📚 A Bookish Chat with 'The Welcome Sign' Barbara Jean Weber #AuthorInterview
Barbara Jean Weber lives in Skagit County with her husband and two daughters, where she works as a speech and language therapist. Her novel, The Welcome Sign, was inspired when she was gifted a mermaid welcome sign. The more she studied the sign, the more her story evolved. She is currently an active member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.
Visit her website at https://www.barbarajeanweber.com/.
The Welcome Sign gives us magical characters and hidden magical realms. Which of these was the most challenging for you to write about?
The magical characters were probably the more challenging to write about. I wanted my characters to be unique, powerful but also relatable so I did a lot of work on crafting each of the characters with different personalities, powers, etc. Characters have many layers and can be very complex so finding the right balance for each of the characters personalities, how they fit together in the story, importance to the plot, etc was time consuming but also very gratifying.
Which of the characters from The Welcome Sign do you most closely identify with and why?
Each of the characters has something about them that I identify with but I also wrote my characters to be unique and different. If I had to choose one character, Molly is probably the character I most identify with. She owns a cat, we have 2 cats. She is very close with her mom. I was very close to my mom as well. Molly is intrigued and fascinated with magic and magical beings. I love fantasy stories and enjoy reading books or watching movies about magical beings, magic, realms of magic, etc. Molly is a good friend who is honest, kind and friendly. I believe that I also possess those character traits. We all have our faults and Molly isn't perfect but she is very relatable and interesting. She has struggles and insecurities common to most10 year olds, striving to be independent but also being close to her family. I have two kids who are also going through the struggles to be independent but still be close. I hope Molly will make audiences cheer for her success as she makes new magical friends, battles bad guys and helps save the magical realm.
What do you think sets The Welcome Sign apart from other books of the same genre?
The Welcome Sign is a unique story with an interesting origin and fun plot twists. The characters and magical powers are new and interesting. It's a fun, magical story for young-middle teen readers who enjoy hidden worlds of enchantment, magical powers, interesting characters, strong friendships, adventure and imaginative and emotionally engaging stories. The Welcome Sign is a balance between personal growth and magical adventure. It is full of good versus evil, intrigue and action. This book will delight and entertain readers who enjoy unique and magical characters, secrets to be revealed and discovering amazing new places. It is a page turner with lots of twists and turns. The Welcome Sign aligns with readers expectations for middle-grade fantasy. If you appreciate fun, adventure stories with lots of action, this book will be a fun one to read.
Surprise me. What is something that happens in the book that would make my mouth drop without giving too much away?
I think something that will surprise you and readers is learning about the truth behind Molly's grandmothers disappearance and how far up her involvement goes within the magical realm. She has kept a lot of secrets from her family and the true shocking nature of her daily life and background is eventually revealed to Molly and her mom.
What season does your book take place?
The story takes place in the fall.
What location does your book take place?
At the beginning of the story Molly and her mom are living in Popular Bluff, Missouri but as the story unfolds the location changes to the town of Barnstable, Massachusetts on Cape Cod where the grandmother lives. As I was researching good locations for the book I read about Popular Bluff, Missouri and really liked the description of it being among the Ozark foothills, filled with spring-fed streams, having a national forest, peaceful lakes and lots of farmland. Just seemed like a nice, peaceful location for Molly and Angela's home. For the main part of the story, I knew I wanted a coastal location since the basis of the story involved mermaids. Also, my husband and I both love the coast and try to visit our Oregon and Washington coasts at least once a year. I visited Cape Cod years ago and loved the area. I had never been to Barnstable, Massachusetts but as I was researching the Cape Cod area, Barnstable sounded like the perfect small town, coastal feel for the grandmother's beachfront lifestyle.
Do you think writing a young adult fantasy is more complex than writing books of other genres?
I think it depends on the person. Most people will write about genres that interest them or that they have experience with reading. I have a big interest for fantasy books so writing in this genre came fairly easy for me as I have read a lot of books in that area. I would find it more complex to write books of other genre's such as a historical novel or a cook book, etc because that's not a format or genre that I have an interest in writing about. People will likely find it easier to write about things within their interest or things they are familiar with.
What’s next for you?
I am a full time speech language therapist so I will continue to work. As far as writing goes I have several projects in various stages. The Welcome Sign is supposed to be a series of 3 books. I have book 2 written but not published yet and book 3 is still in outline form so I am continuing to work and develop that into a finished piece. I am also working on finishing a fiction book (not related to The Welcome Sign) I started co-writing with my mom before she passed away. I also have an outline I am working on for another book (also not related to The Welcome Sign) called "The Cinderella Effect."
When 10-year-old Molly Parnell’s grandmother mysteriously disappears she and her mother travel to Cape Cod to take ownership of the house they inherited and find out answers about the sudden disappearance. But what they discover could be more dangerous and life changing than they ever imaged. Molly and her mother find a beautiful mermaid welcome sign in the attic and place it on the front door. Unusual things start to happen and they are flooded with visitors who claim they knew the grandmother. The true powers behind the mysterious sign are revealed as Molly learns her grandmother was part of a secret organization working to keep balance between the magical realm and the real world. The magical realms placed an invisible veil of secrecy over the world to hide their true identities from the human world but allowing them to live among them in secret. An angry rebel group of magical beings, tired of living in hiding is tearing down and destroying the magical cloaking fabric between the two worlds. If they are not stopped the magical realm will no longer be safe from the world. As Molly and her mom embark on a dangerous and magical adventure throughout the magical realms to help stop the rebels, she learns of her own magical powers and her strong family heritage connected to the welcome sign. Along the way, she teams up with new magical friends helping to keep the realm of magic safe from the eyes of the world and discovers that her grandmother was right all along. The world she thought she knew no longer exists, but an amazing world of magic woven into their world has always been hiding in plain sight.
Read sample here.
The Welcome Sign is available at Amazon.
The Writer’s Life
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