Hi Friends,
Today I am interviewing Diana Mitchell, the author of
The Grey Witch which is a children’s book and tells the misadventures of three witches
. This is her first book. Previously she has written many poems and won numerous awards. The beautiful illustrations in the book are done by her daughter, Susan Whiting and this is a book that is cute and enjoyable for both children as well as adults.
Its never too late to follow your dreams and this is what suits Diana, who wrote her first book, The Grey Witch at the age of 88! 🙂
She is my Promising Debut Author this week and I am so happy and so honored to interview such a passionate person here on Njkinny’s World of Books.
Welcome Diana!
Lets start the interview. 🙂
Q1. Tell us something about yourself.
Diana Mitchell was born in England and attended school at Stoetley Hall. She joined the WRNS at 18 and met and married an American flyer. They moved to America and raised 6 children. She now lives in California and has 8 grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren and lots of pets.
Q2. What genre are your books and why did you choose this
genre?
The book, The Grey Witch is Fantasy and Imagination. I chose this genre because it is fun for children to read.
Children are more likely to appreciate learning when it is fun.
Witches who love to improve their skills, practice them on pets and children with hilarious results when the spells go wrong.
Q4. How did you get the idea of writing this book? What kind
of research did you do?
My youngest son asked to be told stories about witches and magic.
The hardest part was getting it published.
Q6. How do you approach your writing so as to make them
relatable to kids?
Having six children, I have learned how to make stories relatable to them-through trial and error.
Q7. Tell us a fun moment you had while writing The Grey Witch and do you believe in witches?
Although I do not believe in witches, it was fun getting a laugh out of children when reading the stories aloud.
Q8. What other books have you written and where can we find
them to buy?
This is the only book I have written so far, however I have written poetry and received awards.
Q9. What were the steps you took to get your book published?
To get the book published, I had my daughter do the illustrations then self published. During the publishing process, we took things one step at a time, which was less overwhelming.
Q10. What is next for you, writing wise?
My next writing project will be in heaven. My children have other ideas.
Q11. How can the readers connect with you?
Q12. Before you go, how about an excerpt from your book to
intrigue and tantalize us?
Today she was trying out a new spell which smelled worse than usual and when she was finished, she called her cat to taste it.
The cat pretended not to hear.
The witch took out a big ladle and held it out to him.
The cat pretended not to see it.
The witch told him to swallow it.
The cat pretended to be asleep.
The witch bent down and tickled him and told him to drink it or he wouldn’t get any supper. The cat opened his eyes, yawned, and before he knew it, he’d swallowed all of it.
It tasted like all the worst things you can imagine, which is exactly what it was. The cat tried to spit it out.
“It couldn’t be that bad,” said the witch. “I think I got it right, or did I forget something?”
The cat was growing bigger and his furry tail was growing longer and longer. His fur lay down flat and shiny and turned into scales. His neck got longer too, so that if he had still been in the cave, his head would have bumped into the roof.
The story is so very interesting. The cat is a wicked darling. I love that you followed your dream, Diana. All the best to you. Thank you NJKinny for hosting her so we could learn of her!