Today I’m welcoming Benjamin Ryan who I connected with on Twitter, no I’m not calling it X. He is an elementary school special education teacher in Manhattan who shares daily writing prompts on Twitter and has created a community of followers and supporters which is what social media is meant to do. Benjamin has written several manuscripts and he is an inspiration for those of us struggling to get from ideas to fully formed drafts or from draft to polished manuscript.
His debut YA novel, MADAME ELDRIDGE’S WAYWARD HOME FOR UNRULY BOYS, hit shelves last week and quickly sold out. The kindle version on Amazon earned an orange banner in Teen & Young Adult Fiction on Boys’ & Men’s Issues. If you’re an author, you know how wonderful it is to see an orange banner even though I only buy books from small independent bookstores or from the publisher, and strongly recommend you do too!
Okay, dear readers fear not, you can still order a copy of the book from the publisher Tea With Coffee Media. MADAME ELDRIDGE’S WAYWARD HOME FOR UNRULY BOYS is a twisty mystery set in the backwoods of Virginia where each boy has been sent to a behavior program with a lesson to learn. But wait, I forgot to mention there’s secrets. And magic. Okay, I’m not saying anything else because no one likes spoilers.
Benjamin is offering one lucky reader a 30 minute Zoom brainstorming session for writers to help come up with new ideas or help with an existing book related to plot / character development / twists and turns. Using the power of “what if” He will leave them inspired to start writing again! Comment on this blogpost to enter the giveaway. If you don’t follow the blog, please include your name in the comment.
What where you like at the age of your target audience?
My preteen to teenage years were filled with discovery and wonder. I had just moved to West Point, NY from several years in Europe filled with travel and trying new things. Our house in America was an old Victorian style mansion on the Hudson surrounded by the military academy, a gray stone Hogwarts on the base of mountains and rivers. It was a magical time in my life. It blended reality and the internal imagination. To me during this time, anything was possible, and that transformed my writing and my stories.
What inspires you?
My inspiration comes in many forms but mostly from “what if’s”. If I see a beautiful painting, my mind wanders to “what if this was really a portal to another place in time?” I hear a song I love and suddenly think, “what if this tune was the kind control the government used at the end of times?” I see a beautiful home at the end of a row of quaint houses and ponder, “what if this was the scene of the most brutal murder this town had ever seen and no one was any the wiser?” What if’s inspire me and turn reality into fantasy. It is in that bend where my stories come to life.
What’s one thing you hope readers will take away from your book?
This book was written with the idea in mind that how we judge others and how others judge us are not set definitions of who we are or who we are meant to be. We all have greatness within us and just because one person has an opinion of us means nothing at the end of the day. We are who we are, and we should the best us we can be. Never let someone’s idea of you destroy your ultimate potential.
What’s next for you?
My life has changed so drastically recently and the whole world is open for me to take by storm! After losing 163 pounds, having surgery to better my life, and putting my book out, I will be growing my Twitter influence in the writing community as I put out more books! I already have 4 others written, one (a Jewish comedy) making waves with agents as we speak. Look out for my name, movie deals, book released, and future events. I plan on never stoping until I have reached the top, and who knows how high that is.
To learn more about Benjamin and his books:
Website: https://www.benjaminryanbooks.com
Twitter: @BRClothWrites
Insta: BRClothWrites
Facebook: Benjamin Cloth
Laura Roettiger Books 