While visiting a museum in England, Ben and Kyle experience the extraordinary. Gazing at the Alfred Jewel, an ancient Anglo-Saxon artifact, they watch as it spins, contorts, and evaporates from its case, taking them with it.
Whisked back to Victorian England, the brothers are shocked to find themselves sprawled on the floor before Mr. Charles Dodgson, also known as Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland.
They soon learn that the famous author’s muse, Alice, is missing. Alice has used the Alfred Jewel to enter Wonderland and, by so doing, has upset the time continuum. The only way for the boys to return home is to locate Alice and return her safely.
This is from a recent interview I did with Awesome Gang.
Interview With Author Ellis Nelson
(and me as an AI rock star)
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written. Ellis Nelson has served as an Air Force officer, government contractor, and teacher. She writes for children and young adults largely under the newly emerging category of visionary fiction. Having returned from living abroad in Europe, she now calls Colorado home. Ellis has four books currently published.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it? My latest book is called, Down the Treacle Well. It is an Alice in Wonderland retelling. The inspiration for the story started with reading a biography about Lewis Carroll. I found we had several things in common besides both of us writing for children. I was so fascinated by him, I decided he really needed to feature in his own story and so, I took him back to Wonderland to engage with the world he created. It was a blast!
Do you have any unusual writing habits? I am not a regular fixed routine type of writer. I don’t have a daily practice of it. I do like to gather inspirational items around me that connect to the place or characters I’m writing about. During the phase of writing Down the Treacle Well, my office was filled with Alice in Wonderland memorabilia and photos of Lewis Carroll. When I wrote Into the Land of Snows, I had photos of the Himalayas and ritual objects connected to Buddhist practice.
What authors, or books have influenced you? I like fast moving plots with lots of adventure. So, at the top of my list are writers like Michael Crichton, Dan Brown, and Preston/Child. I have always loved reading and read about as much non-fiction as fiction. I think it’s great to strive for a balanced diet in what we read just like in what we eat. So, I do read widely looking for ideas across many interests and genres. If you read one of my books and I haven’t exposed you to something new or taught you something, I feel that I’ve failed.
What are you working on now? I’m trying something entirely new. I’m writing my first novel for adults that will explore what it feels like to be alive at a time of massive social and political change.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books? My best method has probably been my website where I’ve written a blog for the last dozen years or so. I have international followers and lively engagement there. I write about a wide variety of topics and ideas.
Do you have any advice for new authors? Persistence helps and so does trying new things.
What is the best advice you have ever heard? Find your superpower and lean into that.
What are you reading now? I’m reading a book by an intelligence operative who recently testified before Congress about UAPs. The book is Imminent: (Inside the Pentagon’s Hunt for UFOs) by Luis Elizondo.
What’s next for you as a writer? I’m currently circulating two novels for young adults looking for a publisher. Recently, I’ve started work on the adult novel I described above.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring? That is a tough question. I very rarely re-read a book. So, my best guess is that I would grab the next 3 or 4 books off my to-be-read list.
Did you know JRR Tolkien wrote Father Christmas (Santa) letters to his children every year? The video below, shows some of the letters and illustrations from a new book about it.
Happy Holidays!
Below are a couple of videos of book-themed holiday trees. The first has adult books and the second has kid’s books. There are more on my YouTube channel.
Finally, INTO THE LAND OF SNOWS is on sale this month. $.99 Kindle and $9.99 Print.
Deep discount: $.99 Kindle Edition/ $9.99 Print Copy
Sixteen-year-old Blake travels to Base Camp on Mt. Everest to spend time with his physician father. When a deadly avalanche occurs, Dad is forced to rethink things and sends Blake away. Now accompanied by a Sherpa guide, and in possession of a mysterious camera, Blake undertakes a journey that will challenge everything he believes. In the magical Himalayas, he will be forever changed by what he experiences.
WHAT READERS ARE SAYING:
“Into the Land of Snows is a eminently readable YA novel that moves quickly and adeptly through many mystical twists and turns. A very fast and enjoyable read! I recommend it highly to YA audiences, but to adults as well.”
“Into the Land of Snows takes the reader into a world so different, so beautifully challenging in its vision of life that the reader is drawn-in completely. So strong is the vision presented in this book it may even change the being within you.”
“Well-written with engaging and believable characters, this story has it all: adventure, mystery, magic, and wisdom.”
“Yes, this is a “YA” novel, but to call it a cross-over, or even transcendent, would not be an exaggeration.”
“A great YA novel–enough to challenge YA readers to understand and perhaps learn more, and smart enough to engage adult readers as well.”
“The journey that you will be taken on is an exciting, fast-paced adventure that will have you gasping for breath in some parts and reading with your mouth wide open in amazement only to find yourself laughing a few pages later.”
“If you are someone that believes there is more to this world than what you can presently see, hear, taste, smell, feel or touch, this is a story that will affirm that for you. If you are somewhat of a skeptic, this book may soften some of those sharp edges. If you are the parent of a young adult I would highly recommend you both read this book. You will find you have something to talk about!”
I have to say, I never thought I’d hear some of this said under oath. But here it is. If you can, listen to all of it because little tidbits keep dropping. OK, you can skip Lauren Boebert-who needs that pain. Pay close attention to what the former admiral and intelligence officer have to say.
Happy birthday, book! Hard to believe it’s been a year since the release. So much has happened. Great reviews on Amazon, Goodreads, and elsewhere. You found a home in libraries and homes. You were stocked in stores throughout the US. Let’s see what year two brings.
This was the second year hosting this event. Each child had the opportunity to choose a book and get some candy during normal trick or treating in my neighborhood. It was an abnormally warm Halloween, and the kids were out in full force. We went through double the number of books that were given out last year with me pulling stock from my own authored reserve books.
The kids were excited about the books and frequently forgot to pick up the candy treats. Parents were much more engaged this year and asked more questions. They also aided their children more in selecting books. The lesson learned from this event was that on warm Halloweens participation doubles, and I have to ensure there are enough books in all the categories (board books, picture books, early reader, middle grade, and young adult- not to mention accommodating for certain gender preferences). In this case, I definitely needed more middle grade books. It’s always going to be a balancing act. Next year, I’ll probably be overstocked.
My promotion reached #3 last week, so I’m extending the sale on Amazon. Grab the Kindle edition for $.99.
In this chilling ghost story, an act from the distant past is reawakened and afflicts the life of a modern teenage girl.
When Lydia travels to Amsterdam with her parents, bizarre things start to happen. Curtains flutter and unexplained shadows move unnerving her. With Dad interviewing for a job, Lydia is content to dismiss the oddities blaming them on jet lag and her migraine disease. But upon returning home to New York, the experiences intensify.
This is the haunting tale of two girls separated by four hundred years. Lydia is confused and in danger because the ghost of a little Dutch girl, Annika, wants revenge. When Lydia’s life is threatened, she is forced to solve a centuries’ old mystery to uncover the truth about Annika, her story, and how their past and present connect them. Can Lydia learn the truth in time to save herself and help Annika?
Special price reduction on Timeless Tulips, Dark Diamonds- A Ghost Story (.99 ebook)!!
Yes, it’s a ghost story but there’s plenty of history behind that story. I have personal connections to the area of NY state where Annika and Lydia’s tale plays out. And then there are the European connections and research that went into the book.
Several years ago, I got caught up in the story of the tulip. Way back in 1554, an ambassador to Turkey sent some bulbs and seeds back home. These found their way into Vienna and then into the Low Counties. It took the careful work of Carolus Clusius (a botanist at the University of Leiden) to cultivate and catalog those bulbs that would tolerate the local conditions and soon tulips were popular. Newly independent Holland had a unique flower, and it soon became a luxury item. (Slideshow below shows me at the Hortus Bontanicus in Leiden where Clusius once worked his magic.)
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More and more fantastic species were developed. The most sought-after tulips actually suffered from a virus that broke the colors into streaks. Eventually, a whole speculative trade came into existence in which people who bought the bulbs never saw them and never possessed them. Tulip fever reached its height in the winter of 1636 when a single bulb might be traded as many as ten times in a day. Then abruptly in February, there came a day when traders just stayed home. The bubble had burst. Fortunes had been made and lost.
Special price reduction on Timeless Tulips, Dark Diamonds- A Ghost Story (.99 ebook)!!
In this chilling ghost story, an act from the distant past is reawakened and afflicts the life of a modern teenage girl.
When Lydia travels to Amsterdam with her parents, bizarre things start to happen. Curtains flutter and unexplained shadows move unnerving her. With Dad interviewing for a job, Lydia is content to dismiss the oddities blaming them on jet lag and her migraine disease. But upon returning home to New York, the experiences intensify.
This is the haunting tale of two girls separated by four hundred years. Lydia is confused and in danger because the ghost of a little Dutch girl, Annika, wants revenge. When Lydia’s life is threatened, she is forced to solve a centuries’ old mystery to uncover the truth about Annika, her story, and how their past and present connect them. Can Lydia learn the truth in time to save herself and help Annika?
ellisnelson 