Authors for the Philippines

Typhoon Haiyan reached the Philippines on Friday and caused catastrophic damage. It is the strongest storm ever to make landfall, hitting an area where thousands of people are already homeless after an earthquake in mid-October. The death toll has reached 2,300, with a further half a million people displaced, and left without food or clean water, shelter, or communication.

And to raise money for the Red Cross Appeal, some incredible authors, illustrators and others have put some great book-related prizes up for auction – Authors for the Philippines.

There are a fantastic selection of lots on offer, including a signed copy of You’re a Bad Man, Mr Gum! by Andy Stanton (with a hand-written letter), a signed first edition of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell, a signed (and doodled-in) copy of Oliver and the Seawigs by Philip Reeve and Sarah Mcintyre, an original piece of Claude and Sir Bobblysock artwork by Alex T. Smith, and even the chance to name a character in .

To place a bid, all you need to do is leave the amount you’d like to pay as a comment underneath each lot, and if you win, donate that sum to directly to the Red Cross and send the confirmation to Authors for the Philippines. The auctions are open now (with more lots still being added) and close on November 20 – you can see the full list of available items on offer here. So dig deep, find something that appeals to you, and help support this incredibly worthwhile cause.