Skip to main content

TAMBA Author Interview – Arthur Slade

Written by Rosie
Leave a Comment
Hunted - Slade, Arthur

Recently, Isabella and I got the opportunity to interview Arthur Slade, the author of numerous best-selling YA and Middle-Grade novels, including Dragon Assassin, Dust, The Hunchback Assignments, and many more! We talked to him about his journey as an author, his story building, writing techniques, and many other topics of interest.

Here are some highlights of our conversation!

Rosie: To start off with a general question, what really got you into writing? And when did you start taking more of an interest in it?

Arthur: Well, I was always kind of a creative kid, and I liked writing film scripts. I saw Star Wars, and I remember wanting to be a director, and writing film scripts, in Grade 6-7ish. And I started writing fiction then as well, off and on, I tried a whole bunch of things! And by the time I was in Grade 11 — well I blame it all on a teacher. They had given us an assignment to write a short story, and mine was called Under Heaven, Over Hell. But when I got the story back, I got a hundred percent! That was kind of the moment it crystallized for me — it was kind of a reward for writing! That’s sort of how I got started, in Grade 11, I just thought: Well, if I can write a short story and get a hundred percent, I can write a novel too. And… I ended up writing my first novel in Grade 11-12! It…was not a good novel, but it was my first one.

Isabella: How do you usually come up with your stories? Especially since most of your books are fantasy, we were wondering what your process is in creating a whole new world?

Arthur: I tend to write what I’m interested in reading. I grew up reading mostly fantasy and I’ve always loved going into another place, even if it was a scary place, or fantasy world – that was interesting to me. When I get an idea, it’s different every time, but sometimes they’ll just come out of the blue! I have a book called Dust, a book set in the 1980s, I just got an image of a boy walking along in a prairie – I don’t know why it was there in my head – and of this truck coming towards him and just this feeling of doom…something really bad was going to happen. And that’s what I do, I write down that idea just so I can kind of get the mood of it.

Read More
Teen Author Interviews, , ,

Teen SRC 2020 – Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

Written by Rosie
Leave a Comment
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: Rowling, J.K.: 8601404281891: Books - Amazon.ca

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

You’re probably wondering why I’m reviewing Harry Potter all of a sudden… and I can explain.

It took me almost 5 years to become a calm, hidden Harry Potter fan, and in about a month, TikTok has reversed all of that hard work. My entire FYP is Harry Potter edits and thus, I have been re-reading the books, and re-crying about how I’ll never get to go to Hogwarts. But, enough about that, let’s get on with the review.

Summary (Spoiler-Free): After another uneventful summer, Harry Potter has finally returned to Hogwarts for his third year. He has a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher: Professor Lupin, and Hagrid, his friend, has begun teaching Care of Magical Creatures. Oh, and did I mention a vicious Death Eater has escaped from Azkaban? Well, he has, and he goes by the name of Sirius Black.

Every single review I write for the Harry Potter series is going to be biased because I am in love with their world. In. Love. No other words for it. The plot lines are always amazing, full of mystery, suspense, and action. The characters are very well built as well, with Harry being an extremely likeable protagonist, and Ron and Hermione exceptional characters each on their own.

I believe though, that the true magic lies in the emotional aspect of this read. First, J.K. Rowling created a universe so real, so layered and magical and mysterious, that it’s impossible not to get lost in it. And, secondly, the characters are written so realistically that one feels they could very well pop out of the book, flesh and blood. These combine to create a story that leaves the line between fantasy and reality blurred, a feeling that I absolutely love experiencing. In addition to this, reading the series reminds me of my childhood, and I can relate to growing up, right along with the Golden Trio, which adds to the overall nostalgia, and hiraeth.

Hogwarts is my home, and I will laugh, cry, and grieve with Harry Potter, until the end of time.

I think it’s obvious what my rating is, and I’ll leave you with a quote from Dumbledore because although I talk about missing Hogwarts, you must remember that “It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” So, go make the most of your life, and live it like you would as the main character of a story.

As well, here are a few songs that I recommend listening to, if you’re missing that magical feeling.

  1. Leaving Hogwarts – John Williams
  2. Welcome Home, Son – Radical Face
  3. Harry’s Wondrous World – John Williams
  4. Dragon Flight – Alexandre Desplat
Teen SRC 2020, , , , ,

Teen SRC 2020 – Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Written by Max
4 Comments
Six of Crows (Six of Crows, #1) by Leigh Bardugo

“No mourners. No funerals. Among them, it passed for ‘good luck.'” – Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo blew my mind. Honestly, I was a bit weary when I first picked up this novel. It’s a well-known book, and I’ve seen it everywhere- from my local library to my school library, it was always at the front of the bookshelf. At this point, so many people were talking about it. However, I was still a little suspicious because I usually don’t enjoy fantasy novels (totally just a lack of imagination on my part). Still, I decided to give it a read after all the big talk, and I don’t regret it at all.

Read More
Teen SRC 2020, , , , , , ,

Teen SRC 2019 – The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis

Written by Lucian C.
Leave a Comment
The Magician's Nephew

The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis

Digory and Polly live in London. They become friends and go on an adventure when their uncle, Andrew who thinks he’s a magician, sends them to Narnia with some rings. There, they see the creation of the world by Aslan and how the talking beasts came to life. They also encounter the evil sorceress Jadis and protects the land from her. This book was very interesting because it lets the reader feel as if they’re actually travelling between worlds.

Teen SRC 2019, , , ,

Teen Book Review – Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare

Written by Rosie
Leave a Comment
Image result for queen of air and darkness

I was originally going to review another book this month but then I remembered that I needed to return this book soon due to others having holds on it. Therefore, I’m writing this review now before I lose the book and can no longer skim through for the details. So, this month I read Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare; aka Book 3 of the Dark Artifices, a spinoff from the Mortal Instruments or better known as the Shadowhunters series.

To start off… This book is ENORMOUS. I couldn’t bring it to school in fear of having my shoulders fully dented by the sheer weight of this thing… I’d say the only other book I’ve read of this size would be Kingdom of Ash, from the Throne of Glass series. I cannot reveal too much of the plot since this is still a pretty recent release but I can say the Emma and Julian (the two main characters) have a lot to deal with in this book and there are actually numerous side plotlines happening throughout which revolve around the Blackthorn siblings as well as the Seelie and Unseelie faerie courts. A few new characters are introduced although not many deaths of old ones. I think I’ll stop here and give a rating: 4/5 stars. Not a perfect rating…BUT I have absolutely nothing against the plotline or characters or even the writing. I just feel as if everything was wrapped up a bit too perfectly to be realistic/believable for me. Other than that, I highly reccommend it :))

Teen Book Review, , , , , , , , ,

Where Does the Dungeons and Dragons Game Take Place?

Written by Teen Digital RPL
Leave a Comment

Dungeons and Dragons takes place in fantasy worlds like Lord of the Rings, Elves of Shannara, or King Arthur. These worlds are made up by the Dungeon Masters–sometimes from scratch or perhaps with a little help from other Dungeon Masters.

Where will the Dungeons and Dragons game that will begin January 9, 2018 take place? The World of Aloric! An original fantasy-scape created by digital services tech, James. He created the map using an online world generator called donjon, and the rest was generated from his own imagination.

The Ruins of Minas Govi is where the characters start. This city has existed on the brink of desolation for several generations, but now faces its most serious threat: the desert is running dry of water wells.

This is going to send the would-be heroes (played by YOU) on a quest to those who control the waters in the west, the Vampire Lords. However, along for the journey is a goblin raider who tells the tale of five mystical weapons that just might mean the difference between life and death — if the vampires choose to be less than helpful. But can this goblin be trusted?

Join our Dungeons and Dragons game and find out!

RPL Digital Services, RPL Program, , , ,