hand hit the Omega. Was this clock accurate? Could it really tell him when life was over? Will Burton be able to live without the pains of life overtaking him?
The book is available at Amazon.com as a Kindle and print edition.
Damon Piletz is the creator of the pen name Rich Unkel. Mr. Piletz is a teacher and writer. He has had the opportunity to be a part of many areas of education over the last twenty-three years. Working with thousands of students, Damon’s love of writing comes alive in the classroom motivating both reluctant and seasoned writers. Many of his published works have been used with students of all ages. Damon lives in Vermont with his wife and family.
I am a sucker for a good zombie book. I also remember teaching all the different genres when I was a teacher. October was the “Spooky” genre month, but I found many students reading them all year long. If you have a child that enjoys the “Spooky” or horror fiction genre, I think I’ve found the right author for you.
Ron Crouch is a child psychologist that loves to write and help kids critically think. He is writing a series of middle grade novels and the second will be released on March 31. With a love of fantasy as a kid, he brings alive a gripping and humorous world kids can get lost in. I had the chance to talk to Ron Crouch about his childhood reading memories, favorite author, writing routines and what projects he has planned in the future.
What is your favorite memory from reading as a child?
Ron Crouch: My favorite memory from reading as a child was the joy of stumbling onto a really good series and realizing that there were many more books to read.
Who was your favorite author and how did they influence you?
Ron Crouch: I loved Lloyd Alexander and I read every book he published. I finished them sometime between the ages of eight and fourteen. When I took up writing myself, I found that although my settings and characters are very different, and my use of language in much more modern, I still had the same love for quests, adventures, and tall tales.
Do you have a writing routine? Share what works for you.
Ron Crouch: I work as a child psychologist during the day, so my writing routine starts early, usually before 5AM. I try to fit in all my writing before I leave for work at the hospital each day. Luckily, I’m an early bird by nature and find that I am most creative in the hours before the sun rises.
What subjects would you like to write about in future projects?
Ron Crouch: The Beyond Belief book series is for middle grade readers, and I would like to finish the series with five books. But beyond that I would like to write nonfiction for parents. In particular I would like to help parents in their efforts to teach their children how to think critically in our current misinformation age.
What is writing to you in one sentence?
Ron Crouch: For me, writing is a way of contacting like-minded people and offering them a sense of belonging in a world that might not value them and support them.
“Beyond Belief: The Adventure of Zombie Island” is Ghost Adventures meets the Goonies. Kenai is an ordinary kid that just happens to be a paranormal investigator. With his sidekick Tinkerbell, an AI drone, he has gone after ghosts in a haunted theater, run from herds of jackalopes, and gotten lost in underground bunkers. But in this book two of the series, he finds himself somewhere he’d never imagine: stuck selling door-to-door products for the Happy Day pyramid scheme. But there seems to be something wrong with the company. Can he find out what is behind the sinister business before the zombie thugs find him?
“Beyond Belief: The Adventure of Zombie Island” is the second book in the Beyond Belief series. It is available starting on March 31, 2021 and is currently on pre-order at Amazon.com.
If you’d like to start the Beyond Belief series with book one in preparation for the release of book two, here is the link to it. Start with “Beyond Belief: The Adventure Begins” HERE.
Both titles are in the Kindle Unlimited program.
For more information on Ron Crouch and his other projects, please visit his website at:
I always like to look high and low for new, interesting children’s authors. I really do love it when I find a new children’s fantasy author. She has a background in children’s development that gives her books that extra insight to support children.
Let me introduce you to Lia Ginno. Her unique, fantasy books deal with characters struggling to fit into normal and realizing often that they are fine the way they are. Her newest picture book, “Turmeric and Magic”, deals with a dragon trying to find her magic.
I had the chance to talk with Lia Ginno about her childhood reading, favorite author, and what writing means to her.
What is your favorite memory from reading as a child?
Lia Ginno: I loved going into another world.
Who was your favorite author and how did they influence you?
Lia Ginno: I loved Enid Byton’s, Secret Seven series and Famous Five series. I think I was at an age when I could imagine such adventures with friends. I remember I had a group of friends and an old tumbledown building as our headquarters for a ‘secret club.’ Unfortunately we never ‘lived’ the adventures in the books, but we all read them. They inspired my imagination and the first book and a play, I ever wrote, was when I was twelve. Also, a local reporter in an interview compared my first Legend book to one of EB’s books. So, she had more of an influence than I realized.
What is writing to you in one sentence?
Lia Ginno: A book is a dream you hold in your hand as imagination, problem solves, and creates everything on earth.
“Turmeric and Magic” is a picture book that deals with the diversity in all of us. Tumeric is different from other dragons. She cannot fly and is allergic to fire and smoke. She dreams to be like other dragons. Being an avid reader, she discovers that there is a book that will teach you magic if you are determined to find it. She begins a journey to find the book. Will following her dreams lead her to the book? Can it help her magic to appear? This delightfully illustrated picture book will enchant and help children explore their unique differences that can turn into inner strength.
One of my favorite books I read in 5th grade was called “Half Magic” by Edward Eager. I think it’s one of the books that drew me into fantasy as a kid. So, I’ve always been intrigued by wishing magic stories. I think I’ve found a great one to read aloud to your class or have your youngster dive into during this pandemic. Reading is such a great escape and distraction, as well as building literary skills. I think I’ve been doing more reading since the lockdowns started back in March 2020. So, this is the perfect new release to treat your class or child at the start of 2021.
Valerie Anne Hudson is the author of the new children’s fantasy book, “Watch What You Wish For”.
I’d like to introduce you to the author, Valerie Anne Hudson. She’s written the book involving wish magic called “Watch What You Wish For”. I had the chance to ask her about her reading inspirations as a child, writing routines and helpful methods, and all sorts of interesting facts on her process for writing her book.
1) What is your favorite memory from reading as a child?
Valerie Anne Hudson: The sudden realization that I could read ‘grown up’ books. I vividly remember having absolutely nothing to read one day. Out of desperation, I took one of my parents’ books off the bookshelf – it was a Readers’ Digest containing a variety of condensed novels. I devoured the contents, and was so proud of myself!
2) Who was your favorite author and how did they influence you?
Valerie Anne Hudson: As a child my favorite author was Louisa May Alcott. I still have my original dog-eared copy of “Little Women.” I must have read that book dozens of times over the years. What a superb achievement, to write a book that’s still enjoyable and relatable 150 years later.
3) Do you have a writing routine? Share what works for you.
Valerie Anne Hudson: I write for 4 or 5 hours a day, which is easy for me now that I’m retired. I’m truly fortunate to be able to do that!
4) What subjects would you like to write about in future projects?
Valerie Anne Hudson: At the moment I’m focused on fantasy: the paranormal and the supernatural, and I write for children. I hope that my writing evolves, though, and would like to attempt something for adults in the future.
5) How has your day job/career prepared you to be a writer?
Valerie Anne Hudson: I taught school for 25 years, so there’s lots of writing involved there. I taught grades 4 to 6 for many of those years, and always loved teaching English and creative writing.
6) Why are you drawn to writing fantasy and about the paranormal?
Valerie Anne Hudson: An overactive imagination! I’m a huge Stephen King and Dean Koontz fan, along with JK Rowling, of course. Such great escapism!
7) What activities do you do to help with the creative writing process?
Valerie Anne Hudson: I’m always on the alert for potential plots or scenes for upcoming stories. It’s amazing how many ideas you can get from real life news stories – truth is always stranger than fiction, as they say. Also, I try and read other people’s books as much as I can. All types and genres.
8) How did you get the idea for the “Wishing Tree” in your book, “Watch What You Wish For”?
Valerie Anne Hudson: I was thinking, what if you made a wish that actually came true? And what if you regretted making that wish and wanted to take it back? Then I started researching wishing wells and the stories associated with them, and discovered that there are actually wishing trees in some parts of the world. A tree seemed like it could be more dramatic than a well, so that’s how the idea blossomed.
9) Is the town of Mariposa a real town? If yes, why did you choose it? If no, was it inspired by a real town and which one?
Valerie Anne Hudson: Mariposa is a fictional Canadian town originally created by renowned author Stephen Leacock. Although he denied it, it was actually based on the town of Orillia, Ontario, which is where I live. I’ve changed the layout of the town and its surroundings around a fair bit in my story, so it wouldn’t have been fair to call it Orillia. Mariposa seemed like a good alternative choice.
10) What is writing to you in one sentence?
Valerie Anne Hudson: The desire to entertain my readers with sheer, delightful escapism!
Released on Jan. 8, 2021
“Watch What You Wish For” isn’t your normal fairy tale. 12-year-old Sophie isn’t happy about moving to the small town of Mariposa. She misses the big city, but luckily finds some friends also in the 7th grade. Their adventures lead to the discovery of an ancient Wishing Tree. They find the secret to unleash an evil power connected to the towns shadowy past. People start to go missing as lives turn upside down. Faced with the need to try to get things back to the way they were, our heroes embark on a journey that leads to self-discovery and friendship.
“Watch What You Wish For” is available at Amazon.com as a Kindle Unlimited title.
For more information on Valerie Anne Hudson, visit her website here.
I use crystals, small plants in pots, and fairy figurines to decorate my porch fairy garden.
I’ve been giving tips to parents for the last few months in how to help structure your child’s learning. Now that summer is here, we’re trying to find more at home summer activities to keep our children and families safe from Covid19. What a great time to take advantage of the outdoor space you have! Have you considered building a garden? This doesn’t mean you need a backyard. Gardens can be built on a porch or even a window sill. To make it extra special, create a fairy garden!
The first step is to choose small plants that you would enjoy tending. You can buy them in small planters and/or replant them into the places you would like, or plant seeds and watch them grow. Choose flowering plants or herb plants such as lavender, rosemary, or other favorite herbs your family may prefer. You get the extra bonus that you can eat them later. Small ivy or other small growing plants with flowers make lovely fairy settings.
Many cities and towns are starting phase 2 openings in which garden shops are starting to be allowed to reopen. Small starter plants can be purchased or order seeds online. You can pick and choose which plants you enjoy. Look to see where your plants will be. Consider if you have more shade or sun, since often plants can be purchased that fit those conditions. I have a shaded porch and I find plants that need a lot of sun tend to not do well. So, I’ve chosen more shade friendly plants for my porch fairy garden. Remember, stay safe and wear a mask when going back into stores and use hand sanitizer.
My garden gnome was purchased from the local garden center and is prominent in my fairy garden.
The second step is to order either small pebbles, sand or other decorative gardening accents to create paths and decorative areas for your fairies. You can use these items to decorate and create places for your fairies to gather. For example: I used old aquarium stones to make paths and a little gathering space to later place fairy figurines.
Accent items turn the garden space into wonderful scenes for fairy figurines. The added bonus is you get to watch the plants grow to fit. You can also order crystals to places through out the garden. Plants enjoy having the energy of these wonderful pieces among and around their leaves. Place stones and crystals in pots and in soil.
The third step is to order fairy figures. Many of the figures I have collected over the years have been given to me as gifts or I have purchased from gardening shops or other places. This can be a fun experiment in searching for the right fairies for your garden. You might find it is a wonderful time to start a new collection, and the garden will be a home for your new fairy figures.
When done, you’ll have a fabulous fairy garden to tend. Watering my garden is a great welcome relief from online working and tutoring. I enjoy having a cup of tea while smelling jasmine flowers or looking at my small Japanese maple tree. Other plants and flowers attract birds and butterflies from time to time. My porch may be small, but it is mighty in the positive fairy experience it creates for me to relax and enjoy some quiet time.
Enjoy building your own fairy garden with your children and welcome the summer weather in style. When you’re done, you’ll have a monument to the peace you can build at home.
Plus: you can still continue summer reading with your child. I’ve made available an entire free online novel to go along with my first book in my fantasy children’s series, “The Lost Secret of Fairies”. The story takes place during the summer, and is a great addition to a child’s reading list to continue reading skills in these away from school months. There is nothing better to curl up with a good book in a garden. It’s something I did as a kid myself. So, can’t help but pass on the tip.
The Indie Children's Authors Connection 