Five Get Edgy in Winchester

This weekend five-eighths of The Edge will be appearing at the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators Conference in Winchester. I’ll be joining Bryony Pearce, Miriam Halahmy, Paula Rawsthorne and Sara Grant on an Edge panel discussing current trends in YA and looking at the benefits and pitfalls of writing edgy fiction, as well as answering questions from the audience. The weekend will also see the first unveiling of the Edge Graffiti Wall. Delegates will be invited to write questions, comments, slogans and even draw pictures on the wall, which the panellists will then discuss during the session. Should be fun … and edgy, of course.

For me, the highlight of last year's conference were the edible books …

 

Books made of cake. It doesn't get much better than this.

How do you top that? Well, Chris Riddell and Frank Cottrell Boyce as keynote speakers is a good start. Mr Cottrell Boyce in particular, is held in high esteem in our house, so I’ll be taking our much-read copy of Framed along with me, in case I find the courage to go up to the great man and ask him to sign it.

Pictures, and possibly video evidence to follow on my return …

On no account should you read this …

It was my turn to write the post for The Edge this week. In it I investigate the curious incident of the dog in the locker.

A couple of weeks ago I read an article about a student in an American high school, running a library of banned books from her locker. What started as a small act of rebellion against censorship, turned into something much more significant and interesting, when she discovered that her classmates wanted to borrow and read the books because they had been told they shouldn’t.

Whatever you do, don't click here to read the rest …

Serendipity Review & Big Break Interview

Earlier this week, I was delighted to receive this great review for 15 Days Without a Head from Serendipity Reviews – not to mention a little bit of extra pressure for the next book!

On finishing this book, the first question that came to mind was - where the hell has Dave Cousins been hiding? 

This book is fantastic. I loved it from the first word until the last. In fact this book really took me by surprise, because when I first heard about it, I really wasn't sure it would be one for me. How wrong was I? This book made me feel so comfortable and right at home as soon as I entered the Roach household. The story was refreshing and original and kept me entranced all the way through. I found that the author's writing just sucked me into the story until I felt like an invisible member of the Roach family. 

Read more …

I was also lucky enough to be featured in Serendipity Reviews, Big Break interview:

Where did you get the idea for the book? 

An incident I witnessed in a pub one afternoon. A really drunk woman arguing with the people at the next table, much to the embarrassment of her sons. It made me wonder what life was like for those two boys, what would happen when they got home. All my stories grow from a spark like that – a character or situation that affects me in some way and makes me care enough to start writing to find out what happens next. 

Read more …

Huge thanks to Vivienne at Serendipity Reviews for her support. 

Oxford University Press Bloggers' Evening

On Wednesday I was out and about again, this time in London, for the OUP Bloggers' Evening.

The entrance to the Charlotte Street Hotel is flanked by a pair of Narnia-esque lamp posts, and there's a flag hanging over the doorway; I wasn't sure they'd let me in. Luckily I had best selling author, Joss Stirling with me. As the doorman held open the doors and bowed low to welcome Joss into the building, I took the opportunity to sneak in while nobody was looking.
The room OUP were using was downstairs, and it felt like strolling into a sitting room at the Diogenes Club. I wouldn't have been surprised had Mycroft Holmes risen from one of the armchairs and offered me a brandy. 

The Story Chairs, ready and waiting …

Sherlock's brother may not have been there, but I had an equally warm welcome from the OUP publicity team, who were putting the finishing touches the room – which included this mountain of hot chocolate.

OUP Children's Publicity Manager, Harriet Bayly with the hot chocolate mountain.

Joss started the evening by explaining that she'd written Stealing Phoenix, the follow up to the best selling, Finding Sky, for her teenage daughter. This definitely means I'm not in the target audience for the book. Having said that, at the time of writing, I'm over halfway through Stealing Phoenix and completely hooked. It's a paranormal romance/thriller, but feels very real. Phoenix is a great protagonist and there are some truly evil characters in this book, who I'm hoping will meet a suitably gruesome end.   

Red books in the red room – waiting to be read. (sorry, about that …)

It was great to hear Joss talk about her inspiration and writing process. Then it was my turn in the chair. I attempted to relate my journey to becoming a published author and the inspiration for 15 Days Without a Head, before giving a short reading, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Nobody threw anything at me or went to sleep, so I think it went OK.

Joss Stirling and I, with our editor, Jasmine Richards.
Here I'm proving the fact that somebody will always pull a stupid face and ruin a perfectly good picture.

Afterwards we had a chance to mingle and talk about books, writing, and Dr. Who – amongst other things. It was a great night and over all too soon. So, a big thanks to everyone who came (some, quite a distance) – to OUP for putting on the event, and the staff at the hotel for making us so welcome and letting me have this hooped pencil to take home as a souvenir.

Yes, I know it's just a pencil – but it's kinda cool. 

These pictures were all taken while we waited for the bloggers to arrive. I was so engrossed talking to people afterwards that I forgot to take any more. However, just to prove there were other people there, check out some of the links below to find out what the guests themselves thought of the evening.

www.paulashx-bookreviews.com

www.feelingfictional.com

Getting out more

I've been spending a lot of time typing in the attic recently, and have noticed I've started talking to the cat. No disrespect to Albert, but I'm not sure it's healthy. I think maybe I need to get out more. 


Last week gave me two opportunities to do just that. On Thursday I spent the day in Oxford with my publisher.

My publisher's rather impressive front door.

We discussed plans for a school tour to coincide with the publication of 15 Days Without a Head, then had lunch with the publicity team, my editor and my agent. A definite improvement on sandwiches in the kitchen with the cat.

Friday morning found me stumbling out of bed at four-thirty to catch the 6am train to Birmingham for a Writers in Schools day at the MAC, organised by NAWE. I managed to stay awake and do some work on the journey, and arrived in time to have breakfast with the squirrels in Cannon Hill Park. (Where's Johnny Morris when you need him?)

Judging by his eyes, I suspect this fella was on his way home from a big night out 

On the train home I finished reading The Long Weekend by Savita Kalhan. Page-turner is an over-used phrase, but in this case, entirely deserved. A superbly paced thriller with some nice twists and well-rounded characters – I couldn't get to the conclusion fast enough. The Long Weekend deals with child abduction and abuse, but the subject matter is handled deftly, so that the threat feels horribly real without any explicit content. Although the reader doesn't witness any actual abuse, we know it has happened and see the very real consequences in the transformation of the characters. Recommended, but not for younger readers.

The stuff of dreams

With autumn approaching, preparations for the publication of 15 Days Without A Head are picking up momentum. I received a very strokeable embossed cover proof in the post last week.

Check out the emboss on this!

A lot of work went into the cover and I'm really pleased with the way it looks. I have to admit though, that the part that gets me grinning every time is the quote from Keith Gray – one of my all time writing heroes.

Keith's novel Creepers was one of the books that inspired me to write, and to receive such a great recommendation on the front of my debut is truly the stuff of dreams!

In addition to the cover artwork, I also received a bulging envelope full of 15 Days uncorrected bound proofs with special limited edition lemon yellow covers. The final version will look slightly different inside and have the red and blue cover, but it was great seeing a stack of 15 Days Without A Head in book form.

15 Days Without A Head  (Citric Lemon Limited Edition)

The proofs went out to readers at the start of the week and I'm delighted to say that the response I've had so far has been fantastic, including this one from 14-year-old, Rewan Harper, who read the book within a day of receiving his copy!

"This book is truly awesome! It has everything a good book needs. It is funny and witty, but with a serious edge giving the novel another layer. Excellently done!"

And this from Josh Bouvier, who is 12:

"This book is immense, 10/10. I could see everything happening in my head as I read. I really felt for Laurence and couldn't stop myself from thinking of ways to help him out. I didn't want it to stop and now I want another 15 days."

So, quite a good week, all things considered!

A word from the attic

I've been locked away in the attic for the past couple of weeks, surviving on a diet of tea and shortbread – which keeps me typing, but may mean I have to enlarge the hatch in order to get out again. I'm busy working on my new book for OUP and really enjoying getting back into full-on storytelling mode. I always find first drafts precarious but exciting, especially when characters and events start to take over as I write.

Things have also been happening over at The Edge, with three new books coming out in the past two months, plus a whole host of interviews and features. It was my turn to write the Edge blog post this week – it's about comics and reading, and includes a great Calvin and Hobbes story – have a look if you get the chance.


Cheers for now and happy reading!