Category: From The Grave
September 24–A Month of Monsters
Countdown to
FROM THE GRAVE!!!
Today’s Monsterism:
#3: Time waits for no monster
Here’s the link to win a signed copy of FROM THE GRAVE!
September 23–A Month of Monsters
Countdown to
FROM THE GRAVE!!!
Today’s Monsterism:
#2: Mayhem when appropriate
Here’s the link to win a signed copy of FROM THE GRAVE!
A Month of Monsters!!!
Today–September 22–
is exactly a month until
FROM THE GRAVE‘s
BOOK LAUNCH at
THE NOVEL NEIGHBOR!!!
In celebration of the big event, I’ll be posting a new MONSTERISM here each day! Sign up for my blog, so you won’t miss a single one!
#1: Monster is as monster does.
Here’s the link to win a signed copy of FROM THE GRAVE!
FROM THE GRAVE Book Launch at THE NOVEL NEIGHBOR
Come Join Me!
On October 22 at 2:00 to celebrate the launch of FROM THE GRAVE!
There will treats, prizes, activities–and BOOKS!
Get your signed copy of FROM THE GRAVE!!!
Be prepared for some Frightful FUN!!!
FUN with SPIDERS
Here Come the Cobwebs!
Frankenstein Frightface Gordon (Frank) in my book, FROM THE GRAVE, has a big brother named Ghoulbert. Frank’s brother is not affectionate in the least when it comes to Frank, but Ghoulbert does get a little mushy over his pet. He has a rather uncooperative spider called Spidey, that Ghoulbert adores.
As you can see in the scene below, Ghoulbert goes all out to rescue it. Frank is the one telling the tale, and his mam and pap are in the scene as well.
An Excerpt: FROM THE GRAVE (coming Oct. 18!!!)
I HURRIED THROUGH my supper (mac and sleeze with fresh swamp greens salad). Then I excused myself—said I needed to study for the Monster Achievement Test and practice Scare Patrol tactics. I was kind of surprised when my dad offered to help.
Pap threw his bulky arm around my shoulders. “That’s my monster,” he said.
I blinked. When was the last time he’d said that?
“Mondo! Mon-dOOOOOO!” Mam shrieked as she floated into the dining room. “Ghoulbert’s done it again. My bungling big boy. My misaligned monster.”
“What now?” Pap hunched his shoulders, as though preparing for a blow.
“Ghoulbert’s gotten his head stuck in the toilet again. Trying to rescue Spidey.”
“Ratzbotchin!” Pap threw back his thick green noggin. “That silly pet spider causing trouble again, Shareeka? Hiding out to get another bite on my behind, I bet. I’ve a mind to flatten that spider. Flatter than a nail in a coffin.”
“Oh, drat, draaaaaat, draaaaaat,” wailed Mam. “You mustn’t.” She floated on Pap’s footsteps, as he stomped to the outhouse.
I slipped quietly away. I knew by the time this latest crisis was solved Pap would be ready for his pre-bedtime nap by the fireplace. All I needed to do was leave a note on my now care- fully rumpled bed, “Went for a midnight stroll,” in case someone tried to look in on me.
*****
Like me, you probably don’t want a pet spider–especially Spidey! But here is a fun art project for making a fuzzy pipe cleaner spider. Perfect for Halloween decorations!
Stay tuned for more updates on FROM THE GRAVE!
Reviews Are In!
See What Two First Readers Are Saying About
FROM THE GRAVE
[FROM THE GRAVE]… this is a totally fun book that I can see middle graders adoring. And it is fun that we hear the story from both Frank and Malcolm’s perspective and that Cynthia Reeg doesn’t sugarcoat the emotions the young monsters feel. There are lots of great themes and lessons here, particularly about how our society treats people (or monsters) who are outside of the norm, but they are drenched in monster pus and roars and hysterically funny things. Shocktober, ‘Monster Up’, Mushington Way, Snotfargle; I can’t tell you how many times I giggled at the name. The end of the book leaves open the possibility for another book. I’m sure a lot of kids will hope there will be one!
WENDY MACKNIGHT, author of It’s a Mystery, Pig Face! (Sky Pony Press, 2017)
Frankenstein Frightface Gordon (Frank) isn’t cut out to be a real monster. He’s not the right color. He doesn’t want to scare humans. He couldn’t hurt a monster or a human or any creature at all. And he just can’t stand being covered in dirt or grime or bat poop—truth be told, he’d rather be neat! Frank just can’t seem to do anything right. Yes, he’s a total misfit, and when a law is passed to get rid of misfits like him, he has to somehow figure out a way to stay true to himself and to stay in Uggarland, his home.
Good-hearted Frank sets out to prove that he and his misfit friends are an important part of Uggarland, and he knows just how to do it. In fact, his idea seems so bad, that maybe—just maybe—it might actually be good.
Cynthia Reeg does a great job creating a fun and funny world full of monsters, witches, dragons, and mummies—with names like Mr. McNastee to insults like, “Eat sugar!” to a horrifying field trip to a place with fresh air and bright blue skies! Young readers will laugh out loud, root for Frank, boo Malcolm, and wait with bated breath for these characters’ next adventure.
VICTORIA COE, author Fenway and Hattie (Penguin, 2016)
You Can Preorder Now and Earn a Chance to Win Swag!
Five specially designed spook-tacular T-shirts in child sizes!!!
Simply preorder FROM THE GRAVE and send a digital receipt copy/photo to publicity@jollyfishpress.com
Here are links for placing your order:
Jolly Fish Press
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/from-the-grave-cynthia-reeg/1123528610?ean=9781631630941
Books A Million
Indiebound
http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781631630941
Powell’s
http://www.powells.com/book/from-the-grave-9781631630941
The GiveAway ends September 23
Thanks! And MONSTER ON!!!
2016 Debut Authors Bash
Congratulation to the following winners of the YAReads – 2016 Debut Authors Bash.
FROM THE GRAVE was featured on Book Lovers Life. Thanks so much to both Natalie and Nicole for making this happen!
And the winners are . . .
Kayla, Wendy, Veronica, Cindy, Kelly, and Lysette!
Your signed FROM THE GRAVE posters went out in the mail today.
Thanks so much to everyone who entered. Please sign up at https://www.cynthiareeg.com for all the monster updates and for more chances to win cool—and creepy—monster swag!!!
Remember you can also follow along at @cynthiareeg on Twitter.
Keep calm and scary on!
MONSTER RULES
In my upcoming fantasy FROM THE GRAVE, I wanted to explore the concept of prejudice and bullying from a totally different perspective. So I created a world of monsters where conformity and rule following is extremely important. I wanted to show the absurdity of creating mandates based on preferences and obscure reasoning. Each chapter begins with a rule.
Some are nonsensical:
Monster Rule #33: Mayhem is appropriate only when those in authority determine it to be so.
Monster Rule #5: A monster is judged by his actions, so act up!
Some are simple:
Monster Rule #1: Follow the rules, or else!
Some are funny:
Monster Rule #55: Expect the unexpected and then eat it for lunch.
Some are alarming:
Monster Rule #71: Torture is often a necessary component of monster education.
All of them are rather extreme:
Monster Rule #13: Monster or die!
The theme in this sometimes wacky and often intense monster world explores how a society’s views are shaped by conventions: rules, customs, laws. Of course, we need guidelines to create a safe and livable environment. What I wanted to present was a society that had established too many unnecessary rules and regulations on how its inhabitants should look and act. The punishment for violating these monster rules is termination. In this fantasy society, rather than looking for the talents and potential in an unconventional monster, the creature is automatically excluded—unless it can somehow conform.
As might be expected, monsters shy away from change (Monster Rule #913: A well-educated monster knows not to ask any questions.) But I’m hoping FROM THE GRAVE will provide not only an entertaining middle grade read but also serve as a catalyst for discussion on discrimination and intolerance in our own society.
Monster on!
The BFG and Monster Food
Roald Dahl’s fantasy THE BFG is coming to the theaters on July 1. This is one of my favorite Dahl stories. I remember reading it to my two sons many years ago when they were in early elementary school. We would all laugh-out-loud at the antics of Sophie and her big, friendly giant. This was the type of story I wanted to write for children—one that would entertain and delight them.
Fast forward many years later, as I was brainstorming during a long car trip. An entertaining fantasy story started jelling in my mind. I scribbled down some notes about a world of monsters where a group of misfits was struggling to fit in. Originally, I intended to write FROM THE GRAVE as a beginning chapter book, but very quickly the characters informed me I was wrong. Their story was much too involved. These monsters needed a lot more pages to show off their stuff.
As an author, I knew better than to say “no” to monsters. Instead, I wrote their escapades into a middle grade story with humor, adventure, a fair share of gross-out factor—and plenty of heart as well. Plus, there’s more than a few monster curses thrown in, just to warn you.
I must say that I totally enjoyed the gross-out parts, particularly the monster food. The monster world in FROM THE GRAVE parallels the human world in many ways. But monsters have totally different palates than humans. Creating disgusting monster chow became a daily challenge as I wrote and rewrote the story. “Peppered innards” is one of my favorites.
WRITING PROMPT
What cooking in your monster kitchen???
Now it’s your turn to create some delectable (for monsters anyway) food. Pretend you are inviting all your favorite frightening friends for dinner. What will you serve? Perhaps Toasted Eyeballs for an appetizer. Chopped Lizard Gizzards with Gravy for the entry. And Bubbling Brains for dessert!
*Bonus: Write out the recipe for how to make your monster food.
*Bonus: Write a story that has monster food in it. Who’s making and eating the food? Throw in a problem to make it interesting. Remember a story needs:
- a Beginning (introduce us to your characters & setting)
- a Middle (things become worse instead of better)
- an End (wrap things up/solve the problem)
Watch the STIR UP A STORY slide show on my website for more help.
Starter Idea: Maybe a witch is throwing a party and she can’t get the fire going under her cauldron. What will she do? How do things go from bad to worse for her? Does anyone help her? (Remember: it’s good to have the main character solve her problem as much as possible.)
If you don’t like the starter idea, think up your very own story!
Have fun. Be creative. Don’t worry about spelling and punctuation too much on the first round. But if you want to earn a SUPER WRITER badge, try to correct as much as you can when you read your story over the second time.
Send me your BEST suggestions for monster food @CynthiaReegAuthor on Facebook or @cynthiaReeg on Twitter or comment below!
Be sure to find out what food is bubbling in the pot in FROM THE GRAVE by Cynthia Reeg. Coming to a cemetery near you October 18!