Crowvus Book Blog

 This was not exactly the blog that we planned to write. We were going to share a post about our Ghost Story Competition  (which this still is), but it has suddenly become very pertinent and personal. On Saturday, only a day after sharing our Puplishing  blog, we lost our founding publisher, Orlando. We are all utterly devastated, and Crowvus HQ has become very quiet. It is truly strange not to see him at the bottom of the stairs, or not to have him sitting at my feet while I write this. It is the little, everyday, routine  things where his death is most acutely felt. Nine years ago, in our first ever Ghost Story Competition , we received a story entitled Black Dog . I admit, I had preconceived ideas about this one, based on its title, thinking about baying hounds and the Black Shuck. Nothing was further from the truth. A. J. Black's beautiful story was a journey of grief, a coming to terms with a loss of more than life, but of a companion. I remember reading it and ...

 It is not long at all until our new Middle Grade book All the Time in the World  is released! We know you are as excited as we are about this book, so we've created a few activity sheets which we will be sharing right here on the blog throughout this week. Our first activity is a character wordsearch . We've hidden the names of some of the book's key characters in the grid for you to try and find. If you manage that, see if you can locate some of the extra words we've tucked in. If you're not sure what those words might be, we suggest you have a read through the blurb here . Once you've finished, you can decorate the border with your own artwork. We'd love to see your finished wordsearch, so please feel free to share a picture of it with us. You can do this via email , Facebook , or BSky . We can't wait to see them!

 One of the great joys about being an independent publisher is that you can make up your own rules for the office. Naturally, a principal rule is: "dogs must be present at all times". So today, we thought we would introduce you to the Crowvus puppies. These three canines have transformed our industry from publishing to puplishing , and the results have all been positive. Meet Orlando Orlando has been with Crowvus since the beginning, making him the founding puplisher. During his long and illustrious career, he has featured in a handful of books, been a poster boy for a Sprocker charity, and sat in on more meetings than we can remember having! Orlando is in his retirement now, which tends to feature long naps and 24hr cuddles. Meet Jess Jess joined the Crowvus team in 2022. She's very much an only girl and has perfected the timely swing from princess to tomboy and back again. Whilst she tries to be helpful, she is a very jealous Jess, and fills most of her Crowvus time dem...

 I - along with my fellow members of Crowvus - are very excited about our new release on 16th September. We fell in love with this story for a number of different reasons, and one of the key ones for me was the role of history. Of course, when you have a story about the governing and governance of time, there is going to be some element of the past, but the way in which Elizabeth McKay so casually and seamlessly interweaves the past with the present is both clever and effective. Finding our own place in time is not always easy, and neither is finding a place in our current time for the past. Discussing an historical fiction book recently over the weekend's breakfast, we were led into the confusing cycle of how fine the line is between pioneering characters and utterly unbelievable ones. The conversation actually began because of a discussion into our family tree and a look at how the role of registry offices allowed for a step away from the power of the church. In our increasingly ...

 ...Meet All the Time in the World ! Our next release is the gripping Middle Grade adventure All the Time in the World by Elizabeth McKay. This book is released on 16th September, but you can pre-order your copy here . This book is perfect for readers aged 9-13, but it can be enjoyed by children of all ages and adults too! Imagine a world not governed by time. When twelve-year-old twins Jake and Abi stumble upon the mysterious Merchiston Hall, they think they’ve found somewhere to work, somewhere to sleep, and, if they’re lucky, a place to stay safe. Instead, they discover a world unlike anything they’ve ever known. A house with no clock. Unicorns roaming the grounds. And a bridge across the river that nobody wants them to cross. For the first time since their mother’s death, Jake and Abi begin to feel happy. They begin to feel at home. But there is an underlying threat of a stolen power - the ability to control all the time in the world. Now let's meet the author... Elizabeth stil...

 Welcome, Readers! During the next few weeks, you can expect to find a blog post popping up every Monday to Friday. This is because September is full of brilliant bookish adventures, be that as a reader or as a writer, and we are so excited to be sharing them with you. We're dedicating September to new stories, old classics, timeless adventures, and promising tales. Here are the things you can look forward to: 16th September - the launch of All the Time in the World  by Elizabeth McKay. This is the story of Jake and Abi, a brother and sister who stumble into a realm where time is not measured in the usual way, but where there are those who seek to control it for their own ends. 30th September - our tenth Crowvus Ghost Story Competition . Have you got a spooky story to share? Can you write a haunting tale in 4,000 words or less? This year is a big one so, in addition to publication, we're including a small monetary prize for all the shortlisted stories. For all the Ts&Cs, h...