Authors in the Spotlight

Tanya Landman

Carnegie Medal winning Tanya Landman is the author of more than forty books for children and young adults.

Anna James

Anna James is a writer and journalist. Before turning her hand to writing children’s books Anna was a secondary school librarian for 5 years, Book News Editor at The Bookseller magazine and Literary Editor of Elle UK.

Manjeet Mann

Manjeet Mann is an actress, playwright, screenwriter, and director. She is founder of Run the World and author of two award winning YA novels – Run, Rebel and The Crossing.

Beverley Naidoo

Beverley Naidoo is the Carnegie Medal-winning author of many novels for children and young adults. Much of Beverley’s writing is influenced by her upbringing during the apartheid years in South Africa.

Chris Bradford

Author of over 35 award-winning titles, he also writes dyslexic-friendly books – Gamer, Ninja and SPEAR – and the highly popular DFE-validated Little Wandle phonics series Jake and Jen.

Ken Wilson-Max

Ken Wilson-Max was born in Zimbabwe. His first book was published in 1993 and since then there have been over 70, with a string of national and international awards.

Ross Montgomery

Ross Montgomery is the author of the picture book Space Tortoise, His debut novel, Alex, the Dog and the Unopenable Door was selected as one of The Sunday Times’ “Top 100 Modern Children’s Classics”.

Vivian French

Vivian French is a much-loved author who has written more than 300 books for children. In 2016, she received an MBE for services to literature, literacy, illustration and the arts.

Marcus Sedgwick

Marcus Sedgwick has written over 50 books, including books for adults, young adults, and younger children, and of all types, from picture books to non-fiction, comics to graphic novels. He has won many awards for his work over the last quarter of a century.

Petr Horácek

Petr Horácek graduated as a Master of Fine Art in 1994. Petr has written and illustrated many books for children and won awards for his books in Britain, USA and Holland. His new book, The Perfect Present was published on 25th August 2022.

Nicola Skinner

Nicola Skinner worked as a copywriter and journalist for the likes of the Guardian and the Pool before being inspired to write for young readers.

Jackie Morris

Jackie Morris is the bestselling author and illustrator, photographer and painter who created the international bestseller, The Lost Words, winner of the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal in 2019, with Robert Macfarlane.

Lissa Evans

Following a medical degree, Lissa Evans changed careers to become a comedy producer for radio and TV. Her children’s novels have been shortlisted for the Costa Children’s Book Award, Carnegie Medal, and Branford Boase Award.

Chrissie Sains

Chrissie Sains is the author of The Alien in the Jam Factory and The Treasure Under the Jam Factory. Chrissie has a background in marketing and events but now writes full time and is a graduate of the Golden Egg Academy and a member of SCBWI.

Neill Cameron

Neill Cameron is an award-winning author and cartoonist. He is the creator of several comic books, including the Mega Robo Bros series and How to Make Awesome Comics.

Helen Cooper

Helen Cooper is an author and illustrator whose books have won lots of awards including the Kate Greenaway Medal – twice. She also writes and illustrates Chapter Books and sometimes writes Picture Books in collaboration with other illustrators.

Larraine Harrison

Larraine Harrison writes books for both teachers and children. She likes to involve children in the writing process by asking them to review her drafts and has managed to persuade her grandchildren to be the models on her book covers.

Shereen Malherbe

Shereen Malherbe is a British Palestinian author of novels and children’s books. After travelling throughout the Middle East, Shereen now resides in the UK with her husband and four children.

Laura Mucha

Laura Mucha is an award-winning poet and author whose work has been featured on TV, radio and public transport, as well as in
hospitals, hospices, prisons, magazines and books around the world.

Lucy Strange

Lucy Strange is a bestselling children’s author. Her novels for booklovers aged 9+ include The Secret of Nightingale Wood, Our Castle by the Sea and The Ghost of Gosswater.

Marcia Williams

Marcia Williams is famous for her retellings of classic stories. Marcia’s humorous comic-strip illustrations are hugely popular all over the world.

Rob Biddulph

Rob Biddulph is a bestselling and multi award-winning author/illustrator whose picture books include Blown Away, Odd Dog Out, Kevin and Show and Tell.

Lucy Courtenay

Lucy Courtenay has written over 100 books, both as herself and as a team writer on series such as Beast Quest.

Sue Cheung

Sue Cheung is an award-winning British-Chinese author/illustrator of books for children and young adults.

Jenny McLachlan

Jenny McLachlan writes funny, accessible books that children love. She’s currently writing the third book in the popular Land of Roar series.

Frank Cottrell-Boyce

Frank Cottrell Boyce is an award-winning author and screenwriter. Millions, his debut children’s novel, won the CILIP Carnegie Medal.

Hilary McKay

Hilary McKay is the award winner author of The Skylarks War, The Exiles and the Smarties among many other critically acclaimed titles.

Chris Callaghan

Chris Callaghan is the author of the award winning story ‘The Great Chocoplot’ and his brand new series of books ‘Shinoy and the Chaos Crew’.

Photo: Piers Torday

Piers Torday

Piers Torday is the author of the award-winning trilogy The Last Wild and many other children’s books.

Vashti Hardy

Vashti Hardy is a writer of children’s books. Vashti has a special interest in children’s writing, especially free-writing.

Elen Caldecott

Elen Caldecott is a children’s author and was highly commended in the PFD Prize for Most Promising Writer for young people.

Catherine Fisher

Catherine Fisher is an acclaimed poet and author of children’s fiction.

Liz Brownlee

Liz Brownlee is a poet and children’s poet with work in over 80 children’s poetry anthologies in the UK.

Chitra Soundar

Chitra Soundar is an internationally published, award-winning author of over 40 books for children

Sally Gardner

Sally Gardner is a multi award-winning novelist who has sold over 2 million books in the UK.

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