Adventure Finds Alicia

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Adventure Finds Alicia (1998) Post 181

Adventure Finds Alicia is based (would you believe) on a true story. My dad, many years ago, was transporting a bull in a trailer (possibly a horse box) behind his car. He drove over a bridge and was off away on the other side when his passenger observed the bull was no longer with them. The trailer had worked loose. Dad backed up and reattached his bull and drove him home, but of course the published story is a bit more interesting than that. Alicia walks to school with her brother, and she's always on the look out for adventure. Is there a dinosaur in the park? What if that shadow is an elephant? Her brother opines there is no adventure in the city, and hurries her along. At the end of the street they part company to go to their respective schools but Alicia sees a willow tree making strange movements and goes to investigate.

She finds a cow, which has been left behind... being a responsible child she hastens to the nearest phone box (this is before every kid had a mobile!) and calls the police. She stays with the cow until help comes. Alicia decides that adventure can find you anywhere.

Cows do indeed enjoy eating willow leaves, so under a weeping willow is a likely place to find a straying cow.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Getting Around

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Getting Around (1997) Post 180

Getting Around is a little non-fiction book published, coincidentally, by the Momentum line. It's a simple narrative about travelling, by walking, running, hopping etc. It moves to swimming, rowing and paddling, takes in bikes, skates and wheelchairs and segues into unicycles and stilts before continuing with riding (animals), sliding and skiing, ballooning, flying, trains, and driving. It's surprising just how many ways there are of getting around. I didn't add the Segway or space rocket... one wasn't really known in 1997 and I suppose the other isn't in reach of most people. Who knows; in another fifty years all bets might be off.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Aurora

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Aurora (1995) Post 179

Aurora is the story of Aurora Quinn, who lives with her family on an island. The Quinns live a happy and placid life, but now in her teens, Aurora is beginning to feel the isolation. There's not much she can do about it though, as it's for her benefit that the family live where they do.
Aurora is adopted--unofficially. It's lucky Polly, her Mum, has some slightly shady contacts, because otherwise Aurora would exist, officially. She was found in a crashed UFO, and Polly and her husband, en route to a new home, simply gathered her up and arrived there as an instant family. Aurora is "pretty much" human, but there is one thing she finds it increasingly difficult to hide. She weighs far, far more than any human her size. Therefore, she is unable to swim.

All is well until Cousin Josh arrives unexpectedly on the island. He remembers his aunt and uncle vaguely, and as far as he can work out, they shouldn't have a child Aurora's age. He makes it his business to discover what his cousins are hiding.

Aurora began life as a short story about a girl named Ariel who couldn't float. The idea came to me because my great aunt could float far more effectively than most people, (so can I for that matter) and I wondered if there were people who were the reverse. Then, one night my husband took me out to look at the aurora and remarked casually that the lights messed up radio waves. I wondered what that might do to a UFO. I put the two ideas together and wrote a novel called UFO. I thought that was a catchy title, but the editor preferred Aurora, and I think she was right as, after all, the story focuses on the characters.

I'm fond of Aurora, and used her story to explore privacy, need-to-know, and the effect having a "different" sibling has on the others in the family.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Raffina

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Raffina (1999) Post 178

Raffina is the story of four orphaned sisters living on the outskirts of a village. One snowy evening Kes and Fawnie are waiting for their eldest sister Fili who us twenty and their youngest sister, Raffina, who is nearly twelve. Fawnie and Kes keep house and tend the garden while Fili is at work and Raffina runs wild. Fili comes home with disturbing news. There's a rumour of a werewolf in the forest and they must move, again, before things get too dangerous.

Raffina comes home to find her sisters packing, She's not pleased, having just settled down after the latest move, one of ten in the past three years. Someone knocks on the door demanding entrance and reluctantly Fawnie lets Master Kenton and his wife come in. These redoubtable villagers search the cottage before telling the girls to lock up tightly. Raffina wants to know what the werewolf looks like so she knows what to look out for. Master Kenton gives a description of black eyes, a monobrow and hairy hands. The sisters relax, and the neighbours go home... and Raffina goes off to have a prowl in the forest.

The illustrations are quite brilliant in this one, giving young Raff a decidedly knowing look. For anyone paying close attention to the girls' names, there are plenty of clues that Raff isn't the only were in the family. I liked these characters, so years later I wrote a story taking place when Raffina is grown up. That certainly wasn't suitable for children so it was published under one of my pen names. I occasionally wonder if the kids who read Raffina back in the late 1990s, and who are now adults themselves, might get hold of Moon Madness, read it, and feel a twinge of memory. Surely they once read another story about four sisters with these very names?

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Kallie Fetches the Dragon

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Kallie Fetches the Dragon (1998) Post 177

Kallie Fetches the Dragon is one of a pair of stories about Kallie, the fisherman's daughter who becomes a wizard's apprentice. (The other one is Kallie and the Fishermen.)

In this story, Kallie is established as the wizard's youngest apprentice. The chimney is smoking and the wizard is raging because his dinner is underdone. Pol, a senior apprentice, sends Kallie to fetch the wizard's dragon for roasting duties. It's not as easy as it sounds, as Kallie first has to find the dragon and then persuade it to come away from the harbour where it is eating salmon. This she does in her own innovative fashion, involving the underdone meat, a fishing rod and the old donkey and carrot-on-a-stick trick. The wizard is so pleased he gives Kallie a promotion.

I was intrigued to find what seemed to be a third Kallie book; one called Kallie, the Wizard's Apprentice. I ordered a copy and discovered it was a foreign edition of Kallie Fetches the Dragon. It's always odd to find one's name on a book one can't recall writing.

The illustrations were done by Pat Reynolds. Below is one of the lovely interior pictures. That would grace a trade picture book, don't you think?

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Bathing Beauty

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Bathing Beauty (2000) Post 176

Bathing Beauty is about Nick and Rosa, who agree to mind their neighbour Mrs Teo's cat while she'd away. It's an easy enough job; all they have to do is to feed Beauty, clean her litter tree and make sure she's shut in the house. The two are feeling smug until the day of Mrs Teo's return, when everything goes a bit pear-shaped.

This story, written under my Patrick Farrell pen name, employs a knowing narrator who points out that a plot point wouldn't be mentioned if it wasn't important and that if everything went well there would be no story.

Mum sends a jar of fresh jam for Mrs Teo. Naturally, Nick unscrews it to sniff the sweet scent. Naturally Beauty trips him up. Naturally the jam goes all over Beauty. The children try to wipe her clean and then have a go at bathing her, with predictable results. Beauty runs away and hides.

The kids clear up as well as they can and try to find the cat but Mrs Teo returns. Of course Beauty reappears right away... nice and clean, having taken care of the problem in her own feline fashion.

Yes, I did once try to wash a cat. It wasn't easy.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Mix & Match

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Mix & Match (1998) Post 175

Mix & Match is one of a trio of romances I wrote in the late 1990s under the pen name Tegan James. The first, In Search of a Husband, was Post 82. They were published by a US company, and the line ended after the third one was accepted but before it was published, so Triple Treat never came out. They are loosely a series, in that some of the characters in each book know or are related to others in the other books. In this story, Aberdeen Shawcross, a costume conservator, suddenly loses her job. She goes to visit her mother, Kate, in Tasmania where she sees the yachts come in after the Sydney/Hobart yacht race. Thus she gets involved with Jet Diamond, crewing one of the yachts. Jet, an excitable type, scoops her up to celebrate, and their romance continues when she returns to Sydney. Here she meets Jet's twin brother Jasper, who runs Diamond/Spellman Studios along with his cousin Tam Spellman. Aberdeen has discovered she's not a great one for sailing, since she gets seasick. And Jasper is showing far too much interest in his twin's fiancee. It's not friendly.
As usual with this kind of book, I was, on the surface, writing a traditional romance, but underneath it I was up to something different, having fun with minor characters, names and whatever interested me at the time. It seems I was into costumes and historical clothing in the late 1990s, and also into cottage garden plants. Kate and Jasper get into a game of one upsmanship by trading off the Latin names for plants. This information was the legacy of my childhood association with my grandmother Elsie. What else? Well, Sydney is a favourite city which I know fairly well, so I planted my own suburb there. Tasmania is where I live. The yacht race is not of personal interest, but it's quite a bit affair and a good way to get Sydneyites down under down under... and Hobart is about as down under as you can get and still be in a city. Jet and Jasper Diamond have gemstone names from another interest of my teen years, and Aberdene is named after a place near where I live.

As with Husband and Triple Treat I may reprint this one as a POD under my real name. It will have to be a period piece though as it is very much a creature of the late 90s.

In this case the title is more or less my own, although I'm not sure about that ampersand. As with Heather & Heath I'm not sure how this got in. I think those are the only two titles with that symbol. As for the cover... I have a feeling Sydney Harbour Bridge is reversed somehow. It looks odd to me.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

A Crew for Captain Kate

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A Crew for Captain Kate (1998) Post 174

Captain Kate has everything a pirate could ever need, except for one thing, She has a ship, a parrot, a peg leg, an eye-patch, treasure maps and the will to maraud. What she lacks is a pirate crew. They've all retired from piracy and gone to join the navy.

The redoubtable Kate sales around a colourfully-appointed map seeking a new crew. Meanwhile, the kids of Chapter Town are busily preparing for their annual pirate picnic. Naturally, Captain Kate discovers one of their posters, whipped from the hands of the capable librarian Paige Turner (sorry) and gatecrashes the picnic. Kidnapping, rescues and explanations ensue, and Kate gives way to doleful tears.

A compromise is reached. Kate and the children will indulge is treasure hunting on Saturdays. The rest of the week, Kate will help Ms Turner in the library.

A Crew for Captain Kate is cheerfully illustrated by Marjory Gardner in her trademark brilliant colours. Ms Turner wears little dangling books as earrings. Who could resist that?

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

The Monsters

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The Monsters (2001) Post 173

The Monsters is the story of the First Fleet's arrival in Botany Bay as recounted by an old kangaroo. As he rests on his tail in the sun, he recalls his young days, when he was not long from the pouch. His mother taught him to listen to the Old Man, his father, and together they told him the things a joey needs to know to survive. Watch out for the fast ones, the two-legs, the wild one and the bitter water... The old man didn't warn the joey about the monsters that came on the great white wings. Soon there was nothing left to do but to move far away from the new danger. Now the storyteller is old, and he wonders if the monsters are still at the cove.
This little story was an exercise in telling a story from an unexpected angle. All things are relative, and for every settler despairing of losing food to the local wildlife, there's an equally discombobulated kangaroo whose life has been upset.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Plants

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Plants (1997) Post 172

Plants is one of a set of non fiction titles for young readers, illustrated with photographs. The text goes through a definition, then moves to trees, mosses, ferns, cacti, grasses, fungi, clover and wild flowers. Twenty years after writing this book, I can't remember why I included clover, since it doesn't seem to go with the rest. I also can't remember why I didn't include eatable plants such as vegetables. Maybe the brief was for a particular set of plants and indeed, it's probable there was another one in the series that did cover vegetables, and another for flowers.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Lucas is a Pest

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Lucas is a Pest (2001) Post 171

Lucas is a Pest is written under my Theo Georgiou pen name. It's told in emails, and is an updated version of the old told-in-penfriend-letters story. Eliza, from Canberra, is e-pals with Maggie from Denver in the US. Eliza tells of her family (especially her little brother Lucas, who is a pest), a visit to the War Memorial, and going to Anzac Day service. Maggie, who thinks it would be neat to have a little brother, responds with information about her pop's Maine Coon, Hiram, and the Fourth of July. Finally, each girl independently concludes the other is a thicko-dingbat because everyone knows what Anzac Day and the Fourth of July represent, and everyone knows how much fun/what a pain it is to have a little brother.
The technology in this one hasn't dated too badly, as I expect some kids still have e-pals. Eliza's visit to the War Memorial is based on one I made myself. I still remember how amazed I was to find that their memorial is a huge museum complex. Ours is a statue. The stuffed horse, cockatoo and not-really-stuffed rider, the four pictures (or is it one?) and the ease of losing oneself all reflect my experience. The puzzlement that people over the pond have no idea about our Anzac Day whereas we know about their Fourth of July also reflects my experience at the time. Hiram the cat reflects my interest in cats... I always loved the idea of a Maine Coon!

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

The Lonely Dragon

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The Lonely Dragon (1997) Post 170

The Lonely Dragon is the story of a dragon who is, well, lonely! Most are afraid of him, and there are no others of his kind around. Wanting company, the dragon decides to visit the only other being he can think of who might be as lonely as he is; the king! As he approaches, asking to see the king, the gardeners, the guards and the household staff all flee. When he arrives in the throne room, the king receives him kindly, but regrets he has all the help he needs. To prove it, he calls his guards, gardeners and household staff but no one comes. The dragon happily takes on the role of defender (using his long sharp tail), gardener (using his dexterous claws) and housemaid (using his long beard as a duster and broom). The picture even shows him toasting the king's marshmallows!
I've always loved the pictures of this one; a kind a soft, rich pastel.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Sandstorm in a Sleeping Bag

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Sandstorm in a Sleeping Bag (2001) Post 169

Sandstorm in a Sleeping Bag came into being after I worked as writer in residence at a school camp at the very venue in this story. Roscoe, the hero, is a boy from the Atherton Tablelands, and he finds the sea altogether suspicious. From school camp, a place he is not especially thrilled to be in, he writes some creative but misleading accounts to his parents, using the teachers' laptop. The fact that multiple teachers use the same laptop shows the story's age. After each dramatic account is a chapter telling the reader what really happened.
When Roscoe's parents come to collect him, his father tells one of the teachers, Mr Felix, that they must have had a hair-raising time. To prove it, he shows off Roscoe's accounts. He further suggests that he hopes Mr Felix doesn't take anything Roscoe might write about his life on the Tablelands as gospel truth.
This story, like Visiting Day, (post 92) plays with aspects of truth.

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.

Nightlands

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Nightlands (2001) Post 168

Nightlands is the story of a kidnapping. Or is it an alien abduction? The narrator, whose name is never given, goes to his cousin Simmo's place while his mum and dad are at a reunion. Simmo has a new CD by the group Diamond Drill (hey... it's 2001!) and wants to take it along to his friend Marty's party. Aunt Didi is reluctant, and so is the narrator, but Simmo prevails and Aunt Didi says the boys must wait at Marty's place until she collects them at ten.

The party is loud and messy, and comes to an abrupt halt when Marty's mum turns up and throws everyone out. She does make Simmo call Did to collect them early, but Simmo speaks to the answering machine.

The boys set off walking, Simmo realises he's left his CD behind and they turn back to get it. A light looms up and next thing the narrator knows, he's being dragged away, blindfolded and gassed. Later, he wanders the place he calls the nightlands, seeking a way home. He keeps hearing his dog Mixer barking, and his parents and great-grandfather calling.

Finally, he learns the truth about what really happened, and the significance of the single light and the narrator's black clothing become clear.

This odd story is credited to Patrick Farrell, a pen name based on my second name and maiden name. Oh, and I still think Diamond Drill is a fine name for a punk rock band!

About the Blog 

Sally is Sally Odgers; author, manuscript assessor, editor, anthologist and reader. She runs http://www.affordablemanuscriptassessments.com and Prints Charming Books. (Sally is me, by the way, and I am lots of other things too, but these are the relevant ones for now.)

The goal for 2017 is to write a post a day profiling the background behind one of my books; how it came to be written, what it's about, and any things of note that happened along the way. If you're an author, an aspiring author, a reader or just someone who enjoys windows into worlds, you might find this fun. The books are not in any special order, but will be assigned approximate dates, and pictures, where they exist. If you enjoyed a post, or want to ask about any of my books or my manuscript assessment service, leave me a message.