Last year I interviewed LehuaParker, who at that time had written her debut MG novel, One Boy No Water, the first installment in the Niuhi Shark Saga. Now Lehua is back with the sequel in her
upcoming One Shark No Swim.
There’s
something bugging adopted Zader Westin, something more troubling than his water
allergies where one drop on his skin burns like hot lava. It’s bigger than his
new obsession with knives, designing the new murals for the pavilion with Mr.
Halpert, or dealing with Char Siu’s Lauele Girlz scotch tape makeover. Zader
can’t stop thinking about a dream, the dream that might not have been a dream
where Lē‘ia called him brother then jumped
into the ocean and turned into a shark.
Zader’s
got a lot of questions, not the least being why he’s hungry all the time,
restless at night, and why he feels a constant itch on the back of his neck.
It’s making him feel like teri chicken on a pūpū platter, but Zader doesn’t
want to think about chicken, not with his growing compulsion to slip it down
his throat—raw.
With
Jay busy at surf camp and Uncle Kahana pretending nothing’s happening, Zader’s
left alone to figure things out, including why someone—something—is stalking him before it’s too late.
Summer
in Lauele Town, Hawaii just got a little more interesting.
I’ve yet to write a sequel so
I thought it would be interesting to tap the mind of an expert to see what secrets I could glean from her.
AMM: Welcome
Lehua
LP: Alhoa,
Ann Marie. Thanks for having me.
AMM: My
pleasure. So, what was the hardest part of writing the sequel to One Boy No Water?
LP: For me it was finding the time to actually sit down
and write it. One Boy, No Water was
my debut novel and I didn’t have a clue how much time I would need to spend
marketing it. It took me a couple of deep breaths and months to figure out how
to use my time better. There’s a lot of truth in the idea that practice makes
you faster and more effective. Just don’t ask me about book three in the series—I’m
behind!
AMM: Did you have the entire trilogy planned out in
your head by the time you finished the first book?
LP: Nope. The Niuhi Shark Saga was originally planned as a
five book series that was just a single palm frond on a huge coconut tree
called Lauele Town. While I do have some of the major beats in my head, I tend
to write by the seat of my pants because my characters are always so much
smarter than my outlines. Jolly Fish Press is publishing the first three as a
trilogy, but I plan to write the last two so fans will know the whole story.
AMM: I can't wait! What are you working on now?
LP: Up next, I’m re-editing book 1, One Boy, No Water, for a second edition release in 2014 and writing
book 3, One Fight, No Fist, for
publication in 2014. I’m also in the
middle of creating school and classroom presentations for author visits this
fall and next spring, editing a couple of novels for amazing writers, and
working with the editors of an anthology of stories by Hawaiian writers. With
all this and the launch of book 2, One
Shark, No Swim, I have many excuses to avoid housework.
AMM: And they are valid excuses, i can vouch for that. :) How has
your life changed since One Boy, No Water was published?
LP: One of the biggest changes is that I no longer have
time to read for pleasure. I used to read 3 – 5 books a week, about 200 a year,
gobbling them down one after another like potato chips. In the year since One Boy, No Water published, I’ve read
maybe twenty books and only three of them strictly for pleasure. Sometimes I have to remind myself that
reading and writing are supposed to be fun.
AMM: 200 books a year! That's phenomenal and definitely more than I've ever read in one year. Speaking of fun, if you had
a chance at another career, what would it be?
LP: I’m the poster child for career change. I think when I
was eight or so I made a list of the things I wanted to be when I grew up.
Television director, tv show host, school teacher, scuba instructor, business
manager, newspaper columnist, playwright, photographer, sports coach, flautist
in a symphony—all crossed off the list along with a few jobs that hadn’t been
invented yet like web designer. I still think I have radio personality,
ballerina, and astronaut left to go. Although if I could do it all over again,
I’d add marine biologist or underwater archeologist to the list. I’d love to
work outside in the ocean all day, especially if I could blow bubbles and it
never, ever snowed.
Lehua
Parker is originally from Hawaii
and a graduate of The Kamehameha Schools and Brigham Young University. In
addition to writing award-winning short fiction, poetry, and plays, she is the
author of the Pacific literature MG/YA series the Niuhi Shark Saga published by
Jolly Fish Press. One Boy, No Water
and One Shark, No Swim are available
now. Book 3, One Fight, No Fist will
be published in 2014.
So far
Lehua has been a live television director, a school teacher, a courseware
manager, an instructional designer, a sports coach, a theater critic, a SCUBA
instructor, a playwright, a web designer, a book editor, a mother, and a wife.
She currently lives in Utah with her husband, two children, three cats, two
dogs, six horses, and assorted chickens. During the snowy Utah winters she
dreams about the beach.
Connect with Lehua Parker:
Twitter: @LehuaParker
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6426317.Lehua_Parker
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/lehuaparker/
Email: AuntyLehua@LehuaParker.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6426317.Lehua_Parker
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/lehuaparker/
Email: AuntyLehua@LehuaParker.com
Reviews for One Boy, No Water on Goodreads
Reviews for One Shark, No Swim on Goodreads
One Boy, No Water can be purchased at bookstores and via:
Barnes & Noble
One Shark, No
Swim can be purchased at bookstores and via:
Barnes & Noble