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Featured author in March 2019 on New Authors.
His books for children have been honoured with a win at the Georgina Hawtrey-Woore Awards and have been longlisted for the inaugural Bath Children's Novel Award and the International Rubery Book Award, Highly Commended for the Independent Author Book Award and nominated for the People's Book Prize.

Hi everyone! (Hope I'm posting this in the right place!) Thanks for featuring me as one of your authors for this month, along with my book The Coming of the Spirits. This is the final novel in my Spirits series of ghost novels, which I'm pleased to say is proving equally popular with middle-grade, young adults and slightly older adults too!

To whet your appetites, here's a little extract from the start of Chapter Five. This isn't available to view anywhere else online - no, not even Amazon!

Ellie has returned to present-day Britain to find history has been changed and the Nazis are in charge. At any moment, the barrier to the spirit world will split open and every evil spirit that ever lived will return to the mortal world. The mysterious Warlock seems to know how to put things right - but at what cost to Ellie?

Now read on...

[Ellie] took a small step nearer to the Warlock.
“Who are you?”
The Warlock offered a hand.
“Come with me. There’s a place you have to be. Your friends are waiting. The world is broken, and must be repaired. The spirits are coming. Only the Grand Defender can save us.”
Ellie was about to follow, until she heard the words “Grand Defender”.
“Oh, no. That’s not happening, not again. Every time I get mixed up in history, it all goes wrong. I tried to put things right in the 1930s, and look what happened! Hitler won the war!”
“There never was a war,” the Warlock said. “Not against Hitler, anyway. Britain fought alongside him, against Russia. It was they who lost. Communist cells throughout the world are still seeking revenge.”
The Warlock was going way beyond Year Nine History, and Ellie wasn’t interested.
“There’s just three things I want. Find Viewpoint, get back in time and tell Edward the Eighth what happened.”
“It’s too late for that,” the Warlock said. “Soon after the Nazis took power, he died, in mysterious circumstances. There hasn’t been a King or Queen since. Only you can rescue everyone now, Ellie. You must place history back on course. You must fulfil your destiny.”
“Not you as well!” Ellie stepped right up to the Warlock, and stared into the faceless mask. “Listen to me. I never wanted any of this save-the-world, destiny, Grand Defender stuff. I was happy a few years back, ‘til my Mum and Dad split up. Then everything started going downhill. Ghosts, breaches in time, Kings, wars... I don’t want it any more! Why is it always me? I want a life! I want a family, a boyfriend, grades, a job... all the usual stuff! The Viewpoint woman told me to stick to that. I wish I’d listened to her.”
She moved aside.
“Just go away. Go away, will you? I don’t want it.”
“Very well,” the Warlock said. “Learn the hard way. As usual. But you will do as I say, Ellie, and you will put things right. You owe it to your world, and to the whole of time.”
The black-gloved hand pointed at Ellie again, and Ellie winced at a pain in her chest. She felt as though she’d been stabbed.
“Until you obey me, your time won’t be your own. For every day that passes, you’ll age two years. Defy me for long enough and you’ll die.”
The pain faded, and so did the Warlock. Ellie heard the deep voice speak once more.
“Look around you, Ellie. And open your eyes.”
Ellie looked again. The Warlock was gone, but someone else was standing in his place.
Ellie saw a very old and very shabby tramp, almost all hair and beard. A dirty old coat flapped around him in rags. His eyes looked bloodshot and his mouth was open in fear.
Ellie heard him utter a low, painful moan.
Then the gateway lay empty.



"Grasshopper" suggested you might like a quiz as well - so can I invite you to check out the quiz on the book and other activities already at www.robkeeley.co.uk? (The quiz on this book is second down.)

http://www.robkeeley.co.uk/extras/459...

If you check me out on Twitter, have a look at my pinned tweet where there is a little challenge and a giveaway! Just added a new review for the book, too.

https://twitter.com/RobKeeleyAuthor

Now, over to you! Happy to answer any questions on my books or writing - or to hear any of your suggestions for further activities!

Best wishes

Rob

Thank you Rob. I am sure the members will be greatly benefited by your tips.

Thanks Rob. Appreciate the advice & support you offer fellow authors.
The excerpt is interesting. A parallel universe where Nazis have taken over Britain! Certainly got our attention.

Thank you! Lovely to get your feedback. Scarily, it isn't a parallel universe in the strictest sense - it's THIS one! When Ellie arrives, there is no other history! I had some fun - and chills - thinking about what a Nazi-run 21st-century Britain would be like, complete with the Internet.

Any other thoughts? :)

Hi Rob, I am enthused to share the lovely month of March with you.
I wish you all the best and every success in your writing endeavours.
All the best not only for March but the year ahead also.

Rob wrote: "Thank you! Lovely to get your feedback. Scarily, it isn't a parallel universe in the strictest sense - it's THIS one! When Ellie arrives, there is no other history! I had some fun - and chills - th..."

God forbid!🤓

Indeed! And thanks for the good wishes, Aidan!

Happy World Book Day, everyone! (Or it is in the UK.) Am here today to answer any questions about my books or writing, and also on Twitter @RobKeeleyAuthor. Enjoy! Rob

Happy world book day!

Happy World Book Day, Sandra! :)

Happy world book day Rob.

And to you! :)

Can we have some of your quizzes posted here Rob? We would love to see them here too.

All for you Rob:

The Coming of the Spirits Quiz
Have you the skills to become a Grand Defender? Prove it, by completing The Coming of the Spirits trivia quiz...
1.What did Will suggest cooking on the camp-fire at the end of Chapter One?
2.What was the name of the small boy healed by Henry?
3.What had Luke been doing at the Priory before the Warlock arrived?
4.What did CDC stand for?
5.Where was the resistance hideout located within the apartment block?
6.What did Mandeep cook for Ellie?
7.Apart from money, what did Ellie give Leon in exchange for the brooch? (4 items for one point!)
8.And who then squeezed the brooch?!
9.What did Das Zentrum mean in English?
10.Take Ellie’s age at the start of the book. Add the number of friends sent at the start to help Ellie. Then subtract the number of the till Ellie worked on. Is this more or less than the number of chapters in the book?
©Rob Keeley

Thanks for posting the quiz! Though I'd rather other material that's on my website stayed there for now, if that's OK. Otherwise it makes my site less unique! However, no worries, and if anyone who's read the book would like to post the answers to this quiz, I will happily reward correct answers, maybe with a free download code or two for my other books! You can view the other quizzes and activities on Extras at www.robkeeley.co.uk. Best wishes, Rob

Sure thing Rob! Was just trying to be proactive!🤔
However, I would suggest leading people to your site through activities here. Just a thought..

Thanks for that, and it's very good of you to feature me this month. I'm hugely grateful to everyone who's proactive in promoting my books! It's probably just best to check before copying from someone's website!

I've posted quite a lot of stuff now, and I'm more than happy for the above quiz to stay here! As mentioned, if anyone would like to have a go I'll happily put some prizes up for anyone who gets all answers correct! There's also the hidden word challenge mentioned on my Twitter @RobKeeleyAuthor (pinned tweet).

Also open to any suggestions for further activities or discussions on here. Anyone have any ideas? :)

Best wishes

Rob

Re: It's probably just best to check before copying from someone's website...

My sincere apologies. I will confirm next time.

No worries at all! Would now be a good time to get a Q&A going? Anyone have any questions to ask about my books or writing? :) Rob

Sure. Ready when you are.

Great! Post your questions and I'll reply.

Which do you enjoy writting more, the protagonist or the heroine?

Hi Michael, very good question! I think with me they tend to be the same thing - certainly with Ellie, the central character in my Spirits series. Her heroism has actually led her into trouble sometimes - in the third book in the series, The Sword of the Spirit, she has become very gung-ho and come to accept her role as one who talks to spirits and solves historical mysteries - and gets it spectacularly wrong, setting off a chain of events that runs into the final two books, High Spirits and The Coming of the Spirits!

I've a long history of writing girl characters as heroines - they often take the role that 30-40 years ago would have been given to a boy. By giving a girl this role you cover all bases and both girls and boys can enjoy the book.

Hi Melina! I've been writing since I was seven, I wrote my first short play at eleven and had my first magazine article published at fifteen. Then my first book at 29! My latest novel, The Coming of the Spirits, is the final book in my Spirits series and is the climax of several ongoing storylines (though it can also be read as a standalone). It follows straight on from the previous book, High Spirits, with an altered present-day Britain where the Nazis are in charge, and every evil spirit about to return to the mortal world at any moment. So, not much for the main character, Ellie, to sort out! It was inspired by the current political turmoil and right-wing resurgence as well as the more fantastic events that came out of previous books. Rob :)

In my book, I have two characters that you could consider female heroines. One is more traditionally "feminie", or I should say, stereotypically feminie in her behavior and attitudes, while the other is more agressive and assertive. What kinds of problems do you encounter, and how do you deal with them, when writing both types of female heroines?

Michael wrote: "In my book, I have two characters that you could consider female heroines. One is more traditionally "feminie", or I should say, stereotypically feminie in her behavior and attitudes, while the oth..."

Hi Michael, sounds like you have a good character contrast there! I don't usually make the distinction as starkly as that - people, especially young people, have many different facets to their natures and a female heroine could be both "types" in different contexts. Ellie is brave, dogged and determined but also vulnerable as a result of her parents' breakup (which turns out to be more key to The Coming of the Spirits than the reader might have thought) and we have seen her tears.

I suppose the problem is that on the one hand, a male author could be accused of simply writing male characters with female names (and the same "strong woman" character comes up over and over again in fiction, and if your character's too aggressive, then no reader sympathy). On the other hand, make them too stereotypically "girly" (whatever that means) and you could be accused of sexism! So I think it's probably best to meet somewhere in the middle and just write people, not characters. Hope that answers your question!

This is turning into a great discussion! Anyone else have further thoughts on what Michael said?

Melina wrote: "Rob wrote: "Hi Melina! I've been writing since I was seven, I wrote my first short play at eleven and had my first magazine article published at fifteen. Then my first book at 29! My latest novel, ..."

Thanks Melina, yes, I shall write for as long as I can and aim to drop dead at my desk one day! My writing and I are together 'til the end. :)

Hi everyone, another week to go for my "Meet the Author"! It's been fun meeting you all. Anyone have any more questions or thoughts on my books? :) Rob

It was great meeting you too Rob!

Thank you for being with us in March Rob. It was a learning experience for all of us.

You're welcome! Thank you for having me! Happy to pop back at any time.

This morning I'm running an April Fools Day giveaway on Twitter, if anyone would like to win a FREE copy of The Coming of the Spirits! Sadly just for UK entrants. You have until noon British Summer Time to spot the Five Things Wrong with my Twitter, follow, retweet and DM them to me! First to get all five correct wins the book.

https://twitter.com/RobKeeleyAuthor

Best wishes to all writers and readers

Rob

Rob wrote: "Hi everyone! (Hope I'm posting this in the right place!) Thanks for featuring me as one of your authors for this month, along with my book The Coming of the Spirits. This is the final novel in my S..."

Thank you for the out-take, as it were, and for the record. I did try to take a crack at your challenge before realizing it for U.K. readers. Regardless, I look forward to getting a peak inside your creative soul.
Warm Regards,
Rober U.