Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Have published 6 books for children ages 1-11 years old. One of the books which I co-authored with my grandson uses pen names. He’s Howie Doinn and I’m Candace B. Furreal.
We’re in the publishing stage of final edits for a two-book children’s series, SUITCASE.THE.CAT. for publication this summer. We’ve been working on it since it began as a short story, while playing our ‘One Sentence Story Game’ 6 years ago.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
As co-author of WARNING! NEVER. EVER., I recall that my grandson and I were having a creative brainstorming session and came up with absurd situations that people should NEVER. EVER. do. It took a few tries with various illustrators and then we found the perfect one and his illustrations are what make the book so fun. I will be promoting that book last week of April on your site. It’s geared to ages 5 – 99.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m an organic writer. That is, I don’t really plan an outline. I write and enjoy seeing where the story takes me. With my children’s books, I create the story to help children develop better self-esteem and spark their imagination. Imagination is what is behind all of my/our books, because it really is the birthplace of inventions and ideas. In fact, I’ve published an article on that concept in an international journal for early childhood education professionals.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
First, I have always enjoyed reading biographies and autobiographies. True stories of real people fascinate and inspire me. I also enjoy reading just a great story regardless of the genre.
What are you working on now?
We’re getting ready to publish three books this summer/fall:
-SUITCASE. THE. CAT. about a cat who has to deal with anxiety and worry, yet also gets into some really crazy adventures. This idea came about in a homeschool lesson with my grandson whom I’ve helped homeschool since 3rd grade. He’s now in 8th….6 years! We offer ways to help young readers deal with their own anxiety and worry through personification, while providing an entertaining, hilarious adventure story.
-Throwing History Under The Bus – a book of hand-drawn cartoon illustrations of the REAL STORY behind ancient history touching on ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. These cartoons were developed on breaks from the ultimate homeschool field trip two years ago to Rome and Greece. We would sit around and make up funny ‘what really happened’ scenarios at meals, while travelling between sites.
-Throwing Reality Under The Bus – a book composed of the same style hand-drawn cartoon illustrations that came about as part of the history book. We split the illustrations into two books with one chapter including the pandemic activities many of us experienced.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use our two children’s book websites and am working to increase their exposure by promoting our books and offering lots of free stuff such as Story Stretchers, videos, puzzles and even an original CAT DICTIONARY.
https://www.atibooks.com
https://www.purrfect-books.com
Do you have any advice for new authors?
For children interested in writing stories and books, I’d encourage them to pick a topic or activity they love and just start to write. Let your writing flow as we do, ignoring typos, grammar, and misspellings. Stopping to fix those stops the creative flow. A good prompt for children’s creative writing is: “What if…?”
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
In reference to creative writing, it was simple: Just write.
What are you reading now?
Lily’s Promise about a woman who survived the Holocaust and found a way to live her life after being rescued. An autobiography co-authored by her grandson.
And just finished, The Humans by Matt Haig. Hillarious take on an alien coming to earth.
What’s next for you as a writer?
After having written a short novel in 2011 and set it aside, I’m now working on preparing it to submit to an editor for additional edits. Upon reading it for the first time since 2015, I am so pleased at the writing style and phrasing, as well as the story itself. My goal is to publish this in late 2022 or early 2023. By the way…I’m a 73 old grandmother who’s a life long learner and realize that the time just wasn’t right to publish this book until now.
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?
WOW! At this moment, I can’t state a specific title. However, would most likely be a autobiography or biography of an historical figure.
Author Websites and Profiles
Remy Agee Website
Remy Agee Amazon Profile
Remy Agee’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account