The Next Big Thing....is Monsters?

Please Note: I have been behind on my book reviews. While I will try to post this Saturday, there won't be one tomorrow. So my next post will be Wednesday where I'll be participating in a book blitz. See you there.

I was tagged by Nancy Laronda for The Next Big Thing. The last time I did this it was fun and today I hope this one will be as much fun for you to read as it was for me to write.

1. What is the working title of your book.

Monster City.

2. Where did the idea come from for your book?

In May while reading Best/Worst Movie Blogfest & Monster Madness Day 7 on Dani's blog I saw an image which was just a white box with the words 'I just told the monster under my bed that rent is due'. And because my brain is a crazy idea generator what do I get? An idea for a novel? But not just any novel, it turns into an MG novel which I was always terrified of writing. Why? Because I'm uncomfortable with the restrictions in writing MG. They're things you can do in YA that you can't do in the same way with MG. So for a long time I refused to touch that genre.

But this idea wouldn't go away and at first was going to be about kids hiding monsters under their bed in exchange for valuables. Sadly this hit some snags and eventually was scraped. Yet that was how I went back to the drawing board and came up with Monster City. I kept the kids and monsters but replaced the valuables with a special connection that could make the monsters invisible. Add a city that mostly hates them and the few humans who want to change that and a W.I.P. was born.

3. What genre does your book fall under?

Middle Grade Fantasy

4. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in the movie?

                                                       








Thomas Horn as Jupiter

Jupiter's twelve and has dark hair but Thomas is a close match.

Joey King as Max Butters (one of two of Jupiter's best friends). Add darker hair and you have the perfect lively girl who can roughhouse with any boy and has a heart of gold.  While her rich parents want to tame her this girl finds a friend and confidant in Jupiter and a unique friendship with Bo.

Samuel Joslin as Ian, Jupiter's other best - and oldest- friend. While they are close unlike Max he doesn't know about. Also he fears monsters and think they should just be gotten rid of. Shy and kind he might not seem like the top choice for an active boy like Jupiter but neither care about that.

Samuel Joslin as Daniel, Ian's twin brother. While both are handsome boys their similarities are obly skin deep. Daniel has a mean streak he hides it well from teachers and adults alike. Jupiter sees a darkness  in Daniel and so does his own mother and brother Ian.

Emily Skinner as Pristine Myers' who is Jupiter's crush. While this actress is nine right now I think she's perfect and she was in Lifetime Movie 5 (2011).

Zoey Dechanel as Jupiter's mom. She's a great choice.

Oh where did this photo come from? Moving on.

Sorry no photo of Dad. But he was the one who raised Bo and kept him hidden after the laws changed.

5. What is the one sentence synopsis for your book?

(A) Jupiter wants Monster City to be Monroe City again, but to do that he needs to prove a monster didn't murder a child decades ago.

(B) In Monster City no human is allowed to harbour monsters yet Jupiter and his parents harbour Bo, who can't come out in the open until citizens believe monsters aren't a danger or child murderers.

(C) Jupiter is determined to prove monsters aren't evil, all he needs to do is disprove findings of a decades old murder while keeping the fact he has a monster hidden in a world where kid's are heavily protected and monsters locked away and used as slaves.

I will digress though that C sounds more YA. But these are my best ones.

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency.

I'd like to try for an agency first and since I put off looking for one until around 2015, I have time.

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Haven't finished in yet. Started in June but now I'm on a break as I prepare to self-publish my first book this December.

8. What other books would you compare this to in your genre?

At first I couldn't think of any books but now I think ParaNorman. Both star a boy trying to do the right thing. While Jupiter isn't an outcast like Norman both have tough odds to face to achieve their goal. Also Norman's openness about his ability to see ghosts is in beautiful contrast to Jupiter's secrecy about having Bo (his monster).

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book.

Aside from Dan'i's post I must say my willingness to face challenges no matter my initial hesitation. If I didn't decide to venture into MG this novel would never had gotten started.

10. What else about your book might pique the readers interest?

You get to read a Middle Grade book that moves along the edges that keeps it from going YA. In other words while kids can read it there is room for adults and also no character will be cuddled. Bad things will happen and some of it will come from those you least expect.

Hope that was good. Now to tag five people and I'll go by their blogs.

Entertaining Interest

Panda Ninja

David Powers King

Simply Sarah

The Character Depot