GREGORY MONE

Villains at Milton Academy

2012-01-25T13:39:00.003-05:00

Earlier this week I had a great visit with the fourth-graders at Milton Academy. Half of them had read Fish, and they had several great questions about the writing process. At one point in the presentation I was talking about the evolution of a particular line in the book, and how it changed after a few debates with my editor, and a few of the kids actually remembered the sentence when it flashed up on the smart screen. Maybe it was the appearance of four ladies in large yellow dresses in the middle of an action scene that made the fragment memorable, but still, I was impressed. Quite a group of readers.

They were also especially interested in the villains in my books. Several of them volunteered their names for future evil characters. I promise I will keep them in mind.

We had some extra time at the end, so I read them the first chapter of my next book, Dangerous Waters, which comes out in March. Normally I edit while I read, cutting a sentence here, shortening a paragraph there, but in this case I read every word. They all felt necessary. That's a good sign, I think. And the kids seemed to love it...not a yawn or wandering stare in the place.

My favorite comment from one of the students: "You make me want to read a hundred books!"

That's exactly what an author wants to hear.

Eating Stars in Austin

2012-01-25T13:16:00.002-05:00

Last week I was in Austin reporting a really exciting story for Discover magazine. The main subjects of the piece keep vampire hours, so I had some free time in the morning, and listened in on some fabulous Austin dialogue while prepping in coffee shops. A few lines from one spot:

"Hip hop will never be the same."

"There's just a lot going on and none of it is interesting to me."

There was context to both, but I don't think it's necessary. Another exchange:

"How do you feel about Beck? I feel like there are a lot of Beck haters here."

"I don't feel one way or the other."

"I totally agree."

At another spot, I discovered that the highly skilled barista making the espresso was also a musician. His band is called Auroravore. For some reason my brain associated aurorae with stars, and asked him if his band were star eaters. "No," he said. "Aurora represents the music that exists outside of us and vore is kind of the synthesis."

Or I think that's what he said. And it's a very cool idea, but I still kind of wish they were the star eaters. Although that would make them black holes, which would probably not be a very good name for a band. If you went to a show by the black holes, would you ever leave? Would you disappear? Or become a part of the band, perhaps, as it swallows you whole?

There were quite a few more characters, but none of them matched the scientists. I've never had so much fun while being completely overloaded with intensely complex science - geophysics and astronomy and astrobiology. The story won't be out for a while, but I'll post it here when it's published.

Skyping with Singapore

2012-01-23T16:47:00.003-05:00

People have always told me that I have a rather large head, but the students of the Singapore American School must think it's gargantuan. A few weeks ago I skyped with Captain Coole's crew, a very inquisitive bunch of kids in Singapore. (OK, so they're not really a pirate crew, and their teacher isn't actually a pirate, but that's how they introduced themselves, and I like it.) They asked great questions about reading, writing, pirates, and my book Fish. I was especially excited to talk about Scab, the nasty, stinking villain; he's one of my favorite characters.

Toward the end of the visit, though, someone turned around the laptop in their far-off classroom so I could have a view of the space. This virtual tour also afforded me a look at the smartboard, where my massive head filled up the entire screen. It was terrifying. For me, at least. They seemed perfectly fine.

Anyway, thanks again to Captain Coole, the Roots, and the rest of the class. We'll have to talk again sometime, as long as we can figure out that time zone stuff...

McGlynn and the Cleveland

2011-11-23T09:30:00.003-05:00

A note to the students of McGlynn Elementary: My next book is not really about a bunch of kids trapped in a snow storm, but the idea is growing on me.

First, some background. During my presentation, my laptop misbehaved, going to sleep before its bedtime, and the projector promptly displayed an entirely white screen with a blue box in the middle and the phrase "No Signal!" directly in the center. Around this time, one of the students asked me about my next book, and since we had just been talking about covers, I joked that the image of the screen was the cover of my next book. The white space was snow, the blue box was a mysterious house, and the title represented the fact that all phone and communication lines have been cut off, etc. We ran with the joke for a little while, and they all knew I was making it up as we went along, but after thinking about it some more, it's really not such a bad idea for a book. Which means someone has probably written it already.

Anyway, on to Cleveland Elementary, another great school. Thanks to the kids for your very, very insightful notes. It's great to know that the central messages - becoming an expert in everything you write about and never, ever handing in your first draft - stayed with you. A few of my favorite comments from the notes:

"I really liked your presentation. I really thought you would just stand there and answer questions but you were a lot better than that."

"I liked how you told us about the weird people you meet..."

"You're really lucky you have only three kids...When you showed us all the messy writing you did it was great because when Mrs. Wesley [teaches us writing she] has us organize our thoughts on paper the way you did."

Thanks again for letting me pop in and talk about reading and writing....

Holten Richmond Middle School: In Defense of Bow Ties

2011-09-23T13:49:00.008-04:00

Earlier this week I was lucky enough to visit the Holten Richmond Middle School in Danvers, MA, for a talk with a bright crowd of students. We spoke about writing, rewriting, and rewriting again as I led them through the process of how FISH, my recent pirate novel, evolved from a simple idea into a finished and bound novel full of characters, foreign lands, quests and puzzles.

During the question & answer session, a few of the young gentlemen in the crowd took exception to my appearance in one of the photos displayed during my presentation. At that point in the talk I had been explaining how the idea for a character who loves to swim but hates to fight sprang from my own experience.

As proof of the fact that I abhorred violence, I showed them the photo here, a picture taken on the occasion of my graduation from sixth grade. They said nothing of the white pants, the yellow shirt, the violin case, or the way I leaned so naturally against the prow of that imitation submarine. Instead they were solely interested in my colorful necktie. In fact they were abhorred, wondering aloud why anyone would wear such a thing. Intimidated by these small but powerful young men, I quickly blamed my brother, who was a terrible sartorial influence. But I should have stood up for my tie, and bowties in general. If asked again, I will present my defense, citing, among other things, the fact that they are far less likely to stain or be caught inside a massive, spinning saw than their elongated brethren.

A few brave members of the audience declared that they thought the bow tie was cool. And I thank them for that. Thanks as well to Michelle Deschene-Warren of the Peabody Institute Library and Holten librarian Sarah Woo for putting the event together.

DANGEROUS WATERS Cover

2011-09-12T17:18:00.006-04:00

Here's the cover for my next novel, DANGEROUS WATERS. The story follows two kids - seen through the porthole - as they try to protect a rare and important book belonging to Titanic passenger Harry Elkins Widener. You can sort of see the book, a second edition of Sir Francis Bacon's Essaies, beneath the type.

DANGEROUS WATERS is due out in March. More details to come....

Wisdom from a DIY Master

2011-08-01T14:29:00.004-04:00

A few months back I had the privilege of interviewing Lance Greathouse, a dental laser repair technician who builds some seriously inventive machines in his spare time. Frightening robots, souped-up wheelchairs, and more. I wrote about his latest creation, a drive-able, fire-spewing tailgating rig, in this piece for Popular Science, but I was also struck by what we'll call his philosophy, or at least the parts of it we discussed. None of this made it into the story, which covered what he did and why he did it, so I figured I'd share some here.

On the creative impulse:

"I get an idea in my head and I've got to build it or I go nuts. It's a sickness. Once I see something I've got to build it or I just go crazy."

The benefits of building:

"When I'm working on something my mind is clear. That's how I relax. People think I'm nuts because I'm out here hammering on something until one in the morning, but that's how I relax. Some people fish, some people watch TV, some people build."

On putting down the phone:

When people ask him how he creates so many cool machines in his spare time, Greathouse asks them to hand him their phone. Then he turns it off and puts it away. "How can you focus on anything when you're always looking at your phone all the time?" he asks.

And on raising kids:

"If I could go back and do it over I would totally eliminate the video games. I hate that stuff with a passion. The kids waste so much time on that and they have absolutely nothing to show for that time. I'd rather my kids go out and collect rocks or sticks."

FISH Wins Carol Otis Hurst Book Prize

2011-07-12T13:37:00.003-04:00

A few weeks ago I learned that FISH is going to receive this year's Carol Otis Hurst Book Prize, awarded to the best in children's writing by a New England author. Hurst, who died in 2007, was a renowned librarian, teacher, storyteller and author. The award started out with a focus on books that centered on the New England experience, but it has since been broadened; which makes sense, given that Fish never visits America. Needless to say, I'm honored and excited.

The Westfield Athenaeum, an amazing library out in western Massachusetts, runs the process, and I'm looking forward to heading out there in September for a reading and talk.

In other news, my next novel, DANGEROUS WATERS, has moved on to the proofreading phase, all set for a March 2012 publication, and I'm working hard to make sure there aren't any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors for my parents to find.

Black Grease, Orange Shoes

2011-07-08T14:26:00.002-04:00

Recently I had my car inspected at a local gas station. The owner/manager looked like he should be manning an espresso machine, not examining automobiles. He had a perfectly trimmed little beard and fancy glasses. He was tan, maybe sixty years old, wearing expensive, twenty-something jeans.

He was also sporting a pair of bright orange leather loafers.

-I like your shoes, I said.

-Oh, these?

-Yes.

He leaned in, poised to tell me a secret.

-They cost $1,800.

-Really?

He shrugged and gave me a look: What a crazy world; he didn't set the price.

-Real Italian leather, he adds, absolved of guilt. The best in the world.

As he finished the inspection I watched his shoes. The orange really was perfect, neither too bright, nor too dull, and the leather looked comfortable. Soft and marbled. What did he mean when he said "real" Italian leather? Are there orange cows in Italy? I wondered. No, of course not, but I pictured them anyway, and decided that there should be, even if they'd clash a little, color-wise, with the rest of the Italian field palette.

The garage was hot and it was hot outside. Wasn't he hot in those shoes? I decided my feet would be sweating.

Plus the floor was spattered with grease and dirt and grime. It really wasn't a place for expensive orange shoes.

He put the inspection sticker on my windshield. This month's color was orange. Maybe he matched his shoes to the color of the month.

-Hey, the sticker matches your shoes.

-Huh? Oh, right.

He gave me the keys and I started to leave.

-You know, I only tell you the price because you asked.

-Thank you.

Did I ask?

The DIY Treehouse

2011-06-16T08:44:00.008-04:00

A massive branch broke off a tree in our backyard recently, completely crushing the kids' playhouse. Thankfully, they were not inside at the time.

We made the best of the situation. We borrowed a neighbor's electric chainsaw, sliced up the branch, and salvaged the one section of the playhouse that survived. Mostly, anyway - the front door doesn't quite close. Then we took all the twigs and branches, creating a new structure around the front panel from the plastic house.

To make the roof sun-proof, we cut up the Christmas tree that I'd been promising to dispose of for months, and laid the dried branches on top.

I wish I could say I worked an Arduino board in there somehow, or put the whole thing on wheels and turned it into a robot, but unfortunately I'm only capable of writing about people who do that kind of miracle work; I don't go much beyond sticks. Still, it's pretty sweet inside:

Newburyport Literary Festival

2011-05-25T16:12:00.005-04:00

A few weeks ago I was a guest author at the Newburyport Literary Festival up along the coast of Massachusetts. It's a beautiful old brick town on a river, just south of some popular surfing spots in New Hampshire. I drove up to one of them early that Saturday morning with my board in the back of the car, hoping to paddle out, only to arrive at the beach and realize I'd forgotten my wetsuit. Whoops.

The festival, now in its seventh year, was great fun. A whole bunch of smart, attentive kids came to listen to me talk about writing, reading, and FISH at Newburyport's beautiful public library; I'm amazed they sat through it on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.

The kids definitely appeared to be budding writers - they asked incredibly sharp questions - and the adults were fun too. I especially enjoyed the grandmother kept questioning me, doubting that I really make a living as a writer.

The festival was also a nice chance to meet some other writers, including the great Rodman Philbrick, author of Freak the Mighty. I'd never read the book, but I whipped through it after hearing him speak, and it's one of the best I've read in a while. The narrative voice is incredible, and there's so much happening behind the words.

Listening to Elisha Cooper discuss his books and art was also a real pleasure. I'm looking forward to reading a few of his works to my kids.

There were numerous adult authors in attendance as well, but honestly, who wants to listen to grown-ups? I'll take sixty-year-old kids any day.

The Festival happens every April, I believe, and it's free. If you're in New England, check it out next year.

Boston Authors Club Awards

2011-05-16T16:00:00.004-04:00

Last week I learned that FISH has been selected as a "highly recommended" book by the Boston Authors Club, and that it has been nominated for a 2012 Rhode Island Children's Book Award as well. As far as I can recall, the last award I won was either the co-MVP of the Plandome Country Club Swim Team (a long time ago) or the Shelter Rock Elementary School Spelling Bee Champion (an even longer time ago), so this was pretty big news.

Generally, it made me think that we should all have more awards in life. In the office, at home....everyone deserves an award now and then. Some other awards I deserve:

-Most Forgetful (Some might see this as a negative; I would consider it an honor.)

-Best Morning Coffee Maker (Probably one of the more important roles in any house. Coffee, and how quickly it acts on the brain after wake up call , affects everyone, from parents down to infants.)

-Most Likely to Wake Up Early (This is more of a weakness than a strength, but I want an award anyway.)

-Best Random Storyteller (You need an adventure that features Michael Jackson, Cinderella and mermaids? Give me ten seconds....)

-Worst Tap Dancer (This should still be an award, even though it's a "worst," because bad dancers are incredibly valuable. They make everyone else feel better about themselves.)

Soul Surfer

2011-04-07T08:54:00.007-04:00

In April 2005, my wife and I were bodysurfing on a beach in Kauai when a bunch of kids paddled out on their boards. The water was clear, clean, aquamarine, and the wind was down, so the surface was glassy and smooth. I was jealous, not having a surfboard with me, and thinking about the fact that these kids probably just got out of school and ran straight to the beach for a surf. Not a bad life. Anyway, there were girls and boys out on their boards, and one of them was paddling a little strangely. Something just didn't seem right about the way she was pulling through the water. It hardly stopped her, though: A nice, waist-high wave rolled in, she turned, jumped to her feet, and coasted our way.

That's when we saw the stump and realized this was the famous local girl, Bethany Hamilton. A year earlier, she'd been surfing at this very beach when a shark attacked her, biting off her arm. Now she was back, playing in the surf with her friends, clearly fearless. Needless to say, watching her surf was an incredible experience. Even with one arm, she was probably the best one out there.

She also has a book out now, and a movie coming out this weekend. Scholastic Book Talk posted an interview with her the other day. It's a good one, but this quote stood out above the rest:

BT: If you could go back to that day and choose not to go surfing, would you?

BH: No. If I could go back to that day, I would go surfing. It may seem like such a terrible thing that happened, but I can see now that there has been so much good that has come out of it. And I wouldn’t change that. Losing my arm was not the end of the world.

Michael Jackson Likes Zombies

2011-04-05T21:08:00.002-04:00

A conversation in my house today between the daughters, aged three and five.

5: Michael Jackson had rides at his house and a real tiger. He LOVES kids.

3: No he doesn't. He likes Zombies. Taylor Swift loves kids.

5: No! Michael Jackson loves kids.

3: Well, so does Taylor Swift.

5: Maybe they both like kids.

They worked it out; I neglected to intervene.

I don't want a massage from you...

2011-03-02T10:22:00.004-05:00

Normally I try to avoid basing characters on people very close to me, since that could get me into all kinds of personal trouble, but I do love turning random everyday interactions into fiction. Yesterday I had a run-in with a fit-looking, tall octogenarian with hearing aids, an Irish tweed cap, and a big pair of white sneakers he was probably only wearing because he had to. He was looking for the massage therapist down the hall from my office and I offered to help.

-I'm looking for Jennifer.
-I don't think she's in today.
-Do you work here?
-Right there, around the corner.
(This is mostly true; I mainly work at home, in the basement.)
-What do you do?
-I don't give massages.
-I don't want a massage from you. What do you do?
-I'm a writer.
-Yeah? What do you write?
-Books.
-Why do you need an office to write books?

This is a question I often ask myself. I gave my standard answer, though I don't really know if it's a truthful answer.

-I have kids at home and they're loud.
-OK. What kind of books do you write? Mysteries?
-No. A little bit of everything. Science, kids novels.
-Ah, good!

And with that he turned his big white sneakers down the stairs and left.

You Built What?!

2011-02-25T15:51:00.002-05:00

Popular Science has a great recurring series called You Built What?! - I've been contributing for years, meeting some incredibly ingenious, creative people. Mostly over the phone, unfortunately.

A few recent highlights include the world's fastest dining room table, a hot rod powered by saws, and a radio flyer wagon that seats two, and is highway-legal. Check them out here.

The Truth About Santa is Spreading

2010-12-16T15:50:00.004-05:00

The Truth About Santa is spreading! The book is out in the U.K. this year, and The Guardian just picked it as one of their top gift books for Dads this holiday season.

And here's a fun article I wrote for the SUNDAY EXPRESS that runs through the basic of Santa's operation. I've also written one about Santa and the future of education that should be published on December 24th.

Finally, Thane Burnett, a columnist at the Toronto Sun, wrote a great piece gathering a few different scientist's thoughts on Mr. Kringle. He also gathered a few bits from my own reporting on the issue, collected here as a list of Santa's top technological tricks.

Book Dads

2010-10-04T12:41:00.003-04:00

A great take on Fish by teacher and reviewer Renny Fong:

"Whether read aloud or independently, this book will be hard to put down. Fish dishes it all out: action, suspense, mystery, and plenty of hearty laughs...Fish awakens all of the senses in its details, particularly smell. Mone writes it; you smell it. Your nose wrinkles up as Fish, being the lowest on the totem pole, has to scrub the 'seats of easement' and gets too close to pirate’s breath and feet. Suspense and action are raw, with each chapter leaving you hungry for more."

The rest of the Book Dads review is here.

The Story of Fish

2010-09-30T16:16:00.000-04:00

The Pirates are Winning

2010-09-27T09:11:00.003-04:00

A fascinating, comprehensive story on the modern pirate problem ran in a recent New York Review of Books. An excerpt:

"Somali pirates will strike anything: one-thousand-foot-long oil tankers; tiny sailboats with three people on board; old-fashioned, crescent-sailed Arab dhows; freighters crammed with emergency food; freighters crammed with weapons; a tanker carrying extremely flammable benzene that American authorities worried could be converted into an enormous, floating bomb. The pirates have even attacked navy ships, apparently by mistake."

Santa on the Kindle

2010-09-15T09:33:00.002-04:00

The Truth About Santa, my shocking expose of the technological secrets behind Santa's annual mission, is now available in a Kindle edition. That's kind of cool. To me, anyway.

A Splashing Good Addition

2010-09-15T09:24:00.004-04:00

An excerpt from a new review in School Library Journal:

"Mone seamlessly integrates factual information into his tale of friendship, loyalty, and exploration. As Fish travels from farm to city to ship, he discovers his place in the world, and his moral compass helps to ground and direct the story. His decision not to engage in fighting and his efforts to stop the mutiny will provide points for group discussion. Fish makes a splashing good addition to adventure fiction."

FISHing on Martha's Vineyard

2010-09-07T15:38:00.004-04:00

CK Wolfson of the Martha's Vineyard Times wrote a very complimentary, thoughtful piece on FISH a few weeks back, calling it:

"...a suspenseful, rollicking, fact-filled pirate tale that will keep children and young teens reading by their flashlights into the night."

We also had a few great events on Martha's Vineyard last month. Thanks to Zoe at Riley's Reads for hosting a wonderful reading in early August, full of prizes, snacks, and costumed attendees. The highlight of that event was the dramatic re-enactment of one of the early scenes. We had a wonderful Fish - have you finished the book yet, Fish? - and a band of fairly fearsome pirates as well. Plus, no one was hurt.

I apologize to Zoe for not delivering on the promised shanty, and not bringing a pen, but in terms of the singing, I think we were all better off in the end.

A few weeks later, on August 26th, Nelia Decker and the West Tisbury Public Library, a wonderful space that's absolutely packed with great books, hosted another event downstairs in the childrens' room. We tried two scenes this time; I think I preferred the grunt-filled conversation between Fergal and Uncle Gerry. That said, the action scenes were also stupendous. Miles, you did an absolutely stellar job.

I'll be scheduling a number of school visits soon, but hope to set up a few more of these dramatic readings, too.

Keep checking back for details.

The Economics of Modern Piracy

2010-08-09T10:35:00.003-04:00

Very interesting and detailed piece here on the economics of modern piracy. In the Golden Age, pirates would try to capture ships carrying valuable cargo so that they could actually sell the cargo. Now, if they take a tanker with $100M to $150M of oil, they know it's going to be too hard to actually sell the petrol, so they ransom it instead. Eventually, a third-party arranges to have a few million dollars dropped onto the boat via helicopter. The pirates take the money and flee, the owner gets his ship back, the oil company gets its petrol back, and the insurance company reimburses the client for the ransom.

The total amount of ransoms paid last year was reportedly around $50M.

More Reviews of Fish

2010-08-09T10:13:00.003-04:00

"Brimming with suspense, humor, colorful characters, and a good old-fashioned pirate story on the high seas, this fast-paced novel is pure enjoyment."

- Kendal Rautzhan, The Day

"His gift for swimming and dislike of violence make him a very odd pirate and treasure hunter, but somehow Fish makes it work. Full of action-packed scenes of Fish's "not-fighting" and vivid descriptions of exactly how bad his fellow pirates smell, "Fish" is a feel-good yarn perfect for reading as the waves lap nearby."

-Caroline Luzzatto, The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star

And the Columbus Parent's "Books for Kids" list.

Queen Anne Books Backs the Scurvy Mistress

2010-07-19T11:50:00.003-04:00

An excerpt from a new review by Queen Anne Books in Seattle:

Clever treasure clues, exotic locales, fight scenes, and underwater explorations provide swashbuckling flair. I also loved how Fish's crew mates are quite aware of their pirate image, studying books about pirate history, cultivating beards, and picking pirate names to be most impressive. This novel is funny and exciting-- a great summer read or read-aloud, by Jove!

Read the rest here. The same reviewer also has a nice piece on David Mitchell's new novel, which sounds amazing and kind of surprising, or at least very different from Cloud Atlas.

New Review: FISH Makes Summer Beach Read List

2010-07-11T13:08:00.006-04:00

A great review of FISH appears in the Winston-Salem Journal today. Here's an excerpt:

"...an entertaining, rollicking read that challenges as well captivates...full of humor, quick-witted dialogue, well-disguised lessons in initiative and hard work with clever pirating lore and grand treasure dreams."

And the full piece.

Pirates and the Liar's Paradox

2010-07-07T09:45:00.003-04:00

A few weeks ago I visited Munsey Park School in Manhasset, NY, and spoke with a number of classes about FISH and the writing process. When I was talking to a group of second-graders, one of the kids caught on early that I have a tendency to embellish when telling stories. I'd been talking about my journalism (all true stuff) and my fiction (mostly invented). So he raises his hand, I stop, and he asks, "Was what you just said true?"

I'd been talking about sitting in a flying car, but I wasn't making it up. I wrote about the car, Terrafugia's Transition, which is really a drivable plane, in Popular Science. I explain this to the inquisitive kid, then add a qualifier, noting that I do often make things up.

"So how do we know what's true?" he asks.

"You can ask me," I answer, "but you shouldn't trust my answer, because I've already said that I make things up." He looks at me strangely, and then I get carried away. "You've actually brought up a really interesting and famous philosophical question known as the liar's paradox....."

The teacher laughed slightly, I went on for a moment more, and then quickly returned to stories of sword fights, treasure hunts, and smelly rogues.

New FISH Website!

2010-06-22T10:30:00.003-04:00

The website for FISH is live, and looking great. Some features:

1. Read a sample chapter
2. Meet the pirates
3. Keep up on reviews
4. Track events

I'll also be adding a teacher's guide, questions for book clubs, and more in the coming days.

Cleveland Elementary

2010-06-22T10:19:00.004-04:00

5th graders are bright. I visited Cleveland Elementary School in Norwood, Massachusetts, two weeks ago to talk about FISH, journalism, writing in general. At one point, one of the kids posed a great question.

"If you've written something that you think is great, but your friend reads it and says it's really bad, do you listen to your friend?"

My answer was a little long and winding, but I basically said that you have to think about your friend's critique, and consider whether there might be any truth to it, but ultimately you have to listen to yourself. I added that you should never take the first person's word. You're better off waiting for a whole bunch of people to tell you that you're terrible before you start thinking about believing them.

After class, one of the kids caught me in the hall. He was nervous, maybe a little annoyed. He summarized what I'd said with regards to criticism, then pointed out a contradiction. Earlier in the class, when another kid asked me whether I was an artist, I answered that I'm not very good, then cited the fact that a very skilled illustrator once told me exactly that.

The kid recounted this story about my artistic skills, then said, "You contradicted yourself! Maybe you're not such a bad artist after all."

A budding lawyer, perhaps.

The Balch School

2010-06-14T22:09:00.004-04:00

A group of Balch Elementary School third-graders and I had a great time talking about books, writing, pirates, and FISH in the packed school library. A few miniature journalists in the class came prepared with questions. Here's a sample:

"Did you always want to be a writer?"

No, I said, I wanted to be in the NBA. They laughed.

"Did you play sports when you were younger?"

Yes: lacrosse, basketball, football, swimming. This answer generated numerous high-fives.

"Did you write Twilight?"

No, and you can tell by my car.

"Is Fish a series?"

Not yet....but of course I have plans for him!

Visiting the Murphy School

2010-06-14T21:59:00.005-04:00

Thanks to Mrs. Gale's two 6th grade classes at the Richard J. Murphy School in Dorchester. We had a fun time talking about writing articles and books, what brain surgery looks like up close, and how all writers, even the 6th grade version, should really think of themselves as editors. We also discussed piracy and the apparently little know fact that there appears to be an editorial error in the school's sign.

The questions from the kids were really sharp. I actually thought they were eighth graders until Mrs. Gale informed me otherwise.

Pirate Ducks at the Canton Public Library

2010-06-07T20:38:00.003-04:00

The Canton Public Library put together a fantastic FISH event this past Saturday, complete with kid-friendly sea shanties, ducks wearing pirate hats (over there on the left), goldfish, and more. I brought a few props along, including a plastic cutlass, but that quickly proved to be a bad idea, as a few of the four-and-unders in the audience went on the attack.

Ann Woodman of the Library's Junior Room did an amazing job setting everything up, and there were some hilarious comments from the kids. When I asked what they thought pirates might smell like, for example, they offered a few funny possibilities. My favorites:

"Bugs."

"Gross."

"Peanuts on the floor."

The kid who threw out the last one might end up becoming a writer.

First Copy

2010-06-04T00:03:00.002-04:00

Went to our closest bookstore, the Barnes & Noble in Walpole, and saw the book for the first time. Pretty wild to see it all nicely printed and bound! Our eldest was excited initially, but her focus shifted pretty quickly to a Pinkalicious picture book. Then our two-year-old grew restless, the baby woke up, and it was time to go. We did manage to buy a copy before taking the store down, though, so that was good.

FISH: First Review

2010-06-03T11:15:00.003-04:00

A great review from the smart, inventive Cory Doctorow went up on boingboing.net on Tuesday. Here's an excerpt:

Chock full of real historic curiosities about pirates, sly humor for grownups, excellent action scenes and general quantities of swash and buckle, Fish is a great, self-contained addition to the canon of fun pirate fiction. Perfect for young readers, even better for reading aloud at bed-time, thanks to the plentiful cliff-hangers.

And the rest.

FISH is out today!

2010-06-01T22:23:00.003-04:00

Fish is officially on shelves, digitally and physically, today. Oddly, I have not seen the book yet, but I've been told it looks nice. Going to buy one with the kids tomorrow.

Hunting Pirates in High Style

2010-05-26T10:14:00.003-04:00

A very interesting, funny story from the AP today on how the Swedes are hunting pirates. This one warship has a sauna, offers massages to crew, and serves fresh baked bread. If you're going to hunt bad guys, why not do it in style?

Read the article here.

Beneath the Oil Slick

2010-05-14T15:39:00.004-04:00

Since the oil spill began three weeks ago, most eyes and cameras have been focused on the widening, orange slick. But now, as experts argue that the flow rate could far exceed the government's estimate of 210,000 gallons a day, a team of independent scientists studying the water in and around the disaster zone have found another problem: stores of leaked oil lingering beneath the surface in long, stringy filaments and snowflake-like collections.

"It doesn't float right up on top as you would think," Raymond Highsmith of NIUST tells AOL News. "Some of it floats right under the surface, and some of it now looks like it's quite a ways down."

This is the start of a piece I just wrote for AOL News. What these scientists are doing is amazing, and important. Read the rest here.

An Immortal-Free Book

2010-05-13T08:46:00.005-04:00

There are no vampires, werewolves, gods or demi-gods in the novel. I realize this might seem strange, given that immortals have become a requirement in any story for young readers, but I simply couldn't see a way to fit them in. If I were to add a werewolf to the crew, he would inevitably transform during the crossing, since it typically took a sailing ship a month or more to go from one side of the Atlantic to the other in the age of piracy. This werewolf would probably kill all the other pirates, and then, when he woke up, all exhausted and guilty-feeling, but certainly not hungry any longer, he wouldn't have anyone to help him sail the boat.

OK, so what about vampires? There is one character who could absolutely fit the role - any guesses? - but the pirates and vampires mash-up has already been done.

Gods? Certainly Poseidon could have a role in any ocean-soaked book, but I didn't see any place for him here.

Instead, Fish is populated solely by mortals. Real people who won't survive the shot from a pistol or the thrust of a cutlass.

Bluefin Tuna and the Oil Spill

2010-05-06T22:41:00.002-04:00

A story I just wrote about a fish that won't fare as well as the title character in my book:

The massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico could not have happened at a worse time, or in a worse spot, for the Atlantic bluefin tuna. More than 600 species are considered to be at risk due to the sunken rig, which is gushing oil into the water at a rate of 210,000 gallons per day. But this is an especially sensitive period for the bluefin.

"The giant bluefin only show up for about a month, and this is the time they show up," Stanford University marine biologist Barbara Block told AOL News. "Bluefin tuna are moving to the Gulf of Mexico exactly right now to spawn." Plus, she said, the spill is centered around one of the preferred breeding areas. "Many of the tuna go exactly to that region."

Read the rest at AOL News.

Pirates and Politics

2010-04-29T09:30:00.003-04:00

A columnist for Canada's Winnipeg Free Press, reacting to news of the official recognition of a new political Pirate Party, runs through some of the reasons rogues would be better than politicians.

This closing line is my favorite:

"Either way, you're going to get robbed, so it might as well be by someone with an eye patch and a hook."

Buily Your own Desert Racer

2010-04-29T09:24:00.003-04:00

The Rally Fighter from automotive start-up Local Motors is a burly, menacing vehicle no major manufacturer would ever include in its standard lineup. With its 33-inch tires, 20 inches of suspension travel and rugged inner skeleton, the street-legal desert racer is too niche for mass production. But Local Motors knows that this beast is exactly what a small subset of buyers wants. How? Those buyers designed it.

[These are the opening lines from a short feature I wrote for Popular Science on a cool new car company called Local Motors. The basic idea is that they're going to let customers assemble cars themselves. Read the rest of the article here.]

Somali Pirates on the Move

2010-04-28T15:30:00.000-04:00

In real world pirate news, two militant groups are fighting over the Somali pirate stronghold of Harardhere. And the pirates? Reports suggest that they've bolted. Much like the seafaring rogues of the Golden Age of Piracy, these modern pirates are not tied to any one place. In all likelihood they'll move up the coast and establish a link with another port.

More here.

Pirates and Science

2010-04-20T09:39:00.000-04:00

So there is a link between pirates and science after all! Last week researchers released a report detailing how people can live longer by eating less...a paper touted as a step towards the fountain of youth. I wrote about it here. Now comes the news that the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie will involve a quest for the fountain of youth. Maybe the movie will end with the pirates all deciding to eat less? That would be quite a Hollywood ending.

FISH: Artwork

2010-04-05T09:14:00.001-04:00

Artist Jake Parker created the beautiful work for the book's cover and wrap-around jacket. He explains his process, and reveals a few of his early sketches, in this post here.

FISH: Buy the Book

2010-04-05T08:45:00.000-04:00

FISH: Origins

2010-04-05T08:34:00.000-04:00

This is my first novel for children, but I've been telling pirate stories, and setting up kid-friendly treasure hunts, for years. Whenever we celebrate a summer birthday for one of my nieces and nephews, we usually make a treasure hunt part of the events. I'll stash clues and create ancient-looking maps that force the kids to work through puzzles and word games and eventually point them towards the final treasure.

For the first few years, my siblings and I kept it simple, leading the kids towards goodie bags and things like that. Eventually, though, we started adding more and more layers to the story. A replica treasure chest. Fake gold coins. Reports of pirate ships spotted through the telescope.

One year, I designed the map so that the final "X" led them out to a spot in the Long Island Sound. The kids were too young to swim out there, so my brother led the expedition instead. Before he swam out, we secretly loaded his pockets with old swimming medals. He swam out about 20 feet, dove, held himself to the bottom for 20 seconds, then surfaced and yelled back to the kids: "There's a sunken ship down there! I think there's treasure!" They started screaming with excitement: "Go back down! Go back down!" He did, and he held on again, making it seem as though he had to descend to great depths, and then shot out of the water, gasping, holding the old swimming medals. The kids, seeing gold, cheered and called for more.

Most of them are too old now for this sort of game - although my two young daughters are nearing prime treasure-hunting age - but designing those miniature quests really made an impression on me. It was incredible to see how pirates and treasure hunting can capture the imagination of both boys and girls. I was well aware of the fact that there are about 1,000 pirate novels, movies, and stories out there, but I figured I'd try one anyway.

The book went through many revisions over the course of five or six years, but the central idea remained the same. For me, the story has always been about this main character, Fish, a boy who loves to swim and hates to fight. I'm 34, with a lovely wife and two fantastic daughters, and I certainly don't have any experience with piracy, but this 12-year-old treasure hunter is very much me.

FISH: The Story

2010-04-05T08:25:00.000-04:00

The official summary:

Maurice Reidy - nicknamed "Fish" because of his incredible swimming abilities - is sent to work as a courier to help support his struggling family. Entrusted with a mysterious package of coins, Fish is waylaid by pirates who abscond with his delivery. Determined to get the coins back, he joins the wily and foul-smelling crew of rogues, embarking on an adventure that changes his life forever.

On board the pirate ship, called the Scurvy Mistress, Fish learns that the strange coins could be the key to finding a fabulous treasure and that the nasty first mate, Scab, could be plotting a mutiny. The water-loving boy has to recover the coins, thwart Scab, find the treasure, and save his family.