This spring, you’ll be able to get the newest graphic novel in the Spy School series. Once again, it has amazing art by the incredibly talented Anjan Sarkar — with a story by me!
Lots of folks have also been asking if I’m going to turn any of my other series into graphic novels soon. The answer is… Yes! Stay tuned to this site for details!
Hi all –
I am pleased to announce that I have once again worked with Barnes & Noble to create an exclusive edition of a Spy School book. As usual, the exclusive edition has several pages of bonus material, along with a specially-printed book jacket with a map of the mission on the inside. And yet, there is no additional cost!
Copies are available for preorder now!
And while you’re at it, why not preorder the Spy School Entrance Exam? It’s the first companion book fir the Spy School series. Match wits with the great puzzlemaster Jeff Chen to see if you can qualify for Spy School — and get plenty of other great never-before-seen content as well.
As I have already posted here, Spy School Goes Wild, the twelfth book in the series, will be available on that date. But my publisher, Simon & Schuster, and I have something else planned for that day as well:
For the first time, you can see what’s on the test to get into Spy School — and try to qualify yourself!
If you like puzzles, oh my, this is the book for you. Because Jeff Chen, one of the most brilliant puzzle makers on the planet, has created dozens of wonderful puzzles to challenge and amuse you: crosswords, sudoko, word searches, secret codes to crack, and much, much more.
But if you don’t like puzzles — or have maybe never even tried them — then this is also the book for you, because Jeff has also created training modules to teach you how to do all the different types of puzzles. Each section is introduced by a different character from Spy School, which means that for the first time, you’ll get to read something from the POV of characters besides Ben.
And beyond that, there is plenty of NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN SPY SCHOOL BONUS MATERIAL: tips for surviving the school, campus maps and lots of surprises.
I think you’re going to love it.
A lot of people have been writing to me, asking when this reveal was going to come, noting that often, I have revealed the new SS book much earlier in the year of release. Sometimes, it just takes a bit longer for everything to be fall into place.
So here we go. Allow me to present the new cover of the twelfth book in the Spy School series:
When Ben Ripley’s latest mission goes horribly wrong, he ends up lost in a dangerous wilderness without any of his support team — and stuck with his longtime nemesis, Murray Hill. To make matters even worse, a new, devious enemy is hatching an evil plan and plotting revenge against Ben. Now, Ben must figure out how to survive — and how to thwart the evil scheme — before it’s too late.
Please be aware that I know you probably still have questions about what happens in the book. I want you to have questions about it. Because i want you to read it. But I am not going to answer any questions about what happens in the book, because doing that will spoil the fun of reading it. Therefore, if you do write a question asking me for more info, I am just going to ask you to read this post again.
I am thrilled to finally announce a project that I have been working on with Simon & Schuster for the past year:
Whether you’re a young writer looking for tips, a teacher hoping to educate your students about creative writing, or a homeschooler looking for some fun new lessons, Mission: Write should appeal to you. There are currently six videos (with more coming in the future) hosted by me — and accompanying lesson plans written by the brilliant educator, Rose Brock.
Best of all, it’s free! So take a look for yourself. Just click here to watch and learn!
I, along with many of my favorite writers (and probably yours), have contributed to this amazing anthology:
In a collection of personal stories and essays, award-winning and bestselling authors write about how hope always wins, even in the darkest of times. Here are just a few of the people who contributed to this book: Tom Angleberger, Sarah Mlynowski, Max Brallier, Julie Buxbaum, Pablo Cartaya, J. C. Cervantes, Rex Ogle, Matt de la Peña, Adam Gidwitz, R.L. Stine, Veera Hiranandani, Hena Khan, Karina Yan Glaser, James Ponti, Soman Chainani, Pam Munoz Ryan, Christina Soontornvat and Gordon Korman. And oh yeah, the cover art is by Vashti Harrison, and the whole book is edited by the amazing Rose Brock.
I have read all these stories, and they are all truly wonderful. If you have ever wanted to know more about the lives of your favorite authors, this is your chance.
This should be pretty obvious from the title of this post, but Once Upon A Tim just got a rave review from the New York Times.
You can read the whole thing by clicking here, but here are some notable quotes:
Excited? Ready for a good story? Then just click here to order the book!
Also, I am happy with any good review, especially ones from readers. So if you have enjoyed Tim (or any of my books) feel free to post a positive review on Goodreads. Just click here.
(For tips on how to write a good review, check out this blog post.)
As anyone who visits this site knows, I am a huge supporter of the conservation movement and do my best in my books (particularly the FunJungle series) to educate readers about environmental issues.
So I am pleased to announce that I have joined the advisory board of Conservation Nation. This organization has two goals:
You can learn more about this great organization by clicking here.
Or you can learn how to get involved by clicking here.
I had my first meeting as part of the advisory committee on education yesterday and I could not be more impressed by the people who work for CN, the plans they have and their commitment to both the planet and to the next generation of conservationists.
The last time I wrote a blog post about how to write and on line reviews was nearly nine years ago. Back then, I was really explaining to visitors to my site how to post a review on Goodreads or Amazon.
I realize that, these days, most people (or at least most people who read my books) know how to do this. But it has come to my attention that there are several things many people do in writing their reviews that annoy other people. So I figured I would write a new post, trying to correct some of these problems.
1. DO NOT PUT SPOILERS IN YOUR REVIEW!!!!
There is not a single person on earth who appreciates having a review spoil a surprise in a book that they want to read. NO ONE! And writing ‘Warning: Spoilers Ahead’ does not mitigate the damage.
It is very very easy to not put a spoiler in your review. Simply don’t share anything from the book that you were surprised to find out. Of course, this not only applies to writing reviews on websites, but also comments on this webpage — or any other.
And, for the record, I am not only talking to amateur reviewers here. There are plenty of professional — or at least seasoned — reviewers who spoil things in their reviews all the time. Don’t do it. Or random people will hate you.
2. ROUND UP.
Just about every site only gives you five options for reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 stars. Admittedly, having only five options lacks nuance. That said, it is staggering to see how many times someone will give a four star review and say, ‘I really think this should be 4.5 stars.’ If you ever feel like this, round up! That’s just basic math, people. And do you know what it costs you to give something 5 stars instead of 4? NOTHING.
3. BE OPEN-MINDED
If you don’t like the subject matter that a book veers into, that doesn’t mean it deserves a one star review. Because that isn’t really a review of the book at all; it’s your own personal issues coming through.
If you don’t believe in evolution and a book mentions it, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad book. If you are uneasy with the concept of homosexuality and a book has a gay character, that doesn’t make it a bad book. If you feel that a book shouldn’t use a synonym for ‘buttocks’ and it does, that doesn’t make it a bad book. (In that case, try reviewing the book for the 69,999 words in it that didn’t offend you, rather than the 1 that did.) A bad review based on your own personal issues says more about you than it does about the book.
4. BE NICE TO OTHERS WHO WILL READ THE REVIEW
Recently, I have had issues with people purposefully posting spoilers — or even fake spoilers — simply to upset people. That’s not cool.
That said, if you really didn’t like a book of mine, you should feel free to write a review saying that you didn’t like it. Personally, I find well-written reviews explaining what a person’s problems with my book were to be very helpful. (Although I certainly like reading 5-star reviews more.)
5. DON’T GIVE A BOOK A BAD REVIEW AS A JOKE
You’re probably thinking to yourself ‘Why is Stuart even writing this? What kind of knucklehead would post a bad review as a joke?’
This one, for starters:
And that’s not the only time i have found a review like this. I can’t believe I have to say this, but: Don’t do this! Most people don’t read every single review a book has. They just look at the cumulative ratings. A once star review doesn’t get counted as a joke. It gets counted as the worst possible review.
Also… This isn’t even remotely funny. Would you think it was funny if a teacher gave you an F on a test and then said, “I was just joking!” I am guessing that you would not. So please, folks, if you’re going to make a joke on-line, don’t do it at someone else’s expense — and also, try to be funny.
Okay. I’ve said my piece. Thanks for reading this.
Hey everyone –
I know you have been waiting a long time for an update about the Spy School movie — and I am sure this is not what you were hoping for. It’s certainly not what I was hoping for.
After 54 weeks of doing nothing with the movie script, Disney decided that they were not going to move forward with the Spy School movie.
Why? I don’t really have a great answer for that. I was told that Disney had some concerns with the story involving kids in real danger — which you’d think they would have been able to figure out was part of the plot long ago, given the title.
Sadly, this kind of thing happens a lot in Hollywood. As I keep saying, it is very hard to get a movie made.
This does not mean the movie will never get made. My agents can now try to set the project up at another movie studio or streaming service. We will see what happens.
In the meantime, feel free to write angry letters to Disney or cancel your Disney + accounts in protest.