It is an absolute privilege to host Esther Moonstomp (Chilton) today on her blog tour, for the second book in the Myths and Magic series of books for children.
I also had the pleasure of interviewing Esther about her forthcoming publication and writing in general.
Thank you, Esther, for taking time out from your very busy schedule to answer my questions.
Q. Myths And Magic is the second book in the Saffy’s Secret Quest series. How many books are there in the series?
A. There are six books in total. The first was The Secret Dragon, with Leo Learns a Lesson, Castle and Cats, A New World and Narla’s Monstrous Machine to come.
Q. I know you write for both children and adults. How easy is it to switch between the two?
A. I find it relatively easy, but I think that’s because I’m used to doing all sorts in relation to writing, from readers’ letters, to light-hearted romance for the women’s weeklies, to something darker for a small press magazine. So before I started writing for children, I was already wearing a variety of hats and having to be mindful of my style, tone, etc for each publication. But it is very different when writing for children compared to adults as you need to think about the language you use, what they will understand, etc, and that differs for each age group.
Q. What inspired you to write stories for young readers?
A. I first came up with the idea for the series when my daughter was in the age group I currently write for i.e. 5-7 year olds. So I was very aware of the type of books out there for this age group. We had an old battered bench at the bottom of our garden at the time, and I looked out the window one morning and there was something on it. I can’t actually remember what it was now, but the idea of finding something magical on it, which Saffy does, stemmed from there.
Q. Who were your favourite authors as a child?
A. I loved Enid Blyton. I thought The Famous Five were amazing and wanted to be part of their group. The novels completely captivated me. I also loved Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. I wanted a golden ticket!
Q. What is your favourite genre to write?
A. I think I enjoy writing short stories the most and making readers care for my characters in only a few words. I’ve written short stories in all sorts of genres, from romance, to horror, to crime, to children’s. I enjoy the variety and not sticking to one genre.
Q. How do you select the names of your characters?
A. That’s a hard one to answer. I sometimes struggle to find names for my characters and they go through a few variations before I settle on the final one. For example, Saffy in my children’s series started out as Katie and Leopold the dragon was called Cuthbert! If I’m struggling to come up with a name, I listen to the characters and see where they lead me. Often as not, a name pops into my head.
Q. What is your favourite part of the writing process?
A. I enjoy working on the opening of the story or book the most. It’s that wonderful moment when you’re just starting out and I love trying to come up with something that’ll pull the reader in and hook them.
Q. Is there a genre or format you haven’t tried yet but would like to?
A. I’ve not written in the young adult genre, yet it’s one I enjoy reading. I’m amazed at some of the fantastic worlds authors in this genre create. I’m not sure I could do as well as they do, but I’d like to try it one day.
Q. Where do you get your ideas from?
A. Everywhere! It might be a story from a newspaper, or part of a conversation I’ve overheard in a cafe, or something I’ve seen in the street. I then think what if this happened? and go from there.
Q. Are you a plotter or a panster?
A. I’m definitely a plotter. I like to have things written down. I may go off course a little, but a plan will anchor me back and ensure I’ve not forgotten anything. I think if I just sat down to write without a plan, it would end up not making any sense and there’d be lots of plot holes!
Q. What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given as a writer?
A. Write the story you want to write.
Q. Can you share with us any upcoming projects you have in the pipeline?
A. My next workbook, Novel Know-how, will be ready for publication in the next month or so. I’m also working on re-releasing my first short story collection, The Siege.
Myths and Magic – The Blurb:
Saffy has solved the first clue in her quest to save the magical world of Mandoreum from danger. Now it’s time to find the second.
She isn’t alone. Her new friend, Lily, a dragon from Mandoreum, wants to help. Together they take a trip and uncover special stories and unexpected surprises.
But Saffy soon learns that first appearances are not always what they seem. And plotting in the background is a witch who will do everything she can to stop them…
Publication day is 28th May, but it’s available to pre-order now:
Buying links:
Amazon UK:
Paperback: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Myths-Magic-Saffys-Secret-Quest/dp/1806342103
E-book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0GX6T5C6R
Author bio:
Esther has been a freelance writer for over twenty-five years, regularly writing articles and short stories for magazines and newspapers.
Winner of several competitions, including those run by Writing Magazine and The Global Short Story Contest, she has also had the privilege of judging writing competitions and relished being given the role of head judge of the Writers’ Forum monthly short story competition.
Esther loves writing but equally enjoys helping others, which she achieves in her role as a tutor for The Writers Bureau. Always on the lookout for a new challenge, she is taking the distance learning college over at the end of July.
She has had two how-to books on writing published, with a third due out later this year, as well as two collections of short stories. Her second children’s book is coming out in May, where she writes under the name of Esther Moonstomp.
Blogs:
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