Snap Shell Visits Hawaii

On location in North Shore Hawaii, getting ready to visit Pipeline, one of the most famous surf breaks in the world and home to the annual Triple Crown of Surfing and Pipe Masters. The second book in the Turtle Town Series "The Green Room" takes place across three of the main Hawaiian Islands and ends in Oahu as Snap too takes on the breaks of the North Shore.

Surfers from all over the world come to the North Shore to surf Pipeline and many of surf breaks found along the north shore.

Yesterday we got to see and hear the inventor of the tri-fin thruster board, Simon Anderson, speak at the Turtle Bay Resort. Simon invented this popular board during his professional surf career and has traveled the world chasing the perfect wave!

When developing characters for a fictional story, many of the ideas come from actual events and sightings. Take Hawaii for example, the islands are populated with so many different types of flora and fauna and animal life from whales, to dolphins, to pacific green sea turtles, to flamingos and mongooses (the state bird) and much more. So after getting to see and be in, out and on top of the vast Pacific Ocean, many of these marine animals have inspired brand new characters in Turtle Town: The Green Room.
 

After learning so much about whale migration and breaching while in Maui, it's obvious the whales will make perfect transportation "comic" characters in Turtle Town: The Green Room, to help the turtles get from island to island at a fast speed! ALL ABOARD! And please, DO NOT sit on the BLOW HOLE!

 

A Pacific Humpback Whale

Last but not least, one of the most memorable things about the Hawaiian islands, besides the beauty and friendly spirit, would have to be the daily rainbows! What an amazing place to visit and a perfect spot for the setting of The Green Room! Stay tuned for more Green Room updates and to find out what the Green Room really means.

Aloha! 

It doesn't just mean hello and good bye ... it's a way of life. 

To love!

The Barnes and Noble Official Release

Snap and I want to thank everyone who came out to the Inner Puka Book Release Party last Saturday. We had such an excellent time getting to meet the readers and see many familiar faces! 

Many visitors entered our hourly drawings and contests!

Garret worked hard to win our coloring contest!

One of my favorite parts of the day was the Character Reading with my Turtle Town Character Development group!!!

Thank you to everyone who made this day so special for me. Nothing is more inspiring than getting to hang out with your readers for a day!

Turtle Town Book Release This Summer!

Click HERE to Pre-Order your very own copy of TURTLE TOWN-The Inner Puka

Introducing Snap Shell's New Series! Turtle Town

Snap Shell is back in the new spin-off series by the author of Iggy the Iguana!

The first book in the Turtle Town Series, The Inner Puka, is about Snap Shell, a box-shell turtle from Texas, who must find his place among a society of surfing sea turtles along California’s southern coast.

Snap Shell has waited his whole life to follow his dream of becoming a real surfer.  When his father is transferred to California, Snap gets the chance to embrace the much sought after waves of the West Coast while facing the challenges of a new culture full of turtle trends and stereotypes. Snap Shell sets on a quest to not only face his greatest desire, but also to overcome the external and cultural differences of being the only turtle in town who walks on four feet and has to wear flippers to swim. With the help of a mysterious mentor of mythological proportions, Snap Shell learns that he is “bound to an ancient day of the turtles, a time long diminished like the traditions that once bound the inner puka of one’s life to a great species.”  Along his journey of self-acceptance, Snap discovers his “inner puka,” which represents the true self and the soul of a turtle.  Soon, the cliques of sea turtles begin to realize that there’s more to this box-shell turtle than what meets the eye, provoking them to unveil Snap’s secrets.

While confronting the challenges of a new social environment, Snap Shell faces the harsh expectations of a father who has been living in fear since the death of Snap’s mom.  Snap is forced to search for answers about his family’s past, discovering that his story actually began on these same beaches that he dreams of conquering today.  Along the way, Snap gains the support of an odd assortment of sea-life, including a philanthropic French hermit crab named Herbert, a mute starfish who acts as a voice of reason and comic relief, and a lizard named Trekker who uses technological tools to defeat the sea.  As Snap struggles to face competition with a bully named Lucas the Leatherback, who represents the definition of surfing excellence, he must also confront an unexpected dilemma with his closest turtle friend on the coast, Tula, who previously warned him that nothing is as it seems in California.

Although at times he has felt that everyone has turned their shells on him, Snap soon realizes that he might have the power to bring all of the animals on the beach together and stop the stereotypical gossip surrounding the California scene.  After the Surf Barrel Competition, he ultimately receives his true prize, a deeper understanding of life as he reconnects with his father.  Snap learns to overcome his fears while discovering that his greatest strengths do not lie in gaining trophies or fitting in, but within the courage to be different.

Be sure to check out Turtle Town, coming in early spring 2011.  And don't forget to read about Snap Shell's Texas tales in the Iggy the Iguana Chapter Book Series!  www.IggytheIguana.com

VISIT SNAP SHELL IN SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA AT BALBOA PARK ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY JULY 17TH-18TH TO LEARN MORE ABOUT TURTLE TOWN!  EVERYONE WHO COMES BY THE SAN DIEGO TURTLE AND TORTOISE SOCIETY BOOTH WITH RECEIVE A FREE BOOKMARK!  SEE FLYER BELOW FOR DETAILS!