Tag Archive for James Preller Fan Mail

FAN MAIL WEDNESDAY #350: Amelia Sends a Summer Code!

June 15, 2026 / / No comments
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Often when I receive letters from readers, I am aware of an adult’s presence somewhere in the background. Perhaps suggesting the letter, helping to make this connection happen, going out and buying stamps, and mostly just sharing and fostering an enthusiasm for reading. I’ve been there. We want so desperately for our children to love books, to love reading. Usually that adult is invisible. But I can sense there’s a great teacher at work in there somewhere, gently guiding, or an entire family that celebrates books and reading and writing. I see them at book festivals. Mom, Dad, three kids with big eyes and bagful of books. On rare occasions, I hear from them directly. 
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Hello James,
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My daughter, Amelia, just finished 2nd grade and finished all of your jigsaw jones books. She wrote you a letter but we’re having trouble finding what address to send it to. Could you please let us know so we can mail it to you? Thank you!
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And, from an appreciative Mom, thank you for the very entertaining, wholesome and educational book series! We started reading them out loud a year and a half ago for our bedtime stories and they were perfect as Jigsaw was learning about the same things as my daughter and she LOVES anything detective related! It’s hard to find a great book series that’s age appropriate and encourages reading at a young age and we found your stories so much fun! Thank you!
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A few days later, I received a letter and a secret code in the mail. I’ll type out the letter, as the pencil is tough to read in this format: 
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Dear James Preller, 
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Thank you for writing the Jigsaw Jones books. My name is Amelia and I have just finished 2nd grade. My favorite part was when he solved the mysterys. My favorite character is Jigsaw and Mila because my short name is Mila. 
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I have read them all!
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Thanks again for writing them. 
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From Amelia (Mila)!
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And Amelia, a detective herself, included a brain-busting Summer Code and a nifty illustration!
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I replied . . . 

Dear Amelia,

Wow!

I love your Summer Code — thank you for that — and your illustration of Rags. You are so talented.

When I was your age, and even younger, I used to draw all the time. And then came horses.

I could not draw a horse to save my life. They all looked like sick water buffaloes. Ack! And in response, I did the worst thing anyone can do: I gave up. I stopped drawing.

Defeated by a horse.

I can’t believe you read ALL the Jigsaw Jones books. Are you sure?

I’m going to include one in the mail for you, since I think it’s hard to find. It originally came with a mini tape recording device that played six snippets of dialogue from the book. It was a special deal with the Scholastic Book Club. Crazy, right?

But even without it, the book stands on its own. Hopefully you’ll like it.

And if it’s true that you’ve read that hard-to-find book, too, then I’ll gladly give you one bazillion dollars!

(No, not really.)

I’m happy I helped you along on your reading adventure. You are just beginning and there are so many great books out there fo you to discover. Even now, I feel that same excitement every time I read a new book. The world is a vast and beautiful place —- we are so lucky to be alive to enjoy it —- and books are part of that pleasure.

I love trees and birds and mountains and ice cream and readers like Amelia and librarians and music and dogs and . . .

On and on and on it goes.

Have an amazing summer!

Wait.

Do they even have summers in Minnesota? I’ve heard about your winters. Brrr!

My best,

James Preller

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

FAN MAIL WEDNESDAY #348: The Sometimes Disappointing Business of Children’s Publishing

May 25, 2026 / / 2 comments

 

 

 

 

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Here’s another letter from a reader who enjoyed EXIT 13: The Whispering Pines.
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It kind of kills me, because there’s a sad story here, one that I suspect is fairly common in contemporary children’s publishing. I was asked to write two books in a new series for Scholastic. They came to me with the title, “Exit 13,” and a plan to feature the first book in Scholastic Book Fairs. They owned the concept. Beyond that, I did most of the heavy lifting. I was grateful for the opportunity. It was also a return to my publishing roots, since that’s where I first good my start. 
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I was pleased with the first book. I thought I accomplished something.  This was a fun, fast-paced, genuinely mysterious story. And it was well-published, too, featuring great art by Kevin Keele. 
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Of course, that first book had no advance promotion, no buzz whatsoever, when it appeared in Book Fairs next to some of the most popular books in the business. I gather that sales were disappointing. And before the second book came out, Scholastic had decided to pull the plug. There would be no third title. The series was dead on arrival, with no time to reach an audience. Honestly, all things considered, it would have taken a near-miracle to succeed.
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Hey, publishing is filled with tough decisions. It’s a business. They are in it to shift units, make cash registers sing. I understand how it works. Maybe they were right. But in my heart, I felt like that series could have been something. I had hopes!
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Oh, well. You move on. And occasionally answer a letter from a reader. 
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Hello Mr. Preller,
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My name is Ella _____ and I’m a 4th grader at South Dakota ______ Elementary and I really like your book Exit 13 The Whispering Pines. I like your book because I like how mysterious it is with the creepy man that Willow has a crush on until she starts to think differently about him. I also like how Ash goes into the forest with Willow to find their dog Daisy the goldendoodle.  I also like the part when they are in the pool that is not filled and the wolf comes when Willow isn’t there and she’s getting a drink while Ash and the girl are in the empty pool. A question I have  is why was the snake in the janitor’s cart? Another question i have is how did the dad fall and sprain his neck during the fire alarm? Mr. Preller thank you so much for reading my paragraph about your book Exit 13.
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I replied . . . 
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Dear Ella,
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Good morning! Thanks for your patience. I’ve been covering a lot of ground lately — drove from Albany, NY, all the way to New Orleans and back (almost 3,000 miles!), then to Long Island for a school visit to speak to 7th graders who all read my book Bystander, and then yesterday at a local school to talk to students, PreK-5. 
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So, finally, at last, a quiet morning at home. It’s overcast and rainy and my dog Echo is looking at me, wondering when we’ll go out for a walk. I’ve patiently explained that he’ll have to wait until I finish this letter to Ella in South Dakota.
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He just doesn’t get it. 
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Thank you for reading EXIT 13: The Whispering Pines. I’m glad you enjoyed its overall creepy, mysterious vibe. There’s a sequel, EXIT 13: The Spaces In Between, that I think is even more exciting. Anytime I write a story, there’s a degree of setting things up in the beginning: introducing characters, the setting, the situation. It’s always going to be a little slow at first, by necessity. With this book, I hoped to sprinkle in enough strangeness to keep the reader involved until the plot reveals itself and the action picks up. If the reader doesn’t care about the characters, then it’s not going to be a good book, period. For the second title in the series, I was able to launch right into it. In the process, I stumbled upon a device that worked really well. I found a way to put both Ash and Willow in peril — but separately. Then I was able to alternate chapters between them. Just when Ash was in trouble, I’d cut to Willow, get her in danger, then cut back to Ash, and somehow maintained that pace for about six chapters. It worked out really well, I think. I have a new series coming out next year, THE SURVIVAL CODE, that’s basically a wilderness survival series, and I use that device again to, I hope, great effect. Keep your eye out for them in the future.
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So here I am, 65 years old, a published author for 40 years, still learning new things. That’s one of the best things about this job. 
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By the way, I once had a goldendoodle named Daisy in real life. Now that she’s gone, I put her in that book. 
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You asked about the snake. Is it two-headed? I forget. To me, it was another odd element, part of the motel’s creepy backstory that I hoped to further develop in future books. Alas, Scholastic, my publisher, did not have an appetite for more, a decision they made before the second book was even published. It’s like a new TV show getting pulled after only a few episodes; it’s hard to build an audience when you don’t have time to grow. Oh, well. In Book #2 I do get to hint at some of the forces at work, and possibly an alien presence. The ground is poisoned, if you will. Weird things happen there. A rift in time and space. 
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The father hurt himself during a late-night fire alarm. Wakened in the middle of the night, in a strange room, he simply stumbled and fell. It served to keep the family in place for a bit, though of course we later learn that leaving was never an option. 
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Okay: Echo is really giving me the evil eye right now. I have to end this letter, get out of my pajamas, and start the day. Ella, I really appreciate hearing from you. Thanks for reading EXIT 13. You might also like my book Blood Mountain, where I have a brother and a sister and a dog (Carter, Grace, and Sitka) lost in the mountains. It is realistic fiction, unlike EXIT 13, but it shares many of the same qualities, including two parallel plot threads that occur at the same time, jumping back and forth in alternate chapters. In that book, I strive for similar creepiness and a general feeling of dis-ease and danger. Not exactly scary (do you know my SCARY TALES books?), but quietly unsettling. 
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What can I say? I like that stuff. 
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Anyway, time to go!
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James Preller
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P.S. Here’s a few from a winter walk. I love that dog!
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Category: EXIT 13, Fan Mail / Tags: , , , , , ,

FAN MAIL WEDNESDAY # 344: “I Usually Don’t Like Reading”

June 5, 2025 / / 2 comments

 

When it came time to respond to this note, I was a little baffled. 

I had to try to figure out the writer’s name by the email address. My sense is that I probably botched it horribly.

Oh, well!

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The email read . . . 

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Good evening. I am in the 7th grade and I recently read the book Bystander. I loved the book and I usually don’t like reading. You probably had others tell you this idea but I think Bystander would make an awesome show or movie. I hope you can reply and take this into consideration. Thank you

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I replied . . . 

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Licenie,
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Did I get that right? Licenie? A new one for me. Or is it Pierre? The reverse??? 
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I’m so confused! 
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(You didn’t sign the email, so I’m looking at your address and guessing.)
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Anyway, yes, thank you, I have heard that observation before. I take it as a great compliment. My goal for my writing is always to be visual, for there to be a “movie” playing in the back of the reader’s skull. For this book, in particular, I really tried to refrain from explaining the action, or getting too interior with different character’s thoughts and feelings. I wanted the action to take place on the surface — we are watching it — and for the reader, like Eric, to have to figure it out on his or her own. So maybe in that way it’s more of a cinematic book?
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There’s a sequel to Bystander, a companion book, titled Upstander, which also comes in the form of a pretty decent audiobook, extremely well read by Caitlin Davies. Worth checking out! The two books overlap a little bit: Upstander begins before Bystander and catches up to the ketchup scene, from a different perspective, about halfway through. 
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You might like it! Or not!
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And, yes, I particularly love hearing from someone who enjoys a book but doesn’t usually “like reading.” Few things make me happier, because reading has been such an important part of my life, giving me so much pleasure and satisfaction. I hate to think of someone missing out on all that great, great stuff. Especially someone with a whole life in front of you. So many books, so little time.
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You are never going to like every book. Nor should you. But there are great books out there that are just right for you. Please, don’t give up on books!
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My best,
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James Preller
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Category: Bystander, Fan Mail, Upstander / Tags: , , , , ,

Goodnight Letters, Goodnight Stamps!

May 19, 2025 / / No comments

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My “Fan Mail” game just got upgraded.

Check out these snazzy new stamps I picked up at the Post Office today!

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Category: All Welcome Here, Current Events, Fan Mail / Tags: , , , ,

FAN MAIL WEDNESDAY #341: My Pen Pal Jaquan (Plus Some Actual FREE Writing Advice!)

May 7, 2025 / / No comments

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Back in February of 2018, I received a piece of fan mail from Jaquan. It was partly in braille, a first for me. And it would become the first of many, many missives we’ve passed along over the years. You see, Jaquan is a dedicated, passionate writer. He’s been sending me stories all this time. There have been lags and spurts, but I’ve tried to keep up. Mostly with encouragement and enthusiasm. And every once in a while I’ll stick in a Pro Tip!

That first envelope looked like this:

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A closer look . . .

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For me, receiving a letter from a reader is a privilege, an honor, and an obligation. There was a time, when my Jigsaw Jones mystery series was at its peak, with new titles appearing on Scholastic Book Clubs four times a year, I got a lot of letters. It was almost a problem. I’d get overwhelmed. I tried creating a small brochure, and then postcards, but they made me feel like a robot. For the most part, I’ve made the effort to write authentic responses to each and every letter. That’s partly why I’ve been sharing a sampling of letters-and-responses on this blog since 2008.

Fortunately, I don’t get nearly as many letters as I used to.

Wait, fortunately?

Oh, well!

(Aside: I also suspect that “letters to an author” is not quite the thing it used to be in schools. Particularly snail mail. It’s too bad.)

The writing life has its ebbs and flows, and I’ve been doing it for the past 39 years. Still hanging in there.

And for the past 7+ years, I’ve been hearing from Jaquan. Recently, I received this one, which was a little different from the rest:

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Dear Mr Preller, I hope your doing well i’m a huge fan of your jigsaw Jones series it inspired me to make A series of my own A little while ago I sent books of my  of my own for you to check out  like my dog detective series I really appreciate the influence you have on your writers like me Young writers like me I know you’re super busy and I just want to say thank you for the inspiration lots of good ideas and thank you again when you get a chance to read them, please give me your honest opinion on my work  warm regards Jaquan J, your author Friend ps, thank you again JJ 

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Here’s my reply:

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Jaquan,
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What a kind letter, my friend, thank you.
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As a writer — and sometimes as a writing teacher — I often come up against the limits of how much I can help any other writer. In the end, we are all alone and need to do it on our own. That quiet time with the blank page and the stirrings of our heart, our own talent, our own dedication.
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I love that you love to write. That you love books and reading. If I’ve helped inspire you, and if I’ve encouraged you, then I’m satisfied with that. I don’t have many wise strategies to impart. We are all fumbling in the dark.
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Follow your enthusiasms.
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Keep going.
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And most of all, enjoy it, have fun with it, let your reading & writing be a source of pride and pleasure in your life.
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If we look to the outside world for our happiness, we will almost certainly be disappointed.
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Maybe that’s the creative process in a nutshell? Why we make things out of nothing. Create your own happiness. Light your own candle in the dark & difficult world.
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You’ve been working hard at this for a long time, Jaquan, and it shows. I’m glad you’ve kept me informed, sharing your stories over years. I see your growth. I’m grateful for you.
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And, yes, you are right. I have a life, things to do, and can’t always give your letters a considered response. Don’t mistake a period of silence for indifference. I care about you, and your writing, and I’m right here, cheering you on.
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By the way, I just looked it up. I first heard from you in February of 2018. So many letters and wonderful stories since. You had wanted to send me a letter in braille and a person at the Visions Center, Pamela, wrote to me. I later received your letter and still treasure it.
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We’ve been writing back and forth for seven years now. Isn’t that something?!
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It’s my turn to thank you, Jaquan. I’m so glad you reached out.
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Your friend in books & letters,
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James Preller
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Category: Fan Mail, the writing process / Tags: , , , , ,
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