Archive for August 7, 2026

It’s Official! (But Whatever Happened to That Hat?)

August 7, 2026 / / One comment

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Somewhere between the first blush of inspiration and the final published book, there’s “the announcement.”

Agents, in particular, love the announcement. It’s the best advertisement they can feature. Because if you can sell a James Preller book, you can sell anything!

This ran in PW, I believe. As an author, I’m firmly in the camp that doesn’t particularly follow “the business.” I can see how having a handle on what sells and what’s hot can be good information. But, yeah, I’m not really into “industry news.”

I do, to varying degrees, at different times, try to stay abreast of the best books.

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The folks at PW have been using this old photo — gotta be 15 years old at least — in every announcement. Boy, do I miss that hat! It was a wonder! It used to sit right on top of my actual head!

And, yes, that actual head is a little weather-beaten these days. The Irish eyes have gotten smaller, the lips thinner, the hair grayer. The whole thing just, collectively, worse. Such is life.

So, yeah, fine. Keep using that ancient photo, folks!

Nonetheless, here is the latest nugget of good news. I’m very impressed by illustrator Fred Blunt, though I’ve only seen the process that led us to the cover. He has a loose, energetic style that feels just right for the story. It’s actually a little book about verbs but it’s been decided, probably wisely, not to tell readers that.

“Hey, Kids! I know you’ve all been clamoring for more books about Parts of Speech!” 

Maybe keep that on the down low. 

Anyway, I’m very glad to be publishing again for emergent readers. I first broke out in 1994 with Hiccups for Elephant and Wake Me In Spring, and I’ve long had a special affection for the easy-to-read genre. Tricky to write, or to get right, and the pay isn’t great. Now with my “. . . and a Moose!” series — the third book is coming out in 2027, Two Astronauts and a Moose — I feel like I have some good, new, inexpensive books on school visits for the PreK-K crowd o go along with the new “Bigfoot and Dodo” series, Jigsaw Jones, Scary Tales, the upcoming “Survival Code” books, plus the assortment of middle-grade titles I’ve done over the years: Blood Mountain, Bystander, etc. 

Just wait until you see my upcoming picture book, What Dogs Don’t Know. I’m really, really happy with that one! Illustrated by Laura Sandoval.  That’s coming in 2027, too.

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Category: the writing process / Tags: , , , , , , ,

Slime Time: There Will Be Math!

August 4, 2026 / / No comments

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Today I handed in my first draft & story map for an upcoming Choose-Your-Own-Adventure, tentatively titled, The Slime Machine. I believe it’s scheduled for Fall, 2027. 

You’d think that writing a book would involve words, not numbers, but ho-ho-ho. Where’d you ever get that silly idea? Without a map, confusion would reign and chaos would follow. 

This is the 3rd book I’ve done with the good people at Chooseco. And you’d probably assume that I’d know what I was doing by this point, but oh boy, not really! Every book is a puzzle and it’s not uncommon for me to write myself into a corner.

It reminded me of a scene from another new book coming out in 2027 (Simon & Schuster, February), Bigfoot and Dodo: Together at Last! At this point in the story, Dodo is tasked with painting the floor.

I’ve already given a hint as to how that ends up . . .

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Together at Last! was co-written with the very funny, very supportive Audrey Vernick, and illustrated by French punk rock artist, Joelle Dreidemy. What a team!

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Category: Bigfoot & Dodo, the writing process / Tags: , , , , , ,

A QUIZ: “Stay gold, Ponyboy”

August 2, 2026 / / No comments

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I had the great pleasure of seeing “The Outsiders” on Broadway last night. I enjoyed it even more than I expected. The stagecraft, choreography, and youthful vitality were especially impressive. It hones close to the original book.

And, of course, I loved the novel by S.E. Hinton, both times I read it. That great theme of a young man struggling to find himself, to realize there’s more to the world than the narrow hometown where he’s been raised, to finally break free and find himself.

If you can tell that story, you’ve got something. And it is a story that needs to be told over and over again in a thousand different settings.

Anyway, here’s a shirt they were selling in the lobby. 

And, yes, there will be a quiz:

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In one of my Scary Tales stories, i named a minor character after a character from The Outsiders. 

Can you name the character?

Can you name the story?

You’ll find it, along with two other stories, in this (cheap!) paperback collection. The answer is below. 

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Answer: I named a character “Soda Pop” in the story, One Eyed Doll. No real reason, just a little tribute. It’s a thing that writers do. I guess they call them “Easter eggs” nowadays.

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Category: Current Events, Scary Tales / Tags: , , , , , , ,
 
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