Blatant plugs Archives - Page 5 of 5

This freak.

It’s a habit I’ve had since I started writing books. Looking and feeling isn’t enough; one has to smell the pages. I read recently about a new cologne on the market that produces the very smell I’m talking about. Though I don’t think I’d go that far. Surely it’s better to wear Beckham or Usher than smell like a library.

I’m saying this because I arrived home from a Christmas break to find two copies of my latest novel ‘Shot, Boom, Score!’ in the letterbox. Honestly, there is no better feeling. Nor does anything beat showing your two young daughters their dedication at the front. As a result, I don’t even have a copy of my own book.

This story has had a long journey, having started work on it over two years ago. I have to thank Joy Cowley for her incredible efforts, as well as the team at Allen and Unwin – namely Nicola McCloy, Sarah Brenan and Hilary Reynolds.

Thanks for your patience and creative input – you made it sing!

Shot, Boom, Score! will be released in Australia and New Zealand on the 1st Feb. If you live elsewhere, I’m sure you’ll be able to track down a copy online.

The blurb:

‘Toby, if you get twenty wickets and ten tries before the end of the year, Mum and I will buy you a GameBox V3.’

Toby thinks the GameBox V3 challenge will be too easy – he gets Player of the Day all the time. SHOT! But he hasn’t reckoned on Mrs Martin-Edge, the teacher from hell. Or on Malcolm McGarvy.

McGarvy is the biggest kid in the school and he wears a shark tooth around his neck. You know McGarvy is near because you get goosebumps up your arms.

And he’s going to make sure Toby doesn’t get that GameBox V3.

Not long now till the fat bloke comes down the chimney. Hope you’re ready to have a few laughs with your family, eat, drink and fall over on the couch.

Last year I wrote a Kiwi Xmas carol which I’ve just discovered has made it onto the album Pohutukawas and Pavlova. There are far more deserving artists on here (Fred Dagg, Split Enz, Daphne Walker) which is why I’m a bit stunned these woolly muppets made the grade.

But I guess they’re kind of cute – in a Christmas dinner-kinda-way.

My book ‘The Dog That Ate The Bathroom’ with illustrator Guy Harkness is in full swing. It’s been fun choosing images. Above are some mock ups. Once the script was finished we opened up the phone lines on our breakfast show (Auckland’s Classic Hits) to see what bizarre items had been consumed by listener’s dogs. (Feel free to add to the list.)

Puzzle pieces, $6000 hearing aid

Had my tonsils out and they were next to the bed – dog ate them

Deceased pet rabbit which had been buried three weeks

Sheepskin rug, side of a pine table, the crutch of my knickers

100 vitamin tablets, a full fruit bowl and a gib board toilet wall

Last chapter of a book I was reading

4 seat belts 2 head rests and a heavy wooden garden gate

Cell phone, steering wheel, reading glasses and toothpicks

I’m stoked with the new cover for ‘Shot, Boom, Score,’ a kids novel I’ve been working on for a while now. It’s published by Allen and Unwin in February 2013 and is mostly aimed at 8-12 year olds.

My daughter is having it read to her class as we speak. Apparently ‘even the bullies who never read and never share their feelings and always throw snot when they should be listening really love it!’

So that’s good, I suppose.

Here’s a taster from the main character Toby:

I should tell you a bit more about my family and friends. You might have figured out my name is Toby, but you won’t know my surname. It’s Gilligan-Flannigan. There, I said it. I blame my parents. Thanks to both their stupid names, I’m stuck with the stupidest, longest name in the school. Sometimes all I want is to be called Jones or Smith. Then I wouldn’t stand out like a chicken with no head every morning when Mrs Martin-Edge does the roll call.

I’m the middle one in the family. Claire is four years older than me, and my brother Max is seven years younger. They’re both annoying, but at least Max doesn’t use all the hot water in the shower. Then again, Claire doesn’t poo her pants.

Somehow I made it onto the soon-to-be-released music compilation Kiwiana Goes Pop. Anyone who knows me knows this is a complete accident, mainly because I’m a writer first, part-time music hack second. However, because it helps to be honest about the creative process I’ll tell you how the song came about.

I had an AWFUL gig at a rugby club in South Auckland, where I was paid to entertain the crowd for a few hours. For whatever reason (lethargy, disinterest, lacking sense of humour) it was one of those nights where nothing worked. I survived, thanked everyone, slid my fee in my pocket and retreated to the safety of home. Once there, I got the guitar out and wrote Good Keen Metrosexual, a tune that arrived almost fully formed. My angry mood soon became one of jubilation. And now it’s on a CD. Isn’t life utterly, completely stupid sometimes?

Very proud to say my first novel for kids is out with Allen and Unwin come Feb, 2013. I’ve been working on it for a while so to receive a pre-copy in the mail was a great feeling. The story is about Toby Gilligan-Flannigan, a boy who hates his name but loves his sport. The latter of which played a major role in my childhood. So did rewards for doing well. I only have to look at my daughter’s face when she wins player of the day with accompanying trophy. From the sideline I’ve also witnessed bribery. ‘Max, pie for a try!’ ‘Olivia, movie ticket for a wicket!’ With Toby in ‘Shot, Boom, Score!’, I wanted to take this theme to a new level. When Toby’s old man offers his son the ultimate prize in return for playing well, class bully Malcolm McGarvy does his utmost to ruin the party.

Justin Brown

What sort of freak ‘smells’ books?

Why Bieber needn’t be worried – Part II

Your dog ate what?

Better than flicking snot? I’ll take that

Bieber needn’t be worried

Shot, Boom, Score