Cecil Castellucci facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Cecil Castellucci
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Cecil Castellucci at WonderCon 2017
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| Background information | |
| Also known as | Cecil Seaskull |
| Born | October 25, 1969 New York City, NY, USA |
| Genres | Indie rock |
| Occupation(s) | Novelist, singer, director |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 2005–present (as writer) |
| Associated acts | Bite, Nerdy Girl |
Cecil C. Castellucci (born October 25, 1969, in New York City), also known as Cecil Seaskull, is a Canadian-American writer, musician, and director. She writes many books for young adults, which are stories for teens. She also sings indie rock music and directs films. Today, she lives in Los Angeles, California.
Contents
About Cecil Castellucci
Cecil Castellucci grew up in New York City. She went to the Laguardia High School of the Performing Arts, which is a famous school for artists. Later, she studied theater in Paris, France, at a school called École Florent. She also went to Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, where she earned a degree in Film Production.
While in Montreal, Cecil started her music career. She was part of an all-female indie band called Bite. After leaving Bite, she formed her own band, Nerdy Girl. They recorded an album called Twist Her. Later, Nerdy Girl broke up, and Cecil moved to Los Angeles. There, she started recording music by herself under the name Cecil Seaskull.
In 2001, Cecil helped start a film group called Alpha 60 Film Collective. She also wrote her first novel, Boy Proof, which came out in 2005. One of her short stories, "We Have Always Lived on Mars," is even being made into a movie!
Cecil is a big fan of Star Trek, especially the show Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Her favorite character from the show is Dax.
Books by Cecil Castellucci
Cecil Castellucci has written many novels, especially for young adults. Her books have been published by different companies like Candlewick Press, Scholastic Press, DC Comics, and Roaring Brook Press.
Stories for Young Adults
Boy Proof (2005)
This was Cecil's first novel. It's about a girl in Los Angeles named Victoria Jurgen. She loves a fictional science fiction movie called Terminal Earth so much that she insists everyone call her "Egg," like a character from the film. Egg sees herself as a "geek" and thinks she's "boy proof," meaning she doesn't care about boys. But her ideas change when a new boy named Max Carter comes to her school, and she finds herself liking him. This book was chosen as one of the "Best Books for Young Adults" in 2006.
The Queen of Cool (2006)
This book is about Libby Brin, who is one of the most popular girls at her school. Her life is all about parties and boys. One day, she gets bored with her fancy life and decides to intern at the local zoo. There, she meets new friends who are not popular. She realizes that these new friends are really good people and that she has more fun with them.
Beige (2007)
Beige tells the story of Katy, a French-Canadian girl. She has to spend a summer with her father, Beau "The Rat" Ratner, whom she doesn't know very well.
Rose Sees Red (2010)
Set in New York in the 1980s, this novel is about two ballet dancers. One is American, and the other is Russian. Their friendship grows stronger, even though their countries have different cultures and political ideas.
First Day on Earth (2011)
In this story, a man named Mal believes aliens have taken him. He starts going to a support group for people who think they've been abducted. There, he meets Hooper, who might be a traveler from another world.
The Year of the Beasts (2012)
This book is a mix of a regular story and a comic book. It tells two stories at once. One is about two sisters spending the summer together. The other is a comic story about a girl who wakes up and finds she has the powers of Medusa.
Tin Star (2014) and Stone in the Sky (2015)
Tin Star is a young adult novel about a girl who is left alone on an alien space station. Stone in the Sky is the exciting sequel to this story.
Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure (2015)
This book is part of the Star Wars series. It follows Princess Leia on an adventure, connecting to the movie Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Picture Books
Grandma's Gloves (2011)
This is a picture book for younger readers. It's about a young girl and her grandmother who love gardening together. The story shows how a child finds comfort by continuing activities they shared with a grandparent who is no longer there. This book won a California Book Award Gold Medal.
Odd Duck (2013)
Illustrated by Sara Varon, this book is about two ducks who are a bit unusual. They become good friends even though they are both "odd."
Comics and Graphic Novels
Cecil Castellucci is also a talented writer of comic books and graphic novels. A graphic novel is like a comic book, but it tells a longer story.
The P.L.A.I.N. Janes Series
The P.L.A.I.N. Janes (2007) and Janes in Love (2008)
Cecil wrote the very first graphic novel for DC Comics' Minx series, which was made for young adult readers. The story is about a girl named Jane who moves to the suburbs after a scary event in her hometown. She forms a group called P.L.A.I.N. (People Loving Art In Neighborhoods). At school, she doesn't join the popular crowd. Instead, she finds friends with three other girls, all named Jane or Jayne! Cecil won an award called the Joe Shuster Award for her writing in Janes. A sequel, Janes in Love, came out in 2008. In this book, the P.L.A.I.N. Janes get involved in love stories and try to win an art contest.
Shade, the Changing Girl
In 2016, DC Comics started a new series called Young Animal. One of the first comics was Shade, The Changing Girl, written by Cecil. In this story, a character named Shade is now a female high school student. After 12 issues, the series was relaunched as Shade, the Changing Woman.
Other Comics Work
Soupy Leaves Home (2017)
This graphic novel is about a runaway who travels by hopping on trains in 1932. It was published by Dark Horse Comics.
Music by Cecil Castellucci
Cecil Castellucci has been involved in music for a long time, both with bands and as a solo artist.
Nerdy Girl
Nerdy Girl was a band Cecil was in. They released an EP (a short album) and a single.
Nerdy Girl 10" EP (1994)
- Do You Like Me?
- Glad To Know
- Roof of Wilson
- Hate Me
- Nerdy Girl
- Song 7
New Jersey 7" single (1995)
This single had three songs, including a cover of The Beatles' song "She Said She Said."
Twist Her (1997)
This was Nerdy Girl's full album.
- Casa Nova
- Hate Me
- Georgiana
- Iceman (Murder on the Rue Morgue)
- Anne Elliot
- Cast Off
- Single Bed
- Do You Like Me
- Wicked
- 3 Wishes
- Judy
- Aranova
Cecil Seaskull
After Nerdy Girl, Cecil recorded music on her own as Cecil Seaskull.
Whoever (1998)
This was her solo album.
- True Love
- 2E
- La Song (featuring Rufus Wainwright)
- Toutes ces filles
- Beautiful Everything
- Fairfax & Melrose
- Cheap
- The Bruise
- Dim
- Ridiculous
- What's Wrong?
- Sweet Girl
For Lovers and Rats (unreleased)
This album was never officially released, but some songs like "Ode to a Boy with a Girlfriend" can be found online.
Other Songs
Cecil has also contributed songs to other albums, like "My Chores" and "Take Me." She even did a live cover of "Movin' Right Along" from The Muppets!
Les Aventures de Madame Merveille
In 2010, Cecil was asked to write the story for an opera called Les Aventures de Madame Merveille. An opera is a play where the words are sung. This one was a "live comic book opera" and featured art by several artists. It was performed in Montreal.
Films by Cecil Castellucci
Cecil Castellucci has also worked on films.
Starwoids (2001)
This is a documentary film about Star Wars fans. It shows people who camped out for six weeks to buy tickets for the movie Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. Cecil Castellucci was part of this group and appears in the film.
Alpha 60 Film Collective
Through her film group, Alpha 60, Cecil helped make a movie based on what actors wrote in a questionnaire. This film was shown at the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles.
Awards and Nominations
Cecil Castellucci has received many awards and nominations for her work:
- 2018 Eisner Award nomination for Best Short Story: "Ethel Byrne"
- 2018 Harvey Award nomination for Book of the Year: Shade the Changing Girl
- 2018 EGL (Excellence in Graphic Literature) Award nominations in three categories: Book of the Year, Best Middle Grade, Mosaic Award for Soupy Leaves Home
- 2018 Best Feminist Reads Amelia Bloomer Award for Soupy Leaves Home
