Back from my adventures

While preparing my talk for my next school visit, I suddenly realized I have been doing this for ten years since the publication of Scruffy. Of course there are two ways of looking at my selfless devotion to my art ... how wonderful or what a boring life I have led. With the latter I take umbrage: how many people have flown with magical camels, or Nelson and his lions, or gone back in time? It's only becomes a dull a boring life when I can't get the words right. With twelve books to my name, I have talked to hundreds of children and parents in Waterstones, met some remarkable people including three brilliant illustrators and until their change of policy was a very regular visitor to their stores for book signing events. With school receptionists, I was more often than not known as 'The Scruffy Lady.' 
Almost too doddery now to traipse round the country, I have begun writing for an older audience ... as satisfying? Not sure yet - although I am finding it much, much harder: learning how to caress sentences into life is proving a challenge. Gluing children to the pages of a book and making them laugh was my special talent.