Tag Archive for The Case of the Rainy Day Mystery

Fan Mail Wednesday #150: Weirdness & Other Fine Qualities

May 16, 2012 / / No comments

To mix things up, I thought I’d run a “Fan Mail Wednesday” piece on an actual Wednesday. I think it’s good to keep readers off-balance. So, here’s a good one. I only wish I could share with you the name of the letter writer, it’s just one of those perfect names that authors like me love to steal.

I replied:

Dear H____,

Thanks for your wonderful letter, I really enjoyed it. I don’t hear from many students who write in cursive –- I thought it had gone the way of the dinosaurs. These days I sign my books in print, because I assume that most kids can’t even read cursive.

Smart that you picked up on Joey’s eating. There are many characters in the Jigsaw Jones series, 40 books, 250,000 words. I try to make each character complete – an individual. I do that by trying to give each one a few distinct traits. Joey is a little goofy, sweet-natured, and he often takes things too literally, like Amelia Bedelia (as when, in The Case of the Rainy Day Mystery, Jigsaw tells him to “put a tail on Bigs Maloney”). But the real key to Joey is his enthusiasm for food. He eats fast, and usually has a crumbled Oreo in his back pocket.

Art by Jamie Smith from The Case of the Rainy Day Mystery. Sadly, it looks like Scholastic has let this most excellent book go out of print. I dream of  getting the rights back for these neglected books, and republishing them myself. I know I could sell ’em.

So, hmmm, some people think you are weird. Maybe you are a different, I don’t know. But there’s nothing wrong with that. I’m often bored when I meet super-normal people, you know what I mean? I think it’s our quirks and oddities that make us interesting. And believe me, everyone has a little bit of weirdness inside. We’re human beans, after all; it’s our differences that make the world go round.

Anyway, as we travel through life, we eventually find and attract the right kinds of friends –- the people who like us for who we are. If someone thinks you are weird . . . so what. You don’t have to “not like them,” but I do recommend not paying much attention to that kind of thinking.

Be yourself, H_____. Thanks for your kind, well-written letter. You made me happy, and I think you’re terrific. My best,

JP

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Category: Fan Mail, Jigsaw Jones / Tags: , , , , , ,

“Best Day Ever”: A Chance Meeting at the Dublin Literacy Conference

March 6, 2012 / / 9 comments
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This is Sreelakshmi. I met her at the Dublin Literacy Conference in late February. I was cooling my heels in the hallway of a cavernous high school, chatting with librarian Bill Prosser, waiting for the attendees to filter into the room before my session, cleverly titled “Meet Author James Preller.” A group of three high school girls who were working as volunteers stopped outside the room. One ducked her head inside, curious.
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Bill asked if they needed help. Sreelakshmi told him that she was looking for James Preller. Bill jerked a thumb in my direction as if to say, “Sorry to disappoint you, but this is James Preller standing right here.”
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Sreelakshmi turned to me, flustered and speechless. Disbelieving, even — her breath short and shallow. Tears began to roll down her cheeks. Finally, in fits and spurts, she told me how she still remembers reading those books, how much they meant to her,  how she had no idea that I would be at the conference.
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How this was now officially the best day in her life.
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I almost cried myself. As an author, I don’t normally (read: ever!) get that kind of reaction. A reader so moved. We hugged, took a picture, and talked for a few minutes. Later we were able to visit some more. A kind teacher, George the Humorous, bought a book for her — I stupidly didn’t think of it — and I signed it. I am sure that her reaction says more about Sreelakshmi than it does about me or my books. She was touched by literature, moved by books, and it will always be that way for her. She is, you see, a reader. The genuine article. I’m glad about that, glad that I somehow played a role in that awakening, glad to be blessed so.
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Later that day, I received an email that included the photo above.
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Hello Mr.Preller!

It’s me again, the girl from Dublin who cried tears of joy to meet the author of a book series she loved as kid. It was amazing meeting you at the Literacy Conference today. Who’d have thought a day of volunteering for NHS would become the best day of my life thus far? I certainly did not.
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I want to thank you, again, for writing those books. Honestly, it was books like yours that made me love reading so much. I clearly remember reading The Case of the Rainy Day Mystery in third grade. It was such a good book that I went to the library for more, and every time I’d go to a new library (unfortunately, I’ve moved around a lot.), the Jigsaw Jones books were among the first books I’d look for. Your books made me smile and think about the mysteries — I always had a hard time figuring them out 🙂 . I still have a bit of a soft spot for mystery novels because of Jigsaw.

You know, I opened up The Case of the Double Trouble Detectives again, and I still found myself reading it through cover to cover. It’s been nearly ten years since I first read one of your books, but I still love them. Thank you for writing stories that I will love for the rest of my life. Jigsaw has been as real to me as my classmates in elementary school.

Thanks again for inspiring me to read,
Sreelakshmi

No, thank you, Sreelakshmi. I will always remember you and your incredible reaction, I’m so happy we got the chance to meet.
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Category: Jigsaw Jones, School Visits / Tags: , , , , , , ,
 
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