Well, Summer is here at last, bookshops are open and life is returning to normal. Isn't it so lovely to be able to meet up with family and friends in the sun? And how wonderful to be able to sit outside and read - or write in the lovely warm sunshine. I've been busy writing away inside and out, and I'm delighted to be able to reveal the cover of my next picture book - Delightfully Different Dilly.

When Dilly is born, her parents think she is perfect - from the top of her head to the bottom of her foot. The other babies notice that she is different but soon accept her, and love her different way of doing things. They even try  to copy her - in the funniest ways! Their mummies and daddies aren't sure, though - someone different makes them anxious, they like everyone to be the same. Can their babies convince their parents to accept Dilly - and to understand that it's actually brilliant to be different?

This book, filled with cute baby penguins and so delightfully illustrated by Liam Darcy, will be available in bookshops and on-line from 20th July, just 8 days before Mix-Up Monday!

 Roll on the New Year! Let's hope that 2021 is a far better year for all of us.Surely it must be!

I am delighted to announce that I have three new picture books due to be published in 2021.

The first is Mix Up Monday - Maverick Books, distributed by the Lerner Publishing Group in the United States. This a fun rollicking, rhyming text to make you giggle. When Farmer Fred wakes up half-asleep one Monday morning, things start to go wrong from the very beginning! And when his animals all join in the mix up fun, things just go from bad to worse!

The second one is Chase Those Witches!, published by Scribblers (Salariya Books) distributed by Sterling Books in the United States. The nasty witches have stolen Barney the beloved pet frog belonging to the hero of our story. In this fun interactive text, readers are asked to tip, bang, yell, pull faces and blow hard to help save poor Barney when he is carried off to the South Pole and comes across more dangers, including a hairy monster and pirates!

And the third is Delightfully Different Dilly (published by Quarto Books) about a baby penguin, who is not afraid to be different, in fact she relishes it! 

  

My latest picture book Billy and the Balloons 

I am so delighted that my picture book, so beautifully illustrated by Patrick Corrigan, was published in September by Salariya Books.

When everyone noticed that just tiny Billy,

Held all the balloons they were really scared silly

"Oh Billy, hold tight to the strings they all cried,

So Bill held tight for a magical ride!

 How Billy wishes he was bigger! It seems that he's always too small for everything he wants to do, like holding the balloons his dad is selling on the street corner on Christmas Eve. But when a gust of wind snatches the balloons from his dad's hands, Billy jumps up and catches hold of them. But the balloons keep going up and Billy is taken on a magical ride up into the snowy night sky. And then he meets Santa making his deliveries! However, Santa has a problem and can’t complete his deliveries. Only Billy's quick thinking and actions can help save Christmas – and all because he is so tiny. It seems that Billy is the most perfect size after all! 

 

Early Readers!

I am very pleased to say that in the last year I have also many more Early Readers published by Maverick and Franklin Watts, including Pet Show Disaster, The Legend of the Flying Dutchman, Flying Solo, Message in a Bottle, Bad Robot, The Fortress of Fear and many more.

My First Non-Fiction Picture Book - Trailblazer!

I’m delighted to announce that my picture book, TRAILBLAZER – the amazing but true story of Lily Parr - the unstoppable force behind women's football - was published by Maverick Books in June this year. Did you know that 100 years ago women’s football was more popular than men’s, with crowds of 53,000 people watching them play with 14,000 stuck outside the stadium? That Lily, the star player in that match, could score from anywhere on the pitch - she had a shot more powerful than any football  player in the country - male or female! So the English Football Association decided to ban women's teams from playing football  on all FA grounds in England for 50 years until 1971. But Lily and her incredibly talented team-mates were undeterred and continued playing football wherever they could. 

Filled with interesting facts and beautifully illustrated by Carolina Coroa, Lily’s story of fighting prejudice and following her dream despite all the obstacles put in her way is hopefully an inspiration to everyone at this difficult time

 

August 2019 Update!

 Two new picture books out this summer - Save the Day for Ada May! and Scary Mary

I am delighted to announce that I have had two picture books published this summer -  Save The Day for Ada May!, published by lovely Willow Tree Books, hit the bookshelves on 1st August.
There is a wonderful blog tour taking place from 12th August.

This is my first interactive picture book. Whilst there are already interactive books out in the market, which have fun stories and involve children in tapping, tipping and twisting books to move the story along, but I wanted to write a book that was more exciting, more action-packed, ensuring that the child reader would become very involved, having to act really quickly to help save another child. And if it could be funny too, bonus!

In my story, poor Ada May is taken out in her buggy by her older, terribly unobservant brother, who accidentally allows her to head towards all kinds of predicaments. Only the reader can stop her rolling into the river, help her down from the tree, out of the speeding trailer, away from the angry bull, and more, by tipping, twisting and slapping the book, blowing hard, pulling funny faces and much more besides to save Ada May – and her cuddly bunny. But each rescue somehow leads to yet another crisis! Can Poor Ada May be saved? Can the readers truly be heroes?

This book has been beautifully illustrated by Patrick Corrigan, who has created such an endearing Ada May, and whose colourful illustrations really bring out the humour of the story.

My other picture book out this summer is quite different, it is a fun rhyming text called Scary Mary published by Serenity Press in Australia (available for purchase on Amazon). That, too, is beautifully illustrated by Irene King and is about living life to your full potential.



Lots of Early Readers!

I have been very busy in the last two years, writing picture books, but also Early Readers for two lovely publishers - Maverick Press and Franklin Watts and I have had 27 published or due for publication. Among my latest ones are Cara the Cowgirl, Who Will Win the Cup!, The Scary Sleepover, The Detective Club:Buried Treasure and Guard Goose all published by the lovely Maverick Press and The Dinosaur Bone, Goodbye Tessa,  Magic Marcus, A New Friend for Hannah and I Don’t Want Danny Here published by Franklin Watts. 

They are all intended to be fun stories, all beautifully illustrated and graded by colour to indicate the reading level, starting with Pink for those children who are just starting to read their first books. 

                           

I am thrilled to reveal that my picture book Off to Market!, illustrated by Erika Pal and published by Frances Lincoln  was a runner up in the Dundee Picture Book Awards 2015. It was a lovely occasion and the children who hosted the event and, indeed, chose the winners were quite delightful.

 I am delighted to announce that my picture book, When Betsy Cane to Babysit, illustrated by Zoe Waring and published by Tamarind Press, was read on CBeebies on the Bedtime Hour earlier this year.

 And I have recently had several picture books and Early Readers published, the latest onet being Nothing Can Frighten a Bear published by Nosy Crow on 1st September. 

This book is beautifully illustrated  by Paula Metcalf.  This humorous rhyming text conveys a gentle, reassuring message that’s perfect for young children. 

Snuggled up in bed one moonlight night, Baby Bear is sure he hears a monster outside. Daddy Bear insists there’s nothing scary in the forest and, anyway, nothing can frighten a bear. But as the family of bears set out to make sure, and all vanish one by one, it looks like Daddy Bear might not be as brave as he seems…

This bedtime story is full of comic surprises and gentle reassurance. After all, the things that go bump in the night are never as scary as you might think!

If you'd like to take a look inside please go to http://nosycrow.com/blog/take-a-look-inside-nothing-can-frighten-a-bear/

CHALKFACE CHALLENGE!

Many thanks to the wonderful, enthusiastic and conscientious Year 5 children at St. Edward's Catholic Primary School, Swadlincote, who judged the SCBWI Chalkface Challenge competition and chose the opening extract from Help! I Think I'm An Alien! as a runner-up!