The Awkward Autumn is out in the world and the launch is happening on the 29th of March. I’ve already had one lovely review on Amazon and am crossing my fingers for many more. The cover looks gloriously bright and cheerful. It was a brilliant moment when Book Source delivered my first box of books.


Writing has become such a big part of my life that it’s hard to remember it’s only three years since I began writing for children and less than two years since my first novel The Mixed Up Summer of Lily McLean won the Kelpies Prize.

As I wrote in my last blog, school work seemed to take over in the first couple of months of the year, but I’ve got back into a writing routine and am really enjoying working on the first draft of a brand new novel.
I think what made the difference was hearing the lovely and hugely exciting news that Cranachan Publishing plan to publish my historical novel for children, A Pattern of Secrets, in 2018. The novel is a mystery story set in Victorian Paisley and was such a fun manuscript to research and write. It’s wonderful to know that it’s going to be published, even if it does seem like a long wait!

It’s strange the way the goalposts have shifted as my writing career progresses…can I call it a career when it makes virtually no money?
When I started out, I just wanted to be published. My dream was to see a book I’d written on a bookshelf in Waterstone’s. But that’s no longer enough. I want my books to sell, even if the numbers are relatively modest, and I want readers to love the stories I write. Being in a position to inspire children to read books for enjoyment and to write their own stories is a real privilege.
Sometimes, if I’m honest, it can feel stressful. If I get a poor review, or when I’m stressing about getting back to my own school in time after an author visit, being a children’s author can seem like harder work than I’d anticipated. And the downside of being active on social media is that every other author can seem to be doing so much better; winning awards, filling bookshop window displays, selling zillions of copies. That’s when I need to look back and remember my original goal. I achieved my dream. Everything else is icing on the cake.