AUTHOR & EDITOR, CHILDREN'S BOOKS
Books
COMING SOON
Information books on BUGS, FLOWERS & TREES and a new Read it yourself PEPPA book for Ladybird
Information Books
I've written and edited all kinds of information books – traditional (with a spread-by-spread approach), active (with experiments and/or field guides), dip-in browsable fact and Q&A books, and informational fiction or 'picture information' books, where information is presented with picture book illustrations or includes a fictional element.
I love researching and writing non-fiction, especially for younger readers. Subjects I've worked on include:
• animal babies
• ancient civilisations
• bugs
• castles
• dinosaurs
• horses
• knights
• the Moon
• oceans
• pandas
• pets
• pirates
• rainforests
• the Victorians
• the weather
• whales
Curious Q&A about...
Polar Lands
Miles Kelly Publishing • 32pp • 2022 illustrated by Ana Gomez
Why are some icebergs blue? Who wears two coats to keep out the cold?
Entertaining Q&A for ages 5+
Little-Know-It-All
Can you Touch a Rainbow?
Can you Tickle a Tiger's Tummy?
QED Publishing • 48pp • 2019 illustrated by Lalalimola
No matter how bizarre the question, the Little Know-it-all Owl has the answers. Fun Q&A for busy little minds, with easy-to-read text and bright illustrations.
Stories
Stories include eight titles in the Fairytale Friends series, commissioned by educational imprint QED. I've also written short stories published in story compilations for 6+ readers, stories packaged with cover mounts, and stories based on licensed brands.
Fairytale Friends
QED • 24pp • 2020
Eight themed stories based around popular fairytale characters, devised to foster empathy in the classroom.
Each title ends with a page of classroom extension activities.
Scared Little Red Riding Hood
Illustrated by Laura Brenlla
Little Red Riding Hood is scared of almost everything, especially the wild, dark forest near her home. When she finds a tiny, lost wolf cub, can she face her fear to return him to his mother?
Fairytale Friends titles illustrated by Laura Brenlla:
Keep Trying, Aladdin!
Don't Be Cross, Goldilocks
Hansel and Gretel's Gingerbread House
Cinderella's Ballet Shoes
Illustrated by Flavia Sorrentino
Cinderella wants more than anything to have lessons at the new dance school in the village but she doesn't have any ballet shoes. Can her fairytale friends help make Cinderella's dream come true?
Fairytale Friends titles illustrated by Flavia Sorrentino:
Cinderella's Ballet Shoes Wake Up, Sleepy Beauty!
Jack Breaks the Beanstalks
Snow White, Star Striker
Licensed Character Books
Books I've adapted from licensed character brands include annuals, board books, longer stories, make-and-do activity books, and fun-to-learn sticker books with puzzles and games. I'm experienced to working across different formats and extents using provided assets, screen grabs and on-line style bibles.
Up and Down
Ladybird Licensing • 10pp • 2019
Peppa's off on a bike ride – but will Daddy Pig keep up?
Fun-to-learn, life-the-flap story with a focus on opposites
George's First Day at Playgroup
Ladybird Licensing • 16pp • 2016
Sticker story book with a simple narrative arc
Licensed brands I've worked on:
• Angelina Ballerina
• Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom
• Clangers
• Disney
• Hello Kitty
• Jim Henson's Dinosaur Train
• Mary Cicely Barker's Flower Fairies
• Peppa Pig
• Raa Raa the Noisy Lion
• Topsy & Tim
See more books based on Peppa Pig and other licensed character brands
Holly's Lost Wand
Ladybird Licensing • 24pp • 2015
Colourful search-and-find adventure based on Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom
Other Ben & Holly titles for Ladybird include board books, longer stories and sticker-activity books.
Clangers
Ladybird Licensing • 10pp • 2015
First story books for Clangers fans (episode-based, paced over 10 pages)
Boxed set of four Little Library Clangers board books
Dinosaur Friends
Ladybird/Jim Henson • 24pp • 2013
Fun-to-learn activity book with stickers, additional dinosaur facts and a pronunciation guide to dinosaur names
Activity Books
My activity titles include craft books (based on licensed brands, hobbies, or National Curriculum topics), educational books and packs for young learners, and fun-to-learn sticker books.
150 Things to Make and Do with Peppa
Ladybird Licensing • 160pp • 2017
Fancy-dress costumes, seasonal activities, recipes, indoor and outdoor games, and ideas for imaginative play.
Peppa's Party
Make-and-Do Book
Ladybird Licensing • 24pp • 2018
Put on your own Peppa--themed party with ideas for invites, party decorations, food and games to play.
Includes templates, stickers and press-out card pieces.
For some craft activity books (such as Angelina Ballerina: My First Activity Book, I make the crafts photographed in the books.
For other craft titles, the finished crafts are made in-house from my scamps and text – in the case of 150 Things to Make and Do and Peppa's Party, by the fab design/editorial team at Ladybird.
Dinosaur Activity Book
Egmont (for M&S) • 32pp
Dinosaur-themed activities with press-out card play pieces.
Fun-to-learn books for the under 5s include activities devised to develop early years foundation skills, such as pencil control and hand-eye coordination, shape and colour recognition, matching, grouping, counting, sound identification and simple story sequencing.
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Novelty Books
I love working with novelty concepts and have written prose and rhyming text for books with sound ships, touch-and-feel elements, flaps and sliders.
Traffic Jamboree
Campbell Books • 12pp • 2001
Join in the beep-beeps and vroom-vrooms as a madcap bunch of animals wait in a traffic jam. Touch-and-feel counting book with a final lift-the-flap surprise.
Winner of the Southampton Children's Book Award
Although Traffic Jamboree is now out of print, it's still a firm favourite with nursery and reception classes for a fun read-aloud session at the end of a day of workshops – with a bag of very noisy sound effects!
Uncle Gaston
Ladybird Licensing • 12pp • 2015
Story incorporating sound button, adapted from TV episode and paced over12pp.
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Beep Beep Vroom!
Ladybird Licensing • 12pp • 2015
Story incorporating sound clips sourced from TV episodes
Time to Play, Teddy
Rhyming text for cloth play bag, incorporating early learning concepts (colours, counting and opposites)
Editorial
I've worked in both educational and trade publishing, editing titles for the UK and international co-edition markets. Commissions range from new project development and editorial project management to editing text on-screen to fit highly illustrated layouts or a final proof and polish.
Rebel Girls
Timbuktu Labs • 128pp • 2019
Line-editing commission for the publishers of the Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls, a collection of one hundred tales of extraordinary women.
Goodnight Stories, published in 2016, became the most successful book in crowdfunding history and has since been released in over 85 territories worldwide.
For the world's Rebel Girls....
Ada Lovelace Cracks the Code
How mathematician and computing pioneer Ada Lovelace came to write what we now realise is the first published computer program.
Madam C.J.Walker Builds a Business
The inspiring story of Sarah Breedlove Walker, entrepreneur, businesswoman, and America's first self-made millionaire.
Discover More Disasters
Scholastic • 112pp • 2013
written by David Burnie
Follow a tornado chaser into the heart of a storm, track the path taken by a hurricane as it sweeps across the ocean, and discover which disaster is the world's worst killer...
Editorial project management of highly illustrated non-fiction title for 10+ readers, with step-by-step illustrations, timelines and eyewitness accounts.
I'm not taking on long-term, full-time editorial project management at present, but I'm available for other editorial commissions (such as reworking backlist content or editing text to fit on-screen layouts).
I also work with individuals and currently offer editorial manuscript assessment (children's non-fiction, picture books, chapter books and middle grade fiction) and a final pre-pub or pre-sub proofread and polish. Please email or DM me on Twitter for more information.