Frequently Asked Questions

IIt's called EVERY HIDDEN THING, and it's the story of two teenaged fossil hunters searching for the first T-rex -- and falling in love. 

Nothing. The last producers to develop if for the screen have dropped out, and the rights are now once again back to me. If you know Steven Spielberg, feel free to give him my number.

I love Matt and Kate and would hate to say good-bye to them forever. But Starclimber does leave them at a very interesting point in their lives... I might return to them, but first I have several other stories I'm going to tell first... 

I like to think I'd have found some other way of telling stories. Maybe designing elaborate video games like Myst or Riven, or a creating role playing games like Dungeons and Dragons. Even high end theme park rides have a kind of narrative to them. In university I made a bunch of student films, and found that process very engrossing, so maybe I could have been a film maker -- but I don't think I'm patient and extroverted enough to be a director! When I was a kid, I wanted to be an architect -- and I think there are some interesting similarities betweem architecture and writiing -- the kind of writing I do, especially, which is heavily structured, and often takes the reader on a journey through a number of physical environments. I still think it would be incredibly satisfying to design and build an incredible building -- like Gaudi's cathedral in Barcelona, or the Chrysler Building in New York.

Yes. All my characters are based on real species of bats -- even Goth and Throbb! Shade's a silver-haired bat; Marina's a red bat, Goth is something called a spear-nosed bat, also known as the Vampyrum Spectrum. Cama Zotz is based on a real Mayan bat deity of the same name. I also wanted to pick names that seemed appropriate for flying creatures. So I used the names of some angels (Cassiel, Ariel), the names of special winds (Zephyr, Chinook, Scirocco -- you can look them up!) and mythic heroes (Icarus). As for Shade, his name just reminded me of shadows and twilight. Marina means "of the sea" -- she lives on an island as the story begins. And Goth is kind of shorthand for the word "gothic" -- which conjured up all sorts of images of vampires and dungeons.

It depends on the type of book it is. A picture book for very young readers may only take a couple of weeks to write, but it may take years just to think up the idea, or make sure it works! A novel like Silverwing takes me about eight months total to write. Airborn took longer, about 18 months. First I write an outline of the story, then a first draft, which might take up to six months. Then I try to take a break so I get a fresh perspective on the story when I come back to rewrite and revise. This takes several months. I find that rewriting is when the book gets really interesting -- I understand the story and the characters much better the second time around!

I enjoyed writing Silverwing and researching bats and inventing the characters and the world of the story; but I think Firewing might be the most original and unusual book of the Silverwing series. At the moment, though, I'm most proud of Airborn and Half Brother...

I like watching movies, going for long walks, sailing, travelling (especially train rides), and of course, reading.

If you want to become a writer, write. Write a diary, keep a notebook of your ideas, and write whatever it is you love to write: poems, or short stories, or longer works of fiction or non fiction. Write about the things you love. That's what I did when I was a teen. I wrote science fiction stories (a lot like Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, and other movies I loved); I wrote fantasy stories (like Dungeons andf Dragons, or Lord of the Rings), and I wrote a story about a kid addicted to video games (like me) -- and that became my first published book, just as I was leaving high school. When you write something, get as much feedback as you can. Parents, teachers, trusted friends. Every bit of intelligent criticism is valuable to you. Submit your work to student magazines and contests. And always read as much as you can, because that will help you learn what kind of things you like to write best -- and you can learn techniques from your favourite writers. What makes something scary, or sad, or exciting, or funny. And don't be discouraged if you have to rewrite a story many times. The biggest part of being a successful writer is rewriting, and having the discipline to stick with a story until it's as good as it can be! In the end, the people who really have the passion and skill for writing will write -- because there's nothing else they'd rather do.

If you've written a book that you think is ready to be published, you must first make sure it is professionally typed and double-spaced. Then you need to send your book to a publisher. Check out the Canadian Children's Book Centre. They publish a "Get Published" kit with information about writing for children, and submitting your work to publishers. If you can't decide which publisher to send your book to, visit a bookstore and find some books which are most like yours in terms of length, subject matter and tone, and make a note of the publishers. Some publishers won't accept unsolicited manuscripts. You might want to call them to see what their policy is on reading book manuscripts. If they do accept unsolicited manuscripts, you might want to first send them a one-page letter introducing yourself and telling just a bit about your book, and include one or two sample chapters from your book. If they like what they read, they will ask for the whole manuscript. Be prepared to wait a long time! Publishers can take months and months to reply to a submission -- and at the end of it all, you might only get a form letter rejection.

The other option you have, rather than sending the books to publishers yourself, is to try to get a literary agent. An agent sends your book to various publishers for you, and takes a commission (usually 15%) if he or she sells your book. There aren't many children's literary agents in Canada (try the Yellow Pages). You'll need to submit your book to the agent in the same way you would a publisher, and the agent may or may not decide to take you on. Also, think about joining a professional children's writers group like Canscaip which publishes a useful newsletter and holds meetings around the country. You can meet other aspiring writers, and get tips on how to get your book published. Good luck!