Building a Modern Author Brand: My Mis-Adventures in Perfecting a Platform by Derek Taylor Kent + giveaway

BUILDING A MODERN AUTHOR BRAND:
My Mis-Adventures in Perfecting a Platform

by Derek Taylor Kent

Hello, readers! My name is Derek Taylor Kent. Come with me and venture to worlds where brave young children fight 200-foot-tall dragons, where a lonely puppy searches desperately for a family, where an autistic film student unravels diabolical puzzles to find a lost treasure, and where a young boy is taken to the far reaches of space by a friendly alien so he can pass his astronomy test. 

These are brief descriptions of my children’s books that I have been writing professionally since 2009. While I had been writing crazy humorous stories and books since I was seven years old, 2009 was when I first got paid for them and thus the first time I considered myself a professional writer.

I grew up the son of a professional artist named Melanie Taylor Kent and I watched her create one of the most successful artistic brands of the 20th century. And yet, when it came time for me to launch my own brand as a different type of artist, I wasn’t sure where to get started and made countless mistakes that I’ve learned from and have helped me reach the point where I’m just beginning to get the hang of it.

My first big mistake was that I thought that my first book was going to be my “brand.” It was called the Scary School series and received a three-book deal from HarperCollins back in 2009, with the first book released in June 2011. At the time I believed this was going to be akin to A Series of Unfortunate Events, where I would almost certainly end up writing dozens of hit Scary School books that would carry me through the rest of my life. Thus, I wrote the series under the moniker “Derek the Ghost,” creating a mystery around my identity and writing as “author as character,” similar to Lemony Snicket. I also made my main website ScarySchool.com and centered my business Facebook page around Scary School. Even my Twitter and Instagram were @DerektheGhost.

The series did well, but sadly not well enough for HarperCollins to want more books after the third. I leveraged my existing fan base to self-publish a Book 4 of Scary School, but after that came out in 2015, I was left with an entire identity and business model based around an author name that wouldn’t work for non-horror books and a web and Facebook presence that was practically useless.

In the meantime, I had secured two new book deals: one for a bilingual picture book called El Perro con Sombrero, and another for a thriller called Kubrick’s Game, both now written under my real name, Derek Taylor Kent. Because I’m not the type of writer who sticks to one specific genre or even age group, it was already difficult for me to build a consistent readership that would lead to an avalanche of sales. The audience for Scary School is not the audience for El Perro con Sombrero, which is certainly not the audience for Kubrick’s Game.

So, I had to go through the long process of re-branding my author career by creating a new website, DerekTaylorKent.com, new social media pages using @DerekTaylorKent, a new mailing list, and a whole new Facebook presence. After building a platform of 10,000+ fans and followers of my Derek the Ghost/Scary School platform, it felt like falling down from the near summit of Mount Everest and having to climb back all over again, but what choice did I have?

Another big mistake I made was being too much of a “commercial” or “ad” throughout my online presence. Whether it was Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, almost all of my posts seemed to be either a promotion for my books or were centered around my book events.

Luckily, when I met my wife, best-selling author Sheri Fink, two years ago, she opened my eyes in the most inspiring way. I saw that she had created one of the most successful author brands, especially amongst children’s authors, and she was 100% independently published. Her brand was called The Whimsical World of Sheri Fink and everything in it was in perfect alignment.

She taught me that nobody really cares about your books and what you’re selling. What they care about is your message. What do you stand for? What are you doing for the world? Why should I pay attention?

Her books were just a medium for her message.

Let’s examine another author you may have heard of — JK Rowling. While her books were about fantasy and magic, her brand’s messaging is focused on tolerance and acceptance. When you think about it, the Harry Potter series is really just a vehicle for her to deliver this message that she is clearly passionate about. The struggle between “pure-bloods” and “mudbloods”, Harry versus Voldemort, is really the struggle between acceptance versus prejudice. Her announcing Dumbledore being gay fits in perfectly with her messaging when viewed in that context. Her social media feed is dominated by outcries for social justice and calling out bigotry where she sees it. One might assume that her platform would be built on magic, fantasy or even children’s literacy, but actually, it’s build solidly on themes of tolerance and how she’s trying to affect positive change in our culture.

Along the same lines, the message of Sheri’s books can be summed up in a simple phrase that she shares at events, interviews, and signings: The Whimsical World of Sheri Fink is about inspiring and delighting children of all ages while planting seeds of self-esteem. Her Little Series of books are deeply emotional and heartfelt and teach kids valuable lessons that help them through the tough times of childhood.

When I studied her platform, I noticed that her social media pages were not about selling books, they were about embodying and sharing her message of leading a whimsical, magical life and making a positive impact by helping children through volunteer work, readings, and leading by example. Even though she is a professional author, books are really just a small component of her overall brand, which has limitless opportunity and potential within the themes of wonder, whimsy, and kindness.

I thought about my writing and realized I couldn’t clearly define it as Sheri had. When Sheri questioned me about what I was passionate about and what I was trying to accomplish most through my writing, I realized that the answer was to make kids fall in love with reading through laughter and imagination. My books also had an educational angle with titles like Simon and the Solar System and my newest, Principal Mikey.

Sheri and I got married six months ago and this year we created a new brand that integrates all of our books and missions, calling it simply Whimsical World. We have combined the messages of our platforms into a new mission statement: Whimsical World seeks to inspire, delight, and educate children of all ages while planting seeds of self-esteem and high achievement. 

I’ve only just begun, but I have finally started to build a brand on the solid platform of my passion and positive messaging. I want to make children fall in love with reading (and in a greater sense, life itself) by making them laugh on every page, learn with every story, and leave with a feeling of motivation that fuels their imagination.

Just like before, it looks like I’m in the process of rebranding myself for a third time. This time, however, it’s so wonderful trekking a new path with the love of my life. She makes the journey no longer arduous, but fun and exciting. I may have fallen off Mount Everest again, but this time I’m riding a roller coaster back to the top!

Principal Mikey
by Derek Taylor Kent (Author), Paul Louis Smith (Illustrator)
May 15, 2018
Age Range: 7 - 11 years
Grade Level: 2 - 6
Hardcover: 170 pages
Publisher: Whimsical World 
A hilarious S.T.E.A.M. chapter book for fans of Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries, this heartwarming story is perfect for any 7-12 year old. Mikey McKenzie is an expert at using the scientific method to solve problems in his neighborhood and school. The only problem he can't solve is that he's just 10-year-old and nobody takes any of his ideas seriously. But everything changes when the kooky Principal Walker appoints him as the new school principal when she gets called away, much to the chagrin of the stern Vice Principal Sherman. It's a dream come true for Mikey to finally have the power to implement all his great ideas to improve the school. However, when the power goes to his head, the new job strains his relationships with his best friend and his sister he looks up to. On top of that, the district is threatening to close the underperforming school unless they ace the new standardized test. By the end, he'll have to think outside the box to find solutions that will save the school and his most valued relationships. S.T.E.A.M. concepts: problem-solving, scientific method, educational technology, health/medicine, and social emotional learning.

About the author:
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Whimsical World

Derek Taylor Kent is the author many best-selling, award-winning books, including the Scary School series, El Perro con Sombrero, Simon and the Solar System, Kubrick’s Game, Counting Sea Life with the Little Seahorse, and his latest, Principal Mikey. His new bilingual picture book, Perro Noel/Doggy Claus, comes out November 2018. He co-created the children’s brand Whimsical World with his wife, author Sheri Fink. You can view the evolution of Derek’s websites at ScarySchool.com, DerekTaylorKent.com, and WhimsicalWorldBooks.com.

Sheri Fink and Derek Taylor Kent
#1 Best-selling, Award-winning Authors, Inspirational Speakers, and Creators of Whimsical World
Derek@DerekTaylorKent.com | www.DerekTaylorKent.com
Sheri@SheriFink.com | www.SheriFink.com

GIVEAWAY

print copy of Principal Mikey

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Top Ten Questions Kids ask Authors at School Visits (and how to respond to them) by Derek Taylor Kent AKA Derek the Ghost

Top Ten Questions Kids ask Authors at School Visits 
(and how to respond to them)

by Derek Taylor Kent AKA Derek the Ghost 

author of El Perro con Sombrero and the Scary School series

When you’re a children’s book author, the best way to sell lots of books is to do as many school visits as you can, preferably when they’re connected with book fairs like Scholastic, Barnes and Noble, or other companies like Mrs. Nelson’s. During book fair season, I’m usually doing two or three school visits per week, September through November and then March through April. It’s great because it raises money for the schools, gets kids excited about reading, and also increases sales figures, which are essential for landing that next book deal.

Part of every school presentation is the inevitable question and answer session with the students. When you’ve done hundreds of shows like I have, patterns emerge. I hear the same questions over and over. This is a list of the ten most common questions kids will ask and my strategies for answering them, which have come in very handy.

10. How old are you?
I like to turn this potentially awkward question into a guessing game for the kids in the audience to play. Kids are notoriously horrible at estimating an adult’s age. I’m in my mid-30s and will hear guesses everywhere between 20 to 50. The first kid who guesses anything under thirty, I say: “I like your answer. Let’s go with that.” Then I give him or her a high-five.

9. How many gray hairs to do you have?
This is the far more insulting version of number ten. I like to spout out an oddly specific number like “17” and then quickly say, “next question!”

8. Are you famous?
In other words, should I brag that I met you or not? I mean, if you’re not on TV or in the movies or have five million Youtube followers, who are you really? I usually respond with an equally snarky retort, “I don’t know how famous I am, but I can promise you one thing, if we each google our names, I will get way more hits than you.” That usually shuts them up.

7. How much money do you make? / Are you rich?
This is a tricky question to answer. What the kid is really asking is: “Look, if you’re visiting schools in San Bernardino, how rich can you possibly be? I love books and am considering becoming an author when I grow up, but if I put years of time and effort into the process, is it going to pay off in the end?” Well, kid, the major reason I was invited to your school and am being allowed to directly market my books to you is because the faculty is hoping that that of the hundreds of kids in the crowd, one or two of you are going to become so inspired that you will actually take up writing as your career choice, become a celebrated author one day, and credit this elementary school for bringing the author in that inspired you. So, for those select few kids, do I dash your dreams and say that for 90% of published authors, the money you make will not nearly cover your yearly living expenses and a day job will remain a necessity? Or do I allow you to keep your innocence and say that authors are rolling in dough and you can start shopping for that mcmansion as soon as you sell your first 32-page picture book? The answer I now go with tends to blend a bit of truth and fiction. Something like: “Well, every time one of my books sell, I get paid a little bit of money, so if all of you buy books today, I’ll be filthy, stinking rich.” When kids grow up and learn to do the math, they’ll realize that either I was lying, or strangely I thought a couple hundred bucks would make me rich. I look forward to receiving confused fan mail about that in the near future.

6. I had a dog, but it died.
That’s a statement about your bummer of a life, not a question. There are a million variations on this, and most will come from kindergartners and first-graders who don’t yet understand what a question is, but are desperate to either impress or connect with the speaker on stage. No amount of explaining to them what a question means will get them to ask a question. Twenty kids in a row will make random statements and the worst part is they are contagious after the first one happens. Best to divert to an authority figure and say, “Do any of your teachers have a question for me?” Once a teacher asks a question (which is usually a good one like “How did you become an author?” or “How do you come up with your characters?”), make it a really long answer to eat up time. Then, instead of having them make more general declarations like, “I’m going to be a cat for Halloween” or “I like to draw dinosaurs” start asking them questions like: “How do you think you become a good writer?” or “Is anyone here thinking of becoming an author when you grow up?” Proceed to encourage them to go into computer science.

5. Ummm… I forgot.
“That’s okay, young lady, try to remember and I’ll come back to you.” She will eventually raise her hand again, and when you call on her, she will proceed to ask the same question the kid right before her asked. She’s not fooling anybody. She never had a question. She just wanted to raise her hand for the attention and wasn’t expecting to get called on. Don’t buy into the act and waste time trying to pry her to remember her first question because she never will. Just move on.

4. Can I have a free book?
“Absolutely. But only because you asked and didn’t bother to even say ‘please’. And only you can have a free book. Nobody else can. Well done.” There’s one of these kids in every audience. He’s usually wearing a Spider-Man t-shirt and has crooked teeth. Do not get suckered into feeling sorry for this kid. He’s not asking for a free book because he can’t afford it. His parents are probably better off than most of the others, which is why he’s so rude and disrespectful in the first place. He’s just trying to make you look like a jerk by denying a kid a book who wants to read it sooo bad, and now you feel like a jerk for not giving it to him. Here’s what you tell this kid, “No free book, but I’ll trade you for one of your video games.” “But I didn’t bring my video games.” “Then too bad. No deal.”

Also, watch this kid closely. He will probably try to steal one of your books while his friends are distracting you asking questions after the presentation.

When the teacher catches him red-handed and tells him to take it out of his backpack and give it back to the author, he will say, “Oh, I thought he said I could have one.” Don’t be too mean to this kid, though. He’s going to be a senator one day.

3. Are they making a movie of your books?
Unless you’ve already signed off on the film rights and the release date has been set, which is not the case for 99.99% of us, this question cuts right to the core and strips a bit of our soul each time it’s asked. What I want to say every time is, “Nope. And that’s because you kids aren’t doing your jobs by spreading the word on social media about how awesome the book is, thus making it a #1 best-selling cultural phenomenon like The Hunger Games, but I guess you’re only nine and aren’t allowed to even use Facebook and Twitter yet, so I am screwed.”

But, what I usually say is: “Is it going to be a movie? The answer is… maybe! We’re working on making it happen, but if you want it to come out soon, you can help by writing to studios like Nickelodeon and demanding a Scary School movie. Trust me, they listen to what kids want much more than they’ll listen to me!”

Teachers actually like this because it gives them a perfect opportunity to introduce their students to persuasive writing in English, and many classes have actually done this for me! No word yet from Nickelodeon.

2. How long did it take you to write your book?
This is my other favorite opportunity to commence a guessing game. I always have some giveaways that I bring to every show, like postcards or bookmarks. I’ll go around the room and let the kids guess how long it took to write a Scary School novel. The guesses will be hilariously all over the place. I’ll hear everything from two hours to ten years. The actual answer is a month, and it usually takes about fifty guesses to get to it, so I help by doing higher/lower. The first to guess it right wins the prize. Keeping the show interactive is essential. Any chance to make them part of the show and feel more connected to you and the books is a good thing.

It will also create INSANE jealousy for the postcard I just gave to the kid who got it right. I then tell them that everyone who buys a book will also get a free postcard included and this increases sales dramatically.

It’s also a good segway into talking about the months of editing and revising that are necessary and how important it is. Teachers LOVE this.

1. How do you like being an author?
Finally! A great question! Well, let me tell you, I LOVE being an author. Not just because I get to travel around meeting cool kids like you, but for one big reason… but first, let me ask you this… It’s tough being a kid, right? Are there a million rules to follow? Is everyone always telling you what to do? Well, when you’re a writer, YOU get to be the boss. You can have your characters do whatever you want them to do. You can have your story go wherever you want it to go. You get to be the boss of an entire world! So I love being an author because nobody can ever tell me what to do and the only limit is my own imagination. So I want all of you to start writing stories and don’t put any limit on your imaginations. This is your one chance to be the boss! Keep practicing writing and read as much as you can, and who knows, by they time you’re twelve, you could be a published author like me! And when you are, I can’t wait to attend your signing and ask you how many gray hairs you have.

For more info on Derek and his books, please visit DerekTaylorKent.com and ScarySchool.com

Scary School #4: Zillions of Zombies

by Derek the Ghost (Author), Revo Yanson (Illustrator), Marcus Muller (Cover Design)September 1, 2015
Eleven-year-old Charles Nukid thought he was the luckiest kid on earth when he was crowned the new monster king. But when he's challenged by a gang of angry trolls who don't think a human should be the monster king, something goes horribly wrong that turns all of the zombies of the world to evil and ravenous for brains.

Charles's friend rush to Monster Kingdom to help him, include Lattie the Ninja Girl, Petunia the purple girl, his biggest crush Penny Possum, Dr. Dragonbreath, and Johnny the Sasquatch. Together they'll have to find the one unicorn left on earth whose magic is powerful enough to turn all the zombies back to good. Thrills, chills, laughs, and a Zombie T-Rex will all be found in this fantastic final book. What more do you want??

About the author:
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Derek is an eleven-year-old ghost who haunts the classrooms and hallways of Scary School, writing down all the spine-tingling often hilarious things that go on there. Despite his ghostly state, Derek still enjoys reading comic books and hopes to one day become a master ninja. If that doesn’t work out, he will continue to share the fun of this very special, very secret school, so all kids can experience the scariest school on earth. Derek the Ghost communicates through the first-time ghost whisperer Derek Taylor Kent, who is a writer and performer in Los Angeles, California.

Interview: Derek the Ghost (Derek Taylor Kent) of Scary School + giveaway

Derek Taylor Kent is the 'ghost writer' for 11 year old Derek the Ghost. You see, Derek the Ghost wanted to write a book about the adventures the kids at Scary School have, but since he is a ghost he can't pick up a pen or type on a keyboard. So Derek Taylor Kent offered to write down his words for him. I got to sit down with both of these cool dudes and ask them so questions. Make sure you stick around till the end because we have a copy of The Northern Frights: Scary School Book #3 to give away.

*all artwork below is posted with permission of Scott M. Fischer, illustrator 

Sharon: Welcome Derek and Derek… um, this won’t work. How about DerekG and that other guy? Just kidding!
Derek the Ghost: Derek is fine. I'll know who you're talking about. I have psychic ghost powers.
Derek Taylor Kent: It's true. Watch out.

Sharon: Where would you guys like to do this interview? I would love to tour the cool clubhouse that was built for Derek the Ghost in book #1. If you take me I will give you a tour of our dungeon… *whisper* we have a dragon.
Derek the Ghost: We can do the interview in the haunted house my sister built for me. Just remember you have to give a piece of yourself to the ghosts that live there before you're allowed to enter. 
Sharon: hmmm... why not! how often does a person get to visit a real haunted house?

Sharon: Some of our readers might not know about Scary School. Would both of you to tell them a little bit about Scary School from your perspective? And your favorite parts?
Derek the Ghost: Scary School is the only school in the world where regular kids get to go to school with all sorts of scary kids. Like zombie kids, vampire kids, or werewolf kids. And your teacher is always something scary, like a T-Rex, a Dragon, or a mummy.
Derek Taylor Kent: Just making it to lunch with all your arms and legs is considered a great day.

Derek the Ghost: My favorite part of Scary School is the playground, also known as the "slayground". The monkey bars are over a river of lava, there's alligators at the bottom of the slide, and you better watch out for the Pit of Skarflak. 


Sharon: Derek the Ghost – Do you have a favorite teacher at Scary School?
Derek the Ghost: I don't think I should say who my favorite teacher is, or others might get mad and not let me sit in their classrooms anymore, but my least favorite is definitely Mr. Acidbath - his science experiment gone wrong turned me into a ghost!


Sharon: Derek the Ghost- What are some pros and cons about being a ghost?
Derek the Ghost: Pros: Being able to walk through walls. Saves a lot of time. Also you get a lot of cool stuff like a ghost pad that never runs out of paper and a ghost pen that never runs out of ink.
Cons: Not having mass.

Sharon: Derek the Ghost- In your newest book The Northern Frights (Scary School Book #3) the kids meet Polter-Bears and an Ice Dragon! Were you worried for Charles Nukid and his friends?

Derek the Ghost: Yes, I am always worried about them. But as an objective documentarian, I almost never interfere. You may remember that one time I helped Charles Nukid not get eaten by Dr. Dragonbreath because he seemed to be having a hard enough day already when he almost got eaten by Archie the Giant Squid and Mrs. T the T-Rex. But there was nothing I could do to help them against that Ice Dragon. You'll have to read the book though to find out if Charles and his friends survive the encounter. 

Sharon: Derek the Ghost- I hear you like comic books. We like comics here at I Smell Sheep! What are some of your favorite kinds of comics?
Derek the Ghost: Since I'm a ghost writer, I like to follow the great comic book writers: Frank Miller, Jim Shooter, Neil Gaiman, etc. My favorite characters are Daredevil, Wolverine, Batman, Bone and the old Valiant comic books like Harbinger.

Sharon: Derek the writer- oh, I guess I should ask you some questions too… Would you like to have gone to Scary School as a child?
Derek Taylor Kent: Definitely! Talk about a school that's never ever boring! 

Sharon: Derek the writer- How do you come up with all these interesting characters that attend Scary School, like Stephen Kingsley and Charles Nukid.
Derek Taylor Kent: Stephen Kingsley was easy. He's based on a famous writer of scary stories of a similar name. I always wondered where he got his ideas. Turns out he got them at Scary School. 
With Charles Nukid, I wanted to create a character who would be the least likely type to survive Scary School -- a skin-and-bones kid who always follows the rules, but it turns out he's able to survive and thrive better than everybody just for those reasons.

Sharon: Derek the writer- That is one awesome website you got for the Scary School series! What is your favorite feature on the site?

Derek Taylor Kent: Thanks! I tried to make ScarySchool.com the most fun site on the internet for kids. You can tour Scary School, meet the students and teachers, and even unlock secret chapters (the hints to find them are in the books). My favorite part though is probably the video game on the website. If you beat the game, you will win the weirdest trophy you've ever seen.

Sharon: Derek the writer- How many Scary School books does Derek the Ghost have in him? And just how does he tell you the stories?
Derek Taylor Kent: Thus far, I feel like I've just scratched the surface with the characters and the whole story. I plan on having Scary School #4 come out next June, but it will likely be available exclusively through the Scary School website, so make sure to keep checking back for announcements! 

Shron: Derek the writer- When you aren’t writing for Derek the Ghost what do you like to do for fun? What games do you like to play?
Derek Taylor Kent: I love to play basketball and still play in lots of leagues. I was also a tournement table tennis player for a long time and still love to play. Games I loe to play are Balderdash, Scrabble, and Boggle.

Rapid Fire

don’t worry, the fire doesn’t hurt… much (evil laughing in background) both of you or just one can answer these.

Sharon: Stinky toes or stinky breath?

Derek Taylor Kent: Toes.

Sharon: monster under the bed or in the closet?
Derek Taylor Kent: Under the bed.


Sharon: ride in a flying saucer or in the belly of a whale?
Derek Taylor Kent: Flying saucer for sure.


Sharon: eat a worm or eat a spider?
Derek Taylor Kent: Worm.


Sharon: basket of puppies or basket of wart hogs?
Derek Taylor Kent: Puppies! I have a puppy right now... would be awesome to have a basket of them.


Sharon: slowly pull the band Aid or rip it off?
Derek Taylor Kent: Rip it off.


Sharon: cake or pie?
Derek Taylor Kent: Cake.


Sharon: Coke or Pepsi?
Derek Taylor Kent: Neither. I've never had a soda. They've always tasted disgusting to me.

Thanks to both Derek's for talking with us. Be sure to check out my reviews of all the Scary School books:
Scary School (Book #1)
Scary School: Monsters on the March (Book #2)
Scary School: The Northern Frights (Book #3)

Scary School #3: The Northern Frightsby Derek The Ghost, Scott M. Fischer (Illustrations)In The Northern Frights, the third book in the spooky Scary School series, Charles “New Kid” Nukid and his friends, including Lattie, a girl ninja, must fight an epic battle with an ice dragon to save their school. But first they must survive going to Scream Academy as exchange students. And that may be hard, because the Academy has an abominable snowman for a principal, a Headless Horseman as one of the teachers, and the students are yetis, trolls, and ogres!

Will Charles survive to make an ancient prophecy come to pass and save everyone? The illustrated Scary School trilogy by Derek the Ghost, with its mix of humor, scares, and adventure, is a perfect pick for middle-grade readers of the Wayside School series and the Zach Files books.

About the author:
website-FB-twitter
Derek is an eleven-year-old ghost who haunts the classrooms and hallways of Scary School, writing down all the spine-tingling often hilarious things that go on there. Despite his ghostly state, Derek still enjoys reading comic books and hopes to one day become a master ninja. If that doesn’t work out, he will continue to share the fun of this very special, very secret school, so all kids can experience the scariest school on earth. Derek the Ghost communicates through the first-time ghost whisperer Derek Taylor Kent, who is a writer and performer in Los Angeles, California.

Book Review: Scary School #3: The Northern Frights by Derek the Ghost (Derek Taylor Kent)

Scary School #3: The Northern Frights

by Derek The Ghost, Scott M. Fischer (Illustrations)
In The Northern Frights, the third book in the spooky Scary School series, Charles “New Kid” Nukid and his friends, including Lattie, a girl ninja, must fight an epic battle with an ice dragon to save their school. But first they must survive going to Scream Academy as exchange students. And that may be hard, because the Academy has an abominable snowman for a principal, a Headless Horseman as one of the teachers, and the students are yetis, trolls, and ogres!

Will Charles survive to make an ancient prophecy come to pass and save everyone? The illustrated Scary School trilogy by Derek the Ghost, with its mix of humor, scares, and adventure, is a perfect pick for middle-grade readers of the Wayside School series and the Zach Files books.

I have been following the adventures at Scary School for three books now! If you are ever looking for a book to donate to an elementary school teacher/library or the kid in your life you can’t go wrong with any book in this silly series.

In book #3 The Northern Frights our narrator and friend Derek the Ghost once again tells of the adventures at Scary School. This gang takes another adventure even deadlier then before. They are sent to Scream Academy as exchange students for a week (and this has nothing to do with the prophecy about a human kid fighting the scariest monster ever). Unlike Scary School, there are no human children at Scream Academy and the monster kids don’t want them there. The gang has to battle bullies, avoid getting eaten by a yeti and face down a terrible dragon (which has nothing to do with the prophecy about a human kid fighting the scariest monster ever). After all that Charles Nukid must face his biggest fear… asking Penny Possum to the dance. Along the way the Scary School gang makes many new friends, including Lattie, a ninja who talks like a Chinese fortune, and has a quest of her own.

The Northern Frights, as well as the first two books, is action packed and fast moving. There is no chance for kids to get bored while reading, but they might bust a gut laughing. Scott M. Fischer once again provides illustrations of all the scary characters throughout the story.

5 "Noodle-neck" Sheep

Sharon Stogner

Book Review: Scary School: Monsters on the March by Derek the Ghost

As winners of last year's Ghoul Games, the students of Scary School are off to Monster Forest. School may be scary, but the forest has a few frights of its own, including:

Bearodactyls—so terrifying we can't even show you pictures of them
Princess Zogette, the Monster King's toad-faced daughter, who falls for Charles Nukid . . . hard
Captain Pigbeard, fearsome leader of the Monster-Pirates and Princess Zogette's fiancÉ (well, former fiancÉ, thanks to Charles)
And when Zogette follows Charles to Scary School, the Monster King and Captain Pigbeard raise their armies and chase after her. But the monsters have no idea who—or what—they're dealing with.

In this clever, funny sequel to the frighteningly hilarious Scary School, Charles, Penny Possum, Dr. Dragonbreath, and all the students and teachers prove that scary monsters are no match for Scary School!

If you have a kid in middle school, you have to get this series for them! I reviewed Scary School #1 last year along with my daughter who was in the 5th grade and we both loved it. (You can check out the review here.) So I was thrilled when Derek the Ghost sent me the second book Scary School: Monsters on the March. All the kids from the first book are there, at least the ones still alive, and now they are in the 6th grade. This tickled my daughter who is also going into the 6th grade and she also said she wishes these books would be made into a movie.

Here is an snippet which is representative of the whole book:

"Petunia led the way to the school yard. Jacqueline's haunted house stood beside the path that leads through the playground, which some kids like to call the slayground because of the high probability of injury or demise. Take, for instance, the alligators at the bottom of the slide. Brave kids still like to ride it, though. It's a fun slide until that last part with the chomping and dismemberment."Like the first book, this one is narrated by Derek the Ghost. Scary School won the Ghoul Games in book one and their prize is going to visit the King of Monsters. Things go wrong as they always do when dealing with monsters and King Zog declares war on Scary School. The kids and teachers must find a way to defeat 5000 karate monsters and 5000 monster-pirates! There is even a little bit of romance.

This book, like the first one, has wonderful silly illustrations of all the new characters, except an adult Bearodactyl because they are too terrifying. Author Derek Taylor Kent includes a character named Steven Kingsley who is afraid of everything and loves writing and baseball. Steven gets sucked into The Locker of Infinite Oblivion where he runs into a clown in a sewer drain, a giant spider, an ax murderer in a big hotel and then he ends up in a car crash and rescued by a scary lady that makes him do homework. Your kids might not get the references, but I am sure you do <G>.

There is a really cool website that kids can visit to get extra chapters and information about Scary School. If you are looking to donate a book to an Elementary or Middle school this would perfect.

5 “folded cloth–twisted flax–reed–reed-stool”

SharonS (edited by BAK)