Today we welcome Sharyn Bajerai to Promote Me Please. Sharyn came along to answer five curious questions about her new book; An Elephant Living in the House and other pet stories.
Q.1. An Elephant Living in the House! That sounds intriguing.
Please tell us a bit about the inspiration for this story.
A.1.
The inspiration for the story came about when I was watching an advertisement
on TV that showed an elephant being squashed in the back of a station wagon.
The idea grew from there. What would happen if that elephant was taken home by
a child? How could you hide an elephant in a house? Anything is possible in a
child’s imaginary world.
Q.2.
Did you initially write the stories as one-offs, or were they intended to be a
collection from the beginning?
A.2.
I initially wrote the three stories at different times. Years later, when it
was suggested to me that I turn my stories into an eBook it was an obvious
choice to make a themed “pets” collection. The stories were short, so therefore
it would be better value for readers.
Q.3. What
age group do you envisage for this book?
A.3.
I typically imagine an eight to nine year old sitting down and reading the
stories. But children as young as six and as old as 10 would be suitable too.
Q.4.
Are the stories thematically linked?
A.4.
As I mentioned, when choosing to put together the collection, I chose stories
that are themed around owning a pet. Every child dreams about having a
pet. So why not write stories about owning unusual ones?
Q.5.
Pretend you’re a reader and you’ve just read this wonderful book. Write a 50
word pitch for a friend, explaining why s/he MUST read it too.
A.5.
What a wonderful collection of pet stories! It spikes a child’s imagination
with some of the more unusual animals and their not so typical habitat. Whether
it’s trying to keep a dog for a best friend, secretly keeping an elephant in
their room or for the brave caring for an exotic tarantula.
Check out my new ebook: AN ELEPHANT LIVING IN
THE HOUSE AND OTHER AND OTHER PET STORIES
Free preview: http://bit.ly/ElephantPreviewEbook
Thanks, Sharyn!
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It is open to anyone with a family-friendly creative endeavour to promote. Comments are welcome. To read other interviews at Promote Me Please, choose from the menu on the right of this post.
