Bits and Pieces



Highland City
Matt created this to help him visualize where everything was


New York Hard Rock Cafe

Map 1 of New York City
Map 2 of New York City
Something unexpected happened during the time Matt finished his book and the time it was published...
The Hard Rock Café moved locations! Fortunately, Matt was able to salvage most of those scenes,
but the "car stuck in the building" joke didn't quite have the same punch as before.


Excerpt from the old 1990 version written at age 14
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Old 1990 Version
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Most of the first chapter was lost due to a bad floppy disk. Fortunately, Matthew was able to recover a couple pages from Chapter 1. As you can see in the 2008 version, Matt changed the perspective of the narrator from first person to third person.

Excerpt from the final 2008 version

      The ball of lightning disappeared as fast as it had come, leaving no trace of even being there. Simon’s mouth hung open in bewilderment. A young, beautiful girl sat on top of Buz and Spike. She wore a sleeveless green tunic that extended to her mid-thigh. The plastic fabric stretched across her chest like spandex, lay flat against her stomach, and hugged her hips. She also wore green boots that held onto her slender legs with several straps of leather. But despite her clothing, her most unique feature was her bright green hair; the long ringlets reached down to her thin waist and sparkled in the dim light.

      “Ahm-Chi Kuta,” the girl said, looking down at the boys. “Masta Baloo andga eichi?”

      “What on Earth are you saying, girl?” Buz answered back.

      The strange girl jumped up, waved a small wand, and chanted, “Aiyee, Aiyee, Aiyee bookata!” The wand released a stream of light that engulfed her body for a second and then vanished. She opened her mouth to speak once more.

      “Guten morgen. . . .”

      Spike scratched his head.

      “Ohayo gozaimasu. . . . Buenos días. . . . Bonjour?”

      “Are you making fun of us?” Buz asked, raising his brick. He sat up and rubbed his head.

      The girl smiled. “Good morning.” Her clear voice was as soft as an autumn breeze.

      “Good morning,” Simon stammered. He could hardly believe what he had just witnessed. The strange girl had appeared out of nowhere.

      She turned and said, “My name’s Tonya. I’m from Paraworld 4329.” Her yellowish green eyes sparkled as she spoke. “Wow, this looks really different from what I was expecting.”



Excerpt from the old 1990 version written at age 14
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Old 1990 Version
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In the original version, Tonya appeared on the first page and by the end of the chapter she had stranded them on Pudo. For the newer version Matt added more chapters involving Simon's life before he met Tonya. A key figure, Butch, was also introduced in the new text.

Excerpt from the final 2008 version

      “Because there aren’t any electro-magical waves on this planet!” she barked. “Impossible, you say? Noooo–not for Konya! The one paraworld out there without magic and I happen to find it!”

      This didn’t seem too unnatural for the boy, especially since he had just recently discovered that magical waves covered his own planet, but then the realization hit him that without E.M. waves he couldn’t get back home.

      “So are you saying we’re stuck here?”

      “Bingo! Give that boy a prize!”



Excerpt from the old 1990 version written at age 14
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Old 1990 Version
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There actually was a lot more humor in the first book, especially dry, sarcastic humor. By getting away from the first person perspective, many of the witty comments were lost. Matthew did this so he could delve into the heads of the other characters, as well as bring in a parallel story without Simon being the center of attention.

Excerpt from the final 2008 version

      "When you first came to Pudo, your motorized contraption was totaled, and you lost both of your legs, and you broke some bones in your face, and–”

      “What!” Simon cried, grasping for his legs.

      “Don’t worry, Simon,” Tonya reassured him. Her hair had already turned back to its natural green color. “They put your legs back on. I guess that’s one thing I have to admit about this world–these people are geniuses. They have the best medical skills I’ve ever seen, and their knowledge of math and science is just phenomenal. Even their language is complex–” She turned her head away in shame. “Well, you wouldn’t know about that.”



Excerpt from the old 1990 version written at age 14
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Old 1990 Version
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The girl from Simon's dreams in the original book did many of the same things as the young woman from the current book but it was Matt's wife that actually gave him the idea to make her a more important character in Simon's life.

Excerpt from the final 2008 version

      Riding atop her majestic beast, the young woman quickly drew near–so near, in fact, that Simon could see the urgency in her eyes. She was trying to tell him something, but the boy couldn’t make out her words; he saw her lips move, but no sound came from from her mouth.

      “What?” Simon whispered hoarsely.

      She spoke again but he heard no sound.

      “I can’t hear you,” Simon said with a yawn.

      He felt so sleepy, his eyes began to close involuntarily. The young woman hopped off the animal and glided across the floor to where Simon lay. As she knelt down, the steam curled around her long hair and engulfed her face.

      She brought her soft lips to the boy’s ear and, with a sense of urgency in her voice, whispered, “Simon, wake up!”



Excerpt from the old 1990 version written at age 14
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Old 1990 Version
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Matt once played a video game where he had to make the character jump from pillar to pillar over a lava pit. The artists of the game drew spider webs on the pillars, and that simple event gave him the inspiration for this whole scene.

Excerpt from the final 2008 version

      Summoning a fierceness he didn’t realize he possessed, Simon struck the spider with his free hand, causing the vehement creature to tumble off his back. But this particular spider had an unnatural determination; as it fell to the fire below, the demonic creature spurted out its web, which wrapped tightly around Simon’s ankle.



Excerpt from the old 1990 version written at age 14
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Old 1990 Version
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Action! Action! Action! Matthew really enjoyed writing action scenes, but back in 1990, he was too young and inexperienced to also include the other aspects of good writing.

Excerpt from the final 2008 version

      When he finally reached the top, a sickening feeling spread throughout his entire frame. He stood at the edge of a steep ravine, and down at the bottom of the gorge lay a rushing river.

      Without hesitation, Simon jumped. Unfortunately, the dark blob spilled over the edge as well. But as it fell, a strong updraft thrust into the monster’s formless body, causing it to balloon like a parachute.

      A moment later, Simon plunged into the river below . . . SPLAT–and so did the blob of jelly. But as it splattered against the water, its liquidlike body broke up into a million droplets of black oil that soon vanished within the harsh current.

      Simon felt the hammer of a thousand little bubbles attempting to smother him...



Excerpt from the old 1990 version written at age 14
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Old 1990 Version
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Originally the Dragunos were called Turenduls. One of the biggest things Matthew did on the new book was to better establish the inequality between the big and small Puds.

Excerpt from the final 2008 version

      “Animals!” Tonya spat.

      “Yes, they are animals,” Thorn agreed.

      “I meant you–everyone here! Except for the ones in the ring, you’re all animals!”

      Thorn screwed up his face. “How can you say we’re animals? Look at what we can accomplish! We have the power to control–”

      “Your people are the real animals because you don’t seem to have the power for compassion.” She stood up, and everyone around them gasped at seeing her long red hair. “Civilized people don’t take advantage of others. They treat each other with equality and civility.” Simon perked up when she used those words. “Your technological advancements are worthless if they don’t help you to become better people. Even my father wouldn’t participate in something like this!”



Excerpt from the old 1990 version written at age 14
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Old 1990 Version
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After the lizards were defeated in the original manuscript, Matt lost his focus for the book. He wrote two more chapters, both of which were also lost due to a bad floppy disk. At that point, he gave up, until 13 years later he picked up the old manuscript and rewrote the book as Paraworld Zero.

Excerpt from the final 2008 version

      Simon saw the lizards above him get pulverized in midair. In an instant, the wave passed through Simon, leaving him unharmed, and penetrated the mountain.




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