Today we are very excited to share an interview with author Simon Stephenson!
Read on to learn more about the author, the book, and a giveaway!
Meet the Author: Simon Stephenson
Simon Stephenson originally trained as a doctor and worked in London and Scotland. He previously wrote Let Not the Waves of the Sea, a memoir about the loss of his brother in the Indian Ocean tsunami. It won Best First Book at the Scottish Book Awards, was a Book of the Week on BBC Radio 4, and a Daily Telegraph Book of the Year. His first novel, Set My Heart to Five, has been optioned by Working Title Films. He currently lives in Los Angeles, where he works as a screenwriter. He originated and wrote the film The Electrical Life of Louis Wain and wrote on Pixar’s Luca. The Snowman Code is Simon’s first book for young readers. Visit him online at SimonStephenson.com.
About the Book: The Snowman Code
In this cozy winter story, a six-hundred-year-old snowman and a ten-and-a-half-year-old girl strike up an unlikely friendship as they try to bring an end to the longest winter ever.
Article II of the Snowman Code: A snowman always helps a child in need.
It’s March, but the ground is still covered in snow, the lake in the park is still frozen over, and ten-and-a-half-year-old Blessing has three problems:
Problem #1: Blessing hasn’t gone to school in months. She just can’t stand those bullies, the Driplet Triplets, so her only solution to avoiding them is to pretend she and her mom moved to Australia.
Problem #2: Blessing’s mom gets sad in the winter. So sad she doesn’t go to work and sometimes doesn’t get out of bed.
Problem #3: The city is experiencing its longest ever winter, with no end in sight. And the longer it goes on, the longer her mom’s sadness does too. If spring doesn’t come soon and other grown-ups find out her mom is too sad, they’ll be separated again.
Just as Blessing starts to lose hope, she meets an unexpected new friend: Albert Framlington, a six-hundred-year-old snowman who just might hold the key to solving all three of her problems. But Albert has a problem of his own he may need a human’s help to solve.
Can this unlikely duo find a way to defeat Blessing’s bullies, win back Albert’s long-lost love, and overcome the never-ending winter before it’s too late? They have to try—that’s the Snowman Code after all.
~Author Chat~
YABC: What gave you the inspiration to write The Snowman Code?
My other job is as a screenwriter, and I worked on some films for young people including Paddington 2 and Pixar’s Luca. After those films had been released, I read a lot of middle-grade books looking for one to adapt, and when I couldn’t find one I decided that I’d just write my own book. At Pixar they say that all stories come from a personal emotional experience and some of my happiest times growing up were building snowmen with my brother.
YABC: What scene(s) in The Snowman Code are you most proud of, and why?
My favorite parts of the book are the scenes where Blessing and Albert spend time together. Albert is always very confident but often very wrong, whereas Blessing is both smarter and more thoughtful. So they are somewhat opposite characters, but the friendship they develop means a lot to both of them.
YABC: What research did you do to write The Snowman Code?
My most important ‘research’ is always lived experience. I like to set stories in places I know well. It helps me see the story better in mind’s eyes, and I think that helps me write it better. The book is set in an area of London where I lived for many years, and Albert lives in what was then my local park.
YABC: When did you know you wanted to be an author?
I was always a huge reader when I was a kid, but I didn’t really think that ‘writer’ was a real job, let alone it could by my job. In many ways I still can’t quite believe it!
YABC: How do you keep your ‘voice’ true to the age category you are writing within? Some of the best advice I’ve been given is ‘imagine you are writing the story as a letter to a friend’. I think that helps you to keep in mind who you are writing for.
YABC: If you could only write one genre for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?
So far I have written a middle-grade book, a science fiction book, a murder mystery and a memoir. So I think if I have to stick to one genre I will be in big trouble!
YABC: What is the main message or lesson you would like your reader to remember from The Snowman Code?
Mostly, I would just like people to enjoy it! I think that is the most important thing for any book. But I think if people come away being reminded of the importance of friendship – and that this can occur in unexpected places – that would be great.
YABC: What can readers expect to find in your book?
Well, snowmen, of course – and all their secrets. But also London and the longest winter it has ever known. And a dog called Nelson. And even the Abominable Snowman himself (sort of.)
YABC: What do you do when you procrastinate?
Read the entire internet. And then read it all again, just to make sure I did not miss anything the first time around.
YABC: What’s up next for you?
I am hopeful that the next thing I am going to write is the screenplay for a film of The Snowman Code – fingers crossed!
Two aspects of this book that make me eager to read it are the idea of a six-hundred-year-old snowman and bullies named the Driplet Triplets. The book must be really cute! Thanks for sharing and happy holidays! 🙂
This sounds like something that would interest my school’s readers!
Snowman picture books are always a big draw during the winter here in Texas where snow is very rare.
This sounds like a wonderful friendship story, and the cover is beautiful!