'Quirky Miller' by David Rudkin

David lives in Queensland, Australia with his wife, Kym, and their three young sons. He emigrated from the UK in 1995. He has two rules to live by; ‘Keep your inner child alive’ and; ‘The glass is definitely half full!’

 

He is busy writing a series of adventures about a mysterious boy named Quirky Miller. This is what David has to say about Quirky;

 

I love the fact that all children can visit imaginary worlds at will. I wanted to write about a boy who could actually visit these uncounted worlds. I want anyone who reads about him to identify with his desire to experience new places and make new friendships and to feel like they are part of the adventure.

 

The main character, Quirky, is around 12 years old and has two major abilities;

 

Firstly, he can open a portal in his room that leads to a different place each time it is opened.

Secondly, he can make a single wish each day, as long as it made for someone in great need.

 

The adventures to date have Quirky healing injured dragons, saving sausage loving pirates, braving an unusual haunted house and dealing with a princess who has been cursed to transform into a troll.

 

Each story has plenty of action and humor and concludes with Quirky arriving home to discover he has brought home a memento/souvenir from his adventure, like a red dragon scale, a gold ring or a sea captain’s hat!

 

The stories are in the form of illustrated rhyming picture books and are aimed to be read to 4-6 year olds.

 

I am lucky enough to be the father of three boys, aged from 6-11 and I think I have a fairly good handle on what they find entertaining.

 

I have read them countless stories over the last 10 years, ranging from the mediocre to the brilliant. These stories are my attempt to add to the latter. Only time and the opinion of others will judge the success of my efforts.

 

I hope anyone that reads them grows to love Quirky as much as I do.

 

David Rudkin