Tales from the Gishlan Wood by Helen M. Pugsley

You think that she’d be excited but it’s oddly. You name it! Sometimes after their weekly meetings Helen will realize War and Chess isn't on the shelf. They were open to painters, sculptures, video editors, fan artists, casual doodlers, and poets. Of course, it wasn’t exclusively for writers. That way 14-year-olds writing novels always have someone who will support their dreams. She worked at the county library and ran a group for creative teens called Charcoal and Quill Guild. If she’s being honest, Helen says it’s a little terrifying when you realize someone is reading your work. Helen already has To Craft a Nation and Rock at the Bottom of the Sea written, which are books three and four in her series.

Her new dream is to write an entire series about tough teenage girls who learn about leadership and handle the arduous business of being princesses. And really, can you ever have enough warrior princesses?Īfter Helen published it people started asking her, “where’s the next one?” She’s still working on finding a publisher for Tales from the Gishlan Wood. There just weren’t enough warrior princesses learning to put their country before themselves. She pursued publishing War and Chess so fiercely because, again, she didn’t feel like girls had enough books like it floating out in the world. Holroyd!) She even helped Helen edit one of the first drafts in her free time. Her English teacher heard her telling some friends about it and said, “you should write a book about that!” For some reason it stuck and five years later Helen shipped her a book with a “Thank you,” both handwritten, and in the dedications.

It started out as some weird dream Helen had. So, at 14 years of age she wrote her first book: War and Chess. Even though Helen loved all those movies, she just noticed there was a lack of strong women who didn’t need to rely on a man.Įven if they were strong, the stories still needed to rely on a male foil to bring in viewers. The media marketed to little girls Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and The Little Mermaid. The girls got Cindy, Trixie, and the Pink Ranger. Or for that matter, any inspiring little girls to look up to! There was Jimmy Neutron, Timmy Turner, and Power Rangers. When Helen was a little girl, she doesn’t remember there being many inspiring women in herĬartoons.

Tales from the Gishlan Wood by Helen M. Pugsley