Interview with Exquisite Corpse Authors and Illustrators!

An Interview with NCBLA Exquisite Corpse Adventure Contributor, Author Jon Scieszka!

Jon kicked off The Exquisite Corpse Adventure by writing Episode 1. Check out how it all began at Read.gov.

Jon Scieszka writes funny, weird stories and collects awards for them. His first book, The True Story of The 3 Little Pigs!, has sold over three million copies and has been translated into 14 languages! Jon is the founder of Guys. Read, a nonprofit literacy organization dedicated to encouraging boys to read.

NCBLA asked Jon the following questions:

Q-What did you find to be the most challenging aspect of writing an episode for The Exquisite Corpse Adventure?

A-"Since I got to write the first episode, my challenge was to seed that first chapter with enough weird details for all the crazy writers following me. That turned out to be the fun part. The harder part was trying to set up a plot that would be strong enough to stand up to all the crazy writers."

Q-What were some of your favorite books when you were in elementary school?

A-"I loved: Go, Dog, Go! by P. D. Eastman, Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina, The Five Chinese Brothers by Claire Huchet Bishop, most all of Dr. Seuss, The Hardy Boys by Franklin W. Dixon, Fantastic Four comics, war comics, and MAD Magazine."

Q-What are you working on now? Do you have a new book coming out this year?

A-"I have a new series called Spaceheadz. It's about three aliens who come to take over the Earth. But they are not so bright, so they disguise themselves as a 5th grade girl, a 5th grade boy, and the 5th grade class hamster. Half the story is told in four crazily-illustrated books. The other half is online in websites, blogs, tweets, videos, posts, ads, and all sorts of digital forms. Sphdz.com is the website to lead you into the Spaceheadz world."

Look for Jon's fun books at your favorite library and bookstore.

Visit Jon's website for more information on his books.

The Final Episode of The Exquisite Corpse Adventure Will be Revealed at The National Book Festival on September 25!
Join emcee Mary Brigid Barrett and Team Corpse authors and illustrators M. T. Anderson, Timothy Basil Ering, Linda Sue Park, Katherine Paterson, and James Ransome for an hour of fun and surprises as they bring you the conclusion to the rollicking, episodic story The Exquisite Adventure.

Katherine Paterson, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, will lead her colleagues in a reader's theatre presentation of Episode 27, the FINAL episode, to conclude this yearlong adventure that began at last year's National Book Festival with Jon Scieszka's opening episode. Be sure to join us in the Children's Pavilion on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. at 10:00 AM sharp to be among the first to learn the fate of Nancy, Joe, and their friends!

The Book Festival is an all-day event enabling book lovers to meet their favorite authors and illustrators in six different pavilions set up on the National Mall. Each Team Corpse author and illustrator will also be presenting an individual presentation in the Children's Pavilion or Teen's Pavilion at different times throughout the day. 

Other beloved authors for children and teens who will be discussing their work at this year's Book Festival include:  Michael Buckley, Suzanne Collins, Margarita Engle, Jules Feiffer, Mem Fox, Margaret Person Haddix, Phillip M. Hoose, Norton Juster, Brad Meltzer, Pat Mora, Marilyn Nelson, Jerry Pinkney, Anita Silvey, Jane Smiley, Jeff Smith, Rebecca Stead, Judith Viorst, and Rosemary Wells!

Read more about this year's book festival on the LOC's 2010 Book Festival website.

SEE YOU THERE!