Interview and Giveaway: Maggie Lyons

I'm pleased to have middle-grade author, Maggie Lyons, back today for an interview! Today, Maggie is going to talk about her new book Dewi and the Seeds of Doom. Plus, there's a giveaway...

When Dewi is clobbered by a falling rat, the nosy Welsh dragon snoops his way into a challenging predicament. Helped by a toad with a passion for chemical wart cures, Dewi discovers that a megalomaniac baron is secretly breeding mutant corn at an unfriendly castle. To thwart the genetically modified-corn baron’s sickening plan, he must use moxie and firepower in a series of catastrophe-skirting capers.

From Halo Publishing

Released Oct. 2012

Purchase: Amazon / Halo Pub

WS: What three words best describe DEWI AND THE SEEDS OF DOOM?

Fantastic dragon detective

WS: Can you give us your best one sentence pitch to convince readers why they should read DEWI AND THE SEEDS OF DOOM?

If you love losing yourself in whirlwind adventure stories brimming over with surprises, mishaps, chaos, and comedy, you’ll find this Welsh dragon detective’s antics irresistible as he battles an evil baron who breeds genetically modified corn.

WS: What do you hope young readers will learn or take away from DEWI AND THE SEEDS OF DOOM?

• It’s good to be curious about things and ask questions.

• Friends are important.

• It would be a good idea to find out exactly what you are eating, especially if it comes off a supermarket shelf.

WS: Grab a copy of DEWI AND THE SEEDS OF DOOM and answer the following:

Favorite chapter? Chapter 1 in which Dewi decides to take up a challenge and dig into a mystery. Favorite page? When Dewi finds a last-minute hiding place and eavesdrops on the dastardly baron. Favorite character? Peegor, the baron’s long-suffering and equally ghastly servant. Flip to a random page and give us a 1-2 sentence teaser from that page: “What’s the matter, Peegor? Is your dungeon too warm and your straw mattress too comfy for you to get up until half the day has gone?” A very nasty laugh crawled through the gap in the baron’s rotten teeth.

WS: Besides your own character Dewi, who is your favorite dragon character from any book or movie? 

Hiccup’s pet dragon, Toothless, in Cressida Cowell’s hilarious How to Train Your Dragon book series.

WS: Imagine you've discovered a time machine and you step inside...do you go back in time or into the future? Where do you go?

I’d go back to the past, about two hundred years ago, to France or Britain, when the air was cleaner, food far more wholesome, and people much more sociable.

WS: What would the title of your autobiography or memoirs be called? 

What a Motley Slew!

WS: Random favorites:

Midnight snack? I’m asleep long before midnight. But if I can add a food I might dream about, it would be a small bowl of lobster bisque— no, make it a large bowl. Place to write? At my desk with a view from the window of ducks doing ducky things on the creek. Superhero? Jeffrey Smith courageous pioneer advocate for the right to know what’s in our food. Nail polish color? No polish. My fingernails are short because I play the piano, and I don’t want to highlight the fact they’re short—but wait! I just remembered I have toes. I paint my toenails metallic rusty red to match the hair on my head. And now that I think of it, that color may also match the rust inside my head. Obviously a Freudian insight here. Middle-grade appropriate curse word or expletive? Oh no!

WS: Fill in the blanks:

I'm really awesome at procrastinating, especially when it comes to filling a blank page. I'm embarrassed to admit that I like liver, onions, and spinach. Liver, onions, and spinach—oh my! My first literary crush (author or character) was Robert Louis Stephenson (Treasure Island). The last fantastic book I read was Jerry Spinelli’s The Wringer. Talk about a grab-your-thoughts, rend-your-heart, and stick-to-your-memory’s-ribs kind of story!

WS: If you were to create and bake a cupcake inspired by DEWI AND THE SEEDS OF DOOM what would it look and taste like and what would you call it?

Dewi’s lightly charcoaled lamb chops cupcake would taste of—surprise!—lamp chops and it would be served with flaming hot sauce.

Maggie Lyons: Site / Goodreads / Twitter / Facebook / Google+
Maggie Lyons is a writer and editor who was born in Wales and crossed the pond to Virginia. With no regard for the well-being of her family and neighbors, she trained as a classical pianist. Then came a career of putting rear ends on seats—that is, orchestral management, marked by reams of marketing and fundraising writing and program note scribbling for audiences, many of whose first priority was to find their names in the donors’ lists. Editing for academic publishers also brought plenty of satisfaction—she admits she has a fondness for nerds—but nothing like the magic she discovered in writing fiction and nonfiction for children. Several of her articles, poetry, and a chapter book miraculously appeared in Stories for Children Magazine and knowonder! magazine. Her middle-grade fiction Vin and the Dorky Duet and Dewi and the Seeds of Doom are published by MuseItUp Publishing and Halo Publishing International. She hopes her stories encourage reluctant young readers to turn a page or two.

Win a copy of 

Dewi and the Seeds of Doom!

Maggie has generously offered one copy of her book, in the winner's choice of paperback or ebook, for one lucky winner. This is a perfect book for the younger readers in your life!

DETAILS

-OPEN INTERNATIONALLY

-Will run from 1/2 - 1/7

-One main entry per person, Must be 13+ to enter

-Winner will be emailed and must claim prize within 48 hours

-Word Spelunking is NOT responsible for lost, damaged, stolen prize in the mail

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