Former PCA Student Returns to Share New Book

On Friday, October 2nd, Cassie Beasley, a former Pinewood student, spoke to the third through sixth grade students about her new book, Circus Mirandus. Miss Beasley explained the writing process to the students as well as what it took to be a writer. Over the course of two years, Miss Beasley created over forty versions of her book. After the revisions and editing were finished, Penguin Random House published her final piece in July of 2015.
Circus Mirandus is Cassie’s first published book, but she has been writing since she was in the sixth grade. She says that she did not really become a well-rounded writer until she started college at Georgia Southern University (GSU), and even then it still was not easy. She tried submitting many short stories and poems to magazines but was rejected several times. After GSU, she attended graduate school at Vermont College of Fine Arts, where she majored in writing and finally achieved her goal of being the writer she had always wanted to be.
Coming up with a story line and characters is not always easy, but Miss Beasley has a little bit of help from her pet bird, Spook-a-bird. She said that he is an inspiration in many of her pieces. Miss Beasley also says that her role model is her younger sister, Kate. Kate, who is a writer as well, keeps her organized and on track so that she can accomplish her writing.
Cassie’s journey as a writer has only just begun, but she has already done much. She has had the opportunity to visit many places to speak about her book, and is going to continue traveling in December to France to speak about her book. Be sure to keep an eye out for Circus Mirandus in the Pinewood Library, as well as in many book stores. PCA cannot wait to see what she has in store next.

By Abigail Tucker