ROCKPORT — This Halloween, Rockport resident Fran Hodgkins is celebrating the holiday with the release of the first book in a three-part series about a young girl who stumbles upon the family’s role in making hexes within the town. 

The series, specifically suited for those ages 9-13, begins Oct. 29 with the release of Hex: The Apprentice (Brattle Publishing). 

A young and curious Robin West learns her grandmother practices a family tradition of creating hexes, or paintings with the power to make things happen or not happen. 

With her newfound knowledge of hexes, Robin’s life becomes incredibly complicated, and she must now protect herself and her loved ones as the family is targeted by intolerant neighbors. 

The second and third books in the series will continue to follow Robin through her journey of honing her skills as a new hexenmeister while she must continue to protect herself and her loved ones in a series of unnerving encounters with suspicious townspeople and unexplainable happenings. 

Hodgkins, an author of more than two dozen books, is perhaps most locally known for her Andre the Famous Harbor Seal book, which is popular on the shelves of several local stores 16 years after being published.

An award-winning author, Hodgkins said she never thought of being a writer until high school when a teacher remarked that Hodgkins may have a future as a writer. 

“I've loved books since I was a child; my mother was a great reader, and the local branch library was one of my favorite places,” she said. 

Hodgkins enrolled at Northeastern University as a journalism major, but said she soon discovered being a writer and a reporter are two different professions. 

“I learned a lot in journalism school (including how to talk to people), but I was always more interested in how things worked and how people came to do their jobs than in budgets and that kind of thing,” she said.

Upon redefining her career path, Hodgkins began working in educational publishing, which created a natural transition to authoring children’s books. 

Many of Hodgkins’ books center around animals, which Hodgkins credits to her love of animals; in fact, she once considered being a biologist before majoring in journalism. 

Although she is not a biologist, she uses her writing skills to share her knowledge of animals with children.

“I've written a number of articles for animal and pet related magazines, but being able to write books that feature animal characters or share factual stories about animals is a great way to share what I know and love with young readers,” she said. 

Looking towards the future, Hodgkins has a pair of nonfiction picture books set to be released soon: Do Puffins Ever? (Down East Books) and Thump Goes the Rabbit (HarperCollins). 

In the meantime, Hodgkins said this book’s takeaway message is to believe in yourself and those who love you.

“I've always been fascinated by how family makes us what we are, and how people have lives that aren't always apparent to us, such as how Robin, the main character, is vaguely aware of her grandmother's art, and that there's something unusual about it,” she said. “When she learns the truth, it's hard for her to believe.” 

Reach George Harvey at: sports@penbaypilot.com.