Ted Dewan's cover

Last year I had a request from Nikki Gamble, who helps run the fabulous and informative Write Away website (www.writeaway.org.uk), asking for a contribution towards the grand IBBY auction of 2012. IBBY (International Board for Books for Young People) was founded in Zurich in 1953 to ‘promote international understanding through children’s books.’

Well, I reckoned that such a noble cause deserved more than a couple of signed books from me so I had one of my bright ideas.  Why not collect autographs of as many children’s writers I met during the course of one year and send them instead? So that’s what I did.

I was off to a flying start last February when I went to the launch of the Ultimate Book Guide.  The place was heaving with writers and illustrators. There were shed loads of them (or should that be shelf loads?). I got Brian Keaney, Yvonne Coppard, Cathy Hopkins, Ted Dewan, Francesca Simon, Elizabeth Kay, Kath Langrish, Victoria Connelly, Shoo Rayner, Kaye Umansky, Tony Ross, Jan Pienkowski, Elizabeth Laird, Gill Vickery, Julia Jarman, Sally Nicholls, Ann Turnbull, Odette Elliott, Patricia Elliott and Eleanor Updale all in one hit. As a bonus, Ted Dewan kindly offered to design the cover on my £2.99 autograph book from Muji there and then, instantly increasing its value by hundreds of pounds!

After that, the collection built a little more steadily. Most of the signatures came from my friends in the SAS (Scattered Authors’ Society). I was able to add Celia Rees, Adele Geras, Dianne Hofmeyr, Anne Cassidy, Mary Hoffman, Lynne Benton, Lynne Chapman, Lesley Wilson, Alison Boyle, Paeony Lewis,Malachy Doyle, John Dougherty, Sue Purkiss, Jenny Alexander, Miriam Moss, Jennie Walters, Marie-Louise Jensen, Linda Newbery, Dennis Hamley, David Calcutt, Julie Sykes, Lee Weatherley/Titania Woods, Susan Price, Joe Friedman, Meg Harper, Cindy Jefferies, Damian Harvey, Catherine Johnson, Liz Kessler, Ann Bryant, Penny Dolan, Fiona Dunbar, Nicki Cornwell and Joanna Kenrick. Jo also played a blinder for me at the Oxford Literary Festival by blagging four giants in one hit - Malorie Blackman, Emma Chichester Clark, Michael Morpurgo and Philip Pullman. Get in!

Jan Pienkowski drew Meg for me

Joining CWIG added Tony Mitton, Steve Barlow, Michaela Morgan and Am Vrombaut. Attending a conference for the Campaign for the Book netted Alan Gibbons, Steve Skidmore and Bernard Ashley. Tom Palmer, Stephen Elboz, Lily Hyde, David Belbin and Anthony McGowan came from individual meets. The icing on the cake was in December when I was at Walker Books. Allan Ahlberg and his daughter Jessica. Oh yes.

I have a few regrets. I forgot to take my autograph book with me to Cheltenham in October so I lost out on Philip Ardagh, Michael Rosen, Korky Paul, Nicola Davies and Melvin Burgess, dammit, who were all within grabbing range, as were Terry Pratchett, Geraldine McCaughrean and Tim Bowler at the YLG earlier in the month - eek.

Despite that this autograph book has got to be worth hundreds of ££££££££££££££££ and $$$$$$$$$$$$ and €ssssssssssss as it stands. I hope whoever successfully bids for it - a rich librarian perhaps, if there is such a thing - has a special perspex box made for displaying it. Or a velvet cushion at least. Or a wooden stand without water marks on it. Anyway, something appropriate!   I posted it to Nikki this morning. Can’t wait to see what it fetches!

National Football Museum Preston

‘The Old Year’s gone away

To nothingness and night’

- John Clare

It’s been a busy one. My writing highlights include:

1. Having the first 6 books in the GIRLS FC series published by Walker Books. Being particularly proud of ‘What’s Ukrainian for Football?’

2. Launching the series at the National Football Museum, Preston, in August.

3. Accidental Friends being shortlisted for three awards and losing out to Theresa Breslin by 1 vote at the Catalyst Book Award.

4. Meeting Tom Palmer (www.tompalmer.co.uk) and setting up ‘Reads United’ with him in time for the 2010 World Cup

5. Being invited to join the Children’s Writers and Illustrators Group (CWIG) Committee. I join Gillian Cross, Steve Barlow, Roz Asquith, Anne Cassidy, Am Vrombaut, Michaela Morgan, Bali Rai and Jeremy Strong to debate topical issues concerning children’s writers and illustrators.

6. Attending the Ultimate Book Guide Launch at the Groucho Club and meeting people like Cathy Hopkins and Jan Pienkowski.

7. ‘Doing’ not only the Oxford, Northern and Cheltenham book festivals but also all the school visits up and down the country.

Meanwhile, in the rest of the universe…

2009 will be remembered for Barack Obama becoming President of the USA, Swine Flu, Credit Crunch/Recession/Banks going bankrupt/MPs claiming for bath plugs, moat cleaning, duck houses and certain videos/ England Women’s football team getting to the Final of EURO2009, Tiger Woods digging a hole in one/ Ryan Giggs rightly being awarded Sports Personality of the Year/ my mum surviving not one, not two, not three but four operations in one week. That’s tough Yorkshire women for you.

But it was goodbye to:

Borders bookshops

Keith Waterhouse (journalist, playwright, Leeds lad made good)

Frank McCourt (writer of Angela’s Ashes, the best misery memoir ever)

Sir Bobby Robson (footballer and football manager, legend)

Michael Jackson (though I haven’t liked anything he did since Man in the Mirror, to be honest)

invitation to the launch

Do you know what? I’m not doing too bad for a girl who only got a grade 6 in GCE English Literature. That’s what I told myself last night anyway when I attended the launch to the updated edition of the Ultimate Book Guide.  If you haven’t come across this book in the reference section of your school library, check it out now. It’s a great resource for choosing a book or discovering a new author and jam-packed with reviews and tips on what to read next. There’s a website, too, on www.ultimatebookguide.com.  I’m proud to say my Simone series is included in this one and Saturday Girl (listed under its original title of Getting Rid of Karenna) in the version for teens. I also contributed to the Ultimate Teen Guide with reviews of Keeper by Mal Peet and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith.

The launch was held at the Groucho Club on Dean Street in London. Even the words ‘Groucho Club’ filled me with excitement (I don’t get out much). I had visions of high-backed leather chairs and men in smoking jackets but actually it was just a pleasant venue with bars and stripy carpets. But the people in attendance - now that was another thing altogether - that did exceed expectations. Had a bomb fallen on the Groucho Club that evening half the country’s top authors and illustrators would have been wiped out and I’m not even kidding…

It would be inappropriate, not to say boastful,  to run through the whole list of authors who were there but the highlights for me were meeting Jan Pienkowski and chatting to Yvonne Coppard and Cathy Hopkins.

On tonight’s agenda - a toss up between the ironing and Supersize v Superskinny on TV. Reality sucks.