#ThanksAndGiving with NYTs Bestselling Author Adam Wallace!

Hello, readers, writers, and all you cool turkeys, too! We're SO excited to have #1 NYTs Bestselling Author and USA Today Bestselling Author, Adam Wallace, with us today. Adam is the author of the bestselling How-To-Catch series (illustrated by Andy Elkerton). Whether you're looking to catch a Monster, a Mermaid, an Elf, or even a Turkey, Adam has written a book for you. Filled with silly scenarios and bright illustrations, this series makes the perfect read for little ones. Want to know more about Adam and his hilarious books, especially the NYTs Bestseller How to Catch a Turkey? Read on...

Q: Hi, Adam. Thank you for joining us at #SeasonsOfKidLit! I'm excited to have you and talk all about your hilarious book for the season, How to Catch a Turkey. Before we take a closer look at your book, can you share a little bit about yourself with the readers?

Sure can, thanks for having me, this is super cool! So, I live in a lovely place called Croydon, which is just out of Melbourne in Australia. My house looks out at the mountains and has a mini-golf course in the backyard! I was once an engineer, I studied to be a primary school teacher, and once I tried to sell a golf club cleaner and sold ZERO in one year! Now I write full-time (although it took a while to get to that stage, after over 200 rejections and self-publishing and publishers going bankrupt!), and it's the greatest. I have done over 120 books and have written over 3,000 stories to get those 120 books done!

Q: 3,000 stories is impressive and inspiring! Especially because all the rejections eventually led you to your bestselling series. What gave you the idea for the How-to-Catch series? For those reading along who may not be familiar with it, the How-to-Catch series is a NYTs and USA Today Bestselling Series that has over 15 titles plus fun activity books to go along with them!

A: This is a great question, and I love answering it, because I didn't even come up with the idea! I was lucky enough to have worked with a very cool company here in Australia, Hinkler Books, and one of the people I worked with here ended up back in the States, working for a publishing company there. She said they had an idea for a story where, on St Patrick's Day eve, a leprechaun runs through the houses of all the kids in the neighbourhood, causing chaos and making a mess, and the kids set traps to try and catch it. Then she asked if I would like to write it and it sounded so fun I jumped at the chance! The rest of the series flowed on from that and has been an absolute blast to write.

Q: How to Catch a Turkey follows a group of kids with an extremely unusual problem: a turkey is running loose right before the Thanksgiving play at their school. What silly scenarios can readers expect to find when flipping through the pages of your book?

A: Yes, the school turkey is on the loose, and is very scared as it overhears kids saying it will have to go on stage! Oh no! Stagefright! So it gets free and smashes through the science room, avoids massive traps in the library and on the play equipment, basically all the kids end up chasing it and the traps get crazier! Eventually he runs through the sports equipment and then ... onto the stage! Basically, kids readers can expect lots of chaos, brought amazingly to life by the incredible Andy Elkerton!

Q: What kind of STEAM elements does How to Catch a Turkey include?

A: A lot of the STEAM elements are in the illustrations rather than the text, and it's the same in a lot of the other books as well. When writing these stories, I really wanted to let Andy have fun with the traps and situations, and he sure did that! Ones like How to Catch a Dinosaur are even more STEAM focused in how they're written and the concept behind it. But it's been so awesome seeing what teachers and kids do that is STEAM-related from the books! Kids design their own traps, among other things, and at one school, the girls were appalled at the thought of designing a trap to catch the Tooth Fairy, so they all decided to design buildings and towers that would protect the Tooth Fairy from being caught!

Q: That sounds like so much fun! What makes your book the perfect read for the season?

A: Oooooh, this is a tough one! The size? The price point? Haha, no, for me it's because it's a heap of fun, as well as having an nice little message in there about facing our fears and being thankful for opportunities when they come. That's one of, well, probably my main aim when writing, is to give the readers a fun time, and a bonding time if it's parents and kids reading together. One of the things I am most thankful for is time spent laughing with my friends and family, and if this little book can bring that into other people's lives, well, it's served its purpose for me.

Perfectly said, Adam. We're so thankful you could join us today. It's been a pleasure!!

To purchase How to Catch a Turkey, or to leave a review for any of Adam's books, click here.

Teachers and readers: would you like to receive FREE e-books from Adam? He's offering 2 free How-to-Draw e-books on his website, perfect for classroom use or use during the upcoming holiday break. Check it out for an extra dose of fun. Click here to download them.

About Adam Wallace:

I am a New York Times, Amazon and USA Today Bestselling author who loves writing stories that make children laugh and get excited about reading and drawing and writing. I also love taking naps and listening to music. Not at the same time.

I have over 80 books published and out in the world and love each one as if it were my child ... except if that child is like really naughty and always breaks my favourite things and writes bad words on the walls of our house.

None of my books are like that.

From How to Catch books to How to Draw books. From gross books to action and adventure books. From inspirational to just plain funny, there's something here for kids of all reading abilities, and all ranges of interests.

Check them out, and always feel free to get in touch at wally@adam-wallace-books.com

I would love to connect and hear your thoughts, on my books, writing, or anything else you feel like chatting about!

I personally answer each and every email ... I have to. My assistant is really slack.

Follow Adam at https://www.adam-wallace-books.com/

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/wallysbooks

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/adamwallacebooks