Mei in the Sky Village missing her parents

Disclaimer: this is from an animation test, which was used to explore a particular style of animation we are considering using for Kaimira. Whether or not we ultimately go with this style, it’s too interesting not to share.

The Sky Village was just listed in  Time Out London as one of the best Christmas Gift Books for 2008.

Kaimira: Book One, the Sky Village
Monk and Nigel Ashland, with illustrations by Jeff Nentrup
Walker £6.99
A dystopian fantasy, ‘Kaimira’ is set in a world divided into three factions: humans, beasts and Meks (machines). Like Philip Pullman’s ‘His Dark Materials’ series, it boasts an appealingly feisty female heroine and a more thoughtful, troubled male one. One of the most seductive aspects of Pullman’s books is the settings he conjures for the adventures of his characters and – though the writing here is not in the same class – the Sky Village, a community of linked hot air balloons floating high above China, and other richly described locations, offer similarly escapist pleasures. ‘Kaimira’ ends somewhat abruptly in order to establish the opening for volume two, but it’s a satisfying read and worth considering as a present for a young reader suffering Pullman (or Potter) withdrawal symptoms.

The fourth and final shortlist came out for the Eva Perry Mock Newbery. And The Sky Village is still hanging in there.

I love Mock Newbery awards. Even the ones that don’t nominate me.

And in case you didn’t notice it over there on the left, this is what the paperback is going to look like:

The Sky Village (paperback)

In their review of The Sky Village, Analog picked up on an important theme that I wanted to draw attention to:

“The theme of nature versus technology with humans caught in the middle unless they can somehow integrate it all is important in the world we have created, and it is one that the younger readers that are this book’s audience will profit from absorbing.”

Read the review here.

2008 Nominations
Fantasy and Science Fiction (Middle Grade)

39 Clues
written by Rick Riordan
Scholastic

Airman
written by Eoin Colfer
Hyperion

Best Friend for Claudia
written by Beatrice Weinberg Katz
PublishAmerica

Boots and Pieces
written by Emily Ecton
Simon & Schuster

Boy of All Time
written by Che Dee
Calderwood Books

Cabinet of Wonders
written by Marie Rutkoski
Macmillan

Dark Legacy
written by K. G. McAbee
Calderwood Books

Dark Whispers
written by Bruce Coville
Scholastic

Diamond of Darkhold
written by Jeanne DuPrau
Random House Children’s Books

Dinosaur Blackout
written by Judith Silverthorne
Coteau

Dragon Flight
written by Jessica Day George
Bloomsbury USA

Escape the Mask
written by David Ward
Amulet

Ever
written by Gail Carson Levine
HarperCollins

Fablehaven: Grip of the Shadow Plague
written by Brandon Mull
Shadow Mountain

Facttracker
written by Jason Carter Eaton
HarperCollins

Family Matters
written by Kristin Sheley
iUniverse

Farworld: Water Keep
written by J. Scott Savage
Shadow Mountain

Fish and Sphinx
written by Rae Bridgman
Great Plains Publications

Flora’s Dare
written by Ysabeau S. Wilce
Harcourt

Girl Who Could Fly
written by Victoria Forester
Feiwel & Friends

Gods of Manhattan
written by Scott Mebus
Dutton Juvenile

Graveyard Book
written by Neil Gaiman
HarperCollins

Grim Hill: The Secret Deepens
written by Linda DeMeulemeester
Lobster Press

Gypsy Crown
written by Kate Forsyth
Hyperion

Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go
written by Dale E. Basye
Random House Children’s Books

House of Many Ways
written by Diana Wynne Jones
Greenwillow Books

Inkdeath
written by Cornelia Funke
Scholastic

Kaimira: The Sky Village
written by Monk Ashland
and Nigel Ashland
Candlewick Press

Lamplighter
written by D. M. Cornish
Penguin USA

Land Beyond the Clouds
written by Valerie Bishop
Light Publishing

Magic and Other Misdemeanors (The Sisters Grimm, Book 5)
written by Michael Buckley
Amulet

Magic Thief
written by Sarah Prineas
HarperCollins

Mary Lamb Enters the World of Maze
written by F. T. Botham
PublishAmerica

Masterpiece
written by Elise Broach
Henry Holt

Misty Forest Fables
written by Acrid Hermit
Fauna Trek

Monks in Space
written by David Jones
Annick Press

Once Upon a Time in the North
written by Philip Pullman
Knopf Books for Young Readers

Order of Odd-Fish
written by James Kennedy
Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers

Other Side of the Island
written by Allegra Goodman
Penguin USA

Ottoline and the Yellow Cat
written by Chris Riddell
HarperCollins

Out of the Wild
written by Sarah Beth Durst
Penguin USA

Palace of Mirrors
written by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Simon & Schuster

Philippa Fisher’s Fairy Godsister
written by Liz Kessler
Candlewick Press

Portal
written by Jaqlyn Von Eger
Trafford

Queste
written by Angie Sage
HarperCollins

Remarkable and Very True Story of Lucy and Snowcap
written by H. M. Bouwman
Marshall Cavendish Children’s Books

Ring Dragonz
written by Mister Rengerz
Helm Publishing

Robe of Skulls
written by Vivian French
Candlewick Press

Runemarks
written by Joanne Harris
Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Savvy
written by Ingrid Law
Penguin USA

Seer of Shadows
written by Avi
HarperCollins

Shadow Diamond
written by S Brooke
PublishAmerica

Sisters of the Sword
written by Maya Snow
HarperCollins

Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing with Fire
written by Derek Landy
HarperCollins

Softwire: Betrayal on Orbis 2
written by PJ Haarsma
Candlewick Press

The Curse of Cuddles McGee
written by Emily Ecton
Aladdin

Things That Are
written by Andrew Clements
Philomel

Thornspell
written by Helen Lowe
Knopf Books for Young Readers

Travelers Market
written by Maureen Doyle McQuerry
Idylls Press

Tygrine Cat
written by Inbali Iserles
Candlewick Press

Unnameables
written by Ellen Booraem
Harcourt

Warriors Power of Three: Eclipse
written by Erin Hunter
HarperCollins

Well Witched
written by Frances Hardinge
HarperCollins

Wild Magic
written by Cat Weatherill
Walker Books for Young Readers

Winter Wood
written by Steve Augarde
Random House Children’s Books

A while ago I was interviewed by Carol(ina) from Genre of the Month. I had fun with the interview and asked her if I could reprint it here.

Chris Rettstatt is the author of the sci-fi & futuristic new series Kaimira (first book, The Sky Village).

1.) What made you start writing?

When I was eight, I read Where The Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein, and I immediately began writing poems. Within a few hours I’d filled up a notepad with poems. And since then, I never stopped writing.

2.) If you weren’t an author what would you be?

I sometimes joke that I’m a children’s book author who wishes he was a linguist. That’s because I love language and grammar, and I love studying foreign languages. I also like making up my own languages, which I’m doing with the Kaimira Code. But that’s mostly a joke, because as much as I love those things, I love writing even more.

3.) How did you choose you character’s names?

My wife’s nickname is Longmei. She was born in the year of the dragon, which is “long” in Chinese. Adding “mei” which means “sister” in Chinese, makes it into a nickname.

When I first started developing Rom’s character and his tribe, I was drawing inspiration from Romani cultures (sometimes called Gypsies). And then ROM has a techie meaning as well, as in CD-ROM, and so I just kind of liked it.

4.) What’s the best thing about being an author?

No matter what I do, whether traveling to other countries or standing in line at the supermarket, it’s all research.

5.) What’s your ideal writing spot?

I do a lot of writing in coffee shops, particularly when I’m traveling, but I’d have to say my favorite spot is my desk at home. I’ve got everything I need there and plenty of room to pace around.

6.) How did you come up with the idea of The Sky Village?

I was sitting outside, trying to imagine this strange future world I had just started to create. What would my characters see and hear? I looked up at the clouds, and the idea just hit me — a village made of hot air balloons.

7.) Why YA?

I don’t think so much about the age borders around books. When I was in my teens, and even before, I read whatever looked good, and even now I have a hard time remembering which of those books were technically written for young adults. So I just write for the sort of reader I am, and the sort of readers my friends tend to be. And lately, a lot of the best books that fit my personal taste happen to be YA books.

8. Do you ever come up with play lists for your books? If so, what are the songs?

I did have a playlist while I was working on The Sky Village. The songs included:

• If I Give My Soul, by Johnny Cash (cover)
• Various songs by Faye Wong (especially Ni Kuai Le, Suo Yi Wo Kuai Le)
• It Isn’t Easy Being Green, by Kermit the Frog
• This Woman’s Work, by Kate Bush
• Don’t Give Up, by Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush
• Fight Club Soundtrack, by The Dust Brothers (the whole thing)
• Where Is My Mind, by The Pixies
• Gypsy Caravan (compilation by Putumayo)

9.) Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?

I believe my best advice can be drawn from my playlist. It’s somewhere between “Don’t Give Up” and “Where Is My Mind?”

Ok, my actual advice comes in two parts. On the one hand, you have to know the business of the business. You have to become familiar with what books are being published and read lots and lots and lots of them. Pay attention to the publishers. Subscribe to newsletters that keep you updated on publishing trends. Join your local SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators). Think of yourself as a partner in the publishing process.

On the other hand, you can’t let the business steer you. Stay flexible, and listen openly and humbly to feedback you get. But at the end of the day, it’s your story, and you have to trust your creative instincts. If you aren’t fiercely loyal to your creative vision, nobody else is going to be.

10.) Which character are you most like? (Can be from any book)

When I was a teen, I wanted to be like the Motorcycle Boy from Rumble Fish. But wanting it didn’t make it so.

11.) If you could collaborate with any author dead or alive who would you pick?

I’m not sure I like the idea of collaborating with a dead author. But assuming he wouldn’t be a zombie or vampire, I’d have to choose Dostoevsky. Not that he’d be all that pleasant to work with, but I could just sit at his feet and try to soak in some of that brilliantly layered characterization.

12.) Do you have any upcoming books?

Kaimira is a five-book series, and I’m currently hard at work finishing up #2, which is called The Terrible Everything.

13.) What is your favorite food or snack to eat when you’re writing?

I can’t say that I snack much while I’m writing, but I do drink a lot of strong coffee before lunch and then a lot of green tea after lunch.

14.) What were some of your favorite books when you were younger?

Lord of the Rings, The Dark Is Rising, A Wrinkle In Time, The Outsiders

15.) Do you have any pets?

Right now I travel too much to keep a pet, but I grew up with all kinds of pets running around. My dad used to rescue stray animals and bring them home, everything from hungry dogs to a pig that fell off a truck. My most recent pet, before I moved away from home to go to college, was a ferocious kitten named Grendel: Slayer of Grasshoppers.

16.) Does writing cut into your family time?

It helps that I’m a morning person, and I get my best work done before anyone else wakes up. But my twins know that I can’t resist playing with them every day, even when I’m under deadline.

17.) Do you have any hobbies other than writing?

I absolutely love traveling to other countries and then trying to figure out how to cook the food I eat there.

18.)What are some of your favorite movies?

Raising Arizona, Rushmore, Man On Fire, Miller’s Crossing, Spirited Away, Harold and Maude, A Clockwork Orange, Princess Mononoke, Oldboy

19.) What’s your favorite ice cream?

I call it Twin Can Ice Cream. You need a small coffee can and a large coffee can, ice, rock salt, and ingredients for home-made ice cream. Put the ingredients into the small can and tape it shut, put the small can into the large one, surround it with ice and rock salt, and tape it shut. Then give the can to a pair of energetic twins to kick around, throw, roll, or whatever for about a half hour. At the end, you have some delicious home-made ice cream.

So the book won’t be out in paperback until April 14, but it’s up on Amazon for preorder. I have to say, I love the paperback cover. And Amazon’s book cover zoom thingy allows you to zoom way in and explore the details.

Check it