The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle

I was having a conversation with some fellow book coaches recently when one of them described a client who was struggling. But the struggle wasn’t with plot or character or voice. It was with the idea that writing is a slow process, taking as long as it needs to take and sometimes a lot longer… Read more »

” ‘Hainted, it is, with grindings and screeches…’ page 23, THE CHARMED CHILDREN OF ROOKSKILL CASTLE. Ghost. Phantom, apparition, spook. Commonly thought to be the spirit of a dead person appearing in lifelike form. The Scots, it turns out, are very into ghosts. The word wraith first appears in 18th century Scottish romantic literature; the… Read more »

A library to the uninitiated (i.e., young students everywhere) can be a bit confusing. Fortunately, we’ve got a game for that! For librarians, teachers, parents, readers, book groups……the clever Kirsten Cappy of Curious City has created an Event Kit with a fun and interactive game that encourages students to find puzzle pieces hidden in different… Read more »

Attention fans of Rookskill! In two days, I’m excited to announce, we’ll be launching a new website dedicated to THE CHARMED CHILDREN OF ROOKSKILL CASTLE. The website contains a trove of information, with some reveals and other “extras”, but most importantly, it contains a game that can be played in schools, libraries, or by readers… Read more »

I have some more fun news to share. First, I’ve joined The Booking Biz as a client! I’m delighted to be part of their very professional team, as this will allow me to concentrate on my writing while they can attend to the details of any school visits from me. If you are a teacher… Read more »

A discussion guide is now available! I want to let teachers, librarians, book club organizers, and readers know that there is a discussion and project guide now available for THE CHARMED CHILDREN OF ROOKSKILL CASTLE. The guide was created by the talented Deb Gonzales and contains questions to spur analysis, games, poetry features, and more…. Read more »

To celebrate today’s release of THE CHARMED CHILDREN OF ROOKSKILL CASTLE we’re on a blog tour!! And note the giveaways listed, too! As of yesterday – March 14 – I will be visiting these blogs:   My Brain on Books–Guest post & Video #1–03/14/16 Word Spelunking–Top 10 List & Video #2–03/15/16 The Book Wars–Guest post… Read more »

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… Read more »

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… Read more »

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…. Read more »