Author Interviews

Interview With Debut Author, Catherine Arguelles

By on June 5, 2022   /   Articles, Author Interviews, New Releases  

I always love to interview authors, but this one is especially near and dear to me. Catherine is not only my critique partner and a good friend, but her debut novel, FLIP TURNS is with Jolly Fish Press. So we are now pub-sisters!

I am so happy for Catherine and delighted the world gets to read her book. She is an incredibly gifted writer, and I am positive this is just the beginning of a very successful career.

I already know she’s fabulous, now it’s time you do, too!

Lisa: Tell us about Flip Turns.

Catherine: Okay! Flip Turns is a Middle Grade mystery featuring Maddie, a thirteen-year-old girl with anxiety who is struggling with the unwanted attention of a boy at school. When her family’s community pool is vandalized, threatening Maddie’s swim team, Maddie and her best friend Ez search for the culprit while dealing with friend and family dynamics, competitive swimming, and crushes.

Flip Turns comes out on September 13!

Lisa: What inspired the idea for this book?

Catherine: I swam on a summer swim team (Go Piranhas!) like Maddie’s while I was growing up. In the 14 summers on that team, we had our share of pranks and catastrophes. When my daughter started swimming on a team a few years ago, I got to thinking, what if those “pranks” and “accidents” weren’t really accidents or weren’t just pranks? What would make someone want to cause problems at a pool?

Lisa: Did you base any characters on people you know?

Catherine: Heh. Yeah. But I can’t tell you some of them to protect the people involved! I can tell you that both my middle school daughter and I have anxiety, so a lot of Maddie’s feelings and reactions are based on our experiences. But the closest to real-life character is Maddie’s big brother Jack who’s teasing yet loving personality is much like my own brother’s. And like Jack, my brother was a lifeguard adored by all the girls!

Lisa: How much of your real-life experiences play a role in the stories you tell?

Catherine: A lot! In Flip Turns, the swim meets and practices came straight out of my own memory. Also, I had an unwanted admirer in middle school and heard a lot of “Just be nice to him.” I wanted that inappropriate attention to be something we talk about instead of something we try to ignore.

Lisa: What was your hardest scene to write, and why?

Catherine: There’s a scene at the first swim meet where Lucas (the unwanted admirer) tries to hug Maddie. She’s only wearing her bathing suit and shorts and gets very uncomfortable. Every time I worked on that scene, I got the creeps. It’s a super cringey moment. But I think it’s authentic. Hugging is a big thing in middle school, but not everyone likes it.

Lisa: Which of your characters are most likely to be an activist, and what kind?

Catherine: I think Maddie’s best friend Ez would be an activist. She’s very driven and persistent in reaching her swimming goals, and she acts like a bit of an activist towards Maddie, encouraging her to stand up for herself and what she wants. Ez is the person throughout Flip Turns who keeps reminding Maddie that the attention from Lucas is inappropriate. I could see her being an activist for sexual harassment awareness and policy.

Lisa: Which of the characters do you relate to the most and why?

Catherine: I definitely relate to Maddie, the main character. Like I said above, we both have anxiety, and we’re both little sisters. We also both struggled to deal with the attention of that unwanted admirer, while at the same time enjoying crushes on nice boys. We have some differences though—Maddie loves art while I was more interested in reading and writing.

Lisa: What books did you like to read when you were a kid?

Catherine: I loved mysteries – Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, this wonderful series called T.A.C.K. that I’m pretty sure is sadly out of print now. I definitely wanted to be an amateur sleuth like the characters in those books. I’m also a fan of Astrid Lindgren – I loved Pippi Longstocking, but her lesser-known book Ronia the Robber’s Daughter is one of my favorite MG’s of all time.

Lisa: If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose?

Catherine: I really enjoy Erin Entrada Kelly’s books, and I’d love to watch her do school visits and meet readers.

Lisa: What advice would you give twelve-year-old, Catherine?

Catherine: I would encourage 12yo me to be more assertive in dealing with that unwanted admirer. I’d tell her to be clear about the discomfort, not just with him but also with adults and friends. And I’d tell her to worry less about what other people thought. Both of my kids have so much more confidence than I did as a middle schooler, and it’s a joy to watch them navigate the drama and social situations without a lot of the hurt and awkwardness I felt. I want to be more like my kids!

Lisa: Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me. I can hardly wait to celebrate your Book Birthday! 

Catherine: Thanks, friend.

 

About Catherine Arguelles 

Before writing novels, Catherine earned a BA in English with a minor in Women’s Studies and a MA in Psychology and Counseling. She has worked as a counselor with middle school students, a fundraiser for non-profits, and is the proud parent of two feminist readers. She lives in Northern California, and her favorite event was once the 100-yard backstroke.

Pre-Order Flip Turns

 

 

 

 

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The F.A.R.T. Diaries #1: Top Secret! No Kids Allowed!~ An Interview with Peter Bakalian

By on June 3, 2022   /   Author Interviews  

Welcome to my interview with author Peter Bakalian and his hilariously clever middle grade book The F.A.R.T. Diaries #1: Top Secret! No Kids Allowed! I’m sure the title has you as curious as it did me. So let’s jump right in and see what this diary is all about.

The Book

The F.A.R.T. DIARIES #1: Top Secret! No Kids Allowed! by Peter Bakalian

Publisher: Aladdin

Released: May 3, 2022

When a young teen discovers a top-secret parenting manual, it’s kids versus grown-ups in this kooky, illustrated middle grade thriller with nonstop, seat-of-your-pants action that will delight fans of Jarrett Lerner and Stuart Gibbs.

When a tween boy [Codename: Furious Popcorn] picks up what he thinks is a cookbook and finds a diabolical parenting manual, his world turns upside down. The Ultimate Guide to Hacking Your Kids was written by an organization called F.A.R.T. (Families Against Rotten Teens), a secret society of grizzled parents whose origins date back to antiquity.

FP is determined to get to the bottom of this, but when he begins investigating F.A.R.T., the manual goes missing, his parents deny knowing anything about any kind of book, and–maybe strangest of all–kids at school start listening to their parents and teachers. What kid would ever do that?

F.A.R.T. proves to be more than just some gassy acronym and parental rules and regulations when FP and the Only Onlys, his best friends since preschool, discover F.A.R.T.’s grand plan: a brain modem that can turn kids into well-behaved zombies!

This wacky crew has no choice but to find out who’s behind the nefarious organization and save young people the world over from total F.A.R.T. domination!

“A laugh out loud outrageous adventure with likeable characters and an engaging storyline. I loved the obstacles, the fast pace, and the unique skill set each character brought to the group.”   –  Meagan Marie, Goodreads 

Interview🎙️

Hi Peter! We are thrilled you’ve stopped by the Mixed-Up Files to share this fun middle grade book. Let’s start with the obvious – Humor. It’s a huge element throughout the story. And it’s not just humor, but some quirky and witty humor such as the characters having coded names. How did you come up with such an ingenious idea and title?

Thank you for the word “ingenious.” I’ve heard other adjectives!

Haha! I’m sure.

F.A.R.T. (Families Against Rotten Teens) is about a secret organization of frustrated parents whose mission is to keep kids confused and obedient. It’s been around since ancient times. All parents know about it. F.A.R.T. publishes a parenting manual that’s chock full of dirty tricks, advertisements for insane products and services. No kid is ever supposed to see it, until one does.

The idea came about when I was young parent and I heard a commercial for a manual that promised a perfectly obedient child within 30 minutes or less. I was ready to empty my savings account for it until I realized that it would become useless once my son caught on to the 30 minute secret. Anyway, I realized that this 30 minute manual was hype, but it got me thinking – what if a manual like that really existed and a kid found it?.

Surely this will get MGers to think about it’s possibility.

As for the book title, I tried a lot of acronyms but F.A.R.T. was the silliest so it won. The original title of the book was HOW TO RAISE YOUR ROTTEN KIDS UNTIL THEY’RE READY FOR JAIL.  A little harsh, yes? Anyway, the folks at Aladdin suggested putting F.A.R.T. on the cover and I’m glad they did.

I loved the silly! I’m sure young readers will, too.

If a secretly coded description of F.A.R.T. (Families Against Rotten Teens) was found on the back of a cereal box, what would a middle grade reader see? Same middle grader reader’s parents/guardians see?

Now, THAT’S ingenious.

😊 Aw . . . thank you.

Hmm, I think you could print anything you wanted under the words NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION. No kid would ever read it. Does anyone? If they did they’d probably never buy the cereal. I was going to suggest something diabolical with Alpha-Bits cereal, but they discontinued making it last year, which means that all our domestic cereals are illiterate.

Haha! Good point.

I’m afraid I’ll have to kick this problem over to the folks in F.A.R.T. RESEARCH. Incidentally, cereal plays a pivotal role in the second book of this trilogy.

Visuals👓

How did the illustrations influence the text? Did you change anything once the illustrations were added?

The illustrations and text were conceived simultaneously. Basically, I’d have an idea like a camera that prevented kids from pulling a photobomb – you know, making a weird face just as you took their picture. I wrote the copy quite seriously even though it was ridiculous (e.g.: The camera would shoot 40 gallons of compressed water at the kid if it sensed an incoming photobomb.).

See, that is genius and super funny!

At the same time, I’d Photoshop stock images to support this idea, as if it were an article from Consumer Reports.  I’ve spent a number of years producing and writing animation where text and images were conceived hand in hand, so I tend to think that way.

The book also contains interactive graphics on some pages. Were those after-thoughts or did you write scenes on purpose to include them?

At its heart, F.A.R.T. is a mystery story, so the graphics included clues and details that were essential. They were always meant to be there. Personally, I love when a book rewards me with seemingly hidden details. When I was a kid, Mad Magazine would include tiny sketches of guys having a fist fight or a duel in the page margins. I’d think I was the only one who saw it, but of course everyone did.

(PS: Readers – the graphics are very cool and interactive. I agree with Peter. They were essential.)

Excerpt📖

Let’s break in for a moment to share a teeny excerpt from F.A.R.T. (Families Against Rotten Teens).

Diary 1: Ride at Your Own Risk DIARY 1 RIDE AT YOUR OWN RISK
The guys who run amusement parks won’t tell you this, but all the really good rides have a secret exit just before you get on them. It’s true. They call it a “Chicken Hatch,” and it’s for people who lose their nerve at the last minute.

Me, I think it’s wrong to call people “chicken” because they don’t want to vompedo their lunch on some roller coaster. That’s why I’m offering you a chance to exit this diary right now.

I’m serious. I’ve kept this journal in case something should happen to me, but the detours and trapdoors that follow could easily scramble your eggs. But before you leave, consider this: F.A.R.T. wants you to take this exit.

Yes, you heard that right—F.A.R.T. They want you to laugh at their ridiculous name and go back to eating your cornflakes because you’re not supposed to know anything about them. Not you or your friends or any kids anywhere.

Now, if you’re still with me, ask yourself this question:
ARE YOUR PARENTS SUDDENLY SMARTER?
I mean a lot smarter. Do they always find your hiding places for junk food, like the Pringles can you disguised as a fire extinguisher or the cake frosting you use for toothpaste? Have they recently discovered that you’ve rigged the thermometer in the medicine chest to read 10,000 degrees when you want a sick day, or put Meow Mix on your veggies so your cat will eat them?

How about you? Has a change come over you at school? Do you high-five your teacher when she pulls a pop quiz, remind substitute teachers that homework is due, or tell fellow students, You only hurt yourself when you forge a bathroom pass? Sound familiar?

And riddle yourself this: When your parents go to a PTO meeting, where do they really go? IS there a PTO? Have you ever been to a meeting? Of course not.

Like you, I ignored these warning signs until I stumbled onto the truth. It was a bizarre truth that made sense of it all, but none of my so-called friends could believe it. If you must know, they laughed at me. The fools!

What I needed were people who could grasp the incredible. People I could trust. And I needed them now.

That was when I called THE ONLY ONLYS.

I loved the ONLY ONLYS!

Story Charm✨

All humor aside, this story challenges the relationship between parent and child. What collective message and/or lesson do you hope readers of all ages will take away after reading F.A.R.T.? (Is it too obvious that I like typing your title?)

I used to think: Raising a kid will be easy because I was a kid, once.  Then, this kid enters your life and you realize that all the stuff that worked on you as kid doesn’t work because YOUR KID ISN’T YOU.  Naturally, you look for answers from other parents and manuals and a boatload of experts – it’s a whole industry – and again you discover that nothing works quite the way you thought it would. The F.A.R.T. Manual is a parody of all it. The message, I guess, is that you’re raising an individual, not a Mini-Me.

BTW, I like typing F.A.R.T., too. I have it on speed type so it pops up whenever I type an “f” followed by a period. Unfortunately, I forget to turn this feature off and it has sneaked into some of my business correspondence with troubling consequences.

Too, funny! *Note: to clarify, while writing up the interview I shared with Peter how much I liked writing F.A.R.T.

Why will MG readers relate to the group of young characters you’ve created?

Well, I hope they do. Our four characters’ initial bond was that they are all only children – hence they call themselves the Only Onlys – but that becomes less important.  I think what makes them relatable is that they fuss and fight among themselves, but they like each other very much. That was important to me. We all have relationships like that. I’ve also noticed that comedy ensembles – even those that beat each other up for most of the story – are always loyal to each other in the end, and that seems essential to the genre.

Author Insights👀

What was the most challenging part of writing this story? Easiest?

I’m not confident enough to start writing and see where it takes me. I believe Stephen King does that but – surprise! – I’m not Stephen King. Or Burger King. I began as a television writer.  No producer wants to hear that you wrote yourself into a corner when the show starts shooting tomorrow, so I outline and outline. The easiest part – or the more enjoyable part – is the dialogue I get to write for my characters.

And IMHO – because I’ve read the book – the dialog is fantastic! I really enjoyed that part.

What do you see as the greatest challenge for middle grade literature today?

More people are fighting for the real estate between kids’ ears than ever before, so an author must be a willing marketer and understand new information channels.  The challenge is to do this responsibly.  I’m climbing that learning curve right now and it’s fascinating.

Writer’s Corner📑

Fun fact: What does your creative/writing space look like?

I love being surrounded by everything I could possibly need, like a surgeon. You can see it at Peterbakalian.com for free! My desk fits perfectly in an alcove because I purchased a beautiful dining room table at an estate sale and sawed off the ends to make it fit. Ah, the things we do for art.

From your vast experience, what are the three top traits an aspiring writer should focus on honing?

I’m a first time novelist, so “vast” may not apply. In any case, it reminds me of the joke: There are four ingredients to writing a successful novel, but nobody knows what they are.  But since you asked, people often say “Write what you know,” but I’d suggest writing what you like. You’ll research it for pleasure and your enthusiasm may rub off on the reader.  Second, protect your writing time from interruptions. You’ll win no popularity contests, but it’s essential. Lastly, there are A LOT of books on how to write by some very successful writers. I enjoyed them all, especially learning that they wrestle with the same doubts that we all do. They tend to say the same things about conflict, action, etc, but they may save you from rookie mistakes that will cost you time, which is the most precious thing you have.

What next creative adventure might be on the horizon for you?

There are two more books in the F.A.R.T. trilogy, so that’s my horizon for now. I am truly grateful for the opportunity.

That’s great! I’m sure readers will be anxiously waiting for those books.

About the Author

Peter Bakalian

After starting as an intern at Walt Disney Studios, Peter Bakalian joined the production team for Rankin/Bass’s ThunderCats and later earned Emmy recognition for his writing on Curious George. He was also nominated along with Suzanne Collins for Best Animated Screenplay by the Writers Guild of America for the Fox musical special Santa, Baby! which he also produced. His work has also appeared on the BBC series Big & Small and Scholastic’s Clifford’s Puppy Days. F.A.R.T. is his first novel. He lives in Bradley Beach, New Jersey. You can find Peter on his Website & on LinkedIn.

 

Thank you for sharing yourself and your work with our readers and writers. All the best to you!

Feel free to share your thoughts with Peter about his book. I’m sure he’d love to hear from you! And if you’d like to check out another illustrated middle grade book, hop over to this Link!

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Interview: Xiran Jay Zhao Talks About Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

By on May 19, 2022   /   Author Interviews  

Bookcover for middle-grade novel Zachary Ying and the Dragon EmperorWhen I saw the amazing cover for ZACHARY YING AND THE DRAGON EMPEROR (illustrated by comic book artist Velinxi), I knew it was a book I wanted to devour. Which is why I’m so thrilled to interview the novel’s author on From the Mixed Up Files today. Xiran Jay Zhao is the New York Times best-selling author of the young adult novel IRON WIDOW, and ZACHARY YING is their debut middle-grade novel. Billed as a Chinese Percy Jackson, here’s the book’s description:

12-year-old Zack never had many opportunities to learn about his Chinese heritage. His single mom was busy enough making sure they got by, and his schools never taught anything except Western history and myths. So Zack is woefully unprepared when he discovers he was born to host the spirit of the First Emperor of China for a vital mission: sealing the leaking portal to the Chinese underworld before the upcoming Ghost Month blows it wide open.

The mission takes an immediate wrong turn when the First Emperor botches his attempt to possess Zack’s body and binds to Zack’s AR gaming headset instead, leading to a battle where Zack’s mom’s soul gets taken by demons. Now, with one of history’s most infamous tyrants yapping in his headset, Zack must journey across China to heist magical artifacts and defeat figures from history and myth, all while learning to wield the emperor’s incredible water dragon powers.

And if Zack can’t finish the mission in time, the spirits of the underworld will flood into the mortal realm, and he could lose his mom forever.

What was your inspiration for this book?

Xiran Jay Zhao, author Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

Xiran Jay Zhao

I was inspired to write this story when my friend Rebecca Schaeffer, author of the NOT EVEN BONES series, encouraged me to try my hand at writing MG, since I’d been hyperfixating on Chinese history and myth, and myth stories make for very good MG novels. Immediately I thought of doing a Chinese take on Yugioh, the most formative anime of my childhood, in which I would combine modern gaming tech with ancient myths and magic. And thus ZACHARY YING was born!

 There’s such intricate detail about the history in China. Tell us about your research.

I didn’t need to do much fresh research since I already had so many historical and mythical stories in my head that I couldn’t wait to tell, so I basically just double-checked that my facts were legit. Whenever I saw an opportunity in the plot to bring up a fun anecdote, I went for it. My first draft was actually stuffed with many more of them, and I had to cut a few out to make the book less overwhelming.

What was the most surprising or interesting thing you discovered in your research, and if you didn’t use it in the book, why not?

The First Emperor was so dramatic of a person that there are a lot of stories about him that didn’t make the cut simply because I couldn’t find a good place to tell them. My favorite is the time he went up on Mount Tai, a sacred mountain in China, to proclaim his supremacy after unifying the seven warring states, then a huge rainstorm hit him on the way down and he had to take shelter under a big tree. Then he proceeded to make that tree an official rank-5 minister?!

Wow! I love the idea of the spirits of these legendary characters staying alive and powerful because of the belief people have in them. What inspired that?

There’s a lot of interconnection between myth and history in Chinese culture, and I’ve always found that fascinating! The Chinese pantheon of gods is very vast; there are basically no rules to who can become a god, as long as a group of people agree and make you a temple. Because of this, many early historical figures have been enshrined as gods, such as Guan Yu of Three Kingdoms fame, who somehow became the god of money. I thought it’d be cool to have magic fueled by legends.

Yes. So cool! I also love that you used a videogame as a way for the spirits to communicate. So fun! Are you gamer? And was Mythrealm inspired by a particular game?

I’m not a gamer myself, but the vast majority of my friends are. Mythrealm is specifically inspired by Pokemon GO (remember those two weeks after it came out, where it felt like we achieved world peace?), but with myth creatures instead of Pokemon.

I could see the similarities to that game! Is there a character who’s most like you? And if so, which one and why?

Zack drew heavily from my awkward, self-conscious 12-year-old self, though nowadays I’d have to say I’m more confident and self-assured like Melissa. It was a long road, going through this transformation!

That’s something a lot of middle schoolers will be able to identify with (not to mention a lot of adults. 🙂 ). Your debut novel, IRON WIDOW, was for young adult readers. Did you find it challenging to write for a middle-grade readers? How did your process change, if at all?

I actually didn’t have much difficulty transitioning to MG. Writing ZACHARY YING was easier for me, even. I honestly think ZACHARY YING embodies me as a person much better. I got to show the fun side of my personality that didn’t really get a chance to show up during the bleak brutality of IRON WIDOW.

And finally, what can we look forward to next from you?

I’m working hard on the sequel to my YA debut IRON WIDOW, which will hopefully release Summer 2023!

We can’t wait!

Learn more about Xiran Jay Zhao at their website, XiranJayZhao.com. You can also follow them on Twitter @XiranJayZhao for posts about Chinese history, Instagram for cosplay, TikTok for short videos, and YouTube for more information about Chinese history and culture.

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