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Ever since twelve-year-old Charlie Price’s mom died, he feels like his world had been split into two parts. Before included stargazing and Mathletes and Saturday scavenger hunts with his family. After means a dad who’s completely checked out, comically bad dinners, and a grief group that’s anything but helpful. It seems like losing Mom meant losing everything else he loved, too.
Maschari's first book, "The Remarkable Journey of Charlie Price" is a suspenseful, amazing journey about finding the balance between remembering and moving on. It is a combination of fantasy and realistic fiction that pulls in all readers, but rings especially true for those children who find themselves in the same situation.
If you have been looking for an author to Skype with, you can't do better than Jennifer Maschari! She offers a FREE 20 minute Skype session to classrooms, after school clubs, Girl and Boy scout troops, and book groups. If you are interested, click on this link to reach her blog and get all of the information you need: http://jenmaschari.com
The idea for the book came from her own experience. When she was in fourth grade her father became ill and passed away when she was 16. Her experience working through grief gives the book its authentic feel.
Students will be very interested in the editing and revising process authors go through. Her book went through many drafts. Maschari says that she found the job of the copy editor very interesting. It is the copy editor's job to sort through all of the little details, and make sure everything makes sense. She reports that the copy editor pointed out that Charlie had on three different outfits during one short period of time, so that had to be corrected. The copy editor also checks details like the time it takes to go from one place to another, and grammar. Maschari is currently working on her second book, and has already rewritten all of it expect 12 pages. Revising is not easy! That book will be out sometime in 2017.
Jennifer Maschari started writing when she was four years old. The first book she remembers writing was based on the book "Corduroy" She remembers that her mother put plastic wrap around the first and last pages, so it looked like a book. She continued writing in elementary school. She wrote poems in the style of Shel Silverstein, and lots of stories. She has one book that she wrote, but has not been published that I personally have read. It's hilarious, and one I hope will be published at some point.
For those teachers who have their own book they would like to publish, Jen reports that the most important factor in getting published for her was joining an on-line writer's class through Media Bistro. It helped her become a better writer, and helped her make important connections. She also suggests reading lots of current children's books to see what is going on in publishing. She says that it is important to focus on improvig your craft.
If you have read "The Remarkable Journey of Charlie Price" be sure to leave a comment below! It is remarkable indeed!
