Boost Your Empathy Superpower
Picture Books for Mental Health Awareness Week
Children's Mental Health Week 2021
From 1 - 7 February 2021 it is Children's Mental Health Week in the UK, and this year the theme is Express Yourself.
Results of the Design Your Own Superhero Competition
I am very happy to announce that all the entries to the Design A Superhero Contest were SO brilliant that Ups!de Down Books and I have decided to give all the children (or groups of siblings) who entered a signed copy of Superheroes Don't Get Scared!
Launching My Debut Picture Book in a Pandemic
On 3rd September 2020, Superheroes Don't Get Scared, written by me and illustrated by Clare Elsom, joined the other 599 books being published that day. It's a strange time to be launching my debut picture book, but I've tried to make the best of it.
July 2020 Slush Pile Runner Up!
As you may have realised by now, I LOVE entering writing competitions. They are a brilliant opportunity to write to a brief and a deadline, and are usually a lot of fun!
Design Your Own Superhero Competition
To celebrate the very exciting launch of my debut picture book, Superheroes Don't Get Scared, I am running a Design Your Own Superhero Competition!
Finding Your Child's-Eye View
Yesterday I was finalising our weekly shopping list when my six-year-old put in a request for “That fruit that you can put on your fingers”. It took me a few moments, but I realised he was talking about raspberries!
Competition Results!
I'm very pleased to say that my picture book text, Maya's Mistake, came third in the Bright Agency Picture Book Competition, with my picture book text, Sparkles Ahoy!, also being Highly Commended.
Double Competition Shortlisting!
I was thrilled to find out today that TWO of my unpublished picture book texts have been shortlisted in a Picture Book Competition!
The Pocket Pirate - Slush Pile Honourable Mention!
Today I received some much-needed good news. My story, The Pocket Pirate, received an Honourable Mention in the recent SCBWI Words & Pictures Slush Pile Challenge!
Our Corona Diary Project
I was recently invited by fellow SCBWI author, Kathryn Evans, to provide some content for the brilliant Our Corona Diary Project.
Review of Superheroes Don't Get Scared!
Wow! What a week it has been! It's been such a whirlwind of activity releasing Superheroes Don't Get Scared into the big wide world a little earlier than planned as an ebook!
Cover Reveal for Superheroes Don't Get Scared!
And here it is! POW! The amazing cover of Superheroes Don’t Get Scared, illustrated by the SUPER Clare Elsom with words by me.
SUPER Exciting Book News Coming Monday!
Life in lockdown has a tendency to become a bit repetitive, but if you need something SUPER to look forward to, then look no further!
How To Critique Your Picture Book
So, you’ve finished a shiny new picture book manuscript. Woohoo! Congratulations! Finishing any story is a huge achievement! But what next?
What To Do When Creativity Disappears
In the midst of a global pandemic, with around a third of the world’s population currently under lockdown, it suddenly feels much more difficult to sit down and create stories.
Light in the darkness
There will be times, like now, when the world seems to be filled with nothing but bad news. As adults, this can make us feel anxious, or scared about what the future holds. However, we aren’t the only ones exposed to world events.
Love Will Always Win
Last week I entered Vivian Kirkfield’s 50 precious words writing contest. The brief was to write a story for kids with a word count of 50 or fewer. As a picture book writer, I’m used to writing with limited word counts but this was a new challenge!
The Valentiny Writing Contest
I’ve not had much time to write recently due to family commitments, so when I saw that Susanna Hill was running a Valentiny Writing Contest, I really wanted to take part.
What Happens After You Get A Picture Book Deal?
You refresh your inbox for what seems like the hundredth time that day, and an email appears. But this is not just any email; this email is from a publisher you submitted to months ago.
Find Your Brave!
Next week is Children’s Mental Health Week. It has been set up by the children’s mental health charity, Place2Be, with the theme ‘Find Your Brave’.
Debut Year is Here!
As Big Ben struck midnight to mark the start of 2020, I had an extra reason to celebrate – my debut authored picture book, Superheroes Don’t Get Scared, is being published this year!