Lovable characters find acceptance from children
BY LARRY HLAVENKA JR.
Staff Writer

George Skudera holds his creations, children's book characters Tanga (l) and Freddie the Little Fire Dragon.

Freddie the Little Fire Dragon has gotten himself into all kinds of adventures with the help of George Skudera.

If that doesn't make a lick of sense, try asking your children. They may tell you Freddie is the lovable character from a series of children's books about his exciting tales. He and his pet Tanga are the stars of "The Adven-tures of Freddie the Little Fire Dragon."

Skudera, of Farmingdale, is a lifelong Monmouth County resident and a retired manufacturing company executive. He pens Freddie's days in 24 books that have dazzled children, parents and educators alike.

Although all 24 stories have not been released, Skudera has completed the two dozen to this point.

The books are targeted for first- through third-graders and each story is complete in itself; the entire series does not have to be read for a book to be enjoyed.

Skudera's mission and passion is to create stories free from crime and violence, with an emphasis on family values, love and sharing. He has done that with Freddie and Tanga, two innocent characters who, in his words, display the "right message."

"None of these will ever have crime or violence in them," he said. "My passion is doing this and to give this to children. Being able to keep [violence and crime] out of their lives by reading stories focused on family values, I feel I've made a contribution."

Although he was not an author by trade, Skudera had written some things in the past, but never delved into children's fiction.

That changed one snowy morning about three years ago.

"I looked out of a window and said, 'I don't like snow anymore. If I had a wish, I'd have a little fire dragon melt the snow,' " he said.

He watched a neighbor trudge through the snow with a dog and was inspired to create Freddie.

Just like that, Skudera pulled out a blank sheet of paper and started writing. To this day, he is not sure where the story came from, just from somewhere in his admittedly "whimsical imagination."

According to Skudera, being a retiree thrust him into that whole new world.

"When you are out of [working] into a new world, out of the stress of working, the idea came out of nowhere," he said.

With his story - which later became the first Freddie book - on paper, Skudera had a great test audience - his grandchildren.

On another snowy day he read them his story.

"I just read it to them in the wintertime and they were so excited," he recalled. "They were touched by the innocence of the main characters. They said, 'go for it Pop-Pop.' "

After securing trademarks and copyrights for his characters, Skudera began the process of seeking a publisher and establishing contacts. AuthorHouse publishing, of Bloomington, Ind., eventually picked up the series.

When the books were released in late 2005 the enthusiastic author took them on the road, visiting schools, libraries and anywhere else where he could share his world throughout Monmouth and Ocean counties. The self-promotion worked. Skudera's books now sit on the shelves of retailers like Barnes & Noble and Border's, as well as the author's Internet Web site (www.freddieandtanga.com).

Skudera said his message of innocence has been well-received by the nearly 5,000 students, parents and educators he has visited.

"I've gotten letters from teachers thanking me for bringing this kind of reading into the eyes and hearts of children," he said. "It started from my heart - it's a collection of ideas from my imagination and words from my heart."

The books have gone over so well that by Christmas, Skudera will release three Freddie books in Spanish.

Bigger plans for Freddie may be ahead.

Skudera said he recently went to California and "generated some interest with some movie-type companies," discussing an animated series. He plans to pursue that area when he returns to California later this fall.

"My belief is the world and young people need to be free from crime and violence, animation would be a service to millions of viewers," he said.