Tomorrow is the launch of my new children's book, 'Belonging Street'. (Everyone welcome, free to attend, 7pm Eventbrite Friday 2nd October 2020)
The launch is being hosted by the Manchester Poetry Library and the Manchester Children's Book Festival and I feel very lucky to have this brilliant team behind me! A launch in the past, meant a big gathering of friends for music, poems and hugging..... but in these lock-down times..... if I so have to zoom, I am so glad it is these friendly people.
We've organised the technology so I can read and show the illustrations, plus I've designed some free teaching resources - based on poems in the book - and all attendees will get copies of that. There are not many authors' visits to schools during these covid-times, but that doesn't mean we can figure out ways to support teachers in getting children writing!
Online events test your brain in very particular ways. I am used to reading my work - but this online experience is quite different. No faces and noises, no longing glances at the bar to give you a clue if you've run over. My desk looks like a war-room - with a running order, reminders on post-it-notes, and the bathroom clock propped up by the computer. But guests to the launch will see nothing of this.... only smiles and pictures!
