OCTOBER

Hello everyone!

I'm not a very good blogger. I haven't written anything in this space since August. It's now October - Hallowe'en tonight! I've bought lots of sweets and hope we'll get some trick or treaters so I won't have to eat 'em all myself, which would be a tragedy.

So. What's been happening? Well, I enjoyed having a bit of time off back in the summer, but September came really quickly and now I can hardly remember it. I've been incredibly busy. I wrote three short plays for tiny children called Three Little Celebrations (published by Black) which is coming out shortly. I also wrote three plays for children to perform in assemblies (also Black, out next year.) Started my new novel - enjoying it so far, but will start to panic when I get further along with it (I always do.)

I've done lots of travelling too. I flew to Stirling in Scotland and talked to loads of lovely children. I sat on a panel at the YLG conference (Youthful Librarians, in case you don't know.) My fellow panelists were all funny writers - Andy Stanton, John Dougherty and Anthony McGowan. We went on and on about the importance of funny books. I went to the Bath festival and met more lovely children, most of whom were dressed up as witches and goblins as it was a Pongwiffy event. While I was there, I bumped into Philip Ardagh. Well, I didn't literally bump into him, which is just as well as he's about nine feet tall. We are both thrilled to be writing the funny option for 2010's World Book Day. (I've finished my story for this - don't know how he's getting on!)

I also did an event for Haringey Libraries ( that's my borough, in London.) I met a wonderful story teller and a great singer as well as Johnny Zucker, a fellow author who lives near me. We had a huge audience of great kids and really enjoyed ourselves.

Then I did the Cheltenham Literary Festival - and finally ended up with flying to Lanarkshire in Scotland for my final gig of the year. I've also done a bit of radio and a couple of newspaper interviews, so it's been all go.

My daughter Ella went in for a cycling marathon (100 kilometres - phew!) and raised loads of money for Water Aid. Two days later, some stinker stole her bike, so she's had to buy another one.

My husband Mo has been cooking us some wonderful meals and organising loads of boring jobs around the house because we had a leak which brought our shower room ceiling down and caused loads of damage.

Both cats are well and haven't been bringing in any dead things for a while, which is a relief.

If you were amongst any of the crowds of kids I've spoken to over the last couple of months - HI!

Hope you have a great Hallowe'en, everyone - see you in a month or so!

August

Whoo-hoo! Back from me holidays! Phew!

Two weeks in sunny France, oo-la-la, doing lots of swimming and reading and spoiling an abandoned dog called Friton who we loved a lot. Then a few days in sunny Devon with Mo and Ella, visiting our far flung relations and eating pasties, oh arrr!

I've been reading loads of children's books I'm reviewing for Junior Education magaine - the spooky October titles. My favourite was Feather and Bone, by Lazlo Strangalov, which is wonderfully strange and creepy. But don't tell anyone I like it best because the review's not out until October.

I've been finishing up bits and pieces of work because I want to take three weeks off to spring clean and be in the English sunshine, hem, hem, wot a laugh. The Pongwiffy series is done and dusted for now - one more next month, then the final title comes out in October. Clover Twig is setting off along the Perilous Path and I've just finished writing a short Pongwiffy story for Puffin Post. I enjoyed it - I really enjoyed that - I always love getting back to work after holidays, because I miss it. But right now, I want time off. I need to think about things before starting the next book in September.

The travelling heats up again from mid September, when I'm off to conferences and festivals and whatnot - Scotland and Bath and Cheltenham and one in the country with lovely librararians - more about those later. In the meantime, I'm just about up to speed workwise. Famous last words, of course. Something usually crops up.

But I've been doing some gardening and rode my bike, which is good.

Ella looked on my Oh-so-new blog and, to my thrilled delight, told me that some lovely people have actually written to me! I don't understand technology. I didn't know that would happen. I am seriously stupid about these things. How exciting.

Thank you so very, very much. It really makes your day when someone tells you they've enjoyed your books. It's great to have fans in their twenties who can still be bothered to write and pay me compliments. And whole families. And new readers. Please do keep them coming - it's made me so cheerful that I think I'll go and cook some stewed blackberry and apple and eat it with yoghurt because we're on a health kick that sadly excludes cheese and cake.

I think they'll be reading for the Funny Prize by now. Last year I was on the panel of judges. This year I'm hoping I'll get entered. Hope I'm on the short list. Will go all sad and sullen if I'm not.

Right, that's it. That's my August blog. Except that Heathcliff's still got his allergy. But he's eating a lot. Jeremy brought in a bird. The tomatoes on my balcony are turning red! I've never grown them before.

Off to cook now. See you next month.

1st July 2009

Hi everybody!

This is my first ever blog. Will anyone read it? Probably not. But the whole world seems to be blogging so I thought I'd give it go. I won't take long though, because the sun is shining and I want to go and read a book in the garden because - YES! I'm on holiday.

I didn't think this time would ever come. I've been so, so busy over the last few months that actually taking time off seemed like a distant dream. In case you're interested, here's what I've been doing.

This year, the entire Pongwiffy series is being re-published, with lovely new pictures. For those of you who don't know, Pongwiffy is a Witch of Dirty Habits. I wrote the first book about her twenty one years ago. Then I wrote six more. Books eventually go out of print, which is sad. Imagine my delight when Bloomsbury, my publisher, decided that they would reissue the whole series and asked me to write a brand new title to kick it off. So I did. It's called Back On Track and it hit the shops in May, together with the first title in the series. Every month, another title will be coming out, all the way through to October. I was even more thrilled when I was asked to write another Pongwiffy story for World Book Day, 2010! Hooray! We had a 21st celebration for Pongwiffy. The publisher presented me with a cake in the shape of the latest Pongwiffy book, with the cover and everything!

So that's what I've been doing writing-wise. I've also written a follow up to Clover Twig and the Incredible Flying Cottage, which came out last year. That will also appear in 2010. It's called Clover Twig and the Perilous Path. And I wrote another little story called Alien Alby which will be out soon, plus three mini musicals for very tiny children called Three Little Celebrations - coming out later this year - and finally, a follow up to a book called Sir Quinton Quest Hunts the Yeti, in which the Yetis come to London and hunt Sir Quinton.

I've been doing loads of visits too, all around the country. It's quite possible that I came to your school! I spent World Book Day in a local school called Campsbourne, along with lots of other wonderful authors and illustrators. Then I went up to Stockton for a book award, which, amazingly, I won! I was up against four other terrific authors, but Clover Twig won the day! I was so excited, I kissed the mayor! It's so, so wonderful to win an award. I was involved in a nation wide short story competition, which meant I had to talk on the radio and record seven of the short listed entries. Then I went to Oxford, Kingston, Plymouth, Warminster, Wales, Reigate, Finchley, Wandsworth and Nottingham. I was on the very last Go4it radio programme, along with Michael Rosen and Phil Ardagh, which was fun. I went to the Children's Laureate handover and was thrilled to know that the new Laureate is Anthony Brown, who I love. I went to a big librarian party and met lots of big, important librarians. It's been lots of fun, but incredibly hard work and I'm really relieved that I can take it easy for the next couple of months. I intend to read a lot, swim, and jot down notes and ideas for the next book, which I'm starting in September.

Other interesting news is that Clover Twig is coming out in America, a film company has taken out an option on Sir Quinton Quest Hunts the Yeti (taking out an option doesn't mean it'll actually get made), my cat Heathcliff has some sort of allergy and leaves white hairs all over my office chair, my other cat Jeremy hasn't brought in anything dead recently and I'm really trying to cut down on eating cheese.

That's it! See you the next time!