Author News & Interviews

Interview: Liz Pichon, author of Tom Gates: The Brilliant World of Tom Gates

Aug 11, 2014

Tom Gates loves to write and doodle, and his school notebook is evidence --- along with class notes you'll find him brainstorming band names, drawing not-so-nice pictures of his moody older sister and dreamily sketching his favorite dessert: caramel wafers.

As it turns out, Tom's creator, Liz Pichon, loves art just as much --- not only did she hand-write the font for THE BRILLIANT WORLD OF TOM GATES and make every picture, but she even draws and paints on her own clothes! 

Read our interview with Liz --- which we conducted in-person at the BookExpo America conference at the end of May --- to learn more about Tom, her writing and drawing and process, and her truly "brilliant" fashion choices. 

Interview: Frank Cottrell Boyce, author of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Over the Moon

Mar 31, 2014

Plenty of technology has been invented since the first Chitty Chitty Bang Bang book was written in the 1960s, from the internet to cell phones to iPads. But, as Frank Cottrell Boyce, the author of CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG: Over the Moon, says, “the idea of a car that can fly is still really magical,” even decades later! That’s why we were so excited to interview Frank about the latest story starring the flying car with its own personality. Read on to learn about Frank’s favorite feature of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, how writing books is different from writing movies, and what it was like to meet a man who helped build the car that inspired the first book!

Interview: Carol Weston, author of Ava and Pip

Mar 12, 2014

Carol Weston has been an advice columnist at Girls’ Life magazine for 20 years, so she’s received her fair share of letters from kids seeking advice on everything from family problems to friends to boys to shyness. It’s the last topic that she chose to tackle in her new book, AVA AND PIP, which follows the spunky, 10-year-old Ava and her painfully shy older sister, Pip. Ava will do anything she can to get attention from her parents and help Pip get out of her shell…but she has a lesson or two to learn herself, too. Read O Assistant Book Editor Abbe Wright’s interview with Carol below, and learn more about the book, Carol’s advice for kids who feel shy and Carol’s childhood writing habits.

Interview: Natalie Lloyd, author of A Snicker of Magic

Feb 12, 2014

What do you get when all of the magic leaves a town, except for a tiny bit? A snicker of magic, of course! And that’s what runs through Midnight Gulch, a small southern village that used to be known for its enchanted residents like the Brothers Threadbare --- whose music made clouds change shapes and inspired the whole community to dance in the streets --- but now has just the smallest snicker of magic left. Debut author Natalie Lloyd delves into this fascinating town in A SNICKER OF MAGIC, where Felicity Pickle --- a 6th grader who sees words wherever she goes --- tries to bring Midnight Gulch back to its original glory and hopes that her wandering family can finally settle down. In this interview, Natalie tells us about her inspiration for A SNICKER OF MAGIC, the real people who inspired her characters and her favorite pair of cowboy boots.

Interview: Kate DiCamillo, author of Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures

Feb 10, 2014

There's no denying it --- Kate DiCamillo has one of the best "children's book author" resumes out there. She's written 17 children's books, has won the Newbery Award (more than once!) and was recently named the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. In this interview, Kate tells us where she was when she found out she won the 2014 Newbery Award for FLORA & ULYSSES, what she wrote about as a child, a particularly amusing plane ride and her plans as National Ambassador.