Today I'm happy to feature Lynn Kelley who has the humorous blog Random Acts of Weirdness.
Children’s author Lynn Kelley worked as a court reporter for 25 years while she and her husband, George, raised their four children. Her first chapter book, Curse of the Double Digits, for ages 7 to 10, debuted on October 10, 2012. She also coauthors the spooky, fun Monster Moon mystery series for ages 8 to 12 under the pen name BBH McChiller. The highlight of her life are days spent with her grandchildren. Most of her time involves books: either writing books, reading books, or making altered art books. She tries her best to keep her overactive imagination in check.
About the book:
The whole
class is invited to her party, including Chad
Becky wants to
look cute for her big day, but all her plans go wrong. Really wrong. The magic
of turning ten disappears before she even has a chance to blow out her birthday
candles.
Things get so
bad, she refuses to go to her own party. Becky wonders if the Curse of the
Double Digits will jinx her forever.
***
Thanks so much for inviting me to guest post, Bish.
Today I thought I’d talk about one of my favorite memories
while working on Curse of the Double
Digits.
I wanted to test the story on real kids and see how they
reacted. Would they laugh at the appropriate places? Would they like the
characters and the story? I read the entire book in two 45-minute sessions to
Mariann Kyle’s second grade class at Cypress Elementary School in San
Bernardino, California in February of 2008.
It was a great experiment and the kids reacted the way I’d hoped
they would. They giggled when Becky, the main character, talked about her
crush, Chad. In another chapter, Becky
runs to the bathroom and grabs her dad’s electric razor. I read the line, “Then she looked at me like I
had flushed my brain down the toilet,” and they busted up. That confirmed that
kids that age still think any mention of a toilet is funny. Yep, toilets and
underwear humor amuses them. Go figure!
Maybe little Isaac wasn’t listening. Maybe it was too much
temptation, knowing he shouldn’t draw that character, or maybe he really liked
Booger. I’ll never know, but I got a kick out of his pictures. Not only did he
draw the bad clown, but he drew him on each side of his paper! I love the way
he drew the eyes!
After a Q & A session, Mrs. Kyle put all the drawings in
a plastic bag and gave them to me. What a cool keepsake. I love children’s drawings. Each one is
unique, just like the child who drew it.
Knowing that children, their parents, and teachers all over
the world are reading my story is ultra exciting. I’m looking forward to reading it to my
grandchildren when they’re old enough. That will be the icing on the cake for
this children’s author!
***
Thanks for coming by, Lynn, and sharing these wonderful pictures!
Curse of the Double Digits is available at the following places. Pick it up for a youngster near you. It would be a great stocking stuffer. (Hint, hint!)
Smashwords (formats for all eReaders)
