Podcasts: Video playlist

Presenter: Welcome to Ask the Author, the podcast where kids get to ask published authors how they write their stories.

Presenter: In this episode we are asking different authors about how and why they became writers. So let’s Ask the author.

Hannah: Hi, my name is Hannah Gold and I’m a children’s author. You might know me best for my first book, which was called The Last Bear. I love all things animals and adventure.

Presenter: Did you always want to be an author or was your dream job something else?

Hannah: When I was really young, I actually wanted to be a vet because I’ve always loved animals, and you see animals in my books. But I kind of realised that I wouldn’t be able to be a vet. I don’t really like seeing animals in pain. I start crying. So I didn’t think I’d be very good as a vet. I loved reading when I was younger, but I didn’t think actually I could be a writer. Nobody in my family were writers. I didn’t know that pathway existed. And so it wasn’t until I was a bit older that I thought, well, maybe I could explore this dream and try to make it come true. But it stemmed from a love of reading, and this possibility that there were people out there, even like me, that could become an author.

Jenny: Hi, my name’s Jenny McLachlan and I’m a children’s author. And I’ve written books like the Land of Roar series, the Dead Good Detectives series and the Fairy Versus books, which I also illustrated.

Presenter: I want to know: have they always loved writing stories since they were a child, or has it just grown on them since they were an adult?

Jenny: The idea of wanting to write books for children landed in my head when I was about 10 years old and I was absolutely certain it’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to write books and, if possible, illustrate them as well. So from then, it took me about another nearly 20 years to do it, and most of that time I didn’t do it, because I didn’t think I would be good enough. And I thought people who wrote books were special. And then one day I realised they’re not special. They’re just somebody who thinks, I’ve got a story that I think other people would enjoy. And one day they decide to tell that story. So if any of you have got that dream, then you start whenever you like. There’s nothing special about writers. They’re just people who want to tell a story.

Sophy: Hello, my name is Sophy Henn and I’m a children’s writer, and the books I have written include Bad Nana, Pizazz and Happy Hills.

Presenter: Is there a certain place that your ideas flow, or that you always write your books?

Sophy: Ooh. Well, sometimes I just have to sit at my desk and write. And I might not necessarily feel like it’s flowing, but I’m writing. And there are days like that. All writers have days like that. And you just have to sit down and get the words out. And you can always go back and change those words, but it’s good. There’s bits of stories sometimes that are a bit sticky, if you know what I mean, and you get a bit stuck. But you have to wade through them and get out the other side. And then you can always go back and change them. But, yes, some days I do feel like I get quite inspired and that’s usually when I’m thinking up new ideas because I haven’t got to the sticky bit yet, but some days, yes, new ideas will pop into my head and I always find it’s good if I can make five or ten minutes to sit down and write those ideas out, and go with it for as long as I’ve got time to. That’s always good, because it’s good to do that in that moment when it strikes.

Hi, I’m Katherine Rundell. I write stories for young people and I’m the author of books like The Explorer and Rooftoppers and The Impossible Creatures* series.

Presenter: Where do you get your inspiration for your books?

Katherine: I love this question. I get my inspiration for my books from so many places, from other books that I read, from things that I see in real life, from conversations I hear, from dreams, from art, from films, from history and also from…the thing that we all have that is difficult to pin down, which is the strangeness at the very heart of the human soul that we each have. And I think if you are writing a story, you can pull from everything in your life, from the people you love, from the things you see, and also from the little bit of inspiration that is right at the very core of your soul. See if you can reach back and back and back into your imagination, because that is the bit that will be the thing only you can write.

Eric: Hi, my name is Eric Huang. I write stories for children, including the Guardians of the New Moon series, which is a four-book series all about fantasy, and inspired by East Asian and Chinese myths and legends.

Presenter: What was the first book you wrote and how much do you think you’ve improved since then?

Eric: Yeah, the first book I wrote is Ming and Miaow’s Great Race, which is book one in the Guardians of the New Moon series. And I think I’ve improved a lot. I mean, my editors have been really great at helping me be a better writer. I write stories in a way where it’s a very fast pace and there’s a lot of action. But something I’ve learned to do is to slow it down to get to know the characters more, to have different, I guess, a different speed sometimes when you want to get to know, you know, why is this character sad? What makes this character so angry? So I think I’ve become a lot better at doing that. Although, you know, there’s always room for improvement for sure.

Sarah: Hi, my name is Sarah Soh. I am the creator, the artist, and writer for the Juniper Mae: Knight of Tykotech series.

Presenter: Do you write books based on what you like to read or what you think other people would like to read?

Sarah: I write books based on what I actually wanted to see for myself as a child. This book is an accumulation of all the things that I love, in terms of having a young and very, very shy girl who ends up being a heroic warrior. My love of warriors, my love of the city, my love of the forest life, my love of just silly little creatures - I just kind of wanted to gather all of the things that I really loved growing up and that I wanted to see, and it’s all been put together in this one story, of essentially of a girl going on this journey and meeting new friends along the way.

Presenter: Now, let’s hear some top tips about how to get started in writing some stories.

Hannah: The biggest barrier to writing is getting started, and quite often it’s because we’re looking at a blank page and is there anything as scary as a blank page, even for me? So the best way to start is just, it sounds a bit silly, but just start writing anything because quite often the first few lines or words of what you write you end up not using in the second draft, but it just allows you to find a way in.

Eric: It’s not about finishing anything. It’s not about looking at it, is this good? Is this bad? Just write. Write what’s on your mind. Write what you did today. Write a letter to an imaginary friend. Write a letter to your real friends. Just write. I don’t think there’s a right or wrong way to do it. Just do it and do it often.

Sophy: Sometimes we think we have to have a whole big story completely ready in our heads before we start to write words down. Or sometimes… We might worry that we don’t fully understand our character before we start to write their story. But I tend not to worry about that. And if I’ve got a rough idea of where I want to start and a rough idea of where I’m going next, sometimes it’s super fun just to sit down and start writing. And then I start to discover new things about the character the more situations I put them in. And then I discover what they like and what they don’t like. So my top tip about writing is don’t wait for the perfect idea to land. Just start writing because that idea could come to you while you’re writing.

Katherine: I think being a writer is one of the finest things you can do. It’s a spectacular job. Also, being a writer who doesn’t necessarily do it professionally but just somebody who writes for the joy of it is a brilliant way to understand the world. It’s a brilliant way to understand your own mind and the people around you. Being good at writing, being able to be clear on the page is a brilliant gift of a skill for anything from being a teacher, to being a chef, to being a footballer or an astronaut. Being able to write down your thoughts is a way of sending them out into the world and that will always be valuable.

Presenter: Today we learned about how published authors start out writing.

Presenter: And we heard how anyone can start their writing whenever they like.

Presenter: I’m just going to start writing.

Presenter: Me too. If you have any more questions about developing characters, writing dialogue and creating imaginary worlds. Just look up Ask the Author on the BBC Bitesize website. Thanks for listening!