Blog
A cover for Stranger
Stranger is my new book, coming out next April. I’ve been writing it for the last five years, in between other projects. It’s been written and rewritten so many times, that I can hardly believe that publication is now only months away and that is has a cover. And what a cover! Designed by Ellen Rockell, […]
Looking ahead
It’s nearly 2017 and I have news. First, my new book The Liar’s Handbook is out with Barrington Stoke on January 17. Written for dyslexic readers (but for everyone) it’s a thriller about a boy called River who is a compulsive liar. I loved writing River’s story, and I think it’ll appeal particuarly to people […]
A cover for Cuckoo
This beauty is the cover for my next book, Cuckoo, which is out in August. I absolutely love it. You can find out here about the design process by ultra-talented designer Jack Smyth and fashion photographer Robecca Naen, not forgetting the editor who briefed them, Sarah Castleton. Cuckoo is about Jake… He’s a household […]
October outings
At present I am mostly skulking in my writing cave. Occasionally I’m allowed out, for important stuff, like delivering a child to university, or buying food, but mostly it’s an unrelenting slog of looking at the screen, crying, writing words, deleting them, banging head against brick wall and demanding reassurance from long-suffering friends and family. […]
Ten Alternative Titles for TINALS and Salvage
Titles are difficult! As I may have mentioned, This is Not a Love Story started off with the name Singel, after the canal in Amsterdam ( Singel/Single, clever, eh?) but that got dropped because it looked too much like a spelling error, and then we all agreed that TINALS was much better. But what […]
UKYA Day
So, over on Twitter, it’s #UKYA Day, a day to celebrate all things UKYA organised by the completely wonderful Lucy Powrie, 15-year-old book blogger and total superwoman. One of the great things about UKYA is that the books are set here in the UK, and also anywhere else we UKYA authors fancy. My next […]
UKYA Egg Hunt
Welcome to the UKYA Easter Egg Hunt! One very lucky winner will win a huge grand prize of signed books by over thirty YA authors who write and live in the UK. All you have to do is read this blog, count up how many UKYA branded Easter eggs you see in the blog, […]
Off and On the Map
How much do I adore the cover that Atom’s fabulous designers have come up with for This is Not A Love Story? The heart is cut out from a map of Amsterdam, so immediately I checked it out to see how many key locations in the book are covered. The book is about three teenagers, […]
The Most Personal Book I’ve Ever Written
This week I finished the copy -edits of my next book, This is Not a Love Story and sent it back to my editor at Atom Books. It was a biittersweet moment, because there are a lot of changes at Atom, and the wonderful editors I’ve worked with so far are all moving to the […]