Author Interview: Christine Virnig and Phantom Academy Giveaway

Happy Monday Everyone! Today I’m excited to have Christine Virnig here to share about her MG Phantom Academy, It sounds like a fun ghost story with a mystery to be solved. That’s my idea of a good story, and I’m looking forward to reading this one. 

Here’s a blurb from Goodreads:

 

Lindsay Currie’s Scritch Scratch meets The School for Invisible Boys in this fun romp of a middle grade novel about a newly dead boy who faces a spooky new school hiding an unearthly mystery.

After an unlucky collision between a coconut and the top of his head, twelve-year-old Finn joins the ranks of the recently deceased…and of the students at Phantom Academy. The academy is a spectral boarding school for underage ghosts finding their footing in the afterlife, and Finn is the new kid at school.

He doesn’t understand why ghosts have to take tests and do homework. Or why making friends doesn’t get any easier even when all the students have a very big thing in common. As the new class of middle schoolers get to know each other, it becomes clear something is happening behind the scenes of their new academy.

Can Finn and his classmates figure out their afterlife and crack the mystery? 

Hi Christine! Thanks so much for joining us. 

1. Tell us about yourself and how you became a writer. 

First of all, thank you so much for interviewing me! I always love talking about books and writing :) 

I’m a children’s book author from Madison, Wisconsin, and I write picture books, middle grade novels, and middle grade nonfiction. My road to becoming a writer was actually somewhat circuitous. I first fell in love with reading children’s books when I was a stressed-out doctor looking for ways to escape the real world, and it was only after these kid’s books were thoroughly woven into my heart that I started seriously thinking about trying to write one myself. But as soon as I put finger to keyboard… I was hooked. 

2. Where did you get the idea for Phantom Academy? 

Most of my best book ideas seem to pop into my head as I’m trying to fall asleep at night, and Phantom Academy was no different. The whole first scene of the book—where Finn DIES and needs to choose between two paths—came to me this way. When I woke up the next morning, I couldn’t wait to write it down… and discover what happened next! 

Your Writing Process 

3. I get ideas at random times too. Share about how you developed the storyline and wrote the first draft of Phantom Academy. How long did it take to write and revise your manuscript before you were ready to submit it? 

When I first started writing Phantom Academy, I had no idea where the story would lead; I just wrote whatever came to me. But as soon as I realized there would be a large mystery component, I stopped writing and began loosely plotting out the rest of the novel to make sure all the clues were in place and that everything would fit together in the end. 

It’s always hard for me to estimate how long it took me to write and revise any given manuscript, as I jump around between projects a ton. But if I had to guess, I’d say maybe nine to twelve months??? 

4. From reading the blurb where Finn dies due to being hit by a coconut and reviews, I can tell that you mixed humor into your story. What made you decide to add this element to your story? Can you share some tips for those of us who’d like to include humor but don’t know how to write like this?

For better or worse, humor—or my version of humor, I should say—is one thing that shows up in almost everything I write. I think this is because my main goal when writing is to create the funnest book that I can, and to me, this includes a good dose of laughter. 

I try to add humor in multiple different ways. Puns and word play are big ones. I also love coming up with unexpected similes that are both humorous and illustrative. Using parentheses and em dashes to set off funny little asides is another favorite technique. And lastly, I find it much easier to add humor when I write in first person (though this might just be a me-thing). 

5. It’s cool all the different ways you add humor to your stories. Share about Finn, your main character. Is he in part based on anyone you know? Did his character development come easily to you, or was it a struggle? 

Finn is brave, and impulsive, and he loves his friends and family fiercely. He also has a ridiculous sense of humor (aka MY sense of humor). I’m absolutely positive that his personality is influenced by people I know—I’m just not totally cognizant of who or how or in which ways. 

Finn’s character development was much more difficult for me than most of my characters. Not only is he brave, while I’m a complete scaredy-cat, but he jumps headfirst into everything without bothering to think things through first. Given that my MO is to waste hours agonizing over even the tiniest of decisions (like do I want Peanut Butter M&Ms… or Peanut M&Ms?), it took real effort for me to keep Finn true to Finn. 

Your Journey to Publication 

6. You’ve had four books published—Dung for Dinner, Waist-Deep in Dung, A Bite Above the Rest, and Phantom Academy. How did you get your first publishing contract, and what has it been like getting your publishing contracts since then? 

I queried agents with a book proposal for Dung for Dinner in 2018 and was immensely lucky to end up signing with Jim McCarthy at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. From there, Jim did the hard work of selling my books while I got to have fun writing the next thing. 

Getting a publishing contract is never easy—and given the current state of middle grade publishing, who knows if I’ll ever be able to sell another book in that space—but it’s been absolutely wonderful to have a partner in the process. Each book contract Jim has landed for me has felt like a real gift, and I’m so grateful for every one of them. 

7. A Bite Above the Rest was published last year. How have you juggled writing Phantom Academy while working on releasing A Bite Above the Rest? 

I’ve actually never signed a book contract without having already written the entire manuscript, and this has really taken the pressure off. I’ve never had to draft on a deadline (apart from self-imposed ones meant to prevent endless tweaking), so my “juggling” has always been very manageable. I’m also exceptionally fortunate to be able to devote a lot of time to my writing, which gives me a lot of freedom. 

Marketing Your Book 

8. How did you celebrate the release of Phantom Academy? How do you plan to continue marketing it? 

I actually have no plans to celebrate on Phantom Academy’s release day, unless going to the optometrist for a long overdue checkup counts as a celebration? 

I honestly HATE having the spotlight on me, so I’ve never had a launch event for any of my books. I do have a bunch of book signings scheduled for the days and months after the release, though, and I’m super excited to be on a spooky books author panel at the NCTE convention in Denver later this fall to talk about the book! 

9. It’s great that you have a marketing plan that works for you. What are you working on now? 

So Many Things! I’m busy revising a spooky middle grade book about a haunted prison that I desperately hope will become published someday. I’m also having an absolute blast writing picture books. I have one picture book that will come out in 2027; some exciting, can’t-be-told-yet news regarding a second picture book; and I have a few PB manuscripts ready to go out on submission soon. So… fingers crossed with all these things!  

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Christine. You can find Christine on Instagram at @virnigchristine. Her website is christinevirnig.com. 

Giveaway Details

Christine’s publisher is generously offering a hardback of Hurricane Heist for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower of my blog (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment by September 27th. If I do not have your email (I can no longer get it from your Google Profile), you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. Please be sure I have your email address. 

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites and/or follow me on Twitter or Bluesky or follow Christine on her social media sites, mention this in the comments, and I'll give you an extra entry for each. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. This book giveaway is U.S. 

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday is hosted by Greg Pattridge. You can find the participating blogs on his blog. 

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops 

Tuesday, September 16th I’m participating in the Falling Into Leaves Giveaway Hop 

Monday, September 22nd I have an interview with author Anita Fitch Pazner and a giveaway of her MG  Words Matter: The Story of Hans and Sophie Scholl and The White Rose Resistance 

Monday, September 29th I have an interview with author Tracy Badau and a giveaway of her MG Ghoul Summer 

Wednesday, October 1st I’m participating in the Scaredy Cat Giveaway Hop and have an interview with author Julie Berry with a giveaway of her YA If Looks Could Kill and my IWSG post 

Monday, October 6th I have an agent spotlight interview with Renee Runge and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, October 13th I have an interview with author Lynne Kelly and a giveaway of her MG Three Blue Hearts 

I hope to see you tomorrow!