Today’s special author guest is Paul Lonardo to chat about his new middle grade book, The Goblin Pitcher.
Welcome, Paul. Please tell us a little bit about yourself.
I have authored both fiction and nonfiction books in a variety of genres, from true crime to romance. As a freelance writer, I often collaborate with people to help them write and publish their biographies, memoirs, or to tell of a particularly compelling personal experience.
I studied filmmaking / screenwriting at Columbia College – Hollywood. I earned an A.S. (Mortuary Science) from Mount Ida College and a B.A. (English) from the University of Rhode Island.
I live in Lincoln, RI with my wife and son.
Please tell us about your current release.
The one thing eleven-year-old Jake Lupo loves more than anything else is baseball. However, despite his father being a professional pitcher, Jake’s fear of failing has kept him from competing against children his own age. When his father, who has recovered from a serious arm injury, is invited to pitch for an independent team, Jake and his parents move to Pine Barrows, a forested mountain outpost. Jake is excited about his father’s chance at a comeback, but he soon learns that he is not the only one in Pine Barrows who loves baseball. Goblins love to play baseball, too, and Pine Barrows happens to be chock full of them. Then Jake discovers that the region is occupied by two factions of warring goblins.
Seeking to take control of the goblin kingdom, the leader of the evil goblins kidnaps Jake’s mother and bans baseball, a game which itself is a natural source of power for the goblins.
It turns out that Jake has a secret kinship with the legendary beings, and he is the only one who can save them, their kingdom and his mother. However, Jake must believe in himself and play a winner-take-all game against the best goblin players in Pine Barrows.
What inspired you to write this book?
As a father and a baseball coach, watching my pre-teen son learning to play the game inspired this story. I wanted to foster his interest in reading with a book about baseball and little creatures, two things I knew he was interested in, baseball and monsters.
Excerpt from The Goblin Pitcher:
“Mom, wait. Mom.” He knew it was not his mother as he pursued the apparition into the woods. He couldn’t catch her. It was like chasing a rainbow. He stopped when he realized how far he had gone. The clearing and farmhouse were barely visible behind him through the dense stand of trees. Suddenly the sound of something moving through water drew his attention. The pond was a vast shadow before him, a flat, black silhouette that stretched outward like an obsidian lava field. A ripple broke the smooth surface as something unseen neared the edge. He thought it might be an alligator. He would have retreated to a safer distance if he could move. He stood transfixed. It was almost at the shore before he got a good look at it. The first thing to emerge were two long, algae-covered arms that resembled tree branches. Bobbing up out the water behind them, green and slimy, was a partially submerged face with black, deep-set eyes. Long hair, like seaweed, trailed behind.
“Who goes there?” the water-witch gurgled, speaking even as she took water into her voluminous mouth. She swam to the edge of the pond and slowly stood upright, the water waist deep. She extended her lengthy arms out in front of her and plunged her crooked fingers into the muddy shoreline in front of Jake.
What exciting story are you working on next?
I am currently working on a middle grade book series involving the secret realm of cryptids and how they are being contained by a global agency.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Although I have been writing in some form since I was quite young, it was not until I saw my “by line” in a small market magazine that published my first short story.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I am writing full time now, doing freelance work and contributing to a local magazine/newspaper. Besides my own fiction and nonfiction projects, I ghost write and collaborate with aspiring writers. I also spend considerable time promoting and marketing my books, something that all writers have to do.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
What some people call a quirk, is just a way of life for a anyone who is creative. It’s as natural as breathing. So, if you ask me, I don’t have any quirks. If you ask my family, they may go on about a quirk or ten.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Filmmaking was my first love, and as a kid I got hold of an old super-8 film camera and started making movies with my friends in the backyard. I wrote scripts, telling original stories with the camera, editing and showing the completed films to family members and friends. After high school, I even went to a film school in Hollywood, CA. I was a great experience, and it’s where I developed a love of writing, short stories and first and eventually my first full length novel.
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
With advancing technology providing instant access to so much of our entertainment, it’s great to know that there are still some of us who prefer some quiet time with a good book and a cup of coffee or tea. As long as they are out there, I will be doing what I love to do.
Links:
Website | Amazon Author page | Barnes and Noble | LibraryThing | Goodreads | AuthorsDen.com – Member Den | Profile – Paul Lonardo – The Authors Guild | Abe Books | Amazon buy page | Barnes and Noble buy page
Thanks for being here today, Paul.