When Anubis Speaks, Y'all Better Listen!

From Antoine Revoy's book, Haunted Houses.

I've got two projects in the works right now. One is a YA novel (edited by the fabulous Cheryl Klein and set to release in 2014) and the other is a midgrade creative nonfiction book called, Anubis Speaks! A Personal Tour of the Egyptian Dark Lands (edited by the fabulous Larry Rosler and due out in 2013).

Anubis Speaks! is being illustrated by the uber-talented Antoine Revoy. I cannot wait to see how he interprets Anubis's dark and snarky voice!

I often get asked what I mean by "creative nonfiction." In this case, the nonfiction part refers to all of the facts about ancient Egyptian death practices and their beliefs about the land of the dead. None are made up. The information is based on primary and secondary source research.

The "creative" part is that these facts are "explained" by Anubis, Egyptian God of Mummification, who "speaks" directly to the reader. The jackal-headed god is a bit miffed about having been ignored for thousands of years and is baffled by his own people's fascination with cats ("I'm more of a dog person," he explains).

He warns readers to "Go back to coloring rainbows and unicorns," if they don't think they can handle the frightening boat-ride journey through the twelve hours of darkness. "There will be blood. And snakes. And decapitations. And monsters who like to gobble up hearts," he gleefully cautions.

Anubis is probably my favorite god in the Egyptian pantheon (followed closely by Isis).  I've had a lot of fun writing in his voice. I can't wait to share him with the world.