Park Gate Primary School, Locks Heath Southampton

Today I had a a new adventure down south.  I met my wonderful publisher Natalie at Waterloo Station and we caught the train to Southampton, a couple of hours south of London.  My rotten cold had become worse overnight and my voice was very 'iffy' to say the least.  I was doing everything to ensure that it didn't give out before the talk to the children and was quite worried about it.  But the voice held up and I had an amazing day.

I am continually blown away by the kindness of the teachers at the schools and again we were met at the station by one of the staff, Sheena, who drove us to the school.  The welcome from the students in the Discovery Club and Cathy Nailer, the librarian was incredible.  The Discovery Club is a group of keen readers in the sixth grade who come together with the lovely Nicola Gale from Waterstones Southampton to read new books and to expand their reading tastes and encourage wide reading habits.  I was given a badge as an honorary member of the DC - which I wore proudly.

The students in the DC had organised lunch for Natalie and I and it was a diverse and delicious spread.  From home made sandwiches to beautifully decorated Alice-Miranda cupcakes to a treat I'd never had before - Weeta-Bix cake - lovingly made by one of the boys.  It was such a pleasure to witness the children's enthusiasm, answer their questions about writing and reading and just have the opportunity to spend time with such a delightful group of kids.

We were also fortunate to have a visit from the local newspaper so hopefully Alice-Miranda's exploits might even be reported in the Southampton news.

After lunch I spoke to the students in Years 3-5 and the DC members.  I have to say that while I was struggling voice wise, the children couldn't have been more fabulous.  They listened, participated in the drama, asked boat loads of great questions and made my visit absolutely wonderful.  I loved every minute.  The excitement in the signing line was precious and one little girl kissed her book after I'd signed it :).

When I finished my talk and told the children they were the best behaved kids in the world, I hope they believed me - because they truly were amazing.

PS Apologies for the sideways photo - I can't get it to stay the right way round!  The newspaper article has been published and there's a link here:  http://www.wwgazette.co.uk/2013/03/australian-writer-captures-imagination-of-park-gate-pupils/

PS I have some great photos which I can't seem to get the right way around at the moment so I'll add them when I can sort it out!

A return visit to Sarum Hall, Swiss Cottage

The second official tour day dawned with some sunshine.  I was really excited to be heading back to see the girls at Sarum Hall, a school I had visited last year.  This time we went by car and it was lovely to see the beautiful buildings enroute - and the extraordinary houses in the area surrounding the school in suburbs like St John's Wood.

We were greeted warmly by Tina Pritchard, a teacher I had met last year and the lovely Kate Agnew from Muswell Hill Bookshop.  Lisa from Random House met us there and soon enough I was having a great time talking to the girls in Years 3 and 4.  I'd met the Year 4 girls last year and so it was terrific that they already knew Alice-Miranda.  They had lots of fantastic questions and I also had the opportunity to introduce them to Clementine Rose and do some drama from the book.

The library at the school is small and perfectly forrmed - a real haven for booklovers and after the talk we went upstairs so the girls could purchase books and I could sign them.  Alice-Miranda certainly has a lot of friends at Sarum Hall :)

The last child I spoke to was a little girl called Frederika, who already knew me from Australia.  Would you believe she recently moved to London from Roseville College in Sydney.  She had all of the Alice-Miranda books and was hoping that her mother was going to Sydney soon so she could add Alice-Miranda In Paris to her collection when it comes out in March.  It was great to see her and I think I do remember her a little from my past visits to Roseville.

I adore Sarum Hall and can't wait to visit again soon.

Charlotte House

With a name like Charlotte House I think I was expecting a story book school filled with gorgeous little girls. And I wasn't disappointed. In a tree line street in Hertfordshire the school occupies a large block of land with plenty of space for the girls to get out and run around. Rows of wellies line the hallways and it is expected that the children will enjoy the outdoors whatever the weather.  Love it!

Alice-Miranda felt right at home - even her uniform was almost the same.  If only the Charlotte House girls wore blue blazers, instead of grey I'm sure Alice-Miranda could have gone off to class and no one would have noticed.

Stephie and I were met at the station by the lovely Sheryl from Chorleywood Bookshop who drove us the short distance to the school where we were greeted by Sallyann O'Dell, the Head of English and Languages. We also met the Head, Miss Jane Mitchell who was very enthusiastic about the visit too. The school exuded warmth and character and I couldn't wait to meet the girls.

They were so attentive but also animated and asked lots of great questions, from 'is there anything you'd change about Alice-Miranda if you could?' to 'how many times do you have to edit your books?'

Tory and Rachel participated in a readers' theatre scene from Clementine Rose and the Surprise Visitor which will be released in the UK in August.  I'm not sure if Tory loved her hair so much but the girls were great sports.  After the talk I had the pleasure of signing lots of books and hope that the girls will be pleased to meet Alice-Miranda and her friends.

Let the UK 2013 Tour Begin!

Hello from chilly London.  We arrived very early Thursday morning and have already spent a morning at beautiful Danes Hill School in Oxshott, Surrey on Friday.  It was such a pleasure working with the Year 5 students on the development of characters - part of a larger study they've been undertaking on narrative.   There were some seriously good writers too - wonderful ideas and voices that shone.  I am looking forward to seeing some of their finished work once they have a chance to bring all the elements of their stories together after half term. 

I've been working on Alice-Miranda Shines Bright too, so not much sightseeing, although I have spent two days working in the education centre of the V&A which allows for a few cultural interludes between writing stints.  We're staying in Chelsea on Sloane Avenue, a wonderful location, with The King's Road five minutes walk in one direction and South Kensington, the V&A, the Natural History Museum and a fantastic range of restaurants five minute walk in the other.  We have found a stunning cafe for breakfast in South Kensington where the coffee is giant sized.  And right at the minute I can't remember the name of it and it doesn't come up on the maps - will add later.




 
Tomorrow begins the tour with Random House Children's Books and we're off to a Charlotte House School in Hertfordshire.  I'm looking forward to meeting lots of readers and potential readers.  We'll also be taking Alice-Miranda with us so she can make new friends too.  She hasn't been out much yet!

The Next Big Thing...

The Next Big Thing is a tag team of blog posts from authors all over the place.  I have been tagged by the lovely Wendy Blaxland whose post you can read here:

http://www.wendyblaxland.com/apps/blog/here-are-the-details-of-my-next

I've asked some writer friends to play and so far the lovely Joy Hopwood, Michelle Hamer and Alyssa Brugman have agreed.  Watch out for their blogposts Wednesday 8 January.

What is the working title of your next book? 

This blog came about at a great time as I my new book, Clementine Rose and the Pet Day Disaster launched 1 January 2013.

 

 

Where did the idea come from for the book? 

This is the second book in the series about Clementine Rose who is five years old.  Clementine Rose began as an idea for a prequel to my Alice-Miranda series but then ended up being her own character and now her own series.  There is intertextuality between the two series as the girls come from the same part of the world and share some friends and experiences (Alice-Miranda went to Clemmie’s school, Ellery Prep before she headed off to boarding school).  They haven’t met yet but I think they will soon. 

What genre does your book fall under? 

Junior fiction.  I see Clementine Rose being read by 5-9 year olds.

What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

Clementine Rose would have to be played by my niece Eden but she needs to get a little older.  The illustrations of Clemmie are based on photographs of her.  Clemmie’s mother, Lady Clarissa Appleby could be Kate Winslet, Uncle Digby Pertwhistle, the butler should be Jim Carter who plays Mr Carson in Downton Abbey (yes I know typecasting there) and Aunt Violet Appleby simply has to be Anna Wintour (I know she’s not an actress but she’s Aunt V to a t!).

 

 

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? 

Clementine Rose is starting school, with high expectations, all of which are dashed by the end of the day; the only thing that might bring her back to school is the announcement of a pet day where she can take her beloved tea cup pig, Lavender.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Clementine Rose and the Pet Day Disaster will be published by Random House Australia and later in the year the series will start to be published by Random House Children’s Books in the UK.

 

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

About 10 days to actually write the 20,000 words, but many more days thinking, rewriting and editing. 

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Maybe Judy Moody or Clarice Bean.  And of course Clementine Rose and the Surprise Visitor which is the first book in the series.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Writing Alice-Miranda and wanting to engage younger readers gave me the idea to develop another character.  I sat down with my former publisher, Linsay Knight and RHA Director of Children’s Books, Julie Burland and we talked about lots of ideas and concepts initially.  Linsay suggested Clemmie should have a cute pet and it was her idea to have a tea cup pig, which I loved from the outset.

What else about the book might pique the reader's interest?

Clementine Rose starts school in this book and has very high expectations (as many children do) of all the things she’s going to learn on the first day.  Clementine thinks she’s going to learn to read, do number and tell the time.  She can’t wait – and is expecting the beautiful Miss Arabella Critchley to be her teacher.  However, that doesn’t turn out to be the case and she winds up with the very sartorially brown Mrs Ethel Bottomley.  To top it all off, she ends up sitting next to the meanest boy she’s ever met, Angus Archibald.  After the first day she’s had enough and decides that a visit to Dr Everingham from whom she hopes to elicit a note that she never has to go back, will mean the end of school forever.  He has other ideas though and lets slip that there’s a big announcement about a pet day - and of course when you own the cutest pet in the world, a tea cup pig called Lavender, Clementine could hardly resist going back.  That’s not to say it’s all smooth sailing from there – the title is Clementine Rose and the Pet Day Disaster after all.

 

 

Happy Christmas and a fabulous 2013 to you all!

The past six weeks have been a little surreal.  I finished up my full time job at the end of October, although with another week of handover it was really the end of the first week of November and even then I have been back to school many times since; hosting an event, attending a special farewell, teaching in the Junior School, looking after the VIPs at Speech Day and hosting the Alice-Miranda Boarding Experience for ten very excited little girls.  It has been hard to say goodbye as Abbotsleigh was part of my life for such a long time.

It was probably a good thing that I launched straight into a Random House tour, visiting loads of schools and bookstores until a couple of weeks ago.  And in true crazy me style, I've also been working on two books - putting the finishing touches to Alice-Miranda In Paris (which is out in Australia 1 March 2013) and writing (and re-writing) the third Clementine Rose book, Clementine Rose and the Perfect Present (out 1 May 2013).  I love being busy and won't be slowing down anytime soon, with another Alice-Miranda and the fourth Clementine Rose due before the end of February.  I am loving every minute of this new life.  I'm starting to find a routine - getting up very early and replying to emails and publicity things then writing, usually to a self imposed word limit which some days has been a little scary.  Somewhere exercise needs to be factored in, and cleaning the house - but I'll get to that soon :).  Seriously Ian and I currently in danger of being swallowed by the mess - which I can't stand but have learned to ignore in the wake of other more important activities.  It's a good thing I've come to realise that I really don't want 'Was amazing at housework' on my gravestone.  Believe me, in my younger years that would have been a no brainer.

The support I've had from my family, friends - who write and those who don't, booksellers, readers, parents, grandparents, teachers, librarians and the amazing team at Random House in Australia, the US and UK has made the transition much easier than I had perhaps anticipated.  And even with all the work, there has already been more time for family and friends - YAY!!

So really what I wanted to say is thankyou - to everyone who has made this year incredible.  To my wonderful husband Ian who walks every step of this journey with me and to my family, friends, readers, booksellers, teachers, librarians, parents and grandparents and the incredible team at Random House.  None of this has come easily - there has been, and will continue to be, a great deal of hard work, but I am so grateful for all of it.  It is indeed a dream come true and I certainly don't intend to waste a minute - or die wondering for that matter.

So, whatever your beliefs, I hope you have a fabulous Christmas and may 2013 be an amazing year of dreams coming true.

YABBA Dabba Doo and a cuddly KOALA

The past week and a half has been a little on the surreal side.  Although my time at Abbotsleigh officially came to an end on Wednesday 31 October up until last Friday there were hand over and finishing up days (except on Thursday when Dot and I hit the road to Newcastle for two library and one bookstore events).  My farewells were extraordinary; particularly the High Tea for the whole Junior School and a large group of senior girls who came over as well.  There were lots of little girls dressed as Alice-Miranda and Clementine Rose and I felt quite overwhelmed by the speeches, cards and emails that I had from the girls.

This week is my first real experience of being a full time writer and speaker.  Yesterday we visited Parramatta East and Parramatta West Public Schools, where the kids were fantastic.  We had such a warm welcome - and I was really impressed with the staff too.  Today I spent time at the KOALA awards (Kids' Own Australian Literature Awards).  I've never been before and it was great to catch up with friends and meet lots of keen readers.  Alice-Miranda At School received an Honour Book award (runner up) in the Younger Readers Category, along with Andy Griffiths' Just Macbeth.  The winner was Tashi and the Golem by Anna Fienberg and Kim Gamble.  Last week, to my great surprise and delight Alice-Miranda At School won the YABBA (Young Australian's Best Book Awards) in the same category in Victoria. 

It's incredibly rewarding and humbling to know that children are reading Alice-Miranda's adventures.  Chris Morphew took out the YABBA and KOALA for his book The Phoenix Files: Arrival and summed up what perhaps a lot of us were thinking - 'but there are real writers here'.  It's hard not to feel like a fraud in this business.  I think because we spend so much time admiring others' work, it doesn't quite seem real to be talked about in the same sentence as many of your idols.

So the rest of the week holds more school visits and a lot of editing and re-writing for Alice-Miranda In Paris.  It still feels a little (ok, a lot) strange not to be going to work every day in the more conventional sense.  And I haven't yet really tasted the freedom that I hope this new path offers.  But I'm sure that it will come.  One thing's for sure, I don't plan to waste a minute.