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Candice Ransom is the author of over 100 books for young readers. From picture books,
to non fiction, to Middle Grade fiction, Candice does it all. Her charming Time Spies series is perfect for children
just beginning to read chapter books on their own. (See reviews here.) Candice is also a blogger, who lets her stuffed elephant
Ellsworth and her curmudgeonly cat Winchester do her talking for her at Ellsworth's Journal.
Welcome, Candice!
The Edge of the Forest: You're the author of a Middle Grade fantasy series (Time Spies) and the
author of several picture books, both fiction and nonfiction. Which was your very first book and when and how did you decide to write for
children?
Candice Ransom: (Blows dust off a volume in cobwebby archives.) I decided to become a children's book writer a long time ago when I was 15.
At first I thought I had a case of arrested development because I was still reading kids' books. But then I learned it was a real job and planned on being
a best-selling children's writer by the time I was 21. When that birthday came, I bumped my goal to 25. I sold my first book—a paperback original
YA suspense for Scholastic—at age 29. Alas, The Silvery Past is out of print.
The Edge of the Forest: Do you work on several books at once, or do you prefer to begin one project and finish it before turning to another book?
Candice : Early in my career, I realized I was easily bored. I'd work on my current book during the week and write another book in a different
genre on weekends. I have published in every genre in the field, except poetry and board books (though I have unpublished manuscripts in those categories).
Some days I think it would be a luxury to write one book at a time like a normal person, but I'm not wired that way.
The Edge of the Forest: Tell us a little bit about the Time Spies series. What inspired you to write a time travel series for younger
Middle Grade readers?
Candice : I wrote a book for Mirrorstone's Knights of the Silver Dragon mid-grade series. Then I told my editor I preferred writing
chapter books. I created a series that paid homage to the fantasies I loved as a kid, like Half Magic and A Diamond in the Window,
stories of everyday magic. The characters—Mattie, Alex, and Sophie—move to a bed-and-breakfast in Virginia where they discover a secret tower
room. A magic spyglass in the tower room transports them to little-known events in American history. Five-year-old Sophie, who has second sight, carries
a stuffed elephant named Ellsworth everywhere. And there is a large black cat named Winchester.
The Edge of the Forest: Many of your stories—from nonfiction to picture books to the Time Spies series—concern historical eras
different from our own. In reading your bio, I find you've always wanted to write for children.
Have you always been drawn to history as well?
Candice : I hated history and in particular, Virginia history, which is a painful statement to make considering so many of my books
take place in Virginia. I grew up next to the Bull Run battlefield and lived on the site of Union camp. We dug up bullets and other artifacts in our
garden, but was I interested in the Civil War? Nooo. As a kid I was keen on solving mysteries and creating perpetual motion in the form of a homemade
roller coaster (a shallow track painstakingly scraped down a steep hill that my scooter would supposedly zoom along).
The Edge of the Forest: You've taken a unique approach to your writer's blog, Ellsworth's Journal.
It's told from the point of view of your stuffed elephant, Ellsworth. Winchester the handsome black cat also makes frequent appearances. You show
up as the Writer and sometimes tell Ellsworth about your writer's life. What led you to take this approach when setting up your blog?
Candice : But Ellsworth set up the blog herself! (Ellsworth is a she, a common mistake and one I've been correcting patiently for the last 50 years).
Seriously, when I finished my children's literature degree last summer, I wanted to use that shiny-new M.A. I had resisted doing a writer's blog because I
don't want the public (both of them) to be in my head that much. So I created a children's literature blog called "Notes from the Riverbank" after The
Wind in the Willows. I wrote my first entry...and then my head struck the keyboard as I plummeted into a coma. You have never read anything so stuffy.
Our cats write our annual Christmas letter in the form of a funny play since my husband and I never do anything newsworthy. I was thinking about the
letters and also how doing a blog would make me feel exposed in a way I didn't want to be. I read on one writers' blog that she didn't floss her teeth!
What if I slipped and said something like that? I wanted to enter the blog world, but not as myself. So I chose to hide behind Ellsworth and Winchester.
Though in truth, I am not hiding at all. Ellsworth is my reasonable self and Winchester represents my impulsive, obsessive greedy self.
I have the best time with that blog, dressing up Winchester, thinking of snarky things for him to say. Some days I am laughing so hard at a goofy picture
of the cat, I can barely type. It may not be fun for other people, but I'm having a good time. I also wanted to create a blog that children could read
safely.
The Edge of the Forest: I feel kind of guilty interviewing you, Candice, instead of Ellsworth. Do you think she'll mind? Does she have anything in
particular she wants to add to our interview?
Candice : [Ellsworth speaking] I want the record to show The Writer does floss. She also goes to bed at 9:00 and is up at 6:00. Outwardly, she
appears to have the dullest life on the planet. But inside that head of hers, she is having a great time making up stories.
The Edge of the Forest: What about blogging has been surprising to you as a writer? Do you find that blogging adds to or subtracts
from your work as a writer?
Candice : I didn't think I could set up a blog. I had absolutely no help from my satellite engineer computer expert husband! I learned it all on
my own. I am deeply envious of blogs with cool banners and would love to have one but haven't figured that out yet. It's a big commitment, as everyone
knows, and a lot of work. In my case, I make up little stories and plays, hunt for props and costumes, think in two voices, and work to keep my blog
fresh. People ask how I get Winchester to pose in those ridiculous hats. Winchester, who lives for food, absolutely loves the photo shoots. He purrs
while I dress him in anything, knowing he will get treats. In fact, he comes running when he sees the camera. "Where do you want me? Be sure to get my
best side." But he moves and I have to snap pictures fast, which is why some are a little blurry.
Blogging gives me a community. I love checking in with other blogs, dropping comments, and thinking, "I'm one of these people, too." But there are days
when deadlines loom and I think, "Got to post to the blog." Unlike most bloggers, I have to set up a photo shoot with a cooperative stuffed animal and
often uncooperative cat. Many days I feel I am Ellsworth's and Winchester's manager.
The Edge of the Forest: Do you have any rules for yourself as a blogging writer?
Candice : I look a month or two ahead for events/holidays/seasons that I can use for story fodder. I spent three weeks hunting in dozens of
stores for a cat-size nightcap for "Winchester's Christmas Carol" (Begins here).
Like anything I do on a regular basis, I plan ahead. I've recently added a feature,
Writing Monday.
The Edge of the Forest: Do you have any advice for writers thinking about taking up blogging?
Candice : Think long and hard before you jump on Blogger or Live Journal. I waited at least three years before setting up my account. Decide on
two things: one, why do you want a blog? To promote your work? Touch base with other writers in the universe? And two, what will your blog contribute
to blogdom? How will yours be different?
Speed Round:
Coffee, tea, or a triple skinny latte?
I love the idea of tea, but must stay away from caffeine.
Who is your favorite writer? What is your all-time favorite book?
(And, yes, you must choose one. It's the rules.)
Margaret Wise Brown wrote some of the most perfect books and her life
fascinates me. My favorite book is A Diamond in the Window by Jane Langton.
Because of that book I had to be married on Valentine's Day (in a blizzard)
and became (sort of) a Transcendentalist.
Beach, city, or forest?
The edge of the forest—that mysterious, interesting margin between
tame garden and wild woods. [KH: Yes! Candice gets it.]
Why did you decide to write Young Adult fiction and not, say, mystery,
chick lit, or "literary fiction"?
I can't remember when I wasn't reading children's books, writing and
illustrating them. I can't imagine writing anything else. Or doing
anything else.
Movie, Theater, or a Concert?
Black and white movies from the 40s and 50s.
If you had an entire week and unlimited resources to do whatever you'd
like, what would you do and why?
I'd go to the Lake District and stay in a cottage in Sawrey, where
Beatrix Potter lived. I'd write and shop for antiques. On my way
home, I'd stop at Hay-on-Wye and comb the bookshops. I'd fly over
on the Concorde because I'd be in a hurry to get there and come back
on the Queen Mary 2 to make the trip last.
Halloween, New Year's, or Valentine's Day?
Halloween. It's truly the only kid's holiday. I loved Halloween
so much when I was little that I would wear my costume in August and
make tiny toilet-paper ghosts that I tied to bushes. Once when I was
trick or treating, I saw a witch fly silhouetted across the moon.
I really did.
The Edge of the Forest:Thanks for joining us, Candice ! We'll see you on the blogs.
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