How I Became A Writer & Oggie Learned to Drive

“A lot of strange things can happen while you're writing a story. You can start thinking your characters are real and begin to talk to them. You can feel nervous when they're trapped, or excited when they're rescued, or happy when they meet up with someone who might be a friend—even if you made these things happen by writing about them.
Your story can get very weird and begin to haunt you. Or very scary and begin to scare you. Or very real and begin to come true.”

Archie Jones has learned a great deal about writing since he started working on his book, The Mysterious Mole People. At first, the story was just something he'd tell his 6-year-old brother, Oggie, to help settle him down at bedtime. But the wonderful tale grows, becomes more important, and Archie begins to write it down in a notebook in his closet at night. Soon, he's making plans to send it out for publication.

Archie's closet writing is just one of many secrets he and Oggie have to keep since their parents broke up. The only people the boys can depend on now is each other. When they become entangled with the Night Riders, a nasty street gang in their neighborhood, Archie finds the black depths of his Mole story joining up with the black depths of his real life story in a most frightening way.

Awards and Honors

"Premio Andersen Award". (Italian publisher, Salani) 2006
" Premio Cento Award" 2006
"Io Pre Mio" 2007
New York Public Library 100 Titles For Reading and Sharing 2002
State Award Master List:
William Allen White Award (Kansas) 2004-5
Maine Student Book Award 2003-4
Charlotte Award (New York) 2004-5
Prairie-Pasque Student List (South Dakota) 2004-5
Garden State Student Award (New Jersey) 2004-5

back to the Book Shelf



Puffin paperback cover		Open Road Media e-book cover

available in paperback
from third-party sellers

purchase this as an e-book

What's Fiction? What's Real?
Click on the image above to read more.