I travelled to Bishops Stortford on 9th February as 'You Can't Eat A Princess!' had been nominated for the Picture Book Award. Alas, it didn't win but came a modest fourth. The winner was the wonderful 'Dave' written by Sue Hendra and illustrated by Liz Pichon.
The winners gave a liitle talk about their work. Sue told us that the inspiration for the story came from a fat cat that she used to own - called Dave! Liz said that she enjoyed putting the extra deatils into her paintings, like the tiny hairs on Dave.
The prize was awarded by Giles Andreae who wrote 'Morris the Mankiest Monster', illustrated by Sarah McIntyre. Giles told the audience that his inspiration for Morris came from his young son! Even though his son was often covered in disgusting things (you can use your own imagination for what kind of disgusting things) Giles still loved him.
It was lovely to meet the other authors and illustrators. Writing is a solitary job so it's nice 'to get out for a bit'. The staff at Bishops Stortford College were so welcoming - thanks to Rosie for the cups of tea.
The best part of my day was meeting up with Ellie Parkin, my editor at Scholastic, and the illustrator of 'You Can't Eat A Princess!' Sarah Mcintyre. Sarah had just finished doing a workshop when she walked into the hall where Ellie and I were having a quiet conversation. Sarah screamed and ran over to us. Unfortunately, I was backed in by chairs and had no where to run and no where to hide. Only kidding - Sarah is amazing and I'm so lucky to have her as my illustrator.
I've had a sneek peek at the pictures for Princess Spaghetti's next adventure and they are fantastic. The book will be out in September, the title has now been agreed as 'You Can't Scare A Princess!'
I had a wonderful but exhausting day out. I travelled in 6 trains, 3 taxis and 1 bus. It was worth it.