I like to keep a seperate sketchbook for each book title I do.

This page shows the character Magpie from the picture book The Ghost Library.

When I’m sitting here in the depths of the caves, all alone except for my pet earwig, Kenneth, sometimes I can’t help but feel a little downbeat.

To lighten my mood I like nothing more than to have a look at my favourite animations on the Marmite-powered computer in Cave 23b – like this splendid classic from the magnificent Vancouver Film School – A Great Big Robot From Outer Space Ate My Homework.

(How much do you wish you had a giant alien robot like this when you’ve forgotten to do your homework?)

Excellent stuff! I’ll post another of my animation fave’s sometime soon.

But for n.. KENNETH! Get OFF the keyboard you silly earwig! Don’t press those butto%vvbabsvhgswetev*^%!knsbna.s,@’A,a[a]smmsu xnx ebc9sm }}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}Ss;;s00987aa’+la;l;”;\abggwqlphs/lyeyeteysnksgsvs xiw~A###

Well, bless my bagpipes!  The wonderful Andy Stanton is back with yet another hilarious installment in the Mr Gum series – this time, it’s Mr Gum and the Cherry Tree.

In this anarchic adventure, the residents of Lamonic Bibber appear transfixed with the reappearance of the long-missed king of the woodland spirits, Runtus.  Sounds sane enough (in Andy Stanton’s world, at least) but when Runtus demands the townsfolk bring him their most prized possessions – trouble pricks at the ears of Polly, Friday and the biscuit with electric muscles, Alan Taylor.

Can our heroes discover the truth behind Runtus’s real identity and stop the madness before it’s too late?  Only if they can deal with a veritable menagerie of bizarre pets…

Mr Gum and the Cherry Tree is the 7th book in this brilliantly barmy series.  If you haven’t dipped your toe into the adventures of Lamonic Bibber yet – I highly recommend you do so as soon as possible.  You’ll love it – or I’m not a caterpillar called Graeme.

Tommy
(er… Graeme the caterpillar)

A while back Tommy posted the interview he gave at Holmesdale Technology College in Kent.

Well, I was there too! And I also gave an interview. In fact, for some it, Tommy was sitting at the back making faces at me. It was a little distracting. But only a little. Because, as you’ll see from the interview, I was distracted by many other things as well.

So much so that I rambled on for twice as long as I was meant to, and they had to split the interview into 2 parts. I don’t have much memory of either half, to be honest. But watching back now, I think the second half is a bit more entertaining. Have a go with the first half, but then don’t forget to check out the second half too, because like all good sequels, it takes things to a whole new level.

To give you a flavour of the interview before you watch, here are some of the things I talk about: my shirt, the Queen, Tony Blair, the Spice Girls, Latin, inspiration, top hats, Borat, my drinking problem, monkeys, the ‘nodules’ on bottles… and much more.

Here’s the interview, in 2 parts…

In case you haven’t come across his books yet, it’s high time I recommended an author who consistently writes some of the finest action fantasy around right now: Chris Wooding.

The first book of his I read was his deliciously twisted ‘phaerie’ tale Poison – and I’ve been reading and enjoying everything by him that I can get my hands on ever since. To pick just a few:

His manga-tastic Broken Sky trilogy is an absolute blast.

His fantastical prison break thriller The Fade…

…is a taut, slick, stylish tour de force. But, me? I’m currently waiting to get my hands on THIS:

It’s The Black Lung Captain, book two of his Tales of the Ketty Jay – out just this week. Like lots of other people (notably the judges of the Arthur C. Clarke Award last year, for which it was shortlisted) I was swept off my feet by the pirates-in-airships, smuggling-and-swashbuckling shenanigans of book one of the Tales, Retribution Falls…

…so I’m very excited! Chris Wooding is an author whose books I open with gleeful anticipation, wondering what he’s come up with this time: once you’ve tried one, I think you’ll start to do the same.

Sam

Previously: An Unusual Choice – Graham Joyce ; The Magnificent Mr Carey

Great news for all Scream Street fans in the US – we’re now less than two weeks away to two new books being released by Candlewick Press!

Scream Street 5: Skull of the Skeleton features a visit by The Headless Horseman but, when the head-loose hero’s skull is stolen and used to complete a home-made demon, it looks as though Luke, Resus and Cleo will have their hands full finding the fifth relic.

In Scream Street 6: Claw of the Werewolf, Luke discovers that the final founding father is still living in Scream Street.  He must find that person, make them angry enough to transform into their werewolf and then – somehow – get one of the furious creature’s claws!

Will Luke, Resus and Cleo succeed in their quest to open a doorway back to the real world?  You only have to wait until August 10th to find out!

Since we started duetting the hits of Barry Manilow together, Andy and I have appalled the Monsters so much they have decided to shove us both out of the caves for a few hours on Saturday. Just to stop their faces melting. They’re dumping us in the care of the Elephant Toyshop in Trading Boundaries Estate, Sheffield Green (nr Fletching according to OogleMaps) and we must answer questions and read out each other’s stories for a couple of hours from midday. We’ve been told if we sing, though, the monsters (several will be disguised as sales assistants) with drown us in toxic spit, small children present or no.

It could be entertaining and also quite dangerous. Do come along!

My exhibition officially opened yesterday at The Garter Lane Gallery as part of the SprOg Children’s Festival.

Alas, I was foiled by a dribbling monster when I tried to escape on time! The monster heard that marshmallows and Jammie Dodgers were to be served instead of the usual wine and cheese. And he would not let me GO!

In case you get a chance to drop out of the sky and go along, the show runs until 28th August at Garter Lane Gallery, in Waterford.

I have eight pieces of original art from The Ravenous Beast. 

Annie West, Adrienne Geoghegan, Bruce Ingman, and Oisín McGann are in the exhibition too.

Save me a Jammie Dodger if you go along!

I found this on my drawing board this morning!

previous postcard / next postcard

Whenever I do events, I often get asked the same questions. The most popular of these is “Are you rich enough to buy a helicopter?” The answer to this, sadly, is not yet, although I often look at them on eBay and will hopefully one day get myself one. The second most popular question, usually from a teacher this time, is “Can you buy me a helicopter?” Again, the answer is no. Sorry about that!

Anyway, once the questions about helicopters / tanks / ferraris are out of the way, the next most popular question is “Where do you get your ideas from?” I’m sure most writers are asked this wherever they go, and although all writers probably give different answers, most will probably mention that ideas for stories are much easier to find than you might think. When I run workshops in schools I talk about some cool ways to find ideas, but since I can’t do a workshop for every school in the world (the monsters refuse to let me out for more than seventy-two hours) I thought I’d run a workshop here! Over the next few weeks I’ll suggest a few ways of finding ideas and turning them into stories, and it would be great if as many of you as possible joined in!

To start with, I want to talk about ideas! So without further ado I present you with part one of my horror writing workshop! Feel free to use the comments box below to share some of your ideas and stories!

Oh, and if you’d like to download the full worksheet that goes with this workshop then you can find it here!

Part 1: Facing Your Nightmares!

One of the most important things about writing a horror story is finding something scary! There are loads of places to get ideas, but it’s always best to start by looking at what YOU are afraid of. If you’re afraid of something, then when you write about it, it will seem genuinely terrifying!

What I want you to do first is write down some of your worst fears. These can be anything – spiders and snakes, ghosts (or goats), vampires, werewolves and zombies, teachers and homework, vegetables, disease and death and, of course, CLOWNS! Write down as many as you can think of, the more fears you have, the more you’ll have to work with!

Three great places to look for ideas are:

-     Experience: Things that have happened to you – did anything really scary happen when you were younger, like getting lost in the woods, or being woken by a noise that might have been a monster?

-     Memory: Things from your favourite books and shows – what’s the scariest thing you’ve ever read or seen? Is there a way to use that idea but make it your own?

-     What if?!: Crazy ideas – this is the most fun way of looking for ideas. What if… your reflection suddenly started doing things differently, and began trying to take over your life? Or your parents, and everybody else’s, suddenly disappear? Or a neighbour turns out to be a vampire? Learn to question absolutely everything – why is the school basement locked? (What if that’s where the teachers experiment on naughty kids!) What happens when you are hypnotised? (Maybe you are possessed by an angry ghost!) Think up ludicrous and scary explanations for everything!

The idea for Furnace came from all these places: I once visited an old prison beneath the ground and was terrified by it (Experience), I was watching lots of prison shows on television at the time (Memory), and I wondered What If you are accused of a crime you didn’t commit and sent to a terrifying prison? And all of the monsters in Furnace are born from some of my worst fears!

Try playing with some of these idea-making ideas and you’ll have a basis for a story in no time!

Next, we’ll be taking your worst fears and turning them into story outlines. Check back soon for Part Two! And if you add some of your worst fears in the comments section then I’ll try and work them into stories as an example!

Part Two is now available here!