In THE CHARMED CHILDREN OF ROOKSKILL CASTLE, a chatelaine - a piece of jewelry worn at the waist during the 17th through 19th centuries (read more about chatelaines here) - plays a huge role. For each of twelve children, there is a charm on that chatelaine. I won't reveal here what it does - that would be a spoiler! Just for fun I made a series of twelve super-short videos, one for each charm. … [Read more...]
The Author “Thing”
February 23, 2016 by
In just over two weeks, THE CHARMED CHILDREN OF ROOKSKILL CASTLE will be out in the world. This is a nerve-wracking time for an author. Will it sell? Will people like it? Will they even read it? This is my baby and I want it to be loved! Now, in fairness, I'm on cloud nine over the wonderful welcome it's received to date. Kirkus, Booklist, and Publisher's Weekly have all given it starred … [Read more...]
Inside Plato’s Cave
January 26, 2016 by
Last time I talked about Lady Macbeth; this week we'll look at an allegory. In The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle, Kat and her fellow students at the Rookskill Castle Children's Academy in the fictional burg of Craig on the coast of Scotland are taught by instructors brought in by the Lady of the manor. Their English instructor, Miss Gumble, has them study the Allegory of Plato's Cave. … [Read more...]
Lady Macbeth
January 19, 2016 by
In the previous post, I discussed Scots' words. Now to a Scottish character. One of the reviewers of The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle pointed out that a chief character in the novel is "a tragic figure, almost a Lady Macbeth". You might or might not remember Shakespeare's tragedy, so here's a bit of background that may explain why I love that comparison so much. (Note: I'm … [Read more...]
