Three Times a Charm with SMW Claw

Welcome to Three Times A Charm. I love to introduce readers to the people involved in children’s publishing. Today we welcome middle grade author, Sunshine Claw. Sunshine, we’d love for you to tell us a little about you.

I lived a miserable and unfulfilling existence* until the day I was invited to play Ultimate Frisbee by one boy, and left madly in love with another (my husband).

We Claws live with a hoard of ordinary, run-of-the-mill children, whom we believe to be spectacular and exceptional, and for whom we would gladly dash into a burning building to save.

Or just make the mundane, daily sacrifices required over a lifetime.

*5.775% accurate

Let’s hear more about Goggles Gone Strong.  

Goggles Gone Strong is my debut children's novel for ages 9+. In the book Calypso Blue finds herself on a strange island with a strange family, wearing an absurd pair of goggles, but has to save the dad from a giant saltwater crocodile, the mom from a sacrificial ritual, herself from mauling by the evil guy's vicious tigers (oh, and a shark!) before she can figure out those danged goggles and nab the treasure to bring it home.

I recommend my book to readers who like…well, I'm not aware of any books similar to mine and I've asked many people (readers) and none of them have ever been able to come up with anything either. So, I'd have to say it's about the same reading level as The Mysterious Benedict Society, the same suspense level as The False Prince, and the same adventure level as The Swiss Family Robinson.

Sounds fun! I’m totally curious what those goggles are all about. Okay, let’s move on to the threes. Give us your top 3 responses to the following to help us get to know you better.

Top 3 books you recommend reading and why you recommend them.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. I know you've all read this, but have you read it keeping in mind that Harry Potter is the greatest Christian allegory written in our time? And no, I'm not talking about the series as a whole, which it is, but each and every book, every chapter.


Here are just a few examples off the top of my head from Sorcerer’s Stone: Ron sacrificing himself in the chess game so Harry and Hermione can progress, Harry "dying" for three days until he comes to in the infirmary, Harry is a "seeker," etc. There are many, many more.

Naturally, I've always loved The Chronicles of Narnia for the same reasons. The Voyage of the Dawntreader narrowly beats out The Horse and His Boy as my favorite. Mostly because I love the imagery of the beautiful ship sailing to the ends of the earth and all the magical islands they visit on their way.

And just for fun, I recommend The Incorrible Children of Ashton Place by Maryrose Wood. I think the tag line is: It's said of some ill-behaved children that they must have been raised by wolves; these children actually were. 

The series is pretty adorable.

Top 3 leisure activities.

Writing is actually my top leisure activity. For a couple years I unwound at night (after the kids were in bed) by vegging out on Facebook, and design and political blogs. One day I realized I had nothing to show for it. I wasn't a better person (some might argue I was a worse person :); I wasn't better friends with anyone; I hadn't acquired any new skills or talents.

I decided to do something that over time would add up to something, something that would last, something I could hand over to my children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I decided to write a book. And it turns out it works great to help me unwind.

I also like to run and search the State Regional Archives in Prague for ancestors.

Top 3 professions you wanted to be when you grew up.

The fondest ambition of my heart was (and always has been) to be one heckuva mother. It is the place *almost* all of my study, energy and time goes. I think it goes without saying, I'm not a perfect mother. I make mistakes just like any mother does. But it's something I'm always working on and improving. Right, Claw kids? Right???

Beyond that I had secondary dreams of being an architect. I have way more floor plan drawings from when I was a kid than essays.

Then in college I had vague ambitions of becoming a Botanist. Taxonomy was the area I was most interested in, with visions of me in tropical rain forests collecting and cataloging specimens in the back of my head. But studying Botany turned out to be one of the biggest regrets of my life. I sure wish I'd studied something I loved. Or heck, found even moderately interesting.

Finally, please share with us where our tech savvy readers can find out more about you and your book.

http://www.smwclaw.com/

http://www.amazon.com/S.M.W.-Claw/e/B01D0BKDZ2/


Thanks for joining us today, Sunshine. It was great to get to know more about you and Goggles Gone Strong.

THANKS!


Comments

  1. AnonymousJuly 13, 2016 at 7:54 AM

    Thanks for having me, Kai! Your questions were fun!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kelly HashwayJuly 15, 2016 at 3:08 PM

    Sounds like an exciting middle grade adventure. I loved The Mysterious Benedict Society. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousJuly 15, 2016 at 3:11 PM

    This was fun to read. The premise of this book is interesting.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Beverly Stowe McClureJuly 18, 2016 at 11:48 AM

    What a fun interview, ladies. A neat idea for a story too, Sunshine. Have a great time with your writing.

    ReplyDelete

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