Dave9000 presents Robot Babysitter LIVE at the Edinburgh International Book Festival!

Regular visitors to the blog will know that my new book My Babysitter is a Robot lurched robotically into bookshops, scaring staff and dislodging celebrity biographies from the shelves, last month. So far nobody has asked for their money back and I've had some lovely reviews and responses from readers.

Furthermore, on Monday (12th) my robot will be clanking onto the stage of the Baillie Gifford Imagination Lab at this year's Edinburgh International Book Festival. If you're in the area and would like an hour of robot inspired shenanigans you'd be very welcome to join us. You might even catch the odd useful writing or drawing tip! 

To secure a seat for this showcase of futuristic storytelling, point your web navigation device here. Transmission will begin at 10am on Monday (12th August). I'd be delighted to see you there …

Best wishes, 
The Dave9000 – your robot storyteller for the future

Edinburgh International Book Festival & Inheritance Books on Radio 4 Extra

Well—it's all happening this week!

On Thursday I'll be on the radio. The 4 O'Clock Show on BBC Radio 4 Extra invited me along to talk about Charlie Merrick's Misfits and some of my favourite stories, as part of their Inheritance Books series. Of course, I made it as difficult as possible, and decided to talk about a comic strip and a graphic novel—not the ideal medium for radio! If you want to find out how I got on, you can catch the broadcast at 4pm (Thurs 21 Aug) or Listen Again here. 

Next, I'm off to Scotland for the Edinburgh International Book Festival. On Friday I'll be visiting libraries in Dundee to meet students from local schools as part of the EIBF Schools Outreach Programme. Then, on Saturday, I'll be back in Edinburgh for a 1:30 event at the festival site. Maybe see you there! 

3 Days at the Edinburgh International Book Festival – Photo Diary

An early start on Day 1 …

Dawn Departure … mostly sleep walking

By the time I got to London I was awake enough to appreciate the splendour of the architecture.

Now that's what I call a ceiling!
Kings Cross Departures Hall 6:30am

Four hours later …

I can see the sea … the coastline near Berwick

Welcome to Edinburgh

The sight that greeted me as I stepped out of the station.

Red Carpet Treatment at the Roxburghe Hotel

The book festival site from my bedroom window. By day …

and at night.

On the way in to prepare for my event

Playwright and all round nice fella Alan Gordon
from Strange Town Theatre Company introduces Sara Grant and I

Sara talks about The Edge
while I model the back view of our T-shirts

Appealing to the audience …

Under attack from a peach frock

Gloria joins us onstage for some author improvisation

Post-event book signing. Note the scar (thanks Dom)

A photo with fellow SCBWI author Teri Terry 
(Thanks to Stephanie McGregor for the photo)

Day 2: I had a free day on Wednesday, so took the opportunity to have a look around the festival and catch a few of the events. It was great hearing some of my favourite authors talking about their books and being able to chat with a few of them afterwards. I also got the chance to meet up with Keith Gray, one of my all time literary heroes!

Walking around the site you couldn't help but notice the series of festival speaker portraits taken by Chris Close.  There were some great images, but this familiar hirsute gentleman was probably my favourite …

Philip Ardagh and his famous beard

Day 3: On Thursday I headed east to Haddington for a writing workshop with students from Knox Academy. The event was a joint venture between the Edinburgh Book Festival Schools Outreach Programme and The Lennoxlove Book Festival. I must thank Rebecca from Lennoxlove for driving me back to Edinburgh and for taking the photos and selling books at the event. To find out more about the Lennoxlove Book Festival in Haddington (2nd-4th November), visit http://www.lennoxlovebookfestival.com

I had a great time at the school and the hour seemed to pass far too quickly. The students came up with some superb ideas and great pieces of writing. Thanks to Bill Plain and Dave Swinney for making me so welcome, and to Millie, Charlotte, Rebecca, Ruaridh, Katie, Calum, Owen, Bethan, Lucy, Hannah, Angus, Kalya, Rona, Daniel, Calum, Eilidh and Rachel for being such a pleasure to write with.

Explaining the Story Sprint Relay rules

Discussing strange breakfasts with Millie and Charlotte

I had a great three days in Edinburgh and would like to take the opportunity to thank all the book festival staff, with special thanks to Janet Smyth for inviting me to take part. Thanks also to Jennie Younger at Oxford University Press for taking the event photos and for fantastic tour support as always.

For more information on Alan Gordon's Strange Town Theatre Company visit http://www.facebook.com/teachmefringe

Getting ready for some author improvisation at the Edinburgh International Book Festival

Tomorrow morning I will stumble bleary-eyed onto the milk train and head north for the start of three days at the Edinburgh International Book Festival.

My Tuesday evening event with fellow Edge author Sara Grant kicks off at the RBS Imagination Lab at 6:30. 

A double act to rival Morecambe & Wise?
French & Saunders? Wallace & Gromit?

As well as talking about our books – 15 Days Without a Head and Dark Parties – we'll be attempting a bit of live story generation with help from the audience and … well, you'll find out if you're there. (Those who can't make it will have to wait for the video.) We're calling this Author Improvisation, or – How to set yourself up to fail majestically in front of a room full of people … I'll let you know how it goes.

Then on Thursday morning, I'm looking forward to a trip to Haddington to do some writing with students from Knox Academy, as part of the festival schools outreach programme.

Should be a fun few days – hope to see some of you there.

Don't forget, both 15 Days Without a Head and Dark Parties have been nominated for the Anobii First Book Award at this year's festival. See what else is on the list and cast your vote here. Thanks.

Tickets for the Tuesday evening event can be purchased here.

One Year! Wahey! or My Accidental Oscar Acceptance Speech

Today I'm celebrating one year as a full-time author! 

The last twelve months have passed in a flash. My debut novel for teenagers, 15 Days Without a Head was published in January and selected as The Sunday Times Children's Book of the Week! Not a bad way to start things off! I then embarked on my first school visits – a steep learning curve, but a great experience. I've since lost count of the number of schools and library events I've taken part in – both on my own and with my fellow authors at The Edge –but meeting readers is one of the best parts of my new job.

One of the highlights of my year has to be appearing at the Hay Festival in June – a day full of "pinch-me, I must be dreaming" moments. A few weeks after returning from Hay I delivered the final manuscript for my next book for Oxford University Press, it's called Waiting for Gonzo and it comes out in March. I'm now writing a first draft of a new story and getting ready for an event at this year's Edinburgh International Book Festival with my fellow Edge author Sara Grant. 


All told, it's been an incredible year – hard work but I've learnt a lot and each morning when I climb the ladder to the attic where I write, I still can't quite believe that this is my job now!

My intention when I sat down was to simply post a picture of the cake, but as usual, I've rambled on and this is in danger of sounding like some kind of Oscar acceptance speech! But while I'm here, I'd just like to take the opportunity to say a huge thank you to everyone who has supported me in these past twelve months – my agent, Sarah Manson, everyone at my publisher Oxford University Press, all the readers, book sellers, teachers, librarians, bloggers, journalists, fellow writers, and most of all, my friends and family. So … thank you! Now, all back to mine for some cake …

15 Days Without a Head nominated for Anobii First Book Award 2012

15 Days Without a Head has been nominated for an award! Wahey!

The Anobii First Book Award celebrates the wealth of new writing included in the Edinburgh International Book Festival programme each year. Every debut novelist and every overseas writer whose words are published in English for the first time is included in the award. 

Unlike other literary prizes, this one is selected by you, the readers who champion new writing and who are responsible for making superstars out of debut novelists. 

Many of the writers who participate in our Festival programme go on to forge international careers. The Anobii First Book Award enables you to play your part in identifying a future literary legend by reading the books, coming to see the events and, of course, by placing your vote. 

This year there are 45 outstanding titles in the running for the Anobii First Book Award. You can browse the shortlisted titles here and vote for your favourite. You can also rate and review the First Book Award titles on Anobii.com, a new website for book lovers.

A future literary legend? That would be nice … anyway, if you enjoyed reading 15 Days Without a Head and would like to vote for it, I'd be very grateful. Of course if you have an alternative favourite on the list – such as those by my fellow Edge authors Sara Grant and Katie Dale, or Teri Terry's Slated – the choice is yours. Whichever title gets your vote, you will automatically be entered into a prize draw for a chance to win a copy of every book on the list. Can't be bad! 

15 Days at the Edinburgh International Book Festival

I'm delighted to announce that I'll be appearing at this year's Edinburgh International Book Festival. 

My event on Tuesday 21 August (6:30pm in the RBS Imagination Lab) will be with fellow Edge author Sara Grant, and part of the Anobii First Book Award series of events.

Here is what it says on the festival website:

Sara Grant’s novel Dark Parties is set in a future where the last of humanity live in a domed world and are fed lies to keep them docile. In 15 Days Without a Head, Dave Cousins tackles the thorny issue of family breakdown. Both authors are part of The Edge, a group of writers creating cutting edge fiction for teens. Come and hear them talk about their work and influences.

Tickets will be on sale from 29 June 2012. 

Hope to see you there!