Q1. Hello Sir, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
Absolutely. I’m a husband and father of 5 (Mae-11, Elsie-9, Charlie-7, Sam-3, and Henry-9 months), and I work at a local middle school as the assistant principal. I grew up on the east coast, moving with my parents and two sisters from Chicago, Illinois to Jacksonville, Florida to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Winchester, Virginia. We moved around a lot, but I loved every place we lived more than the last. I went to Clemson University for college and when I graduated, I became a teacher. I’ve taught everything from 3rd grade to 8th grade, the majority of my time spent in middle school. I met my wife Shannon while we were teaching in the same school. We got married, I became an assistant principal and we started our family soon afterward. I had always enjoyed telling stories to my students and coming up with creative outlets as a teacher. Once my wife and I started having children, I found it even more fun making up stories for them. Eventually I realized writing some of these stories down might be a fun way to preserve some of the ones my children liked best. That’s why I started publishing and why I wrote York the Yowie and Mr. Plopper.
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing ‘York The Yowie And His New Recepies’ book?
I think the most challenging thing about writing ‘York the Yowie and his New Recipes’ was deciding on which story to tell for that second York the Yowie book. I had a lot of ideas, and even more input from my kids. But once I decided that the challenge for York was coming up with something new (just like the challenge I was having in real life), it became the natural next story for York the Yowie.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
I grew up and still absolutely love books by P. D. Eastman and the books he illustrated. Books such as ‘A Fish Out of Water’, ‘Are You My Mother’, ‘Go, Dog, Go’ and others are the ones I remember most fondly as a child, and I love to read to my kids as a dad.
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
I haven’t travelled to many of the places I know I’d love to see in this country (and the world), but as far as the places I’ve been, I love the north eastern area of the United States like Maine and Vermont. I also love the beaches on the east coast, like Hilton Head, SC.
Q5. Is there lots to do before you drive in and start writing a book?
Absolutely. It takes me a long time to figure out how to start a book and how I want it to make its readers feel. The York the Yowie books took a long time to revise and make just right, and even now when I read them I’d love to be able to make changes. The Mr. Plopper book was easier because I had been telling that story to my children for a long time before deciding to make it a book.
Q6. How long did it take you to write ‘York The Yowie And His New Recepies’ book?
To actually write the book, it took me about three months to get it right from start to finish. But it took me about 6 months to arrive at the final idea before writing it.
Q7. On what all platforms readers can find ‘York The Yowie And His New Recepies’ book to buy?
I believe all my books can be found on Amazon as paperback books or e-books. They can also be found on google to download or order as paperback.
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title ‘York The Yowie And His New Recepies ’?
Luckily I’ve been very fortunate to work with two very talented and helpful illustrators on my books. The covers have come together with their collaboration and ideas. The idea for the cover of ‘York the Yowie and his New Recipes’ came from the illustrator and I working together to imagine what way to best show what the book was about inside. We wanted York to be standing at a table with new foods and we decided to have the illustration wrap around to the back of the book.
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
That’s one of the toughest parts about writing, but I’m lucky to have children who like to share their ideas with me as well. Keeping things fresh and exciting, especially for yourself isn’t easy, but when you have help, that makes it fun.
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