Gracie's in the Newspaper!
But perhaps the most exciting events during the month of December have centered around Gracie's new book, The Sheppard Twins and the Mystery of the Three Thieves! Several local newspapers have contacted her for interviews, and as a result, two wonderful articles have been written in The Citizen Newspaper and The Oakland Press.
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| Gracie and Susan Bromley, a reporter at The Citizen Newspaper |
It's a Mystery—Youth Pens Second Book
(The Citzen Newspaper, by Susan Bromley)
December 18, 2013 - Groveland Twp.- Gracie Harmon is just 12-years-old, but she is already the author of two books.
Her latest, "The Sheppard Twins and the Mystery of the Three Thieves," was self-published Dec. 1, using CreateSpace.com. "I've always read mysteries and I just really wanted to write one," said Gracie. "It's about twins and their cousins who solve a mystery together." According to the description on CreateSpace.com, "when twins Maria and Hannah Sheppard discover the robbery that occurred at Frank's Fine Dining, nothing can stop them or their sleuthing cousins, Martin and Caleb, from trying to solve this baffling case." The characters are teens, but like the author, they are Christians and homeschooled. Receiving an education at home actually helped Gracie to become a published author. "I am homeschooled and that makes it easier to write a book because I can do it whenever I want," she said. "I usually get all my school done as fast as I can so I can write. Sometimes I get stuck and the next day I come back and finish." She began the book this summer, completing it in just months, also inspired to write quickly by her grandmother, who lives in Indiana and to whom she sent chapters by e-mail as she finished writing them. "She was the only one allowed to read it while I was writing," said Gracie. "She just really encouraged me and said it was great. She asked questions that made me think about what to write next. I feel like the characters come to life for me. I just want to keep writing to find out what happens next. I don't have any plan when I sit down." Gracie is a fan of the Hardy Boys mysteries, which she has been reading since she was 8. Occasionally, she will read Nancy Drew mysteries, but called Nancy "a frilly girl who never gets in trouble," whereas the Hardy Boys "do exciting things." Gracie's writing career began when she was 9-years-old after she and her older sister, Anna, and younger sister, Marie, were sent to bed one night. "I had no intention of sleeping and I started telling them a bedtime story and my sister Anna said I should write it in a book and the next day I got out my netbook and started to write," Gracie said. That book turned out to be "Joel and Grace," about a pauper who meets a princess and their life together as they move west. Set in 1880, Gracie said the book is the Hardy Boys and "Little House on the Prairie" wrapped together, a three-part story for which she researched information on bears and land claims. Her learning is expanded through her writing and she has also gained knowledge on publishing. "Joel and Grace" was published a year ago. "I was so excited to hold the first copy of my book, I called everyone I knew and I think all my neighbors heard me," Gracie said. "It's really exciting to know that I did it and I write books and I finish them." Gracie is already at work on her next book, again featuring the Sheppard Twins, this time solving a mystery at a circus. She hopes to make the Sheppard Twins a series and publish one book per year. She also has plans to use profits from her books, as well as sales from her home-based business, Gracie's Bakery, to attend culinary school one day. "Although I love writing, I love baking more," she said. "The hardest thing about writing is making sure everything makes sense and there are no loose ends. What I love most about writing is making everything up and I can write whatever I want. One of the things I like best about my books is they have a Christian theme and most books out there don't. My books are for kids 8-14, I tried to appeal to both boys and girls." "The Sheppard Twins and the Mystery of the Three Thieves," 137 pages, in paperback or in digital format for Kindle, is available at CreateSpace.com or amazon.com. |
12-year-old Holly Township girl becomes professional baker, published author
FYI
To order baked goods from Gracie’s Bakery, visit gracies-bakery.blogspot.com or email gracies.bakery@yahoo.com. Visit her on Facebook at bit.ly/graciesbakery. Her novel “The Sheppard Twins and the Mystery of the Three Thieves” can be purchased on amazon.com, on Kindle or on createspace.com.
When 12-year-old Gracie Harmon isn’t doing schoolwork, she is running her own bakery business out of her Holly Township home.
Harmon learned how to bake when she was 7 years old and decided to make a business out of it to help pay for culinary school. She wanted to create a bakery that uses only natural ingredients and eggs only from chickens that are raised humanely.
“I only bake with sucanat and cane juice crystals, which are less refined forms of sugar. I also use free-range eggs and I grind my own whole-wheat flour. I use organic ingredients and aluminum free baking powder and non-GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) canola oil,” said Harmon.
She makes her own pumpkin bread, zucchini bread, apple pie, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, gluten-free banana bread and strawberry and black raspberry jam — just to name a few.
Her mother Amy said, “Ever since she was able to stand on a step stool, she helped me in the kitchen.”
Amy said that her daughter started the business and cooks all the food by herself.
Harmon says she spends about four days each week baking. She will ship orders of jams, mixes, potholders and aprons, and her and her mom deliver the baked goods to nearby communities. Every summer, Harmon also has her own tent at the Fenton Farmer’s Market to sell her baked goods.
Not only is Harmon an entrepreneur, she is also a published author of two novels. Harmon says she hopes to write one book every year.
“One night I was telling a story to my sisters. My older sister Anna encouraged me to make the story I was telling her into a book,” said Harmon, who is home schooled and has five siblings.
Her newest book is titled, “The Sheppard Twins and the Mystery of the Three Thieves,” which she describes as a “girl version of the Hardy boys.”
Harmon’s book is about the fictional 14-year-old Sheppard twins, Hannah and Maria, and their cousins who solve a mystery together.
“A restaurant is robbed and they have to figure out who did it. ... They have a lot more adventures than Nancy Drew, that’s for sure,” she said with a laugh. “I enjoy being able to write about whatever I want and nobody gets to tell me what I can and can’t write.”
She said when she first held a hard copy of her book in her hands, she was so excited.
“I think all the neighbors heard me scream,” Harmon said.
To anyone wanting to start a business or write a book, Harmon gave this advice: “Don’t just drop it because you think you can’t do it. ... Don’t give up.”
Her mother Amy said she is so proud of her daughter.
“She amazes me. She’s quite the overachiever. And I want to encourage her as much as I can,” said Amy.
