From Talk of Aliens and Space to…

talk of space. I’m sorry, but how cool is this? A planet? They’ve discovered a planet? Quite a way from our solar system, but they think they’ve discovered A PLANET!
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What Brilliant Friends

It’s been a hard week, beginning with the last of my World Book Day visits (I can hardly believe that this has been my third World Book Day, by the way) which was followed by hard writing work. I spent all week tweaking a short story. Goodness me, it was hard work! I reminded myself of the poet in that joke (the one which goes something like: a poet was telling a friend how hard he’d been working. ‘I spent the whole morning putting a comma in,’ he said, ‘and the whole afternoon taking it out.‘).

With the story almost done I found myself with a few little niggles to sort out. So I sent three different questions (they came up at different times) to three trusted readers. And you know what? Every one of them not only answered my question – they all went into real detail, commenting on the piece as a whole; far beyond the call of duty. (To be fair, just having them look at it was help enough and hugely appreciated.)

So thanks, folks. Big time. You know who you are.

And thanks as well to everyone who’s provided me with skipping rhymes. That’s been a massive help, and hugely appreciated, as well.

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And in other news…

I’ve been reading, in the small opportunities I’ve had, The Daughter Game. Very much liking it so far.

This interview with Leila Rasheed is cool, as is this discussion, on Chicklish (can’t believe I’ve not mentioned them before!) about her book.

And thanks to Gillian for this. It is a lot of fun but be warned, it’s also rather addictive. (My best’s 22secs – beat that!)

I Have Been Waiting a Long Time For This!!!!

Today is a really special day. And do you know why? (Girls, you should.)

Today is a special day because today is the day when Chips, Beans and Limousines, the fantastic diary of Bathsheba Clarice de Trop, by the utterly brilliant Leila Rasheed, is released.

I was lucky enough to read this book a while ago, and even luckier to be given a proof copy (well, for me and my beloved) by Leila when we met in Brussels last year. It’s wonderful. It’s already one of my favourite books. It’s a book that, if you are girl, 9 years old or older, who likes good books, you should really look at reading. (You won’t be disappointed.) Honestly, it’s a book that makes me grin wildly just thinking about it – I love it!
And as if today wasn’t special enough – here’s an interview with the author:

So, who’s it for and what’s it about?
It’s mostly for girls aged around 9 to 11. (But you can also read it if you are 12! Or 8! Or 47!) It’s about an extraordinary girl called Bathsheba Clarice de Trop. At the start of the book, she seems like a horrible, spoiled and self-important person. But as you read on, you realise that in fact, all her arrogance and showing-off is a front. She’s lonely and unhappy inside. The story is about how she finds happiness after many ups and downs and learns not to be afraid of showing who she really is. By the end of the book, you find out she’s actually really nice inside. And she’s very funny all the way through!
Why did you write it?
The character just bounced into my head one day and started talking about herself! I thought, this is so much fun to listen to, I’d better write it down.
What do you hope readers will get from it?
One reader said something that I feel is just right. She said it made me laugh out loud, but it also made me think: That’s what I hope it will do!
How long did it take you to write?
The first draft was really quick – a week or so. Then editing was about a month. Then there was the whole editing process with the publisher, Usborne, which took more months.
Did you use a fountain pen to write it?
No, sorry! Fountain pens are wasted on me, I have terrible handwriting. I used biro, and then computer.
Tell us something about you.
I live in Brussels, and it’s not boring, it’s a gorgeous city with stunning architecture, great food and wonderful people.
What’s next for you?
I am working on the second Bathsheba Book as we speak, then there will be a third. In between, I continue to work on other novels for children and teenagers. I write as much as I can. I love it so much, I can’t imagine anything else I would rather do.
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Click here to order your copy.

And click here for some other top news about another top writer, Trilby Kent.
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And in the midst of all this excitement I’ll be spending the afternoon getting sorted for Monday’s visit to Lower Park Primary School. And maybe, doing some writing

Excellent News

The brilliantly fantastic “Chips, Beans and Limousines: The Fantastic Diary of Bathsheba Clarice De Trop!” by the equally brilliantly fantastic Leila Rasheed is now available for pre-order on amazon.

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I’m still typing up my story from the other week. The word count at the base of my screen is saying almost 16700 and according to my calculations I’ve still got 2 – 2500 handwritten words left to type. All this is good as it means that I’m on target for around 20k. Looking forward to getting it finished and getting stuck in to the editing.

And here’s what things are looking like this side of the screen:

Pics and Book Spotting and Things

As you may or not know a couple of weeks ago my beloved and I holidayed in the wonderful city of Bruges. And it seems that as much as one may try to get away from Very Nice Authors, as you can see from the photos, it’s hard. I was thrilled to see Roger N Morris’ A Gentle Axe in the window of a fabulous book shop in the middle of Bruges, and Kate Long’s Queen Mum in Brussels airport. Good show! (While there I was also able to meet up with the lovely Leila Rasheed, who as well as treating us to a whistle-stop tour of Brussels, very kindly gave me a proof copy of Chips, Beans and Limousines – which is FAB!)
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And the other picture was taken last night as I read at the Church House pub where my writing group launched their collection of poems and short stories. It was a great night and I enjoyed it very much. The quality of readings was excellent. So thanks to everyone who came to listen or to read and thanks to those who bought copies of our book. (If anyone would like a copy then drop me a line.)
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Very happy to be able to point you in the direction of this – it’s Emma Darwin’s blog. Emma (who is definitely on my nicest people I’ve never met list) is not only a wonderfully talented writer but also seems to know pretty much everything about everything. I get the feeling her blog will be terrifically interesting. Check it out!

And now, back to the writing.

And now the Exciting News

And exciting news it is indeed.

Where to begin?

First with the announcement that ‘CHIPS AND HORRIBLE MALTESERS: THE FANTASTIC DIARY OF BATHSHEBA CLARICE DE TROP’ by Leila Rasheed will be published by Usborne in the spring of 2008.

Now I’ve been lucky enough to see this book being written (kinda). I remember having a conversation with my girlfriend after reading the first couple of chapters (via the writewords site) a year or so ago, telling her what a fantastic story it was. ‘That will be a book,’ I told her, ‘and a good one at that.’ It’s nice to be right, of course, but it’s nicer to see something worthy of being published, published.

And what’s more, the author, Leila Rasheed, is also on my list of nicest people I’ve never met. I’m thrilled for her and can’t wait to get my copy. (I should mention that the book’s for 8-12 year olds.)

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Exciting news part 2.

Another name on the nicest people I’ve never met list is Roger (sometimes N) Morris. And I’m delighted to say here that his latest novel, A/The Gentle Axe, has been reviewed in the New York Times – favourably! (You can see the review here.) Big congrats to him. And that’s another book I can’t wait to get reading.

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And while I’m on the subject of books, I think it’s been too long since I mentioned mine. So here it is.

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Thanks to those who took the time to send their best wishes about my Nan. It was warmly appreciated.

And thanks too, to the very lovely Emma, who was good enough to cast her eye over the poem at very short notice – and who made some fantastic editorial suggestions.

Thank you all very much.

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Right, off to get some writing done before this afternoon’s workshop.