M.G. Leonard
M. G. Leonard is a writer of books, poems and screenplays. She has a first-class honours degree in English literature and an MA in Shakespeare Studies from Kings College London. She works as a freelance Digital Media Producer for clients such as the National Theatre, and Harry Potter West End, and previously worked as a Senior Digital Producer at the National Theatre, the Royal Opera House and Shakespeare’s Globe. She spent her early career in the music industry running Setanta Records, an independent record label, and managing bands, most notably The Divine Comedy. After leaving the music industry, she trained as an actor, dabbling in directing and producing as well as performing, before deciding to write her stories down. Maya lives in Br
If you like author M.G. Leonard here is the list of authors you may also like
Buy books on AmazonTotal similar authors (85)
-
Lou Kuenzler
Hello and welcome to my Goodreads page. Now you have found me here, you can find information on all my published books and hear about work in progress too.
Buy books on Amazon
I write for children from picture books through to middle grade historical fiction.
I am also very proud to teach others how to write for children and work with many now-published authors.
For more information, check out my website: -
Katya Balen
Katya Balen is a British author of children's literature. She was born in 1989, in London. Her novel October, October won the 2022 Carnegie Medal. Her work has also been nominated for the Branford Boase Award and the Wainwright Prize for Children's Writing on Nature and Conservation.
Buy books on Amazon -
Nicki Thornton
Nicki is a former bookseller, and still lives in Oxfordshire where she ran a bookshop for more than ten years. She remains passionate about books, bookshops and anything that celebrates reading for pleasure and writes a regular Mystery Journal celebrating all things crime fiction for young people.
Buy books on Amazon
Nicki Thornton’s ‘wickedly funny and wildly original haunted whodunit’ The Last Chance Hotel, was selected as Waterstones Book of the Month October 2018 and has gone on to be an international bestseller, being translated into fifteen languages. Nicki Thornton’s debut won the 2019 Ealing Junior Book Award, was nominated for the Carnegie Medal 2019, was shortlisted for the 2019 CrimeFest Best Crime Novel for Children, the 2019 Oxfordshire Book Award -
Maria Farrer
Maria Farrer writes for children and young adults. She studied Speech and Language pathology at UCL and has a Masters in Writing for Young People from Bath Spa. She has spent much of her life working with children with language and literacy difficulties both in the UK and in New Zealand. She always likes to have a challenge on the horizon, preferably one involving mountains or large hills.
Buy books on Amazon
Her latest series of books involving a huge, hapless, but really rather helpful polar bear is undoubtedly her favourite. -
Matt Goodfellow
Matt Goodfellow was a primary school teacher for more than ten years before becoming a full-time poet and author. Shu Lin’s Grandpa is his first book with Candlewick Press. He lives with his wife and children in Manchester, England.
Buy books on Amazon -
Kereen Getten
Kereen Getten grew up in Jamaica where she would climb fruit trees in the family garden and eat as much mango, guinep and pear as she could without being caught. She now lives in Birmingham with her family and writes stories about her childhood experiences. When Life Gives You Mangos is her debut novel.
Buy books on Amazon
Visit her on n Instagram @Kereengetten -
Lesley Parr
Lesley Parr grew up in South Wales and now lives in England with her husband and their rescue cat, Angharad. She shares her time between writing stories, teaching at a primary school and tutoring adults. Apart from books, rugby union is her favourite thing in the world, especially if Wales is winning. Lesley graduated with distinction from Bath Spa University's MA in Writing for Young People. The Valley of Lost Secrets is her first novel.
Buy books on Amazon -
Katherine Rundell
Katherine Rundell was born in 1987 and grew up in Africa and Europe. In 2008 she was elected a Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford. Her first book, The Girl Savage, was born of her love of Zimbabwe and her own childhood there; her second, Rooftoppers, was inspired by summers working in Paris and by night-time trespassing on the rooftops of All Souls. She is currently working on her doctorate alongside an adult novel.
Buy books on Amazon
Source: Katherine Rundell -
Janice Hallett
Janice Hallett is a former magazine editor, award-winning journalist, and government communications writer. She wrote articles and speeches for, among others, the Cabinet Office, Home Office, and Department for International Development. Her enthusiasm for travel has taken her around the world several times, from Madagascar to the Galapagos, Guatemala to Zimbabwe, Japan, Russia, and South Korea. A playwright and screenwriter, she penned the feminist Shakespearean stage comedy NetherBard and cowrote the feature film Retreat. The Appeal is her first novel.
Buy books on Amazon -
Phil Hickes
I live in Oregon at the moment, though I hail from the UK. Growing up in a house overlooking a graveyard, on the edge of the bleak and foreboding Pennine Hills, seems to have instilled in me an obsession with all things dark and spooky. The complete Aveline Jones trilogy is available at all good bookstores and has been, or will be, translated into Spanish, German, Czech, French, Turkish, Polish and Russian. My latest effort is called Shadowhall Academy and follows the spooky adventures of the Aunt Lilian character from the Aveline books as a young girl in the 1980s. I also have a dyslexia-friendly ghost story coming out with Barrington Stoke at Halloween this year.
Buy books on Amazon
Favourite authors include Robert Aickman, Stephen King (his early stuff), M -
Chibundu Onuzo
Chibundu Onuzo was born in Nigeria in 1991 in Lagos and is the youngest of four children. She is a History graduate from King's College London and is currently an MSc student in Public Policy at the University College of London.
Buy books on Amazon
(from http://freduagyeman.blogspot.com/2013...) -
Natasha Hastings
Natasha Hastings is the bestselling author of fantasy books for adults and children. Her debut novel, The Frost Fair (the first in her magical-historical trilogy, The Miraculous Sweetmakers), was the Waterstones Children’s Book of the Month in November 2023, longlisted for the Branford Boase Award, Editor’s Choice in The Bookseller, and a Times Book of the Week. The second in the trilogy – The Sea Queen – was published in September 2024, and became a #1 Amazon bestseller.
Buy books on Amazon
Her debut regency romantasy for adults, How To Charm A Viscount, will be released in May 2025 under the name Natasha J. Hastings. All of her books are published by HarperCollins. -
Hayley Hoskins
Long-listed for the Bath Children's Novel award, Hayley Hoskins writes in the space between family and work, with much support from her writing group.
Buy books on Amazon
Mum to a teenage boy, she spends a disproportionate amount of time hoping that her son's life is far less complicated than those of the characters in her books, and trying to ensure he becomes a 'good egg'.
Originally from the Forest of Dean, Hayley lives with her family and hairy breeze-block of a dog in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. Her debut children's novel, The Whisperling, was long-listed for the Branford Boase Award. The follow up, The Whisperling Twins, publishes in summer 2024. -
Jenny Pearson
Jenny Pearson is a technical writer and an artist who loves to write and draw. She enjoys working with kids, whether it's engaging them with arts and crafts activities, helping them learn basic concepts, or just inspiring cute moments. With loads of patience, sunny smiles, and a healthy dose of kindness, almost any day can be a great day.
Buy books on Amazon -
Pari Thomson
Pari Thomson is Editorial Director for picture books at Bloomsbury Children’s Books. Half Persian, half English, she lived in many places while she was growing up, including India, Pakistan, the USA, the UK and Belgium. She studied at Oxford University and now lives near the river in London, not far from Kew Gardens.
Buy books on Amazon -
Sophie Green
Sophie Green Is the author of the Potkin and Stubbs trilogy. She has a degree in zoology and an interest in folklore and urban legend. She was born and still lives in East Anglia and works as a librarian for Suffolk Libraries.
Buy books on Amazon
-
L.D. Lapinski
L. D. Lapinski is the best-selling author of JAMIE, Stepfather Christmas, and The Strangeworlds Travel Agency series, including Adventure in the Floating Mountains, which was a 2023 World Book Day title. JAMIE was nominated for the 2024 Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing.
Buy books on Amazon
L. D's new middle-grade fantasy series ARTEZANS launches in February 2024 with the first book Artezans: The Forgotten Magic.
L. D.'s books are published around the world in fifteen languages, and each book in the Strangeworlds trilogy has been awarded a Kirkus star - one of the most coveted designations in the book industry,
marking books of exceptional merit.
L. D. Lapinski lives just outside Sherwood Forest with their family, a lot of books, and a cat called Hector. L. D. first -
Paul O'Grady
Paul James Michael O'Grady MBE (born 14 June 1955) was an English comedian, television presenter, actor, writer and radio DJ. He was best known for presenting the daytime chat television series, The Paul O'Grady Show and, more recently, Paul O'Grady Live, as well as his drag queen comedic alter ego, Lily Savage, as whom he performed in various television series including Blankety Blank (1997–1999) and Lily Live! (2000–2001). He also appeared in the comedy sitcom Eyes Down (2003–2004) and presented several travel documentaries.
Buy books on Amazon
Born to a working class Irish migrant family in Birkenhead, O'Grady went through various jobs in his youth, including working in various bars, for the civil service and for social services, moving around the country to -
Jamie Littler
Jamie is an author-illustrator who graduated from the Arts Institute at Bournemouth in 2008, going on to win a High Commendation in the Macmillan Children's Book Award. When not trying to tame his unnaturally fast growing hair or having staring matches with next door's cat, he likes drawing, colouring in, cutting things out and sticking things in. He sometimes uses a scanner and a computer, and too often is tempted to throw his printer out of the window. But he would just have to go and pick it up again. His interests are pretty wide and varied -- although he does have a soft spot for wild animals and things that go bump in the night. Jamie's illustration work includes Hamish and the Worldstoppers which was the bestselling children's debut
Buy books on Amazon -
Jenny McLachlan
I have always loved reading and I studied English at university just so that I could read a bit more. Next I found my way into secondary teaching and discovered that I loved it too: I got to read more books, show off and hang out with very funny teenagers. What a great job!
Buy books on Amazon
Teaching English also encouraged me to write. Soon I had planned and started lots of different stories, but they were all abandoned and shoved to the back of a drawer. Then, one day, the plot for Flirty Dancing came together; Bea’s story was so alive it was like a film running in my head and I knew it was a story I would finish.
Over the next few years, various exciting events distracted me from Flirty Dancing: I got married, travelled the world, was chased by an angry ele -
Alex Bell
Alex Bell signed her first book deal at nineteen and, since then, has written multiple books for both adults and young people. After completing a law degree, she now works for a legal advice charity. Alex lives in Hampshire with her husband, sons and Sphynx cats. She also writes as Alexandra Bell.
Buy books on Amazon -
Annet Schaap
Annet Schaap wilde altijd al tekenaar worden, of schrijver, of ontdekkingsreizigster.
Buy books on Amazon
Ze studeerde aan twee kunstacademies en een schrijversschool.
Sinds 1991 illustreerde ze bijna 200 kinderboeken en is in Nederland het meest bekend door haar tekeningen bij de succesvolle Hoe Overleef Ik-serie van Francine Oomen. Maar ze illustreerde ook veel boeken van andere geliefde schrijvers, zoals Janneke Schotveld, Manon Sikkel, Jacques Vriens, Annie M.G. Schmidt en Astrid Lindgren.
Met haar Canadese man Tom en hun zoontje Jonas (2009) trok ze een paar jaar lang in een camper door Noord en Midden Amerika. Lees hier meer over hun avonturen: http://www.annetschaap.com/category/r...
Nu woont ze weer gewoon in Utrecht en tekent en schrijft om en om. -
Katherine Rundell
Katherine Rundell was born in 1987 and grew up in Africa and Europe. In 2008 she was elected a Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford. Her first book, The Girl Savage, was born of her love of Zimbabwe and her own childhood there; her second, Rooftoppers, was inspired by summers working in Paris and by night-time trespassing on the rooftops of All Souls. She is currently working on her doctorate alongside an adult novel.
Buy books on Amazon
Source: Katherine Rundell -
Ross Montgomery
Ross Montgomery has worked as a pig farmer, a postman and a primary school teacher, so writing books was the next logical step. He spent his childhood reading everything he could get his hands on, from Jacqueline Wilson to Beano annuals, and it taught him pretty much everything that's worth knowing. If you looked through his pockets you'd find empty crisp packets, lists of things to do, and a bottle of that stuff you put on your nails to stop you biting them. He lives in London with his girlfriend, a cat called Fun Bobby, and a cactus on every available surface.
Buy books on Amazon -
Enne Koens
Enne Koens schrijft drama, proza en liedjes. Theater schreef ze onder andere voor theatergroep Artemis, theatergroep Max, De Toneelmakerij en het Gasthuis. Ook vulde ze twee zomers de Studio 7 tent op De Parade met haar eigen muziektheatergroep ‘Het Paleis voor Volksvlijt’. In 2004 won ze de Hollandse Nieuwe Toneelschrijfprijs voor het toneelstuk Skills. Verschillende teksten zijn te verkrijgen op www.theaterboek.nl.
Buy books on Amazon
In 2007 verscheen haar eerste roman: Tot alles gezegd is. In 2011 lag de YA-roman Vogel in de winkels, waarmee je de Jonge Jury Debuutprijs in de wacht sleepte. In 2013 verscheen het veelgeprezen Sammie en opa. Een ontroerend voorleesboek voor 7 jaar en ouder. Een nieuw jeugdboek, genaamd Hotel Humus, is in de maak. -
Janneke Schotveld
Janneke Schotveld (1974) werkte twaalf jaar op een school voor speciaal onderwijs maar is sinds 2012 fulltime kinderboekenschrijver. In 2007 debuteerde Janneke met Villa Fien, dat bekroond werd met de Hotze de Roos-prijs. Jannekes boeken zijn vooral geschreven voor kinderen van zeven jaar en ouder en zitten vol humor en fantasie. In 2017 schreef Janneke het Kinderboekenweekgeschenk Kattensoep voor de Kinderboekenweek 2017 en in 2018 verscheen haar lovend onthaalde sprookjesbundel De kikkerbilletjes van de koning.
Buy books on Amazon -
Marte Jongbloed
Marte Jongbloed schrijft graag spannende verhalen waarin wonderlijke personages een rol spelen. Dat is geen toeval want ze is afgestudeerd aan de toneelacademie. Schrijven combineert ze met haar werk als dramadocent op een internationale school. Naast kinder- en jeugdboeken schrijft ze ook toneelteksten.
Buy books on Amazon
Marte woont met haar drie kinderen, haar man, drie katten en een hond in Den Haag. -
Marlies Slegers
I've been writing since 2004, and have written more than 40 books to date (april 2021), with some titles having been translated en published in countries around the world. Writing is not just my passion and work, it's my oxygen.
Buy books on Amazon -
Jamie Littler
Jamie is an author-illustrator who graduated from the Arts Institute at Bournemouth in 2008, going on to win a High Commendation in the Macmillan Children's Book Award. When not trying to tame his unnaturally fast growing hair or having staring matches with next door's cat, he likes drawing, colouring in, cutting things out and sticking things in. He sometimes uses a scanner and a computer, and too often is tempted to throw his printer out of the window. But he would just have to go and pick it up again. His interests are pretty wide and varied -- although he does have a soft spot for wild animals and things that go bump in the night. Jamie's illustration work includes Hamish and the Worldstoppers which was the bestselling children's debut
Buy books on Amazon -
Jenny McLachlan
I have always loved reading and I studied English at university just so that I could read a bit more. Next I found my way into secondary teaching and discovered that I loved it too: I got to read more books, show off and hang out with very funny teenagers. What a great job!
Buy books on Amazon
Teaching English also encouraged me to write. Soon I had planned and started lots of different stories, but they were all abandoned and shoved to the back of a drawer. Then, one day, the plot for Flirty Dancing came together; Bea’s story was so alive it was like a film running in my head and I knew it was a story I would finish.
Over the next few years, various exciting events distracted me from Flirty Dancing: I got married, travelled the world, was chased by an angry ele -
Matt Goodfellow
Matt Goodfellow was a primary school teacher for more than ten years before becoming a full-time poet and author. Shu Lin’s Grandpa is his first book with Candlewick Press. He lives with his wife and children in Manchester, England.
Buy books on Amazon -
Onjali Q. Raúf
Onjali Q. Rauf is the founder of Making Herstory, an organisation mobilising men, women and children from all walks of life to tackle the abuse and trafficking of women and girls in the UK and beyond. In her spare time she delivers emergency aid convoys for refugee families surviving in Calais and Dunkirk, and supports interfaith projects.
Buy books on Amazon
Her first novel, The Boy at the Back of the Class, has sold over 100,000 copies and won multiple awards. Her second book, The Star Outside My Window, publishes in October 2019. -
Nizrana Farook
Nizrana Farook was born and raised in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and the beautiful landscapes of her home country find their way into the stories she writes. She has a master’s degree in writing for young people, and lives in Hertfordshire with her husband and two daughters.
Buy books on Amazon -
Yorick Goldewijk
Yorick Goldewijk schreef eerder o.a. Films die nergens draaien, waarvoor hij de Gouden Griffel won. De Engelse vertaling van dit boek werd uitgeroepen tot Times Children's Book of the Year.
Buy books on Amazon -
Thomas Taylor
Thomas Henry Taylor is a British children's writer and illustrator.
Buy books on Amazon
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_...
Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Thomas^^^^^Taylor -
Mel Taylor-Bessent
Founder of the hugely successful Authorfy and Little Star Writing, Mel Taylor-Bessent has made her career connecting readers to their favourite authors and encouraging children to write for pleasure. After gaining a Creative Writing degree, Mel launched her first business at the age of 22 and ran creative writing workshops for thousands of children aged 6-12. As a result, she also arranged hundreds of author events and witnessed first-hand the positive impact these interactions had on her students.
Buy books on Amazon
In 2017, she decided to replicate this via online ‘Author Masterclasses’ on a website she created called Authorfy.com. Since then, Authorfy has gone on to win numerous awards, partner with the likes of World Book Day and BookTrust, and is used in -
Benjamin Dean
Benjamin Dean is a London-based celebrity reporter. His biggest achievement to date is breaking the news that Rihanna can’t wink (she blinks, in case you were wondering). Benjamin can be found on Twitter as @notagainben tweeting about Rihanna and LGBTQ+ culture to his 10,000+ followers. Me, My Dad and the End of the Rainbow is his debut book and he's currently working on his second, publishing in 2022.
Buy books on Amazon -
David Farr
David Farr is is one of the UK's leading screenwriters and directors for film, TV and theatre. In 2009, he was appointed Associate Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, where his productions of The Winter's Tale, King Lear and The Homecoming all opened to critical acclaim. David is known for his work on Spooks and his 2016 BBC adaptation of The Night Manager, starring Hugh Laurie and Tom Hiddleston. He completed his first feature film, Hanna, in 2009, and has since adapted it into a hugely successful series for Amazon Prime. The Book of Stolen Dreams is his first novel.
Buy books on Amazon -
Ross Montgomery
Ross Montgomery has worked as a pig farmer, a postman and a primary school teacher, so writing books was the next logical step. He spent his childhood reading everything he could get his hands on, from Jacqueline Wilson to Beano annuals, and it taught him pretty much everything that's worth knowing. If you looked through his pockets you'd find empty crisp packets, lists of things to do, and a bottle of that stuff you put on your nails to stop you biting them. He lives in London with his girlfriend, a cat called Fun Bobby, and a cactus on every available surface.
Buy books on Amazon -
Emma Carroll
Buy books on Amazon
After years of teaching English to secondary school students, Emma now writes full time. She graduated with distinction from Bath Spa University’s MA in Writing For Young People. In another life Emma wishes she’d written ‘Rebecca’ by Daphne Du Maurier. She lives in the Somerset hills with her husband and three terriers. -
Ben Davis
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Buy books on Amazon -
David Owen
David resents the fact that he was not raised by wolves and was therefore robbed of a good story to tell at parties. He turned to fiction to compensate for his unremarkable existence.
Buy books on Amazon
He achieved 1st class honours in BA Creative Writing and MA Writing for Children at The University of Winchester, where he went on to teach on the BA Creative Writing course for three years. He hopes that one day all of his students will surpass his own achievements.
David’s debut YA novel, Panther, will be published by Constable & Robinson on their Corsair imprint in May 2015. Panther is a funny, touching, and occasionally unsettling coming-of-age story, which deals candidly with the stigmas and misunderstandings surrounding depression.
David has also worked as -
Marte Jongbloed
Marte Jongbloed schrijft graag spannende verhalen waarin wonderlijke personages een rol spelen. Dat is geen toeval want ze is afgestudeerd aan de toneelacademie. Schrijven combineert ze met haar werk als dramadocent op een internationale school. Naast kinder- en jeugdboeken schrijft ze ook toneelteksten.
Buy books on Amazon
Marte woont met haar drie kinderen, haar man, drie katten en een hond in Den Haag. -
-
Alexander Armstrong
An English actor, television and radio presenter, and singer, best known as one half of the comedy duo Armstrong and Miller and as host of the BBC TV game show Pointless.
Buy books on Amazon -
Pádraig Kenny
Pádraig Kenny is an Irish writer who hails from Newbridge in County Kildare.
Buy books on Amazon
His debut novel Tin was published in 2018 and was Waterstones Children’s Book of the Month. It has been nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal and several other awards.
His second novel Pog was published in April 2019 and was Independent Bookseller's Book of the Month.
His third novel The Monsters of Rookhaven was published in September 2020 by Pan Macmillan. It won the Honour Award for Fiction in the 2021 KPMG Children's Books Ireland awards and was Waterstones Children's Book of the Month in October 2021, and has been nominated for the Carnegie Medal. It has also been optioned by Dream Logic Studios with the intention of adapting it into an animated movie. The sequ -
Rani De Vadder
YA and youth author at Hamley Books Publishing. Rani De Vadder studied Chinese and English translation and is currently working as an editor, copywriter and social media manager. Toxine is her debut novel, followed by two middle grade stories and a high fantasy series. Evil Wears a Crown is her first fantasy YA in English.
Buy books on Amazon -
Nadine Aisha Jassat
Nadine Aisha Jassat is the author of poetry collection Let Me Tell You This, described by Nikita Gill (The Girl and The Goddess) as 'beautifully written, immense and full of passion'. She is the author of two middle-grade mystery novels in verse: The Stories Grandma Forgot (And How I Found Them) described by Sophie Anderson (The House With Chicken Legs) as ‘one of those books that truly makes the world a better place,' and The Hidden Story of Estie Noor, described by Maisie Chan (Danny Chung Does Not Do Maths) as a ‘warm hug of a book', where 'finding the power of telling your own story is central to this joyful tale of kindness and community.’
Buy books on Amazon
Nadine has taught and performed internationally and across media, including BBC Scotland’s The Big -
Catherine Johnson
Catherine Johnson is a British author and screenwriter known for her young adult fiction and work in film, television and radio. Born in London to a Jamaican father and Welsh mother, she studied film at St Martin's School of Art before publishing her debut novel, The Last Welsh Summer (1993). She has since written around 20 novels, including works on Arctic explorer Matthew Henson, and won the 2019 Little Rebels Award for Freedom. Her historical novel Sawbones (2013) earned multiple shortlistings and the Young Quills Award. Johnson co-wrote the screenplay for Bullet Boy (2004) with Saul Dibb, and has served as Royal Literary Fund Fellow, Writer in Residence at Holloway Prison, and judge for the Jhalak Prize. In 2019, she was elected a Fel
Buy books on Amazon -
Nizrana Farook
Nizrana Farook was born and raised in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and the beautiful landscapes of her home country find their way into the stories she writes. She has a master’s degree in writing for young people, and lives in Hertfordshire with her husband and two daughters.
Buy books on Amazon -
Simon Stephenson
Hello, good readers!
Buy books on Amazon
I am from Edinburgh in Scotland, but now reside in Los Angeles, California. I have had stopovers along the way in London and San Francisco. I’m a writer and screenwriter, and before I became a full-time writer I was a physician.
My new novel, ‘Sometimes People Die’ will be published in September 2022. It's a literary thriller set in a hospital in east London around the turn of the millenium.
I have written two other books. ‘Set My Heart To Five’ came out in 2020. The Washington Post review said that I might be ‘Vonnegut’s first true protege’. You’d better believe I have been dining out on that ever since, and will be for the rest of my days.
‘Let Not the Waves Of the Sea’, my memoir about losing my brother came out in 2012 -
Jodie Garnish
Jodie Garnish is a performer, playwright and author. She studied at the University of East Anglia and trained in acting at Drama Studio London.
Buy books on Amazon
Throughout her theatre career she has performed across the UK and Italy. She has played monachs, mathmaticians and murderesses, and worn more terrible wigs than she cares to remember. Her experiences as a performer inspired the world of the Spectaculars, her debut novel. -
Sophie Anderson
Sophie Anderson grew up on the Welsh coast and now lives in the Lake District with her family. Her writing is most often inspired by folk and fairy stories, especially the Slavic tales her Prussian grandmother told her when she was young.
Buy books on Amazon
Across her bestselling novels, Sophie has won the Independent Bookshop Book of the Year Award and the Wales Book of the Year Award, and been shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal twice, the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, the Blue Peter Book Award, the British Book Awards’ Children’s Fiction Book of the Year, the Andersen Prize and the Branford Boase Award.
Sophie’s books have been translated into over twenty-five languages, and The House with Chicken Legs has been adapted for stage by Les Enfants Terr -
Matt Killeen
MATT KILLEEN was born in Birmingham, in the UK, back when trousers were wide and everything was brown. Early instruction in his craft included being told that a drawing of a Cylon exploding isn't writing and copying out your mother's payslip isn't an essay "about my family". Several alternative careers beckoned, some involving laser guns and guitars, before he finally returned to words and attempted to make a living as an advertising copywriter and largely ignored music and sports journalist. He now writes for the world's best loved toy company, as it wasn't possible to be an X-wing pilot. Married to his Nuyorican soul mate, he is parent to both an unfeasibly clever teenager and a toddler who is challenging his father's antiestablishment cr
Buy books on Amazon -
Jasbinder Bilan
According to family stories, Jasbinder was born in a stable in the foothills of the Himalayas. Until she was a year and a half, she lived on a farm inhabited by a grumpy camel and a monkey called Oma.
Buy books on Amazon
Jasbinder graduated from Bath Spa University where the seeds of her story were nurtured, but it was the incredible bond with her grandmother which was the inspiration for Asha & the Spirit Bird.
She lives with her husband, two teenage boys and dog Enzo in a man pad and splits her time between teaching and writing. -
Piu DasGupta
Piu DasGupta is the author of dark, twisty, Gothic books of fiction for children, teens, and adults.
Buy books on Amazon
Her debut Middle Grade novel, SECRETS OF THE SNAKESTONE, is released on 14th March 2024 with Nosy Crow.
Piu lives in Paris, France, with her family and two cats. -
Natasha Farrant
Natasha Farrant grew up in the heart of London's French community, and currently combines writing with her career as a Literary Scout. She is the author of two successful novels for adults, Diving Into Light and Some Other Eden, both published by Transworld. She lives in West London with her husband, two daughters and a large tortoiseshell cat.
Buy books on Amazon -
Ayaan Mohamud
Ayaan Mohamud wrote her first ever book in lockdown and during NaNoWriMo, while also studying as a medical student, and it became her debut novel. It was inspired by her own experiences of Islamophobia and a desire to write about Somali culture which she hopes to shine more of a light on in YA. She lives in London and can usually be found either writing or complaining about writing. When she isn't doing either of those things, you may find her simply annoying her sisters or daydreaming.
Buy books on Amazon -
Derick Bingham
Derick Bingham is a teaching pastor with Christ Church in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He has written over twenty books and broadcasts weekly for TransWorld Radio into Europe and the Middle East. He is a director on the board of the New Irish Choir and Orchestra and travels internationally teaching and preaching the Scriptures. He lives in Belfast with his wife Margaret.
Buy books on Amazon -
Benjamin Read
Benjamin Read writes comics and makes films. He wrote the multiply award-nominated PORCELAIN: A GOTHIC FAIRY TALE, the silent comic BUTTERFLY GATE, and children’s book, NIGHT POST, as well as the TRUE GRIT and SUPER 8 comic adaptations. He also wrote and produced the films ARMISTICE and 500 MILES NORTH. He is one of the founder members of the Improper Books comics collective, and is fuelled principally by tea and whimsy. He is currently working on the rest of the Porcelain sequence, alongside writing his first novel.
Buy books on Amazon -
Darren Simpson
Darren Simpson writes vivid, unruly fiction for older children and teens.
Buy books on Amazon
His debut novel, Scavengers, was a Guardian Best Book of the Year, and was selected for the national Summer Reading Challenge. The Memory Thieves was an Observer Book of the Month and a World Book Day Summer Read, while Furthermoor was Blackwell’s Children’s Book of the Month and a Waterstones Best Book of the Year. Darren’s stories have won awards and been translated into several languages. He’s been nominated twice for the prestigious Carnegie Medal.
His latest novel, Thirst, is out now.
Darren lives in Nottingham, where he works with the Literacy Trust to promote reading for pleasure. He loves using unusual settings to explore bravery, self-discovery, and the strange -
Dominique Valente
Dominique Valente is the bestselling author of the Starfell series.
Buy books on Amazon
She was a journalist for over a decade but thankfully came to her senses and now writes about grumpy monsters, dragons and witches instead.
She grew up in South Africa but now lives along the Suffolk coast in the UK and writes in a green writing shed that takes time to warm up much like her brain. She is powered by coffee, chocolate and stories about magic.
Born with one hand, her books are often subtle love-letters to anyone who has ever felt different or wanted to belong.
For news, book signings, festivals and other events find out more at www.dominiquevalente.com -
Angela Harding
Angela Harding is a fine art painter and illustrator based in Wing, Rutland, specialising in lino prints and giftware inspired by British birds and countryside.
Buy books on Amazon -
Tosca Menten
Dutch writer of Children's books. As a child, Tosca wanted to be a doctor and play the piano, but instead she went to the Arts Academy in Amsterdam. She became a teacher of Art and History of Art at a high school in Amsterdam. She remained a teacher for 13 years and started a family. She has 3 children: two girls and one boy.
Buy books on Amazon
Then she decided to become a writer. Not surprising, because ever since she was little she has been writing stories. She wanted to publish a book before 2000 and only just succeeded in 1999.
She became a known writer with her books about Dummie the Mummie which have been translated in many languages. Nowadays she tries to write two books a year. Furthermore, she visits many schools and libraries. Now and then she has a t -
Hannah Gold
Hannah Gold worked in the film and magazine industries before taking time out to pursue her dream of writing. She lives in Lincolnshire with her tortoise, her cat and her husband. This is her middle grade debut.
Buy books on Amazon -
Sylvia Bishop
Sylvia Bishop spent an entire childhood reading fiction, dreaming up stories and pretending. She then tried very hard to get to grips with the real world by studying politics and going in to social science research. This was a shock. Thankfully, she discovered improvised comedy at university, which allowed her to carry on making up stories for at least 30% of her waking hours.
Buy books on Amazon
Now she writes her stories down, preferably by lamp-light with tea. She only ever really writes the bad ones: the good ones write themselves without warning, generally when she was planning to go to bed.
Sylvia now lives in London, where she continues to work in research, and is one half of improvised comedy duo the Peablossom Cabaret. Her first book for young readers, -
Helena Duggan
I am from Kilkenny, a medieval, haunted city in the south of Ireland, which was the inspiration for the town in A Place Called Perfect. I write stories full of adventure because I get bored really easily.
Buy books on Amazon
A Place Called Perfect was my first book. It was published in August 2017 and was a Waterstones Book of the Month. It won numerous awards including Crimefest Children's Book of the Year and was nominated for the Irish Book Awards and Waterstones Children's Prize.
The series is a bestselling series has sold over 230,000 copies in the UK and counting and is published in 13 languages to date. Perfect has also been optioned for an animated TV series by Jellyfish Productions.
The Light Thieves is my new eco/tech adventure series that has just b -
P.G. Bell
P.G. Bell is a native of south Wales, where he was raised on a diet of Greek mythology, ghost stories and Doctor Who. He's had all sorts of jobs over the years, from lifeguard to roller coaster operator, but all he's ever really wanted to do is write stories for a living. And now he does! He lives in Wales with his wife Anna and their two children.
Buy books on Amazon -
Philippa Leathley
Philippa Leathley grew up in East Yorkshire, spending summers near London with her eccentric grandparents and writing feverishly as soon as she could hold a pen. When not writing, she enjoys learning new languages, studying anything from historical fashion to shipwrecks, and is passionate about protecting the environment. She currently lives just outside Hull with her family and three weird and wonderful rescue cats, Bram, Lyra and Theo the Brave.
Buy books on Amazon
Her debut children’s book, INKBOUND: METICULOUS JONES AND THE SKULL TATTOO, is due to be published by HarperCollins 30th January 2025 in the UK and 28th January in the US. She’s represented by Hannah Sheppard at HS-LA. -
Sam Copeland
Sam Copeland is a Waterstones Children's Book Prize shortlisted author. He is from Manchester and now lives in London with two smelly cats, three smelly children and one relatively clean-smelling wife. He works as a chicken whisperer, travelling the world using his unique gift to tame wild chickens. Charlie Changes Into a Chicken was his first book. It was followed by the sequel Charlie Turns Into a T-Rex, and the third in the series - Charlie Morphs into a Mammoth - which was published in February 2020. His latest book Uma and the Answer to Absolutely Everything will be released in January 2021. His books have been translated into 26 languages, which is wild really. www.sam-copeland.com
Buy books on Amazon -
Loris Owen
Loris Owen was born in Bolton and raised in Zimbabwe. She was taught to think sideways at an early age by her dad, and went on to study English at Cambridge. After roaming the world in search of adventure, she settled in the English Midlands, where she can often be found behind mountains of post-it notes or reading to ducks. If she can't be found, she's probably disappeared into a particularly good puzzle.
Buy books on Amazon -
Jenny Pearson
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Buy books on Amazon -
Claire Powell
I'm an illustrator and picture book maker based in London. In a previous life, I was a graphic designer who spent many years in the world of brand identity. Sometimes I go back to visit.
Buy books on Amazon -
Emily Randall-Jones
Emily has worked as a touring actor, a princess at Hampton Court and for the National Trust creating experiences for visitors. She’s the winner of both the Mslexia Children’s and YA Novel as well as being longlisted for the Branford Boase award. 'The Scream of the Whistle' - another ghostly MG - is out June 25. She's a proudly neurodivergent single mum and can usually be found foraging for hag stones.
Buy books on Amazon -
Aron Dijkstra
Aron Dijkstra (Pijnacker) werd in 1992 geboren in Sneek. Vanaf het moment waarop hij leerde om een potlood vast te houden, deed hij niets liever dan tekenen. Hij heeft een voorkeur voor traditionele materialen zoals inkt, potlood en verf. Er komt geen computer aan te pas bij Arons werk.
Buy books on Amazon -
Lucy Ann Unwin
Lucy's debut novel for children The Octopus, Dadu and Me was shortlisted for multiple awards, including The Brilliant Book Awards. Her background is in journalism. She was a music journalist at BBC 6 Music for 10 years, where she was privileged enough to interview the likes of Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder and Adele and absorb hundreds of hours of wonderful live music.
Buy books on Amazon
Brought up in Birmingham, Lucy has lived all around the UK, from Newcastle to Brixton, Worcester to Chesterfield. She also lived for a year in the Chilean city of Valparaiso, and for three years in San Francisco. She has now settled on the Sussex clifftops with her husband and two daughters (and tortoise), where she divides her time between writing, editing and reading as muc -
Hannah Shaw
Hannah Shaw was born into a large family of sprout munching vegetarians.
Buy books on Amazon
As is the oldest child, she spent her formative years trying to be good at everything; from roller-skating to gymnastics. Hannah soon realised there wasn’t much chance of her becoming a gold medal winning gymnast, so she resigned herself to drawing pictures and writing stories!
By some mean feat Hannah found herself at the University of Brighton doing a degree in illustration. Soon an overwhelming obsession to make books took over her life. Inspired by her love of furry animals, Hannah wrote and illustrated her first picture book Evil Weasel, published by Jonathan Cape (Random House) in 2008. Her next book Erroll, about a boy who finds a squirrel in his packet of nuts, i -
Tamsin Mori
Tamsin had a nomadic childhood (eight different schools!), but the one place that always felt like home was Shetland, her mother’s homeland. Shetland is a collection of teeny tiny islands, so far north they struggle to fit on the map. They are overflowing with myths and legends, most of which are true. Growing up, Tamsin was usually to be found on the beach, whispering spells into sea shells and singing to the selkies.
Buy books on Amazon
Tamsin now lives in Bath with her husband, two children, one rabbit, several crows, and a badger, though she flies home to Shetland whenever she can – if you go there in the summer, you’ll probably spot her, striding about with the wind in her hair, chasing a wild story. -
Jenni Spangler
Theatre school drop out, ex-999 operator and occasional forklift driver, Jenni writes children’s books with a magical twist. She loves to take real and familiar places and events and add a layer of mystery and hocus-pocus.
Buy books on Amazon
She was part of the first year of the ‘WriteMentor’ scheme, mentored by Lindsay Galvin, author of ‘The Secret Deep’. As well as her magical middle grade novels, Jenni writes short contemporary YA stories for reluctant and struggling readers, including Torn and Wanted for Badger Learning.
Jenni has an Open University degree in English Language and Literature, a 500 metre swimming badge and a great recipe for chocolate brownies. She lives in Staffordshire with her husband and two children. She loves old photographs, picture b -
Sarah Todd Taylor
Sarah is a children's writer from Mid Wales. Her debut book, Arthur and Me, was published by Firefly Press in October 2014. She adores puzzles, codes and mysteries and is the author of the Max the Detective Cat series and the Alice Éclair : Spy Extraordinaire series, both published by Nosy Crow.
Buy books on Amazon
When not writing she can be found singing opera round mid Wales. -
Chris Smith
Chris Smith is an award-winning author, broadcaster and parent (a mug saying ‘World’s Greatest Dad’ counts as an award, right?). He grew up in leafy Northamptonshire and now lives in not-as-leafy North London with his wife, son and a cat called Mabel, who can talk. If you listen very carefully to the George Michael song ‘Outside’ you can hear a sample of Chris reading the news. He makes excellent tea.
Buy books on Amazon -
Sarah Merrett
Sarah grew up in Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight. She went to art school and gained three degrees from different universities. She loves animals, being out in nature, and doing all kinds of creative things. In between writing children’s stories, she can often be found creating with Lego, getting muddy in her garden, or wielding a power tool. She has worked as a bookseller and a school librarian. She lives in rural Hampshire with her two children and one husband.
Buy books on Amazon
X: https://x.com/sjmerrett1
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/sarahmerrett...
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahmerrett1/ -
Susan Brownrigg
Susan Brownrigg is a Lancashire lass. She is the author of the Gracie Fairshaw mystery series - set in 1930s Blackpool - and Kintana and the Captain's Curse, a pirate treasure hunt with lemurs set in Madagascar.
Buy books on Amazon
Susan is a member of SCBWI British Isles and featured in the Undiscovered Voices 2016 anthology. She was awarded the Margaret Carey Scolarship in 2015.
Susan has worked as a journalist and sub-editor, she also worked in a number of heritage and wildlife education roles including jobs at Blackpool Zoo, Tatton Park, Quarry Bank Mill and Norton Priory Museum & Gardens. She now works as a library assistant.
She is a member of the Time Tunnellers historical authors group. -
H.S. Norup
H. S. Norup is the award-winning author of The Changeling Child, Into The Faerie Hill, The Hungry Ghost and The Missing Barbegazi - a Sunday Times Book of the Year in 2018. She grew up in Denmark, where she devoured fairy tales and escaped into books. After living in six different countries, she now resides in Switzerland and writes stories inspired by her travels, set in the borderlands between the real and imaginary worlds. When she's not writing or reading, she spends her time outdoors either skiing, hiking, swimming or taking photos.
Buy books on Amazon -
Celine Kiernan
Celine Kiernan is an award-winning author of fantasy novels for young adults. Her critically acclaimed work combines fantasy elements with the exploration of political, humanitarian and philosophical themes. She is best known for The Moorehawke Trilogy, a dark, complex trilogy of fantasy YA books set in an alternative renaissance Europe. First published in Celine’s native Ireland in 2008, the trilogy has since been published in 15 different territories, and translated into 10 different languages. In 2009 the first book of the Moorehawke Trilogy, The Poison Throne, won The Readers’ Association of Ireland Award for best book; it was included in the White Raven Collection and short listed for the 2009 Irish Book Awards in two categories (Best
Buy books on Amazon