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mgharris websites raves the descendant

theMGHARRIS.com gets a makeover!

The new face of theMGHARRIS.com


I was rather fond of the adventurous theme of the original design for THEMGHARRIS.COM (see the bottom of this post). But a new, post-Joshua era calls for a new design. The new THEMGHARRIS.COM has cool new things like a slider to showcase important news, and a mini-features section.

The forum, however, is no more. Lately Joshua readers have tended to have discussions on The Official Joshua Files facebook group (which you need to ask to join), or The Joshua Files facebook page (hit LIKE and you’ve joined!)

Also, I haven’t transferred every single news story. If you were ever featured in a story, maybe for winning a competition, then I hope you don’t mind if that story doesn’t appear in the new version.  If you do mind, put a comment here and I’ll see about recreating the article!

Take a few minutes to look around! You’ll see that I’m already starting to flag up my soon-to-be-published new book, THE DESCENDANT, especially this announcement:

Coming soon – win a Kindle!

Stay tuned for the launch of THE DESCENDANT facebook page, which will be the focus of an exciting new competition to win a Kindle.

Finally, here’s what the original site looked like. Bye bye!

The original face of theMGHARRIS.com

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mgharris websites pinned

MG Harris, children’s and YA author

gf1 black horizon 350 MG Harris is the author of the internationally best-selling children’s books, THE JOSHUA FILES, GERRY ANDERSON’S GEMINI FORCE ONE (Orion Children’s Books) and as MG Reyes the EMANCIPATED trilogy for young adults (Katherine Tegen Books, May 2015).

This is my blog, with thoughts and memories, reflections and hurrahs, as well as information for schools. More detailed book information at theMGHARRIS.COM

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ice shock mgharris websites

Pre-packaged Christmas blog

For the second time it strikes me that I’ve been Doing Blogging All Wrong.

Over at Litopia, the writer’s community run by my literary agent, they put out a daily podcast. I actually believed people were insane dedicated enough to get up early to record this every morning.

But no. Turns out that this is what my agent does with his Sunday afternoons, then preps all the podcasts for a neat daily publication schedule. That way he can put something out every day without actually going mad.

So too the 12 Days Of Christmas feature over at literary magazine The View From Here, was prepped in advance and is now lined up to appear on a schedule over Christmas.

My own article appears on the second day of Christmas. As in – today!

At least it will be – when you read this.

(Btw readers who voted for me to post clues about ICE SHOCK might want to take a look. I give away a juicy bit of plot-line on this article…)

Lightbulb moment. You’d think that I would have cottoned on to the idea from our work developing the ARG that will be co-launched with ICE SHOCK. One of the websites has over 60 blog entries scheduled to appear over a month. We’re hoping that people will become hopelessly addicted and be checking the site every hour or so for updates as the story unfolds. It’s a thriller, so the pace hots up towards the end.

Yet it’s never occurred to me to do this with my own blog.

Until this post, everything you read has been published right away. No planning, just feel-think-write-publish.

There’s glory for you.

I received a brilliant fan letter recently. A boy from Colchester who said lovely things about INVISIBLE CITY and then said he was looking forward to my next book. He then described what he wanted my next book to be about – in quite some detail! Enough detail that I would probably be in trouble if I wrote exactly that plot. I think I’ll write back and suggest he writes up his idea himself. It sounded fab. People stranded on an island and at the mercy of flesh-eating zombies. Cool huh?

Apart from that, I’m having a very Christmassy Christmas, lots of carol singing and advent services and relatives and friends. Today we sampled various bloatation aids – cream tea in Burford, fish and chips, mince pies and mulled wine. And lemon, strawberry and blackcurrant bonbons from an old-fashioned sweet shop.

By the time this post appears I will be a BLIMP.

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ice shock mgharris websites

Help me to decide what to blog pre-ICE SHOCK

Check out the poll on the right-hand sidebar – you can help me decide what to poll in the run-up to the publication of ICE SHOCK (March 2nd).

My life in the next few months will consist mainly of:

1. Doing my bit in developing and testing the ARG (it has a name but right now I’m not telling…)

2. A few school visits (so far four scheduled for Jan and Feb)

3. Getting involved in pre-launch publicity -don’t know exactly what yet, my agent and I will be having a meeting with Scholastic’s publicity team to brainstorm ideas.

4. Meeting my new editor and getting thoughts started re the edit of ZERO MOMENT

It’s three-and-a-half months to go, but I sense that time will pass quickly.

OK so, in that time, what would you guys like me to blog about? If the above four things plus the usual randomness is enough, go for choice #5.

Oh and…you can pick TWO things from the list.

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ice shock mgharris websites

Intriguing announcement at the new-and-improved MGHarris.net


A screenshot of the ICE SHOCK video, which plays a part in a Secret New Thing for “Joshua Files”.

Well I’ve got me new website design and I’m delighted with it!

Readers, I have been SO busy with stuff…so much to write about Bill Heine’s book launch party, the Oxford heat of the Kids Lit Quiz, but most of all working on the Alternate Reality Game we’re developing to co-launch with ICE SHOCK.

That’s right, I said Alternate Reality Game – ARG! Conceptually, our game is a cross between Lonelygirl15 and The Beast.

But! It’s a secret. So don’t tell, okay?

Thanks to David for the upgrade to the latest version of WordPress and for helping me to configure and to Liam McKay of Woothemes for his custom design work in modifying his Papercut theme.