Author Interview of Lisa Ard!

Good Morning All!  Please enjoy this interview of the author of Fright Fligh, Lisa Ard!

AW:   Tell us about yourself…
My name is Lisa Ard and I'm a children's book author, business consultant, stay-at-home mom and library / school / church volunteer. I am married with two wonderful kids. My family lives in Portland, Oregon.
AW: What genera do you write and why?
I write children's books, mainly picture books and middle-grade fiction.
AW:  Tell us about your book….
My first book, Fright Flight, Dream Seekers Book One, was released by Puddletown Publishing Group October 2011 in e-book format. The print version will be available Nov. 2011. It is a middle-grade fantasy series that will appeal to kids 7 and up.
Here's the back cover blurb:
For Patrick, being twelve years old can be challenging. Add to that the unusual ability to experience dreams as reality and you begin to understand Patrick's need for a little self-control. A "sweet" dream devouring the world's largest ice cream sundae can end with an enormous stomachache. A fall from a bike means Patrick wakes with a broken arm. Try explaining that to the emergency room doctor. Oh wait -- that would be Patrick's mom. She's a dream seeker too, as are Patrick's sister and brother. If Patrick follows the family's dream-seeking rules he can have cool nighttime adventures. But if he forgets....


You can read chapter 1 on my website.

AW:  What was your inspiration for this book?
Reading a lot of fantasy with my own kids helped me think outside the box. I was taking a writing class and wondered through what mechanism could kids have great adventures -- dreams. The nice thing about dreams is the adventure can be realistic or fantasy or a mixture of the two. Each book starts with a short dream, one that often foreshadows the problem or challenge for Patrick. Then, in a later dream, Patrick must deal with the issue on his own.
An important theme in the series will be the importance of family and friends. While it's important when writing in this genre to have a main character who handles the main conflict, I wanted Patrick to know that his family and friends support him. Even when he must make decisions on his own, he knows his family is there for him. I'm bucking the trend by writing about a nice, loving family instead of a child with mean, ugly or dead parents.
AW:  Do you have a favorite character and why that one?
I like Grace, Patrick's 17-year old sister. They squabble. She teases him. He teases her. Grace spends too much time in the bathroom getting ready in the morning. But when push comes to shove, Patrick is her brother and she loves him. For me, they perfectly describe the sibling relationship.
AW:  Did you find anything particularly difficult in writing this book?
Getting a good format down was a must. As a series, there needs to be a certain structure, that can be repeated in future stories. A critique group member recommended starting with a dream and once I did that, it just clicked.
AW: What project(s) are you currently working on?
I have the second Dream Seekers book ready for submission. My publisher has first rights to that, so I need to get it off to them soon. That one involves a little time travel and an unbelievable setting. A preview of book two appears at the back of book one.
I've also just finished a first draft of a middle-grade fiction work that I'm really excited about. Now I'll run it through critique group before submitting for publication. It's a little bit Munsters mixed with Ramona tossed in with Roald Dahl. There's a lot of secrecy and deception in the dialogue. Without giving anything away, it's a story about finding one's family and a sense of belonging.
AW: Do you have any interesting writing quirks you want to tell us about?
I sit on a yoga ball when I write. It's suppose to help me maintain good posture. I think it does, although I should probably get up and stretch more after hours sitting in front of my Mac.
AW: Do you have any advice for writers out there?
Join SCBWI or any other writing group. Find a good critique group, preferably one where someone has some experience and can set some good meeting rules. Attend a writing conference. Doing all these things will inspire writers and make them write. One must write and write and write....
AW:  Where can we find you? (facebook, twitter, blog, website, etc)
My website: www.dreamseekeradventures.com
My blog: www.dreamseekeradventures.com/blog
Twitter: www.twitter.com/#!/LisaArd
Facebook: www.facebook.com/dreamseekeradventures
AW: And of course we have to know, where can we find your book?  (your website, publisher, amazon, etc)
My website: www.dreamseekeradventures.com
My publisher: http://www.puddletowngroup.com/
Amazon: Fright Flight
B&N: Fright Flight
iTunes: Fright Flight