FREE workshop on writing for children

September 20, 2016/0 Comments/in Middle Grade, Mysteries, Reading, Speaking, Writing, young adult/by AJ Cattapan

I’m pleased to announce that I’ll be part of a panel of authors presenting a FREE workshop on writing for young readers on Sunday, October 23.

FREE writing workshop! Come hear five mystery writers talk about writing for children

Registration and parking are all free. Just sign up here.

Here are the rest of the details:

Sunday, Oct. 23, 1 p.m.-3 p.m., Concordia University Chicago, Christopher Center Room 200, River Forest, IL
Expect some treats and tricks—writing tricks, that is—as five Chicago-area mystery authors discuss writing and publishing stories for young readers in an event co-hosted by the Midwest Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America and Concordia University Chicago’s Center for Literacy. The event is free and open to writers and readers of all ages. Free parking is available in Lot 1, at the corner of Augusta and Monroe.

“Tricks (and Treats) for Writing for Young Readers” will feature Kate Hannigan, author of The Detective’s Assistant, winner of the 2016 Golden Kite Award for best middle-grade novel from the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators; Keir Graff, executive editor of Booklist publications and author of two middle grade books, The Other Felix and, coming soon, The Matchstick Castle; Michelle Falkoff, author of the young adult titles Pushing Perfect and Playlist for the Dead; A.J. Cattapan, author of the middle grade adventure Seven Riddles to Nowhere; and Natasha Tarpley, author of the best-selling picture book, I Love My Hair! and the forthcoming middle grade mystery The Harlem Charade and the co-founder of Voonderbar!, a multicultural children’s book publisher.

Happy Book Release Day!

August 31, 2016/0 Comments/in Marketing, Middle Grade, Mysteries, Reading, Seven Riddles to Nowhere, Writing/by AJ Cattapan

Today is the official release day of

Seven Riddles to Nowhere!

Amazon and Barnes & Noble are both selling the paperback version at a 32% discount right now. I don’t know how long this sale price will last, but I recommend you grab it while you can!

7 Riddles Sale prices launch

Also don’t forget about the party we’re having on Facebook tonight! So many great giveaways!

7 Riddles Launch Ad

Monday Book Review: Footer Davis Probably Is Crazy by Susan Vaught

June 13, 2016/1 Comment/in Book Reviews, Middle Grade, Mysteries, Reading/by AJ Cattapan

Every year I try to read the Edgar Award nominees for juvenile and young adult fiction before the winners are announced. Due to time constraints with the doctorate program, I completely failed this year. However, I did manage to read the winner in the juvenile category recently, so here it is!

Title: Footer Davis Probably Is Crazy

Author: Susan Vaught

Genre: mystery

Age group: middle grade

Synopsis: Footer Davis’s mother has bipolar disorder. Sometimes she’s just fine–but not if she doesn’t take her pills. Prior to the opening of our story, there was a terrible fire on a neighbor’s farm. The two Abrams kids who live there haven’t been seen since. Were they so badly burned in the fire no one could find their remains? Or have they fled? Footer and her best friend Peavine decide to investigate, and what Footer finds scares her into thinking maybe she had something to do with the fire herself.

Author Susan Vaught works in the mental health field, so she’s definitely writing about something she has experience with here. The story is told in first-person from the perspective of young Footer Davis. Footer has a very unique voice. It’s one of the strengths of this story, but I’ll also admit it’s part of what made this story a little hard for me to get into at first. After all, Footer Davis “probably is crazy,” and her thoughts can be hard to follow. When are we being told the truth? When are we experiencing visions or a dream through Footer’s perspective? Or is she just remembering the past?

Thankfully, once you get used to Footer’s unique voice, the story moves along very rapidly. The author also does a great job with the ending. Often in middle grade mysteries, I can guess where the author is headed. It took almost until the surprising ending for me to figure out where this was all headed. And then once I figured it out, I wanted to shout at Footer, “Hey! Don’t you see what’s going on here?!?”

Some might wonder with all of this talk of mental illness if this is appropriate for middle grade readers. Yes, it’s definitely told with a middle grade voice, not a YA voice. I would put it a little akin to the great story So B. It by Sarah Weeks which deals with a character whose mother is mentally challenged.

So if you’re into middle grade mysteries with unique main characters, check out Footer Davis Probably Is Crazy.

Spin Cycle: Valentine’s Day and Ten Great Loves

February 14, 2015/3 Comments/in Spin Cycle/by AJ Cattapan

As a single person, it’s easy to get disgruntled on Valentine’s Day. Already this morning, my Facebook feed is filled with all my married friend’s posts about the chocolate, cards, books, flowers, and jewelry their husbands have given them today. (Side note: you know you have a lot of author friends when their husbands give them books for Valentine’s Day.)

For the Spin Cycle this week, Ginny Marie is giving us a Valentine’s Day prompt with a twist: simply put, what do you love? (Notice it’s not “Whom do you love?” So I’ll refrain from telling you how much I love my friends and family. 🙂 )

I love . . .

1. My new Jamberry nail wraps for Valentine’s Day. Aren’t they pretty? Got lots of compliments from my students yesterday.

2. Mystery books. Please, oh please, oh please, surprise me in the end.

3. Italian food. What’s not to love about some pasta? You can do so many things with it. Mix it with some cheese, tomato sauce, and spinach. Or maybe some sausage and broccoli. Or maybe some zucchini, squash, cherry tomatoes, and cheese. Yummy, yummy, yummy! And to go with it . . .

4. A nice glass of wine. I’m pretty non-discriminating when it comes to wine. White. Red. Rose. Sparkling. Whatever. As long as it’s not an overly oaky Chardonnay.

5. Traveling. Have I told you about my upcoming trips? Guatemala for spring break. Italy and Spain this summer! Dallas for a writing conference in September. Then New York in November for my investiture into the Order of Malta!

Order of Malta Magistral Palace in Rome.

6. Italy! Don’t worry, Mom! I’m not moving there.

Check out that blue Roman sky! Bella!

7. A nice cup of tea. This is one of the reasons I adore the Brits. They appreciate a good tea time.

Another cup of tea for the record books.

8. Running on a warm day. (Please let that warm weather return soon.)

Com’n, sunshine! Bring back the running weather!

9. A really good story. At first I thought about writing my post just about this fact. You see, there’s a certain movie out this weekend that everyone who blogs seems to be mentioning (and criticizing). I won’t be seeing it. I never read the book. I’d heard about it fairly early in the game because its quick rise to fame was making waves in the publishing world: Twilight fan fiction that had gained popularity and then a publishing contract and now a movie. However, every literary agent and editor who blogged about it back then said right away how poorly written it was and that it lacked a real plot. Why would I spend my time on that? There are too many good stories out there. And that’s what I love: a good story. Which brings me to number 10 . . .

10. Musical theater! A good story combined with beautiful music and breathtaking dancing. You gotta love it!

Into the Woods circa . . . uh, let’s just say it was “once upon a time.”

So guess what I’m doing tonight for Valentine’s Day? My plans, I’m pretty sure, must be a sign of God’s sense of humor. You see, my friends and I have season tickets to a local theater company, tonight happens to be our night for the current production, and the show just happens to be . . . West Side Story! That’s right, for Valentine’s Day, I’m going to see one of the saddest love stories in the history of musical theater. Ha!

My West Side Story sweatshirt from high school

But still, I count myself as lucky. On this day when we remember our loves, I get to a do a lot of things I love. I’m wearing my pretty Jamberry nail wraps. I’ve already had a nice cup of tea. I’ll get to do some mystery reading later. Then I’ll enjoy a nice Italian dinner with my friends. (I’ll have that glass of wine, of course!) And then I get to see some musical theater with beautiful music, dancing, and a good story to boot!

Whatever your plans are for today, I hope you do something you love!

Monday Book Review: Show Me a Sign by Susan Miura

October 13, 2014/0 Comments/in Book Reviews, Mysteries, young adult/by AJ Cattapan

It’s been a long time since I’ve done one of these Monday Book Reviews. I am way behind, but I’m so happy today to be talking about Susan Miura’s Show Me a Sign.

Title: Show Me a Sign

Author: Susan Miura

Genre: mystery

Age group: YA

Synopsis: (taken from back cover) Seventeen-year-old Nathan Boliva is under investigation by the FBI for a kidnapping he didn’t commit. Deaf and beautiful Haylie Summers agreed to go on a date with him, then disappeared the day before. When the Feds discover a text was sent from Nathan’s cell phone, asking Haylie to meet him behind her garage, Nathan becomes a prime suspect.

Tied and blindfolded, Haylie struggles to grasp Nathan’s role in her captivity. He doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who would kidnap her. Then again, if he didn’t, who is holding her hostage, and why?

Desperate to solve the crime and rescue Haylie, Nathan and his best friend Alec set out at midnight to gather intel . . . and end up with far more than they bargained for.

* * *

You all know how I love a good mystery, and Miura’s book Show Me a Sign is no exception. I love how Miura uses a deaf character in this story. Haylie’s inability to hear what is going on while she’s captured adds to the suspense and mystery in this story.

Nathan is a great hero as well. He wants to do what is right, but like a typical teenage boy, sometimes jumps in without thinking ahead to the consequences. His only concern is “saving the girl.” At the same time, Miura keeps Haylie from just being a “damsel in distress.” She’s feisty and has a good head on her shoulders.

Also, I really enjoyed the friendship that existed between Nathan and his British best friend Alec. Of course, I’m a bit of an Anglophile, so that may account for my tastes, but who doesn’t laugh when they tease each other about the way they talk? When Alec talks about bobbies and tellies, Nathan says, “They’re cops, not bobbies. And it’s a TV, not a telly. Speak English.” Alec responds, “You speak English.”

I’d recommend this book to upper middle grade and high school students who enjoy a fun mystery with a great male protagonist and a very worthy female counterpart.

Tag Archive for: mysteries