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?
Happy, noisy and a bit naughty
Q: What did you want to be when you were a child?
A magician
Q: Which three words describe you best?
Chatterbox, daydreamer, animal lover
Q: What is your favourite word?
mousikie (a little mouse)
Q: What makes you cringe?
Cruelty, injustice, bossiness
Q: What are you afraid of?
Being stung by a wasp
Q: What is your most treasured possession?
Pets, family photos, my home
Q: What do you do as a hobby?
Enjoy myself
Q: What strange habits do you have?
Talking to myself
Q: What’s your favourite food?
Fruit cake, almonds, cherries, mango and goat�s cheese � all together.
Q: What do you day dream about?
My childhood and daytrips on sunny days
Q: What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?
Historian, conservationist, musician, actor
Q: Do you feel younger or older than your current age?
Younger
Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?
Gosh that�s difficult! If I had to pick one, probably the poet Charles Causley.
Q: What quality do you most admire in a person?
Have the courage of your convictions and also kindness
Q: What is the most interesting place you have ever visited?
That�s another tricky one. Probably, it would be a tree house where I stayed in Sri Lanka. The monkeys ran up and down the trees and pinched my washing.
Q: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?
Always be able to support yourself
Q: What would you most like to change about yourself?
Learn not to worry about unimportant things
Q: What has life taught you?
It�s amazing luck to have been born at all!
Q: How long have you been a writer?
I�ve always written, but I�ve earned my living as a writer for about 26 years.
Q: Was there a specific moment in your life when you decide to become a writer?
Not really, but I do remember deciding to try and get something published.
Q: Where do you do your writing?
I write at home but do my daydreaming in libraries and caf�s.
Q: What are the best and worst things about being an author?
The best things are being creative, getting your work accepted for publication and having the freedom to do as you please. I can�t think of any major drawbacks, but if you want to make lots and lots of money, writing isn�t the way to do it.
Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?
They float around and you have to catch them before they drift away.
Q: What do you do to combat “writers’ block”?
I haven�t really suffered from writer�s block, but if an idea is tired, I let it sleep for a bit.
Q: What was your favourite book as a child?
I loved 'Wynken, Blynken and Nod,' by Eugene Field. It's handed down from generation to generation in my family. It's a bedtime poem and I can remember thinking how warm and snug it made me feel.
Q: What book do you wish you had written?
There�s so many. Here�s some: Oscar Wilde�s The Happy Prince, Susan Cooper�s The Dark is Rising sequence, Charlotte's Web and Charles Causley�s All Day Saturday, and just about any historical fiction. Oh! And 'The Fault in Our Stars,' by John Green.
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
Don�t give up. Try writing something of your own every day, even if it�s only a few lines. Carry a notebook with you to jot down ideas, and read, read, read. You might also like to draw pictures of your ideas or make a collage and write about what you see.
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ISBN
9780521747646
Published By
Cambridge University Press
Status
In Print
Tiger Tom
ISBN
9781843625629
Published By
Orchard Books, Hachette
Status
In Print
The Little Match Girl and other plays
ISBN
9781844248636
Published By
Badger Publishing
Status
In Print
Storm Watch and other plays
ISBN
9781844248629
Published By
Badger Publishing
Status
In Print
Tiger Milk (On the Edge series)
ISBN
9781843037125
Published By
OUP
Status
In Print
Blood and Water (On the Edge series)
ISBN
9781843033936
Published By
OUP
Status
In Print
Cut and Run (On the Edge series)
ISBN
9781843037170
Published By
OUP
Status
In Print
Out of Sight (On the Edge Series)
ISBN
9781843037163
Published By
OUP
Status
In Print
Rough Justice (On the Edge Series)
ISBN
9781843037132
Published By
OUP
Status
In Print
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ISBN
9780749669522
Published By
Franklin Watts, Hachette
Status
In Print