Happy
Monday Everyone! Today I’m excited to have author Jerry Mahoney here to share
about his new MG humorous science fiction BUTTHEADS FROM OUTER SPACE. It sounds
like a hilarious science fiction story that would be great to read when you
need a laugh. Jerry also has a number of other funny MG fairytale-based
stories.
Here’s
a blurb of BUTTHEADS FROM OUTER SPACE from Goodreads:
The buttheads have landed--and they're trying to wipe us out!
My best friend Lloyd and I had the perfect plan.
We started a blog to invite aliens to come to Earth and hang out--but only with us. That way, they wouldn't have to meet any boring world leaders or get cut open by scientists or anything like that. We'd just chill out, eat junk food, and play video games together. Sweet, right? And it worked! Two aliens showed up one night in the bathroom of my favorite restaurant, and we snuck them home to my room.
The problem is, they're total buttheads! Literally. They have butts on their heads, and they talk in farts. They're rude, disgusting, and they love Earth so much, they just invited 70 billion of their friends to join them here.
Oops.
Now it's up to us--two sixth graders with B-pluses in science--to save the planet from the sickest extraterrestrials in the universe. (Preferably without my parents finding out.)
Sorry, everyone. Better get used to talking out of your butts, because we're all probably doomed...
Hi
Jerry! Thanks so much for joining us.
1.
Tell us about yourself and how you became a writer.
I've
been writing since I was a kid, back when I had to type up my stories on a
typewriter and make my own "books" by stapling stacks of paper
together and coloring in the illustrations with magic marker. I never had the
self-confidence to be a class clown or make wisecracks out loud, but I discovered
that I could make people laugh by writing funny stuff down and showing it to
them in the cafeteria or at recess. I was such a quiet kid that my weird sense
of humor would always surprise people. They'd laugh and then go, "You
wrote this?!" That was always the highest compliment!
Once
my kids were born, I rediscovered children's books, and I found a whole new
bunch of writers I admired, from Mo Willems to Chris Grabenstein, Lemony
Snicket, Tom Angleberger and R.J. Palacio. (My all-time favorite is still Judy
Blume.) I thought back to all the crazy stuff I wrote as a kid and realized I
had a whole new audience I could try to entertain with my writing. Instead of
my classmates, now it was my own kids and their friends! So I started writing
middle grade, and it's been the most fun, most fulfilling writing I've ever
done.
2. I can remember those typewriter days too! Where did you get the idea for BUTTHEADS FROM OUTER SPACE?
The
first time I went to another country, I was in my 20's, and I took a trip to
London with my friend
Greg. London is a beautiful city, rich with culture and
history, full of amazing restaurants and wonderful people… but what was the
first thing we did? We found an arcade to see what kinds of video games they
had there, and we ate all the weird foreign candy out of the vending machine.
When
I was trying to imagine how a 12-year-old would think about aliens, I thought
back to that trip. If aliens traveled all the way across the cosmos to visit
our planet, how would they want to spend their time here? By doing all the
things people typically make aliens do in books, like meeting with boring world
leaders and submitting to invasive scientific experiments? No way! They'd want
to have fun!
So
I sat down and wrote "An Open Letter From Two Cool Earthlings to any
Extraterrestrials Who Want to Visit Our Planet (but Not Kill Us)." It was
just a creative writing project at first, but as I wrote it, the characters
really came to life for me, and I wanted to spend more time with them and send
them on a fun adventure. That open letter ended up in Chapter One of the book
pretty much as I wrote it that day. The idea that the aliens had butts on their
heads was just a random joke I threw in. The kind of wacky detail my characters
would come up with. Originally, I didn't intend for the aliens' anatomy to
match Josh and Lloyd's description. But as I started writing, I thought,
"Why not?" And I couldn't resist the title BUTTHEADS FROM OUTER SPACE.
3. Your story about your trip to London made me laugh. It's really funny. This sounds like a hilarious but also plot-driven story that will appeal to
boys as well as girls—not always easy. How did you balance humor and plot in
this story?
Nothing
bums me out more than reading a book that's really funny but that goes nowhere.
If a book doesn't have a good story, I won't finish reading it, no matter how
much it makes me laugh. So I knew I could write some funny jokes about aliens,
but I wanted to make sure I didn't forget to go somewhere with the plot. After
I wrote the open letter, I put it aside and did a ton of outlining. I thought
of all the different routes my story could take. At one point, Josh and Lloyd
were going to be the ones who betrayed the Earth and helped aliens take over. I
tried it lots of ways to see what would work the best.
I'll
be honest -- plot is hard. It's harder than comedy, at least for me. But it's
so much more important than jokes. I have dozens of ideas on my computer that I
think would make really funny books, but I just can't crack the story. I won't
start writing something until I know where it's going and I can be sure the
reader will be surprised along the way.
4. I'm too serious to be funny so I'd say that is harder than plot for me. Josh and Lloyd are the two main characters. I can’t tell from the blurb if you
tell your story from both character’s POV or just one of them. Share about this
and what you like about both characters in general.
The
story is all told from Josh's point of view. He's the more level-headed and
rational of the two kids, and yet he's never the one who gets his way. So it
was fun describing everything from his perspective, knowing what the right
choice would be and then seeing how Lloyd would manipulate him into doing the
opposite.
I
love that Lloyd is so charming and self-confident that he can get people to do
things they wouldn't normally do. What I love about Josh is that he knows Lloyd
is manipulating him, but he goes along with it anyway, because ultimately, when
they do things Lloyd's way, it's more fun. Lloyd is always taking Josh down the
road less traveled, which Josh would never have the guts to do on his own.
One
of my favorite parts of the book is when Lloyd admits that he couldn't do all
the crazy things he does without Josh by his side. They're two characters who
complement each other perfectly, and neither one would be who they are without
the other as his buddy.
5. Sounds like a very interesting friendship. This is not your first book. Tell us a little bit about your My Rotten Stepbrother series.
I
had so much fun working on the My Rotten
Stepbrother Ruined Fairy Tales series. The books are about a girl named
Maddie who loves fairy tales, but she has an obnoxious stepbrother named Holden
who keeps pointing out the plot holes in them. Things like "Wouldn't
Cinderella's glass slipper have fit a lot of women?" and "If the
Beast was cursed for being too shallow, how come he gets to break the curse by
marrying a total babe?" He actually makes some good points -- so good that
he breaks the stories, and the two feuding stepsiblings have to go into the
books to try to fix them from within.
I
loved writing for Maddie and Holden. They have such an interesting dynamic as
step-siblings. Most siblings fight, but they also have so much history together
that there's a foundation of love underneath. Maddie and Holden have only
recently come into each other's lives, through their parents' marriage. So they
fight like siblings, but they have no idea how to relate to each other or get
along in any way. And they never might, either, except that they're thrust into
this adventure that forces them to work together, and through that, they become
the siblings they were meant to be. They still fight, of course, but
ultimately, they love and respect each other, too.
I
wrote the books in a way that you can start with any one of them, but if you
read them all, you're rewarded with some extra plot and character detail, and
you really feel like you've gone on a fulfilling journey with them.
6.
Your agent is Laurie Abkemeier. How did she become your agent and what was your
road to publication like? What was the submission process like for this book?
I
queried Laurie back in 2011 with a memoir. She wrote back 7 minutes later, and
then she
immediately tweeted that it was the fastest she'd ever replied to a
query. That was obviously a great sign that she connected with my writing.
After that book, I decided I wanted to write middle grade fiction, and she
stood by me through what was obviously a very big shift.
I
only wish the submission process for the book had gone as quickly as finding an
agent did. My experience there was far more typical, I'd imagine. Lots of
waiting, plenty of rejections, me constantly doubting myself and wondering if
I'd ever write another book… and then Sky Pony came in and loved it. When I
talked to my editor, Becky Herrick, it was all worth it, because I knew that
Becky "got" it. She told me where she laughed out loud, she had some
great suggestions and she knew just how she wanted to market the book.
So,
it was a long process for sure, but thankfully it all worked out in the end.
7. That's great that your agent could guide you through the changes in what you write. You have been writing and publishing books for a number of years. How have you
built your readership and spread the word better about your books as you
publish more books?
My
first published book was a memoir about how I became a dad. It grew out of a
dad blog I wrote called Mommy Man. The blog was a great way to build a
readership, because it connected me with people who were interested in my
writing and my parenting advice. They'd help share my posts, and I built up a
good base of subscribers who would read everything I wrote. Then, when my book
came out, they were a natural audience to reach out to.
I've
been fortunate to hold onto that audience as I've branched out into writing for
kids. Those blog followers are still there, so even though I don't write about
parenting as much as I used to, I'll always make sure to let those readers know
when I have a new book coming out!
8.
What are some of the most effective ways that you’ve found to market your
books?
To
be honest, I'm still learning the ropes of marketing kids' books. Middle grade
readers are too young for social media and too young to collect email addresses
from. So to the extent I can market myself online, it's usually to parents,
teachers, librarians and adult fans of kids' books. The best way I've
discovered to reach kids is to actually go meet them. Do school visits, book
fairs, readings, anything to meet kids in person. Of course, that's a lot of
work. A blog post might reach tens of thousands of readers a day, but the most
kids I can meet in person is a few dozen at a time. So I'm just starting to
build my readership. I have a lot of work ahead of me! The good thing is, I
love meeting kids and introducing them to my writing, so I'm in this for the
long run.
9. Great advice. And I'm sure your blog has connected you to some of the parents at least. What advice do you have for aspiring writers about building their social network
through Twitter or, if you don’t use it much, through your favorite social
media site?
Twitter
is great, because so many people I admire are on there. I follow a bunch of
authors I like, just to keep up on what they're doing and what they have to say.
I also follow a bunch of agents, editors, librarians and book bloggers to see
what people in the kidlit world are talking about. There's so much information
out there, there's no excuse these days for writers not studying the market.
My
advice for tweeting is first of all, to be yourself. Tweet about what interests
you, even if it's unrelated to the kinds of books you write. These days, almost
everyone tweets about politics, so don't shy away from sharing your views if
there's something you feel strongly about. As I like to say, you can't please
everyone, but you can bore everyone. Take a stand, and more people will pay
attention.
That
being said, Twitter feuds will get you nowhere. I've learned that lesson the
hard way. When you engage with people, be respectful and constructive. If you
don't think you have something positive to add, just move on and find something
else to tweet about. I know that can be hard when there are actual Nazis on
Twitter, saying things that will get you all riled up if you let them. But
shouting at crazy people over the internet is a waste of time, and it only
makes you feel crummier. Boost the messages you agree with, and you'll feel
better and connect with more people at the same time.
Also,
don't sell too hard. Remind people when you have a book coming out, and let
people know when there's a new article about your work or you have a positive
review to share. But if people think you're only tweeting to sell your books,
it's a big turn-off. You have to find other interesting things to discuss, too.
At the very least, say nice things about other authors' books. (Again, avoid
being overly negative. If you don't like a book, don't trash it, because
there's a chance the author will see it herself or himself. It doesn't make you
look cooler than other people if you hate something that's popular. It just
makes you look petty. Ignore it and find a book you CAN say nice things about.)
10.
What are you working on now?
I
have a few different book ideas I'm working on, and I'm just finishing up a
scripted podcast for kids. It's called THE WEIRDNESS, and it's for a company
called Gen-Z media, which did THE UNEXPLAINABLE DISAPPEARANCE OF MARS PATEL and
THE GHOST OF JESSICA MAJORS. It's about a couple of kids who meet Bigfoot and
go on an adventure around the world to help him save other mythical creatures
from a creepy monster who's kidnapping them all. It's going to be really fun --
scary, wild and funny, too. I can't wait until it's done and everyone can hear
it. Look for it soon wherever you get your podcasts!
Thanks
for sharing all your advice, Jerry. You can find Jerry at
Jerry has generously offered a paperback of BUTTHEADS FROM OUTER SPACE for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment through April 28th.
If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest.
If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. This giveaway is U.S. and Canada.
Marvelous Middle Grade Monday is hosted by Greg Pattridge. You can find the participating blogs on his
blog.
Here's what's coming up:
Monday, April 23rd I have an agent spotlight interview and query critique giveaway with associate agent Jennifer March Soloway
Monday, April 30th I'm participating in the May I Suggest Giveaway Hop!
Wednesday, May 2nd I have an interview with debut co-authors Laurie Morrison and Cordelia Jensen and a giveaway of their MG contemporary EVERY SHINY THING and my IWSG post
Monday, May 7th I have an interview with debut author Kristin Perez and a giveaway of her YA fantasy SWEET BLACK WAVES
Wednesday, May 9th I have an agent spotlight interview and query critique giveaway with Amanda Ayers Barnett
Monday, May 14th I have an interview with debut author Megan Bannon and a giveaway of her YA fantasy
Hope to see you on Monday!
