Book details

  • Genre:children's fiction
  • Sub-genre:Imagination & Play
  • Age Range (years):8 - 12
  • Language:English
  • Pages:148
  • eBook ISBN:9798350987959
  • Paperback ISBN:9798350987942

This is Ridiculous!

By Paul Marquez-R.

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Overview

A seventeen-year-old raccoon named Paul learns to overcome his stage fright and doubts of becoming a great writer, all through the introspection of his own creativity, talents, and fictional characters that reside in the very stories within his own mind.
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Description

Paul is a seventeen-year-old raccoon well into his senior year of high school. His confidence in acting and writing is fading away, due to pressure to mature and move past his negative experiences with his former high school theatre teacher. Inside his mind exists a creative, colorful, "ridiculous" literary fantasy world known as Storytime Central, a community where fictional characters written by Paul reside in their own cozy little stories. Mr. Baxter Omniscient, the head narrator and overlord of Paul's creativity, has been stifling Paul's creativity at every chance he can get. He rules Storytime Central with a red hot iron fist, and the characters of Paul's stories must obey him at all times. Mr. Omniscient continues to remind Paul that he is "too old" for such childish things and needs to grow up, but a group of headstrong characters refuse to allow Paul's creativity to be controlled any longer. A creative rebellion is incited to stand up to Mr. Omniscient once and for all, reminding him that characters can be in control of telling their own stories. However, with Mr. Omniscient's tight grasp on all things related to Storytime Central, will these bold and rebellious characters stand a chance? Will Paul be able to break through and stand up to his growing stage fright and doubts?
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About The Author

Paul Marquez-R. was born and raised in Tucson, Arizona, where he graduated from the University of Arizona with a degree in film and Pima Community College with a degree in visual and performing arts. Along the journey, he rediscovered his passion for writing and the performing arts after shying away from it for many years. His renewed passion for the performing arts has also further inspired his writing passion, and he continues to be involved in many theatrical productions, whether acting in them or working behind-the-scenes from the technical standpoint. In the context of his debut book "This is Ridiculous!", it is a fictional and child-friendly take on his return to his passions of writing and the performing arts. The story takes place inside the mind of his animal counterpart Paul the Raccoon at an earlier stage in his life, when he was a seventeen-year-old high school senior on the verge of graduation. Paul the Raccoon's story of overcoming his stage fright, finding the courage to audition for the spring musical, and regaining confidence in his writing skills all reflect the author's real journey from being terrified to perform onstage during his high school days and keeping his creative writing skills hidden, to growing more confident in sharing his talents with others. He made his own story accessible to younger readers who happen to be aspiring writers or want to find the courage to perform in front of others as well, all by diving into the fictional world inside his mind known as Storytime Central, a place where all of his creativity and talent originate. Through the use of peppy, colorful animal characters and plenty of "ridiculousness" as the title implies, the message that anyone can be creative, take risks to face their fears, and fight against the insecurities that stifle their talents is made clear. It is the story for anyone who has ever had doubts about sharing themselves and their talents with others.
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