Heidi Schulz: HOOK’S REVENGE

Ahoy there! Today we are introducing our newest member of OneFour KidLit. Please meet Heidi Schulz, author HOOK’S REVENGE, coming next fall from Disney•Hyperion.

One author. Four questions. Anchors away!

Hello, Heidi! Welcome to OneFour. What’s your debut book about? Can you share any cool details with us?

Hi guys! I’m so glad to be here. Thanks for letting me in the clubhouse!

HOOK’S REVENGE  is about Jocelyn Hook, the thirteen-year-old daughter of Captain Hook. Yes, The Captain Hook.

Jocelyn has spent her whole life dreaming of high-seas adventure, but instead, she gets sent away so she can learn to be a lady. At Miss Eliza Crumb-Biddlecomb’s Finishing School for Young Ladies Jocelyn is forced to stuff her daring dreams into a lacy white handbag – complete with matching hankie. But when Jocelyn learns that her father has been, well–there’s no delicate way to say this–eaten by the Neverland’s crocodile, and that as his only heir she is responsible for avenging his death, she finds more adventure than she ever imagined.

The book is narrated by an irritable, retired pirate who has an extreme dislike for children, and never misses an opportunity to remind the reader of that fact.

As well as some of the more familiar Neverland characters, you’ll also meet giant talking crows, heartless mermaids, a lovesick fairy, a group of Neverlandians with the most fantastic facial hair, and Prissy–a spoiled girl with a penchant for pink.

If you’d like to see some images that inspired me while writing or reminded me of the story after I finished, check out my Hook’s Revenge Pinterest board.

That sounds like a lot of fun, and thanks for the Pinterest link! Now, let’s talk about you. What do you do in your daily life, outside of writing?

Oh boy. A lot of things. I homeschool my teen daughter, which this year mostly consists of driving (so much driving) to classes and activities, reading together, and having discussions about literature, history, and even math. It’s a lot of work, but I love it.

I’m also the Children’s Author Coordinator for Portland’s Wordstock Literary Festival. It has been my job to invite all of the festival’s fabulous picture book and middle grade authors and program our children’s stage. After months of hard work, Wordstock is coming up next week. I can’t wait!

In addition to those things, I teach Sunday School to a dozen five-year-olds, keep a backyard flock of chickens, and run a mother/daughter middle grade book club. I do not do laundry or cook dinner as often as I should, and my garden is more filled with weeds than vegetables. (Vegetables, planted by my daughter this year because I never got around to it.)

Do you have any writing quirks–places you need to write or things you need to have with you?

As long as my laptop battery is charged, I can write just about anywhere. I prefer quiet spaces, but if I have my headphones, I’m pretty good about blocking sounds out. I like to listen to ambient noises to filter background noise. I usually create a heavy thunder storm mix on Nature Sounds for Me and quite often will listen to that at the same time as music.

I’m one of those odd writers that hates drafting, but loves revising. There are times when I am drafting that I feel as though every word is pulled from me like a splinter in my brain. Sprinting with friends helps. If I tell myself that I only have to draft for 30 minutes before I get a Gchat or twitter break–and that I will have to report my progress–it makes things easier. And once the draft is complete, I’ll have a lovely pile of words to play dress-up with!

What are you most excited about in the debut process?

I am excited about so many things. In fact, I can’t thing of a singe thing I’m not excited about.

Seeing a cover! We don’t have a cover artist just yet, but I love the direction my editor would like to go. And getting ARCs! Oh my goodness, I can’t wait for ARCs! And then holding the finished book, with my actual words all bound up so prettily!! Seeing it in bookstores!!! Meeting readers–having readers!!!!

Sorry, I think I need a moment.

Looks like it’s a good thing our interview is over. Thanks for being here with us today, Heidi, and one again, welcome to OneFour KidLit!

Heidi Schulz is a writer, reader, and giraffe suspicioner. Her debut novel for middle grade readers, HOOK’S REVENGE, will be published by Disney•Hyperion in Fall 2014, followed by her picture book debut, GIRAFFES RUIN EVERYTHING, by Bloomsbury Kids, in Fall 2015. She lives in Salem, Oregon with her husband, their teen daughter, a terrible little dog, and five irascible chickens. Connect with her on Twitter or Facebook.