Archive > February 2009

Shadow Goblins!

I’ve been wondering, just what I’m doing here? I mean, I write and illustrate picture books for goodness sake. Not too offensive, right? And then this chap scuttles up to me and gives me a jab in the ribs…  Ah, goblins! I forgot about them. Would it help if I said ‘sorry’? Goblins: They’re Out [...]

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Two Birthdays

Today, Feb 4th, is the birthday of two of my favourite storytellers. One is George Romero, creator of the original apocalyptic zombie movie masterpiece NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and undisputed father and ruler of the entire shambling brain-eating undead subgenre. The other is Russell Hoban, author of all sorts of awesome books, including THE [...]

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BBC Radio Northampton

Breaking monster news: three of the trapped authors – Mark Robson, Ali Sparkes and Tommy Donbavand – managed to get a ‘phone line out of the cave to be interviewed by Bernie Keith on BBC Radio Northampton this morning. You can listen to their pleas for help here: [Audio clip: view full post to listen]

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A Letter to Skeletor

A few years back I wrote the letter below to Skeletor, arch nemesis of He-Man.  I thought it was time to give it a reprint, so here it is. Apologies to those of you who are too young to remember who Skeletor and He-Man are … Dear Skeletor, First of all, many thanks for taking [...]

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Cooking Up A (Fire)storm

When I was younger, I read a lot of fantasy books: Tolkien’s work, the increasingly lengthy Dragonlance series, Magician and its sequels – I devoured them all.  So, upon discovering the first in the Dragon Orb series by fellow kidnapped cavemate, Mark Robson, on the monster’s shelves – I was filled with delight.  I suspected [...]

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Last Seen in Newcastle

My thanks to EILEEN ARMSTRONG and everyone else I met there for a fantastic evening at the North East Teenage Book Awards last Friday. Tommy has written a fine account of the nicer parts of the night, so scroll down to take a look: it’s just a few posts below this one. Sigh. If only [...]

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Lunt Bingwood’s Monster Guide

On Friday I was given the task of mucking out the monsters’ quarters.  Since the monsters’ quarters consist of pretty much the entire cave network, and as they seem to be pretty prone to unleashing steaming hot torrents of poo wherever they happen to be, it was a big job.  And a smelly one. Two [...]

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Deep Pan, Crisp And Even

Desperate for something to eat that doesn’t squeak when you bite into it, last night the eight of us drew straws (David was disqualified because he actually ‘drew’ a straw) to see who was going to sneak past the monsters and order the pizzas. It was Sam…

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The Trapped By Monsters Bookshop Is LIVE!

The Trapped By Monsters Bookshop is now live here: http://www.trappedbymonsters.com/buy-their-books/ You can browse every book written by each of the eight captive authors – each one linking to a page at amazon.co.uk where you can buy it from the comfort of your own home (which is more than the writers themselves can do right now!) [...]

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