The Author Hotline
is
being developed by CW4K, or Creative Writing 4 Kids. They are the company behind a website that enables children to create and publish their own stories online. In its first year it has signed up over 2000 members and has been enthusiastically received by children, parents and teachers. In fact the response has been so encouraging that they are planning a huge expansion of its services. Embedding The Author Hotline into the site is part of that expansion...
For more information on CW4K CLICK HERE
Q: What were you like at school?
Quite scared, a lot of the time. I was bullied for being clever, bullied for not wearing the same clothes as everyone else, bullied for not wearing make-up. I didn't like school very much, though I enjoyed some of the lessons - especially English. I was a difficult child - I argued with the teachers and quite a few of them didn't like that. That didn't make my time there any nicer, but I never learned not to stand up for my views.
Q: What did you want to be when you were a child?
Chancellor of the Exchequer, or a marine biologist or a camel biologist.
Q: What makes you cringe?
I'm not going to tell you because you will just get fun out of making me cringe!
Q: What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done?
Swim to a land-mined island through a sea of poisonous jellyfish and biting flying fish. No, really.
Q: Do you feel younger or older than your current age?
Younger - who would want to feel older than THIS?
Q: What is the most interesting place you have ever visited?
Outer Mongolia. Or maybe Communist Albania.
Q: Which three words describe you best?
Argumentative, imaginative, eccentric
Q: What are you afraid of?
Losing my children; sharks; big slugs
Q: When did you last have a really good laugh?
A few minutes ago, when a friend sent me a funny message to cheer me up
Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?
Machiavelli or Rasputin
Q: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?
Be careful what you say as you can't unsay it
Q: What has life taught you?
Time is short
Q: What is your most treasured possession?
A tiny model of a Venetian palazzo made from cardboard and blue velvet by my daughter - for me to have until she can afford to buy me a real palazzo in Venice!
Q: What’s your favourite food?
Egg and chips as comfort food, or very good risotto the rest of the time
Q: What do you day dream about?
Being with the people I love in places I love
Q: What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?
Archaeologist or forensic anthropologist - I want to understand the lives of people who lived long ago and see how they were just like us and how they were different
Q: What is your favourite word?
Serendipity
Q: How long have you been a writer?
Forever
Q: Where do you do your writing?
Anywhere and everywhere - often in cafes, or in my house where I have a lovely upstairs office packed with books and little treasures. It has French windows onto a roof garden/balcony and overlooks our garden and a field. Or I work downstairs in a room with windows all round and the library just through an archway. I can see the garden, with chickens bumbling around in it - very distracting!
Q: What are the best and worst things about being an author?
The best is hearing from a reader that they really enjoyed a book; the worst is when the writing is not going well or publishers don't want to publish what I want to write.
Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?
Waitrose. The ideas in Tesco are cheap and nasty.
Q: What was your favourite book as a child?
Fin Family Moomintroll by Tove Jansen. And also La Chauve-souris Doré by Edward Gorey, and Toucan Toucan by David McKee. When I was a bit older, it was The Weirdstone of Brisingamen by Alan Garner.
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
Read lots, keep writing, read more, write more, keep reading, write lots...
-
1001 Horrible Facts
Published By
Arcturus
Status
In Print -
Soldier Boy
Published By
Evans
Status
In Print -
King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
Published By
Carlton
Status
In Print -
King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
Published By
Carlton
Status
In Print -
Monster!
Published By
Hachette
Status
In Print -
Muffin
Published By
Evans
Status
In Print -
No Wobbly Teeth
Published By
Hachette
Status
In Print -
Too Dirty
Published By
Hachette
Status
In Print -
Crime stories
Published By
Hachette
Status
In Print -
Rising Tide
Published By
Evans
Status
In Print -
Off the Rails
Published By
Evans
Status
In Print -
The Lost Sock
Published By
Evans
Status
In Print -
Volcano
Published By
Dorilng Kindersley
Status
In Print -
Monster in the Garden
Published By
Evans
Status
In Print -
Tsunami!
Published By
Franklin Watts
Status
In Print -
Hurricane!
Published By
Franklin Watts
Status
In Print -
Earthquake!
Published By
Franklin Watts
Status
In Print -
Earthquakes and Volcanoes
Published By
Quarto
Status
In Print -
Wallace and Gromit's World of Mystery
Status
Out of Print -
Alien Abductions
Published By
TickTock
Status
In Print -
Vampire Castle
Published By
TickTock
Status
In Print -
Zombies on the Loose
Published By
TickTock
Status
In Print
Copyright © 2009 AuthorHotline. All rights reserved