Children's Books North - #CBNPitch2022 Are you an unagented children's author or illustrator living in the North of England or Scotland? Do you have a children's/YA book idea you'd love to get in front of agents and publishers? On Thursday 28th April Children's Books North will be hosting a 'Twitter Pitch' event, giving you the opportunity to pitch your idea or portfolio to children's book agents and publishers. #CBNPitch2022 will run throughout the day at 11-12pm, 5-6pm and 8-9pm, when children's agents and publishers will be on Twitter for you to pitch your ideas and portfolio to. Open to 18+ creatives. Format:                                              - Twitter (280 characters max, & visuals if needed)                          ...

 GUEST NORTHERN HIGHLIGHTS Jason Vit,  Head of Local Area National Literacy Trust Can you tell us a little bit about the work of the National Literacy Trust in your Northern regional hubs? Our first National Literacy Trust Hub was in the North East, in Middlesbrough. It was there that we developed a whole new way to respond to intergenerational low literacy by establishing Literacy Hubs. They are now in 15 places around the country along with our region-wide work in the North East and across Suffolk. Along with Middlesbrough, our other focus areas are Blackpool, Bradford, Scarborough, Doncaster and Manchester. Read North East is a campaign that runs across the region and encompasses ten local authorities. Our big focus has been on the early years and getting key messages out to support parents (along with books) to help them provide the most literacy rich environment they can at home. We've got great support from Penguin Random House, Walker Books, Faber and Bloomsbury. As we...

NORTHERN HIGHLIGHTS  Gill Arbuthnot Where do you live, and how would you sum up the place in three words?   I’m lucky enough to live in Edinburgh, city of 1) Arts 2) History 3) WIND!!   What is special to you about creating children's books, and what is your favourite part of the process? I remember the intense pleasure I got from reading as a child, and it’s wonderful to think I may be giving someone else the same sort of pleasure with my own writing.  When I’m writing non-fiction, I love researching. Even with a topic you think you know pretty well, there are delightful surprises, and specialists are so generous in sharing their knowledge. Anything from homing pigeons to the Battle of Waterloo, there is someone who can answer any question!    With fiction, it’s the moment the story takes wing and starts to dictate where it’s going, and you don’t want to stop writing. This can lead to family trouble however, such as completely forgetting to pick yo...

NORTHERN HIGHLIGHTS Suzy Senior Where do you live, and how would you sum up the place in three words?    North Sheffield, on the edge of the Peak District. Hilly, industrial, beautiful! What is special to you about creating children’s books, and what is your favourite part of the process?  I love picture books – especially the way the words and the pictures work together to make something amazing. One of the best bits, for me, is when I first see the illustrator’s roughs and see that wonderful transformation from manuscript to picture book begin! Tell us about your upcoming/most recent book.  The most recent is Octopants and the Missing Pirate Pants - the second Octopants book, illustrated by Claire Powell and published by Little Tiger Press. It’s a rhyming undersea adventure, this time with Claire’s gorgeous little Pufferfish in a starring role! In the next month, I’ve got another 3 picture books publishing too, with Scamp Publishing and Little Tiger Press - so...

  Children's Books North - Who's Who We've had some exciting updates at Children's Books North HQ in recent months, so thought it time to do a proper introduction to everyone we have here spreading the Children's Books North news and supporting our members.  THE CO-FOUNDERS Tilda Johnson , Editorial Director Golden Egg Academy and freelance editor Tilda began her career at David Fickling Books, then PRH Children's, before joining  the Hot Key Books and Piccadilly Press team as Senior Commissioning Editor.  After relocating to the North in 2017 she became a freelance editor, mentoring writers directly, working for publishers and setting up a Manchester branch of the Golden Egg Academy. At GEA, Tilda now leads a team of fiction editors who provide editorial support for children's/YA writers as they progress their works-in-progress and prepare for submission to agents and publishers. Emma Layfield, Picture Book Development Director, North, Hachette Children’...