At a bookish gathering recently, Sheena Wilkinson talked about the importance of her ‘tribe’, the warm and welcoming group of children’s authors I’m proud to be part of.Sheena’s right of course. Writing can be a lonely business, and hanging out with people who know all about that can be very special. Last weekend, I attended … Continue reading
My daughter is thirteen. Last week she came home from school upset because her group of close friends were having a party and hadn’t invited her and one other girl. They had lied about what they were doing that afternoon (they had a half day) and then proceeded to post photos and videos of the … Continue reading
Since The Ghost Light came out in January, I’ve been having a lot of fun visiting schools and talking about maths and mysteries and answering kids’ questions about being an author. One of the questions I get asked at almost every school visit I do is this: How can I become a better writer? It’s a … Continue reading
This year has been a most interesting one so far. I’m currently the Writer in Residence for Dún Laoghaire and I have a wonderful office in the library there overlooking the sea. This is a picture of me and my niece at an exhibition at the library. As part of the residency I’ve been running … Continue reading
This month I’ve been thinking about friendship. My best friend, Zanna, went away at the beginning of February for 7 weeks, and despite the wonders of Whatsapp and Skype, what with the time difference and her working long hours it’s been hard for us to connect and I have to admit I’ve felt pretty lost … Continue reading
I’ve had the great joy and privilege of sharing my life with two very special women over the years. We first met when we were young teenagers and we’ve been best friends ever since. That’s a lot of time spent together! They are called Nicky and Tanya and they are remarkable women. Tanya works for … Continue reading
I’m so delighted to be joining the team on GirlsHeartBooks, it’s been one of my very favourite blogs for the last year or so and I’m looking forward to contributing over the next few months. So unless you were living under a rock last year you can’t have helped but notice that 2016 was … Continue reading
“♫ ♪ We wish you a merry Christmas We wish you a merry Christmas We wish you a merry Christmas And a Happy New Year. ♫ ♪” I adore this time of year. It was my birthday yesterday (Christmas Eve), it’s Christmas Day today, and it’s my anniversary on New Year’s Eve. So, as … Continue reading
Sitting on a squashy leather couch in front of a roaring log fire, reading a glossy magazine, does not look like hard work. To tell the honest truth it wasn’t. But my weekend at the Auchrannie Hotel in Arran was part relaxing break and part research for my new book, a sequel to The Mixed … Continue reading
I met Ali when I was 9 and just started at a new school, my third primary school in three years. I still remember how my feet dragged as I trailed behind my mum and two younger sisters on that first day. I had been miserable at my first two schools and was dreading starting … Continue reading
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