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Hi, Larry Stroud,

Thanks for posting. I’ll try to deal with everything you asked about.

1. I didn’t choose the cover, but I approve of it. The broken glasses are a symbol of Chase’s accident.

2. I considered RESTART the perfect title, although I also considered DO-OVER. It’s pretty obvious, right? Chase restarts his whole life.

3. My favorite parts of the book are the comedic scenes with Brendan Espinoza, notably Leaf Man. They have little to do with the story, but they’re all part of Chase becoming the new person he turns out to be at the end.

4. Character names are easy. Everyone has a name. You just pick the ones that seem to suit your characters.

5. Specifically, I wrote RESTART because I’m a professional writer, and writing middle grade novels is what I do for a living. Artistically, I wrote it for the same reason all authors write — we have something to say, a story we want to tell. That’s just about all it takes to start us scribbling!

Thanks Larry. I hope that answers all your questions.                         —–Gordon Korman—–