Science-Fiction Author Visits Chandler
Middle School students enjoyed reading Kevin Emerson's Last Day on Mars, a science-fiction novel, last summer. On Wednesday, Mr. Emerson visited Chandler.
He led an advice-packed writer's workshop to a select group of students and ate lunch with the sixth grade book club, before presenting a brief lecture to the entire Middle School and signing books in the courtyard.
His visit inspired seventh grader Luke Madden, who asked Mr. Emerson for advice on how to start a story. Nathan Grabias, another seventh grade fan, asked Mr. Emerson where his ideas come from during the writer's workshop. The day ended with the whole Middle School getting a sneak peak at book three in the trilogy, which comes out in February. This will be Mr. Emerson’s nineteenth novel.
Mr. Emerson revealed that as a boy, he had the type of brain that was always asking, “Wouldn’t it be cool if…?” That sense of curiosity provides plenty of fresh ideas for his novels, which he then develops by exploring a particular emotion. In Last Day on Mars, he mined the anxiety, uncertainty and challenges of being forced to do something new before you feel ready to do so.
