Featured Interview With Lysander C. Stark
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I grew up in a house nestled cozily in the woods of a small town in Upstate New York. I was the middle child in a house of 5 boys, spending my childhood trying to make everyone laugh, climbing trees and getting lost in books (and occasionally, the woods). I became a teacher in 2008 and have taught in both New York and in North Carolina where I’ve lived since 2011.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I don’t remember any time in my life where reading and writing stories were absent. But in 4th, 5th and 6th grade, I started to get good feedback on my writing by some of the greatest teachers of all time. I have been writing ever since then.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Calvin and Hobbes comics by Bill Watterson and Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle are never far from my nightstand. It is thanks to those two gentleman that I had such an imaginative childhood and maintain such a love of reading and writing. I also loved John Bellairs, Roald Dahl and Jon Scieszka. I was obsessed with Shakespeare in high school and college, but now’a’days I read everything that Neil Gaiman releases, and fill in all the gaps with non-fiction history books. T.J. English especially has a great mix of information and intrigue.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My new book series is called Super (Elementary School) Heroes. The first in the series is titled Kidnapping in Queen City. It’s about seven 4th grade students who develop superpowers after sneaking into an restricted laboratory during a field trip to a science museum. What’s special about these characters though, is not just their super-human abilities, but the way in which they navigate the enormous challenges in their personal lives. My current students love them, and love hearing about the real students they were based on. I vividly remember working with the girl Ke’osha is based on – the team’s telekinetic underdog. Her family had moved several times in a short period (switching schools each time), she cared for her numerous siblings because her mother worked two jobs to support them, and she worked herself to tears to keep her grades up. I was so disappointed that she had so few literary heroes – so few characters who looked and lived like her. The lack of diversity in literature is still troubling, though it’s getting better. But where does a poor, black, transient girl look for inspiration. All of my books are designed to reach a wide audience, but especially those who never get to see themselves reflected in the books they read.
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