Julia Green

Q: What is your favourite word?

I like 'moon' and 'silver' because of the way they look on the page, and the sound when you say them out loud. I like different words on different days.

Q: What’s your favourite food?

I love home-grown raspberries. My favourite cake is lemon and almond polenta cake. Or possibly the redcurrant meringue cake I make... served with fresh cream ... mmmm

Q: Do you feel younger or older than your current age?

I feel much younger than my real age. That's why I write for children and teenagers, probably.

Q: How long have you been a writer?

I've always been a writer in the sense that I've been writing poems and stories, notebooks and diaries ever since I was a child and could write. I have been a published writer for young people since 2003.

Q: Where do you do your writing?

I like to write in different places because that seems to make a difference to what i write. I work on my laptop on the kitchen table, or in my attic, or in the garden on sunny days. I write in my notebook in cafes or on walks or sitting by the sea...

Q: What was your favourite book as a child?

I read all the time as a child. I loved The Borrowers by Mary Norton, and Tom's Midnight Garden by Phillipa Pearce, and The Children of Green Knowe by Lucy Boston. I loved all the books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, about her wild and wonderful childhood.

Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

If you want to write, I suggest you keep a note book to jot down ideas as they come to you. Read as much as you can. Write a little every day. get into the habit of writing down thoughts and observations and feelings. Watch people. Listen. Notice the small details of people and places and things and write them down. Dream. Imagine. Ask: what if ...? Read some more. Read for fun. Then think about what you like reading. Ask; why?