Middle Grade Ninja

Esabella Strickland is an award-winning actress, screenwriter, filmmaker, and social media influencer who’s just published her first novel, THEN AND THERE, HERE AND WHERE. And she’s 15 years old. We discuss her time as a Variety BC Youth Ambassador speaking about her anxiety, ADHD, and dyslexia, as well as her jeans pocket art. She explains how she charges toward her fears, strives to lift as she rises, and writes about young adult characters as a young adult.

Described as a "Renaissance Girl" for her multitude of talent. 15-year-old Esabella Anna Karena Strickland is a Multi Award-Winning Filmmaker, Award-Winning Writer, Award-Winning Actress, Award-Winning Media Host, Artist, and GenZ Influencer based out of Vancouver, BC. She is a young, raw talent who is a learning disability advocate and empowering figure against bullying through the arts.​

Esabella starred in local indie short film's Enlightenment, Things You Take, and Arthurs Gift. She also co-wrote, co-directed and starred in the Short Film My Red Ball and The Notebook through the Young Movie Makers Program. My Red Ball handles themes of bullying, written through Esabella's own life experience, it has gone to appear in 60 International Film Festivals, winning at 10 of them.

Esabella has also made appearances on local productions of Travelers, Goodboys, and Series of Unfortunate Events. Esabella is also the youngest member and supporter of Women In TV and FIlm Vancouver.

Esabella is also an Award-Winning Filmmaker and Writer for her feature film screen adaptation of her Novel Then and There, Here and Where which has won at several film festivals for Best Script. She was also behind the camera for A Conversation with E which was made through the CineLab Filmmaking Camp this summer. A Conversation with E is already an official selection of the 2021 Cannes Short Film Festival and has won at several film festivals. This lead to her writing and producing her first Independent film called A Dialogue with Pandora this fall with the support of Actor Paul Greene.

Esabella recently joined Graisland Entertainment as a GenZ Script Consultant and is collaborating with Producer and Screenwriter Michael Grais on the next generation of Horror Films.

Esabella had the honour of co-hosting the 53rd and 54th annual Variety Show of Hearts Telethon as their Youth Ambassador and was recently invited back to host the 55th Telethon in 2021. Esabella was also an EveRiathing red carpet host to support the 2019 Joey awards. Esabella was the ambassador and host for Geektopia 2019 to help raise money for the Amanda Todd Legacy. Esabella is also the ambassador and virtual host for the 2020 Meowfest to help raise money for the Langley Animal Protection Society, and Regional Animal Protection Society.

Esabella was invited to the 2019 Adobe Summit as an Adobe insider and speaker. She was the young influencer to attend the Las Vegas event and was in the top 10 in Social Media Engagement during the week of the Summit. Many were impressed by her empathy, compassion and insight of a Genz'r

Esabella has finished co-writing her first Young Adult Novel. Then and There, Here and Where, which will be published March 2nd, 2021. The main character of the book; Orabella has a learning disability while learning to become a heroine. Esabella's goal is to have girls feel connected and empowered by Orabella. As an artist, she is a painter, drawer and a jean pocket painter for celebrities and special orders of which 10% of sales go towards local charities

​Esabella has worked hard to train herself with techniques she uses to deal with both her anxiety, Adhd, and dyslexia, Through this process she's discovered what she calls her two superpowers, memorizing and a higher level of sensitivity towards others, including the characters she plays, She has also trained herself with mindfulness and grounding techniques to cope with her anxiety - something she hopes to pass onto those who she works with.

Nick Goss and I discuss self publishing, home schooling, his bought with Covid-19, writing secular stories as a Christian, the pros and cons of social media, the importance of organizing a writing schedule, producing output that meets your personal standard, stories that are premium Nintendo good, a tale of the supernatural, and so much more. And, bonus, if you stick around to the end, I reveal a few behind-the-scenes tidbits about the podcast.

NICK GOSS has been a piano teacher, sailboat builder, private investigator, barista, and salesman. He has a collection of more books than he could possibly read in his lifetime and lives with his head firmly stuck in the clouds.

He resides in Nashville with his wife, two kids, and their labradoodle, Shelby. His host of eccentric hobbies include woodworking, sailing, fencing, ping pong, hammocking, and playing the penny whistle.

Can you imagine what his neighbors must think?

Yeah. You guessed it: he was homeschooled.

The Traveler’s League Book Series was born when he strayed from the normal bedtime routine of reading, and instead created new worlds full of funny characters, action, magic, and adventure. Since then, he has committed himself to entertaining children through writing books that make kids feel the magic of adventure and friendship. All the books in the series are available on Amazon.

My friend Lisa Fipps and I discuss “fat girl rules,” intrinsic self worth, overcoming bullying, and writing a story in free-verse poetry. Her debut novel, STAR FISH, releases this week with starred reviews from Booklist, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, me, and many others. You don’t want to miss this book. Lisa and I also chat about her day job handling the marketing for a library and how that helps her market her book, her time as a reporter, her jar of positive affirmations, how she met her literary agent, the importance of networking and cultivating a writing family, a heartwarming ghost story, and so much more.

Lisa Fipps is a graduate of Ball State University, award-winning former journalist, current director of marketing for a public library (where she won the Sara Laughlin marketing award), and an author of middle-grade books. Starfish is her debut novel. She’s working on her next novel and several others. She currently lives in Indiana and lived in Texas.

Mike Johnston and I discuss his new middle grade series, CONFESSIONS OF A DORK LORD, and the stylistic differences between his fantasy writing for adults under the super-secret penname, Michael Johnston. Also, medieval toilets. We chat about working with his illustrator, how experience as a dungeon master in Dungeons and Dragons helps with world building in fantasy, how actual architecture is surprisingly not like plotting a novel at all, collaborating with his wife, author Melissa de la Cruz, and so much more.

Michael Johnston was born in 1973 in Cleveland, Ohio. As a child and a teen he was an avid reader of science fiction and fantasy. He studied architecture and ancient history at Lehigh University and during a lecture on the history of ancient Egypt, the seed of an idea was born. He earned a master’s degree in architecture from Columbia University, graduating at the top of his class. Michael worked as an architect in New York City before moving to Los Angeles. Sparked by the change of locale, a visit to the desert, and his growing dissatisfaction with the architectural industry, he sought a way to merge his interests in architecture and history with his love of fantasy. By day he worked as an architect, but by night he wrote and researched an epic fantasy novel inspired by the history of ancient Egypt and the tragic story of King Lear. After working this way for several years, he shut down his successful architecture practice and resolved to write full time. He now lives and writes in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter. You can find Michael on twitter @mjohnstonauthor

Donna Galanti and I discuss how she started her writing career at age 40 and exploded into it with discipline and passion. She shares what she’s learned about being productive and prolific while successfully managing social media. Also, a ghost story. We discuss her newest novel, UNICORN ISLAND, her time in the Navy, how she left her literary agent for a better fit, and a full 10-step course for writing scary stories for children.

Donna Galanti decided she was a grown up for far too long. She luckily gave that up to write children’s books. Donna Galanti is the author of the middle grade adventure Joshua and The Lightning Road, which the Midwest Book Review called, “A heart-pounding thrill ride full of unexpected twists and turns from start to finish”. She’s also the author of the follow up, Joshua and the Arrow Realm, and writes the popular Unicorn Island series for Epic!, the leading digital platform for kids 12 and under (hardcover, February 2021, Andrews McMeel).

Donna is a writing contest judge at nycmidnight.com, a member of From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle-Grade Authors blog, and regularly presents as a guest author at schools. She also teaches writers on marketing and craft at writing conferences and through her online courses. When she’s not writing you can find her on Twitter or Facebook where she loves to share all things about outdoor adventures and children’s books. Donna has lived from England as a child, to Hawaii as a U.S. Navy photographer where she served with Fleet Intelligence Pacific, and has had a long career in corporate marketing. Visit her at donnagalanti.com. She is represented by Liza Fleissig with the Liza Royce Agency in NYC.

Theo Gangi and Rucker Moses, the pen name for authors Craig S. Phillips and Harold Hayes Jr., discuss their collaboration for their novel, KINGSTON AND THE MAGICIAN’S LOST AND FOUND. We talk about their writing for television, subverting the author ego, increasing suspense with a ticking clock, planning a series one book at a time, ghosts and flying saucers, why you should hold your baseball bat like an egg, how to distill one narrative voice from three authors, book marketing during a pandemic, and so much more.

Rucker Moses is the pen name of Craig S. Phillips and Harold Hayes Jr. They both hail from Atlanta and started telling stories together at the University of Georgia. Together, they've been nominated for three Emmys for writing in a children's program and have written for TV shows based on books by R. L. Stine and Christopher Pike. They also make virtual reality experiences and own a production company named SunnyBoy Entertainment. In no particular order, their favorite things to write about are ninjas, magic, space, and abandoned amusement parks. When not doing all that, they are hanging with their wonderful families at home in Los Angeles.

Theo Gangi is the author of A New Day in America and the breakout crime thriller Bang Bang. His stories have been anthologized in First Thrills, edited by Lee Child, The Greensboro Review, The Columbia Spectator and the Kratz Sampler. His articles and reviews have appeared in Buzzfeed.com, The San Francisco Chronicle, Mystery Scene Magazine, Inked Magazine and Crimespree Magazine. A graduate of Columbia University’s School of the Arts, he has taught writing at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, is the Director of the Writing Program at St. Francis College and lives in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn.

Author and former children’s book editor Caroline Gertler and I discuss her debut novel, MANY POINTS OF ME. We also chat about her studies of art history, her time working for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, how she chose her literary agent, how she made the mental transition from editor to author, how she writes intuitively for children while gaining character insights from children, her distinct prose style, and so much more more.

Caroline Gertler is the author of the middle grade novel MANY POINTS OF ME (Greenwillow/HC, January 2021). A former children’s book editor, Caroline has an MA in art history, and gives tours of Old Master paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Caroline grew up in New York City and lives on the Upper West Side with her husband, two daughters, and dog, Dash—which happens to be one of her favorite forms of punctuation!

https://www.carolinegertler.com/

Christina Li and I discuss how she began writing seriously at age 12, secured a literary agent before graduating high school, and is celebrating the publication of her debut novel, CLUES TO THE UNIVERSE, before graduating college. We also talk about researching the eighties, an author’s responsibility when writing about grief for younger readers, how joy is an act of resistance, social economics as a way of understanding people and fictional characters, the importance of Asian stories not being a monolith, and so much more.

Christina Li is a student studying Economics at Stanford University. When she is not puzzling over her stats problem set, she is daydreaming about characters and drinking too much jasmine green tea. She grew up in the Midwest but now calls California home. You can find her online at christinaliwrites.com. Clues to the Universe is her debut novel.

It’s the third ever, ridiculously long mega-sized Middle Grade Ninja clips show, featuring snippets from episodes 60 through 100.

New episodes are scheduled to return January 30th.

Until then, enjoy this compilation of clips from conversations with AUTHORS Catherine Linka, Barbara Shoup, Kaela Noel, Sayantani DasGupta, Avi, Anna Meriano, Anne Bustard, Rob Harrell, Joy McCullough, Mitali Perkins, Carlie Sorosiak, Claire Swinarski, Josh Berk, Saundra Mitchell, Hugh Howey, Anne Nesbet, Tracy Wolff, Dorothy A. Winsor, Lillie Evans, Tony Perona, C.L. Shore, Janet E. Williams, Paula Chase, Preeti Chhibber, Annie Sullivan, MarcyKate Connolly, Laura Stegman, Daniel Kraus, Patrick Huellery, Margi Preus, Hayley Chewins, Marcella Pixley, Tonya Duncan Ellis, Victoria Bond, John Gallagher, Hena Kahn, Melissa de la Cruz, G. Neri, LITERARY AGENTS Kristy Hunter, Kiana Nguyen, Jim McCarthy, EDITORS Sarah LaPolla, Sara-Jayne Slack, Mari Kesselring, Elizabeth Law, Cheryl Klein, and PUBLIC RELATIONS EXPERT Sarah Miniaci.

Cheryl Klein and I talk about writing and publishing and everything good in this 100th episode extravaganza. She shares her journey from growing up in a small Missouri town to becoming the continuity editor for the last three HARRY POTTER novels and the enormity of that experience. We discuss her newest book, A YEAR OF EVERYDAY WONDERS, and her advice for structuring picture books and trusting your illustrator. We also chat about Lee and Low Books, maintaining a healthy level of writer ego, why most editors don’t develop unhealthy egos, the “cheerful privilege of the white reader,” and so much more.

Cheryl Klein is the editorial director at Lee & Low Books. She is also the author of two adult books, The Magic Words: Writing Great Books for Children and Young Adults and Second Sight: An Editor's Talks on Writing, Revising, and Publishing Books for Children and Young Adults, and three picture books, Wings, Thunder Trucks, and A Year of Magical Thinking. Prior to her work at Lee and Low, she spent sixteen years at Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic, where she published a wide array of acclaimed titles and served as the continuity editor for the last two books of the Harry Potter series. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, and can be found online as @chavelaque.