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?
Lively but not very obedient. Always liked English lessons best, loved acting in the school play.
Q: What did you want to be when you were a child?
I wanted to be a writer from the age of twelve, which I thought I could combine with being an actor.
Q: Which three words describe you best?
Outgoing Tenacious Optimistic
Q: What is your favourite word?
Couldn’t possibly choose
Q: What makes you cringe?
Sentimentality in any shape or form
Q: What are you afraid of?
Climate change
Q: When did you last have a really good laugh?
On holiday last year with a good friend – we laughed till tears poured from our eyes
Q: What is your most treasured possession?
Couldn’t decide....
Q: What do you do as a hobby?
Never really understood the concept of a hobby – I like gardening, yoga, cooking etc but would never describe them as hobbies.
Q: What strange habits do you have?
I like standing on my head
Q: What’s your favourite food?
No idea – changes with the seasons
Q: What do you day dream about?
Sitting on a beautiful empty Mediterranean beach with a book and the sea just there to cool off in.
Q: What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?
Being a potter
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?
Jacques Brel, the French song-writer and poet.
Q: What quality do you most admire in a person?
Integrity
Q: What is the most interesting place you have ever visited?
Turkey – it has such a long and fascinating history, a balance of east and west.
Q: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?
Before committing yourself to something in the future, ask yourself how you’d feel about it if it was happening tomorrow
Q: What would you most like to change about yourself?
My quick temper
Q: What has life taught you?
Stick at anything you enjoy doing
Q: How long have you been a writer?
Nearly 50 years – my first novel was published in my early twenties.
Q: Was there a specific moment in your life when you decide to become a writer?
When I was 12
Q: Where do you do your writing?
In my study in Brixton
Q: What are the best and worst things about being an author?
The best is working alone in peace and quiet without interference. The worst is working alone and losing confidence that what you’re writing is good.
Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?
Travelling and reading
Q: What do you do to combat “writers’ block”?
Luckily I don’t suffer from it - yet
Q: What was your favourite book as a child?
I didn’t have a particular favourite - I loved Richmal Crompton’s Just William books – their sense of anarchy and humour, and their illustrations particularly appealed! And I also adored all Violet Needham’s books – I must have re-read The Woods of Windri and The Changeling of Monte Lucio a dozen times. I also loved Pamela Brown’s theatre books, particularly Maddy Alone. And I enjoyed Enid Blyton’s adventure stories, The Island of Adventure, The Castle of Adventure etc
Q: What book do you wish you had written?
Impossible to choose
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
It’s tougher than you think out there.
PLEASE DON’T GO
ISBN
1904529321
Published By
Back to Front
Status
In Print
BACKWATER WAR
ISBN
9781904529538
Published By
Back to Front
Status
In Print
ONE SON IS ENOUGH
ISBN
1844281450
Published By
Walker Books
Status
In Print
THE GIRL WITH A VOICE
ISBN
0-370-30423-3
Published By
Bodley Head
Status
In Print
MONSTER IN OUR MIDST
ISBN
0-33-47442-2
Published By
Macmillan
Status
In Print
OUT OF THE SUN
ISBN
0-333-49788-9
Published By
Macmillan
Status
In Print
BLOOD AND MORTAR
ISBN
0-552-5277-2
Published By
Transworld
Status
In Print
SEE YOU TOMORROW
ISBN
0-370-304-4
Published By
Bodley Head
Status
In Print
LOVE ME LOVE ROME
ISBN
0-370-30423-3
Published By
Bodley Head
Status
In Print