500 Words was launched on this morning’s Chris Evans Breakfast Show.  All you have to do is write and submit a story of 500 words or under, and you could win some fabulous prizes – including Chris’s height in books, and £500 worth of books for your school library!

So, check out the competition home page, and get writing!

Full details here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/500words/2012/

This time, there are Frequently Asked Questions about Scream Street, incredible Japanese book covers, and a competition where you could win a signed audio book of The Uniform!

So, what are you waiting for?  Dig in…

Tommy

As a writer, changing software is a big deal; I’d got used to how to write in MS Word, even if that meant the usual glitches I’d come to expect from the industry standard software.  I was used to scrolling through page after page of manuscript to find that one spot where I wanted to rename a minor character, or drop in a clue to the identity of the villain.  I knew I’d have to spend time juggling with formatting before submitting my work.  I accepted that I’d have to deal with a couple of force quits, and bring a manual back-up of my book to life, kicking and screaming.  It’s all just part of the job and, after all, Word isn’t exclusively for writers – it has to fulfill a thousand different roles for a thousand types of user.

Then I discovered Scrivener – software created especially for writers.  That’s why I use it.  It was designed with people like me in mind.  You’ll read on their website that Scrivener allows you to split your work up into chapters, scenes and even paragraphs; that it’s a place where you can keep all your research material within easy access; that you can view two versions of a scene on screen at the same time, putting an end to the laborious copying and pasting between different files; that you can reorganise your plot quickly and easily via the cork board; that you can export your work to dozens of different formats, each with a seemingly unlimited list of potential customisations; that the software saves your work every time you pause from typing, and makes automatic back-ups in case things go wrong.  It’s all true – Scrivener does all this and more.  But I use Scrivener simply because it allows me to write without worrying whether the program I’m using will let me write.

Whatever you want to write, give Scrivener a try.  I’m certain you won’t regret it.

Scream Street launches in Japan next week – with these incredible covers!

How did you get the idea for Scream Street?

It all happened back in October 2006.  I was driving home from a school visit, thinking about what I should write next.  I really wanted to try to do something about haunted houses – but with a twist.  I suddenly realised that when you see a haunted house in a movie, book or cartoon, it’s always on its own – standing in a big plot of land, or perched at the top of a hill.  Why didn’t you ever see a haunted house with a next door neighbour?  Or – even better – a whole street of haunted houses?  That was it!  The name Scream Street popped into my head, and I started writing as soon as I got home.  The first book in the series – Fang of the Vampire – was published by Walker Books exactly two ears later, in October 2008.

Where did the ideas for the characters come from?

With Luke, I always wanted an ordinary boy who becomes saddled with an extraordinary problem – so I named him after my nephew, Luke Donbavand.  I knew he’d have two best friends, and so created Resus and Cleo straight after.  For the rest of the residents, I took a typical horror stereotype and gave them a twist…  Doug the zombie likes eating brains – but he prefers them barbecued, along with a couple of beers.  Twinkle the fairy looks like a bricklayer in fancy dress.  Eefa Everwell (named after Luke’s sister, Aoife Donbavand) is stunningly beautiful and not an aged, ugly hag.  Mr and Mrs Crudley are house-proud bog monsters.  Basically – I write down as many fun ideas as I can think of and choose the best.

How long does it take you to write each book?

Each book in the Scream Street series took around 3 months to write.  That includes planning the story, inventing any new characters, writing the first draft, and then working my editor’s notes into the second, third and sometimes even a fourth draft.  We tweak the text to make it a strong as possible right up until the moment the book goes to print.  That whole process takes around 3 months.

Do you draw the illustrations for the books?

Not at all.  I’m TERRIBLE at drawing!  The day my publishers let me illustrate my own books is the day my career is over!  The brilliant illustrations for Scream Street are done by the incredibly talented Lily Bernard of Cartoon Saloon – and I love them!

Which is your favourite Scream Street book?

That’s a really difficult question to answer!  I like them all for different reasons.  In Fang of the Vampire, I got to know my new characters really well; when I wrote Flesh of the Zombie, I enjoyed playing around with undead stereotypes; Terror of the Nightwatchman is probably the scariest book in the series (for me, at least!); and I loved the fart gags in Rampage of the Goblins.  Pick a Scream Street book, and I’ll tell you why I like it!

Who is your favourite character?

That’s much easier to answer – Doug the zombie!  There are three zombies who live in Scream Street, but I always choose Doug whenever I need one as he’s the most fun to write about!

Is Scream Street available outside the UK?

Yes!  Scream Street is also published in the USA, Australia, France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Brazil, Japan, Taiwan, Russia, Turkey, Spain (Basque), Spain (Spanish) and Indonesia.  Different countries have purchased a different number of titles (such as 1-4, 1-6, or all 13), and are different stages of publication.

Are the Scream Street books available as ebooks or audio books?

They certainly are!  The entire series are available as ebooks from Amazon, Waterstones and iBooks.  Both Fang of the Vampire and Blood of the Witch have been recorded as audio books in the US, read by the awesome MacLeod Andrews!

Are you going to make a Scream Street movie or TV series?

At the moment, a Scream Street TV series is in development (see here for details), but I can’t say any more than that for now!

Will there be any more Scream Street books?  Is book 13 really the end?

Yes.  Book 13 is the final Scream Street book.  For now.  It’s possible that I may write more Scream Street in the future, so keep an eye on this website in case that happens.  Plus, I’m always writing new Scream Street short stories for readers to enjoy.  You can find them at www.screamstreet.co.uk

Have you written anything other than Scream Street?

Yes, I have.  I wrote 5 adventures in the Too Ghoul for School series; 4 books of boredom busting activities – Quick Fixes For Bored Kids, More Quick Fixes for Bored Kids, Quick Fixes for Kids’ Parties, and Boredom Busters (you can get that last title for free here!); Making a Drama Out of a Crisis – a book of drama games and activities for teachers; Save The Day – a book in the David Beckham Academy series; and four standalone books for Barrington Stoke – Zombie!, Uniform, Wolf and Virus.

What are you writing next?

I’m currently working on a new adventure for Barrington Stoke, and the third book in my brand new series for Walker Books – the top secret Project FE!  Watch this space for further news…

Tommy

Click here to download your free copy!

There’s nothing worse than being bored, especially when stuck inside over a wet weekend or during a seemingly endless school holiday. But, don’t despair – help is at hand…

Tommy Donbavand – author of the fang-tastic SCREAM STREET series – has devised and collected dozens of incredible activities, games and projects to entertain kids of all ages.

With 33 chapters of fun things to do, it won’t be long before your kids are racing home-made Formula One cars, starting their own newspaper, exploring the stars, joining King Arthur at the Round Table, devising a stand-up comedy routine or even staging a pop concert. They’ll never be bored again!

Perfect for parents, grandparents, teachers, Cub or Brownie leaders – or anyone who has to keep children entertained. And, best of all, everything inside the book can be enjoyed for little or no extra cost.

So – what are you waiting for? Together we can beat boredom forever!

It’s Tammy…

It’s Owen…