Pirate Week

"Sink me! We're not really going to walk across that, are we Pete?" Vicky asked me in surprise.

I looked at the skinny plank that lay across the fish tank. It was only the tiniest bit wider than my feet. One slip meant smelling like rotten fish for a month!

"Aye! We have to," I said. "Rotten Tooth is never going to teach us any real pirate stuff. Not unless we prove that we're brave enough." Pirate School: The Curse of Snake Island page 1

In anticipation of International Talk Like a Pirate Day on Sept. 19th, I've decided to dedicate the next few posts to my Pirate School series (illustrated by the wonderful Jennifer Zivoin). Each day, I'll share a little of part of one of the books, because even in pieces, they're fun to read.  In fact, writing these books was some of the most fun I've ever had, mostly because of the pirate speak I was able to interject into the books.

The simple fact is, every one likes to talk like a pirate...especially when the pirates are a bit silly behind their gruffness. In addition to standard pirate fare, I invented some piratey sounding words for the book. Why? Well, because kids always have their own slang and twist on speech. There's no reason pirate kids shouldn't as well.  

Today's Lesson is for Beginners:

1. It's ARRRR not ARRRG (that's a rookie mistake)

2. Aye....it can yes, no, a question, etc. etc. (you'll frequently see a conversation in the books that consists solely of "Aye?" "Aye!" "Aye, Aye!")

3. Anything made of sea slugs is icky-sicky (icky-sicky, I made up for them to say, because it's funny.)

That's it for today, but buckle up, matey's...there's a whole mess more of Pirate School to come! Needless to say Pete (the main character) was thrilled at the news:

"BLIMEY!" I shouted. I was so happy that I danced around. I didn't even care that pirates aren't supposed to dance.    page 54