Author Interview - Jo Linsdell on her new book Fairy May

Jo Linsdell is a best selling author and illustrator, award winning blogger and freelance writer. Originally from the UK, she now lives in Rome, Italy with her husband and their two young sons. Her published books include:  Out and about at the zoo Italian For Tourists: Pocket Edition     A Guide To Weddings In Italy But today we're here to talk about her newest book, Fairy May, available now! Fairy May Written and illustrated by Jo Linsdell   Fairy May dreams of one day becoming a tooth fairy but she struggles at school and always seems to get things wrong. With hard work and determination she prepares for her test. Will she realize her dream and become a tooth fairy? Product details: Paperback: 32 pages Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Language: English ISBN-10: 1481951424 ISBN-13: 978-1481951425 Product Dimensions: 10 x 8 x 0.1 inches Purchasing links: Amazon Createspace   Q & A with Jo Q: Please tell us a bit about Fairy May.   Fairy May is a rhyming children's picture story book about a fairy called May that dreams of one day becoming a tooth fairy. She struggles at school and always seems to get things wrong but with hard work and determination she prepares for her tooth fairy exam. Q: What lessons does this book carry for the reader? The story carries two main lessons for the reader; A. To follow your dreams. Just because it isn't easy doesn't mean it can't be achieved. " But Fairy May tried and tried for she had a special dream; one day she'd be a tooth fairy, the best you've ever seen." B. The importance of dental hygiene. The text subtly introduces the reader to how to take care of their teeth correctly. "She learnt how to brush and keep teeth clean and how to floss right in between." Q: What was your inspiration for this book? This book is dedicated to my niece who, after seeing that my last book Out and About at the Zoo was dedicated to my two sons, asked if I'd write a book for her too. It needed to have fairies in it and so I brainstormed on ideas and came up with Fairy May. I wanted her to be a little girl fairy and to show that it's OK to not be perfect. I wanted young children to be able to relate to her and to encourage them to go after their dreams. The tooth fairy part came about because several of my 5 year old's friends have recently lost their first tooth and he has been full of questions on the subject. My 17 month old is also teething at the moment and so the topic of dental hygiene comes up a lot in our house at the moment. Q: What did you learn while writing Fairy May? The importance of having the right direction for my story not just a good text. In the original version the text worked fine as a story and rhymed nicely but the overall message wasn't as strong. After rewriting the last part I was much happier with the focus of the story. Simple changes can make a big difference. Q: What projects are you working on now? I'm busy with several projects at the moment. "The Bedtime Book" which is another rhyming children's picture book. "The Writers and Authors Guide to Social Media" and "Virtual Book Tours" which are two non-fiction books. 2013 is going to be a busy year for me as I have lots of other ideas too. Q: What advice would you give to aspiring writers? I could write loads here but I'll limit it to my top 3: 1) To learn as much as you can about writing and the writing industry. Understanding how every works really helps. 2) Build your online presence. Marketing is part of the job description and what ever publishing route you take you'll need to do some marketing. By building your online reputation and growing a solid fan base you'll have more success at sending your content viral. 3) Write. If you write you are no longer an aspiring writer. You ARE a writer. Think about it, if you write just one page a day at the end of a year you'll have written 365 pages. That's a novel. if you don't have the time to write, make time. You'd be surprised at how many words you can get down in just a 5 minute writing sprint. Taking part in challenges like NaNoWriMo or more genre specific ones like PiBoIdMo can be a great motivator too. Q: Why do you think it's important for young people to read? Reading is an important life skill. Reading is needed to understand day to day things like what's on a medicine bottle. It's needed to enable you to find a good job. Through reading we learn new things and develop our imaginations. Reading is exercise for our brains and helps encourage creativity. Reading strengthens character too as it gives you the chance to build your own educated views on things. Knowledge is powerful and leads to better self esteem. I could go on and on but the bottom line is that young people are the future and by being able to read that future will be better. Q: Any closing words? Be like Fairy May and always follow your dreams. Just because something is difficult doesn't mean it can't be done. To learn more about Jo and her books, please follow these links: Author website: www.JoLinsdell.com Contact details: Email: webmaster@jolinsdell.com Social Media Links: Facebook Twitter Google+ LinkedIn YouTube Goodreads Amazon  Happy Readings, Casey Sean Harmon www.caseyseanharmon.com