1.- Well first off for young inspiring writes what is your educational background?
I have a BA in Theater with a concentration in playwriting from UCLA, and I also did a lot of sketch comedy writing and improv at Second City.
2.- What inspired the Scary School series?
I had been writing illustrated children’s books since I was 15 years old, but couldn’t get them illustrations done. I thought I was going to be the next Dr. Seuss (maybe it will still happen one day…who knows?). After the Harry Potter series came out, I was very inspired to drop the picture books and actually write a novel, which would be my own uniquely American take on a magical world. That ended up becoming a book series called Scary School: Book 1 - My Homework Ate My Dog! HarperCollins really liked it and almost bought it, but in the end decided it was too dark for the target audience it was aiming for. They suggested I write a lighter, funnier book using the Scary School title. I loved that idea because by focusing just on the concept of a Scary School and how hilarious it would be if it actually existed, I was able to draw on my strengths as a comedy writer. Because Scary School is written as a series of short stories, I was very inspired by my favorite writer, Kurt Vonnegut, who wrote some of the craziest, funnest, and emotionally powerful short stories ever. By the way, the other book later became Rudy and the Beast, Book 1 - My Homework Ate My Dog, which I self-published and is available super-cheap through my website, www.ScarySchool.com. Sorry for the plug, but I still really love that book and I know kids will love it to, especially Harry Potter fans.
3.- When working on the first book did you intend to focus on the life in the school and the students instead of really going into Charles Newkid’s new school life?
Yes, the first draft of Scary School had no main characters. The school was always the main character, but my editors at HarperCollins really latched onto Charles Nukid and a few others such as Petunia, Fred, and Penny Possum. They suggested I center the books around them. Charles Nukid is Chapter 1 right now, but originally his chapter was Chapter 3. To introduce him as the main character, we decided to make his the opening chapter. For other writers out there, take note of how your most interesting, memorable characters will spark the desire in readers to want more of them. Book 1 remains an ensemble character piece for the most part, but in Books 2 and 3, it will focus much more on those core characters while still introducing lots of new silly characters and expanding on the “Scary” world.
4.- When it came to dealing with death in the school did it seem difficult at first to figure out a way to make sure the books were still innocent in their own Scary School way?
Haha. Yes, I admit that in the first drafts of Scary School, lots of kids were getting eaten and not coming back. Everyone thought it was hilarious. It played against everyone’s expectations of children’s books. We thought it would give the series a lot of horror cred because kids wouldn’t feel they were being coddled. But after further discussions, the editors and I realized that it might be too intense for the 8-10 year old readers, so we changed it up so that when a kid “learns a valuable life lesson” they can always come back as a ghost, zombie, vampire, etc. So it stays really light-hearted and funny even in the face of scary events.
5.- Quite a few times in the book there is a sentence “more about that in the next book”, was this something you were planning from the begining or is it a tease even to you since you now have to write about the spooky locker and the new haunted house?
It started off as a funny joke. “More about that later in the book” was a fun tease to keep the reader involved. But once I got the three-book deal and I knew there would be more Scary School books, I was able to go back and extend the joke to include future chapters, which I hoped would get readers excited about the continuing series and also let the unaware know that it’s an ongoing saga. I seemed to do that a lot in book one, so I had to remember to have all those payoffs in Book 2!
6.- Out of all the kids in the school, which one is your favorite to write about and why?
In Book One I think Petunia was my favorite character. I share a lot of traits with her in terms of our school experience - feeling lonely, feeling like an outcast, being lost in her own world, and carrying a sadness upon her shoulders because her classmates can’t see past her peculiarities. Her chapter was also one of my favorites to write because it was so spooky and creepy, plus it teaches an important lesson about being careful what you wish for.
7.- Out of all the staff and faculty, which one is your favorite to write about and why?
Dr. Dragonbreath was my favorite teacher because he was my opportunity to pay off the premise of the book to the fullest. He is lots of fun because he’s the best teacher in the school, BUT, he’s also the most dangerous. He’s the one who has no problem eating kids and will come up with any excuse to do it. He’s the character that tells the reader: this school is no joke. Human kids are not considered the most precious treasures in the world here. If you don’t follow the rules, you’re a goner. After working as a camp counselor for many years for a bunch of spoiled rich kids, there was something very cathartic about that.
8.- It seems like the school itself is set up in a way where survival of the school grounds and it’s surrounding areas is more educational than the actual Monster Math clases, is there a reason why scare schools are so dangerous even to it’s monster students?
Well, in working with the premise of the Scary School, I think it was necessary that every part of the school be scary. Playgrounds are pretty dangerous places as it is, so i thought it would be fun to make the playground (or “slayground” as it’s called) CRAZY dangerous. There’s a river of lava underneath the monkey bars, alligators at the bottom of the slide, and the sandbox is a quicksand pit. The big reason why it’s so dangerous is actually a major part of the storyline in Book 2, when you’ll realize there’s a much greater purpose for the slayground. Sure, it seems awful dangerous, but ironically, it may also be the students’ greatest protection!
9.- Can you give us any hints as to what is to come in the next book?
I can give you couple hints. If you read the Secret Chapter, which you can unlock at the website after finishing Book 1, you’ll know that Ms. Fangs’s class is in BIG trouble. It will be up to our special friend Petunia to figure out how to save them with the help of a very strange new teacher. As a prize for winning the Ghoul Games, the kids of Scary School earn the opportunity to visit the Monster King far away in Monster Kingdom. But, as usual, things don’t go as planned, and it will take an absolute miracle for the students of Scary School to make it out of Monster Kingdom alive.
10.- Can we hope to see this series in an animated or live action series anytime soon or is that something that has not been considered?
Yes, we are in the process of trying to set this up either as a TV series or possibly a movie. Since I have a background in screenwriting, I actually wrote the pilot episode which is currently being shopped to networks. Fingers crossed!
11.- And finally do you have any inspiring sentences to young readers and writers who may want to follow in your footsteps?
Sure! If you want to be a good writer, the good news is that you only have to do two things. Can you guess? You got it. Read and Write. That’s it. The more you read and the more you write, the better writer you will become! It’s like magic! Then, by the time you’re finished with school, you will already be a great writer and can get your writing career started right away. In fact, if you have the time, try writing books right now. They don’t have to be great, especially when you’re a kid, but just think of it as practice. Like shooting hoops in the park, hitting baseballs off a tee, or taking piano lessons. At first everyone is no good, but soon enough you can drain three-pointers, smack base hits, and play mozart sonatas. Who knows? You may even write something fantastic and become a published author before you finish high school! The publishers are always looking for the next big thing and would be very excited to read something written by today’s youth. After all, the youths are always the coolest and most hip, and publishers wants their books to be cool and hip. You know, just like the folks at Disciplined Monkey.
Oct 12, 2011 at 4:44 PM 
In this story the battle scenes are simply amazing whether it be a battle in space, on ground or as illustrated in the image Vader just going after a whole group by himself. The story takes some great twist and turns, but most of all it shows what Vader was really dealing with emotionally and most of all the things he was willing to do to complete a mission and prove himself worthy to the emperor once again.
