Templar Publishing

Happy Publication day Arcadia Awakens!

2012-03-01T01:20:00.000-08:00

To celebrate the publication of Arcadia Awakens today we thought we'd share this Q&A with the Author, Kai Meyer.

Q: Your new trilogy is set in Sicily, what did you find out in your research that you used in the books?

A: I drove all over Sicily, something like 1500 miles. I visited lots of small towns in the mountain regions, the bigger cities like Palermo and Catania and Ragusa, several archeological sites and some very surreal places like the monument of Gibellina, which became the setting for the showdown of ARCADIA AWAKENS. Before I travelled to Italy I had read several books on Sicilian history, geography and, of course, on the Cosa Nostra, so I more or less new beforehand which places I wanted to visit. For example I went to Corleone, which is really only of interest because of its Mafia connections, and I drove as far as possible into the deserted hills east of Corleone which the locals call, the cemetery of the Mafia because this was were the local Cosa Nostra clan got rid of hundreds of bodies during the Eighties and early Nineties. It´s one of the important locations of ARCADIA FALLS, the third book in the series.

Q: The main characters Rosa and Alessandro are from rival Mafia clans, what particularly interested you about the Mafia to want to write about them?

A: I like to mix genres and I wasn´t aware of any other book that used the Sicilian Mafia wars as background for a fantasy novel. I´ve always been in love with Italy and its history and culture. One of my first specialties as a journalist for movie magazines around 1990 was writing about Italian genre cinema, from Mafia to horror films. I interviewed directors like Michele Soavi and Umberto Lenzi, went to Rome to visit the De Paolis Studios (at the time the main venue for B-Movies) and so on. So I´ve always been very aware of the way Italians like to incorporate their historical and mythological heritage into genre storytelling.

Q: Did you have to do a lot of research into Ancient Mythology?

A: Sure. I have quite an extensive library on mythology because that´s one of the themes predominant in most of my novels since 1995.

Q: Are you ever nervous about handing your books over to be translated into another language?

A: Not really nervous, because obviously it´s the only way authors can reach an international audience. But I´m curious and even more so if it´s a language I can actually understand like English. It´s a bit different with countries like Japan or Turkey – you just have to trust the translators. But I´m sure most of them know very well what they are doing.

Q: If you could shapeshift into any animal what would you choose and why?

A: Something with lots of arms and eyes. In my house I have thousands of books and DVDs I haven´t read or watched yet, so an animal that can write and consume stories at the same time would be very welcome.

Q: Can you give us sneaky preview as to what lies in store for Rosa and Alessandro in book two, Arcadia Burns?

A: Rosa visits her mother in New York where she has to realize that the American branch of Alessandro‘s family is even more ruthless than the Italian members she had already met. She learns more about the intrigue that let to all the terrible things that happened to her before she arrived in Palermo in the first book. The story opens up in several unexpected directions – they were unexpected to me when I wrote the novel – and becomes much bigger, more global and more fantastical. But after that trip to New York Rosa heads back to Sicily where most of the second and third novel are set. It´s probably my favourite location ever for any of my books so the story really keeps and honours its Italian roots.

For the chance to win a brand new copy of the book, head over to our Facebook Fiction page!

Keep up to date with Arcadia Awakens news follow @KaiMeyer or visit his website kaimeyer.com

The Book People Gala Dinner

2012-02-24T08:49:00.000-08:00

Last night the South Bank played host to the Book People Gala Dinner - and what a wonderful evening. All the great and the good of children's publishing were there - booted, suited and glitzy and ritzy.

The Templar team scrubbed up well - as Jamie Oliver our Master Chef for the night, would have said! We had a song from Michael Morpurgo, a rap from Lem Sissy and a polemic from Anthony Horowitz to accompany delicious food from the Jamie Oliver kitchens.

Thanks to the Book People for a terrific celebration to round off a very successful Imagine Festival.

Templar's Last Show at Imagine

2012-02-21T06:20:00.000-08:00

To finish off Templar's busy half-term week, Jamila Gavin, author of Tales from India, entertained a crowd of young and old with her storytelling. Located in the rather grand Ballroom, Jamila explained myths and legends to the young Imagine festival goers. Her stories were brought to life by dancer Trishna who created a visual representation of the figures in Jamila's stories. The dynamic due created a compelling show that tantalised all the senses.

Jamila Gavin and the wonderful dancer Trishna

A captive audience

See all of the pictures from throughout the week on our Facebook page

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The Robots Return to London

2012-02-17T04:24:00.000-08:00

We've had an incredibly fun and action packed half term here at Templar Towers!

Sshh, artist at work!

A few days after Tuesday's event at the Royal Festival Hall, Paul Collicutt and his robots were once again London bound. Yesterday, Thursday 16th February, Paul set off to enthrall and inspire young Londoners in the Science Musuem.

Paul with a young fan!

He spent the day drawing and interacting with his young fans, demonstrating how he brings his robots to life. Everybody, artistic or not, shared Paul's enthusiasm for his drawings, with some receiving some helpful tips! It was an extremely busy, but enjoyable day - Paul ended up staying an extra two hours longer because he was having so much fun!

The finished pictures from the day!

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Templar @ Imagine Children's Festival

2012-02-15T09:22:00.002-08:00

Yesterday was the first event I have attended as an Intern with the Templar team at the Imagine Children's Festival.

Having successfully navigated my way through London, and its commuters, I was relieved to be saved from battling with the highly technical Artist's Entrance to the Royal Festival Hall by Jayne, our Press Officer, who had arrived moments before me, arms laden with caffeine.

I was lured into a false sense of security by the scene that greeted me: the Robot City posters were up, the paper was rolled out and Paul Collicutt was ready to go.

Paul limbering up for
the pancake competition

As we added the finishing touches to our workshop, the rumbling of small excitable voices became louder and louder. There was just time for Paul to participate in a pancake tossing competition with The Book People (he achieved a very respectable 9 flips of the pancake in 10 seconds) before a tirade of children joined us.

Although space was limited, the children and their parents squeezed alongside the long roll of paper to create their very own robot city. Paul's enthusiam was contagious and soon all the children were busily concocting robots with a magnatude of special powers, including flame throwing robots, a cooking robot and my personal favourite: a gardening robot.

Paul met and gave encouragement to each and every child, leaving them, I'm sure, a little more inspired than they had been forty-five minutes earlier.

As soon as the robots had been carefully rolled away and the rogue pen lids had been found, it was time to create pop-up cards with Templar's very own designers and paper engineers. Andy and Nghiem had created templates that the children could chose, colour and then construct to make their very own pop-up cards. Getting the children to colour was the simple part, aside from our frantic pencil sharpening, however the construction proved to be a little trickier, particularly because Jayne and I were pretty clueless about how the more complicated designs worked!

The children's patience didn't dwindle and it was worth getting various limbs stuck together to see the look of joy when a child opened their pop-up for the first time!

We had survived the morning, but after a quick lunch break it was time for round two! The afternoon saw more excitable children, eager to create and have fun. One little boy decided that when he got home, he was going to write a story about the robot he had drawn with Paul. It was a great day and I think we all fed off the children's enthusiam for creativity and imagination- I hope the children enjoyed themselves as much as I did!

If you have a spare few days this half term and are running out of ideas to entertain your children, it is definitely something I would recommend checking out!

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Guest Blog post from Author Teresa Flavin!

2012-02-15T03:16:00.003-08:00

Teresa Flavin writes us a special blog post that reveals the highlights

of meeting her young fans on her tour of schools in West Sussex

Thank you, West Sussex!

Teresa Flavin with some Year 7 pupils from
Holy Trinity CE Secondary School, Crawley, West Sussex

One of the most exciting things that can happen to a new author is meeting children who have read and loved your books. I have been introducing school and library groups to The Blackhope Enigma and The Crimson Shard for a year and a half and I never get tired of telling them about the paintings, labyrinths and sea monsters that inspired the books. I often get lovely feedback after my visits but nothing beats arriving at an event and finding excited kids waiting to have their copies signed.

That’s why the West Sussex Children’s Book Award has been so brilliant. As a short-listed author I was privileged to visit school libraries in November and again last week. This is the tenth anniversary of the Award and the West Sussex Library Service have done a fantastic job of bringing authors to meet the children who have been reading the nine short-listed books over the past months.

I toured the county, from Steyning to Haywards Heath and Horsham to Crawley, speaking mainly in secondary school libraries to reading groups from several schools. Students from the host schools mixed with Year 6s from surrounding primary schools, discussing the short-listed books and working on creative projects inspired by the stories. It was fantastic to see enthusiastic young people connecting through their love of books.

The Blackhope Enigma shortlisted

I loved the children’s questions after my presentations. They were intelligent, sensitive and even pithy at times! And how could I not love it when a girl waited till her classmates had had their books signed to tell me that The Blackhope Enigma is her favourite book? Or when a boy announced that he read my book and it made him write his own story? To know that my stories have touched even a few children makes all the hard work so worthwhile.

The children finished voting for their top read last week and the winner will be announced on World Book Day. Of course it would be great if The Blackhope Enigma is chosen, but I already feel like a winner, and that’s down to the wonderful young people, librarians and teachers of West Sussex and the warm welcome they gave me.

Teresa Flavin
@TeresaFlavin

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The Pirates Next Door shortlisted for Waterstones prize!

2012-02-08T03:01:00.000-08:00

Shiver me timbers, Jonny Duddle's The Pirates Next Door has been shortlisted for the Waterstones 2012 Children's Book Prize!

The Jolley-Rogers - a pirate family, are moving to Dull-on-Sea, a quiet seaside town where rumours spread quickly. Defying the grown-ups, Matilda from next door decides to become friends with the youngest pirate son. When the Jolley-Rogers leave, the town discovers they were wrong to assume the worst - the pirate clan have buried treasure in everyone's gardens.

Arrr Cap't Jonny Duddle

Jonny Duddle

About the Author: Jonny Duddle is an illustrator and concept artist. He wrote and illustrated the hugely successful picture book, The Pirate-Cruncher, which was longlisted for the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal. He also illustrated the cover for Nation by Terry Pratchett, which was shortlisted for Best Children's Illustrated Book at the English Association Book Awards. As a leading computer games illustrator, Jonny's work has been used by Sony, Warner Brothers, Vista and Universal. Jonny is one of the concept artists for Aardman Animation's forthcoming film The Pirates! (released in March 2012). He also lectures in Animation and VFX at Staffordshire University. Jonny lives in Mold, North Wales with his wife and young family.

Tales from a Pea Green Boat Exhibition

2012-02-07T06:32:00.000-08:00

Did you fall in love with Holly Clifton-Brown's beautiful illustrations in Elephant White as much as we did?

Then don't miss the chance to see Holly Clifton-Brown, Sarah Dennis and Jennifer Pitchers' exhibition of illustrations to celebrate Edward Lear's 200th year anniversary!

Exhibition: Thursday 5th April- 18th April 9.30am - 6.30pm every day.

http://apeagreenboat.tumblr.com/

Tales from a pea green boat @ Le Garage Gallery 115 Dulwich Road, Herne Hill, London. SE24 ONG

Debut author leaps into Richad and Judy Kids Book Club 2012!

2012-02-03T06:25:00.000-08:00

Frogspell by C J Busby, illustrated by David Wyatt is one of 10 titles chosen by Richard and Judy for their Kids Book Club 2012!

Frogspell is the first in a four-book series for younger readers set in the time of King Arthur from debut author C J Busby. The adventures revisit Camelot, Merlin and Arthur but with a fresh touch, using great characterisation, dialogue and humour.

Join would-be wizard Max Pendragon, his sister Olivia (who wants to be a knight), two humorous pet animal characters - Ferocious, a world-weary rat and Adolphus, an over-enthusiastic young dragon on magical quests and adventures.

Coming in March is the second book, Cauldron Spells with Ice Spell slated for autumn 2012 and Sword Spell in 2013.

Keep up to date with all our news with Facebook and Twitter

Feeling Lucky in February?

2012-02-02T11:31:00.000-08:00

It is only the second day of February and already Templar have some fantastic competitions lined up for this month!

To celebrate the re-release of Michael Morpurgo's Not Bad for a Bad Lad in paperback, we are giving away a beautiful Collector's Edition!

Head over to our Facebook pages (Templar Fiction and Templar Publishing) to see details of how to enter!

Not quite a Rocket Car, but just as cool!

2012-01-31T07:14:00.000-08:00

Illustrator of our Robot City Series, Paul Collicutt has already achieved one of his goals for 2012!

Paul told us: This year I woke up and thought "What I really need to get 2012 off to a flying start is a Rocket Car or some big Robot City Banners." Having checked with NASA, local second hand car dealers and my Bank Manager I decided against the Rocket Car mainly because the parking restrictions in Brighton are horrendous! Luckily I was able to advance my plan to get some Robot City Banners made up much more easily.

I share a studio with a lot of other illustrators, designers, writers and even one printer! Steve Woodgate at Inky Solutions handled all the production on the banners and as you can see they turned out amazingly well. Of course now I have to make tea for Steve for the next month. I wanted the banners in order to create a better impression at signings and other events. Now I’m thinking I might get some more made up because they look so good round the studio although I still think a Rocket Car would be great!

Perhaps the Rocket Car will have to wait for another year...

Follow us on Twitter @templarbooks or like our Facebook page to keep up to date with all our exciting news.

Templar Artists in Charity Exhibition

2012-01-31T06:25:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend, in the beautiful setting of the Denbies Wine Estate, the ‘Hidden Artists’ exhibition and art sale drew to an end. Templar artists donated a total of ten pieces of art for the charity event.

Inspired by the Royal College of Art’s Secret Exhibition, each piece of art was framed and displayed without any name credits, with the eventual owner only discovering the name of the artist after purchase. Pairs of eyes scanned each piece of art for an emotional connection, not for a famous name. With hundreds of pieces of art on the wall, this year’s event was a great show of generosity and talent.

Hours before the sale was due to start, a neatly organised queue was growing, hoping to obtain their favourite pieces or a bargain.
The year’s event was destined to be a success and raise much-needed funds for the local Rotary Club and the NSPCC.

* Hidden Artist was founded and organised by Wendy Boulton. http://www.hiddenartists.co.uk

Holly Clifton-Brown is spreading the Elephant White love!

2012-01-27T08:37:00.000-08:00

Illustrator Holly Clifton-Brown and her trusty steed Elephant White are travelling the country on a reading, book signing and workshop tour!

During a recent school visit, Holly describes “an amazing moment when all 22 girls dive bombed Elephant White for a group photo. I could not see him at all. He was buried underneath all the girls very cosiest cuddles, they almost decapitated him with their love.”

The children gather round to listen to the story

Then they had a go at making their own patchwork Elephant Whites

To keep up to date with Holly’s upcoming tour dates, check out her blog or follow her on Twitter.

@HollyRCB
@TemplarBooks

From Submission to Publication, the thrills of Templar Fiction…by Helen Boyle, Commissioning Fiction Editor.

2012-01-12T07:07:00.000-08:00

My job as Commissioning Fiction editor here at Templar has many thrills to it. There’s the tingle when you read something outstanding on submission – that exciting gut reaction when you know you really, REALLY want to publish it. Then there’s the adrenaline pulse of the offer/negotiation stage, where hopes can be realised or sometimes cruelly dashed. Then there’s the satisfying, if sometimes tricky, editorial crafting, the role the publisher plays in bringing out the best in a book, as well as the creative thrill of brain-storming cover ideas with our hugely talented designer. I also have to admit there’s the massive thrill in talking about our books to other people. I am wholly and unashamedly a fully signed-up Book Pusher – sorry, just can’t help myself.

But perhaps the biggest thrill is when a beautiful finished copy arrives pre-publication.

Yesterday we took shipment of the advance copies of Katherine Roberts new book, SWORD OF LIGHT, the first in an epic new Arthurian series. Now to understand my excitement at seeing this book, let me take you back to the end of November 2010…

I had just begun consulting on Templar’s fiction list as Commissioning editor, and I had also just taken delivery of a new iPhone. It was the weekend, I was probably watching X-factor, when I picked up an email on my phone from author Katherine Roberts. In a terrible polite and unassuming email Katherine mentioned that she had sent a book proposal through our slush-pile submissions email, but that the kindly Mary Hoffman had recommended she send it to me as well.

I’d been a fan of Katherine’s early work (Song Quest and Spell Fall) and with one click I had opened the synopsis and chapter samplers on my iPhone and stepped into the magical world of Rhianna Pendragon. Instantly I was gripped. It was proper quest-based adventure. Merlin, magic, mist horses, epic quests, bitter, twisted villains and a feisty, redheaded heroine, who happened to be Arthur’s seecret daughter. And all this from squinting at my iPhone. Now whilst I admit to being new to this acquisitions game, I knew this was something special. I had that spine-chilling, tingling feeling. I felt the same way about Rhianna and Elphin as I’d felt when I first read a story about a certain boy wizard, or that one about hobbits and fellowships. I knew I wanted more. I knew kids would want more, and I knew we could give Rhianna a wonderful home at Templar Fiction.

So here we are over a year later, and now it’s time to release Rhianna and SWORD OF LIGHT into the wider world. It’s scary but hugely exciting, and I’m confident over the next months she’ll be leading hoards of readers through Avalon, Camelot and Annwn.

Publishing each fiction title is a journey. From germ of an idea, or rough first draft to the finished book, it can be a journey of many twists and turns. But it’s full of excitement and potential and it’s a journey I’d take any day. Like the best journeys, it pays to be with a good bunch of fellow travellers, so here’s my list of Oscar-style thank-yous.

Firstly and foremostly, thanks to Katherine for the most amazing story. I can’t wait to read the next instalments of Rhianna’s adventures. Thanks to Mary for suggesting she send it to us. Thanks to Emma at Templar for editing and loving Rhianna’s quests as much as I do. Thanks to Will, James, Scott and Tomislav for the wonderful designs and illustrations.

I can't wait to hear what readers think of Rhianna's adventures, so here’s 2012 – The Year of Pendragon.

Helen, Commissioning Fiction Editor

The Pendragon Legacy Book 1: SWORD OF LIGHT by Katherine Roberts, publishes in HB February 2012, £9.99

Pre-order here

Twitter
@pendragongirl
@reclusivemuse
@templarbooks

India Dark Blog Tour 9th - 17th January 2012

2011-12-14T02:34:00.001-08:00

January is a very exciting month for teen fiction at Templar and we're so excited about the fascinating and moving story of India Dark that we are taking author Kirsty Murray off on an unmissable blog tour, exploring the outer reaches of the UK blogosphere.

India Dark
Kirsty Murray

MADRAS, 1910: two girls are caught up in a scandal that will change their lives forever. Singing and dancing across a hundred stages in a troupe of child performers, they travel by steam train into the heart of India. But as one disaster follows another, money runs short and tempers fray. What must the girls do to protect themselves, and how many lives will be ruined if they try to break free?

India Dark is such a beautiful tale from a beautiful culture, we wanted to share it with everyone so don't miss any of the blog tour stops! Here's what you can expect.

9th January

First up, find out where the story for India Dark came from over at District YA and if that tempts you, you can enter the first giveaway of the tour to win a copy of India Dark.

10th January

Next, Kirsty Murray will be stopping by All About Me for a fascinating interview whilst giving away another copy of India Dark. I know, we're spoiling you!

11th January

Hear all about Kirsty's writing process over at Ink Scratchers, and maybe pick up some tips if you're a writer. And guess what - another giveaway!

12th January

Turn The Page will be hosting Kirsty's next stop with an interview - head here for some tasty insights!

13th January

Kirsty will be dropping off her next guest post over at Readaraptor, talking about all the fabulous locations in India Dark. Definitely not to be missed!

14th January

Time for another Q&A, and this one will be over at Bookhi. Drop by for some exclusive insights and another chance to win a copy of India Dark in a giveaway.

15th January

We're on to characters next over at The Book Adicted Girl. Kirsty will be talking all about how she comes up with characters and the challenges of writing an emotionally charged tale.

16th January

The last Q&A of the tour will be held at Bookbabblers and this stop will be your last chance on the tour to win a copy of India Dark.

17th January

And last but certainly not least, Kirsty will be at Read In Between The Lines with a guest post all about her life and how writing fits into it. Enjoy!

Kirsty Murray is an Australian author of books for children and teenagers though her readership includes many adventurous adult readers. She writes for young people because she believes they are the universal audience: "not everyone lives to a ripe old age but everyone was once a child and the child inside us never really disappears".

India Dark is Kirsty's most recent novel. Based on a gripping true story and set in Australia, Southeast Asia and India in 1910, it is the fruit of many years of writing and research.

Don't Call Me Ishmael Blog Tour 2nd - 9th January 2012

2011-12-14T02:34:00.000-08:00

It's finally here! The first of our 2012 teen fiction titles will shortly be hitting the shelves and we want to welcome the hilarious Don't Call Me Ishmael by Michael Gerard Bauer to UK bookshops with a fantastic blog tour.

Don't Call Me Ishmael
Michael Gerard Bauer

Hounded by the school bully and struck dumb in the presence of girls, the year doesn't get off to a good start for Ishmael when he is asked to take misfit James Scobie under his wing. However, life takes some unexpected turns as Ishmael and his friends embark on the most embarrassingly awful... and the best year of their lives.

Sure to appeal to fans of Mr Gum and Wimpy Kid, this is a hilarious and uplifting new series all about school life and friendship.

So, what can we tempt you with on Templar's first blog tour of the new year? Here's what's on the line up.

2nd January

First up, we're hitting the fantastic I Want To Read That where Michael will be dropping off a guest post all about where the idea for Don't Call Me Ishmael came from and where he gets his inspirations. Plus don't miss the first giveaway of the tour!

3rd January

Nayu's Reading Corner will be delving a little deeper into the character and mindset of Ishmael with another fab guest post from the author.

4th January

Michael will be participating in his first interview of the tour over at Bookbabblers so head here for some exclusive insights and another chance to win a copy of Don't Call Me Ishmael in a giveaway.

5th January

There's another gripping guest post over at Read In Between The Lines on day 4 where Michael will be divulging all his writing secrets.

6th January

Mel's Random Reviews has posed the topic of "new year/new school" so stop by for an interesting guest post from the author, plus a giveaway of Don't Call Me Ishmael.

7th January

It's time for another interview with the author and Michael will be stopping by Wear The Old Coat to answer some more probing questions. Find out what it's like in a day in the life of Michael Gerard Bauer.

8th January

Michael's last guest post will be over at Writing From The Tub where he'll be writing all about the music that accompanies the book. Find out Ishmael's theme song!

9th January

And for the final stop we have another interview and giveaway combo at Mostly Reading YA. Don't miss your final chance to win a copy of Don't Call Me Ishmael on the blog tour!

Michael Gerard Bauer was born in Brisbane, Australia, and attended the University of Queensland. After graduating he became a teacher in English and Economics and from 2000 onwards he took regular breaks to pursue his writing career. His first novel, The Running Man, was published in 2004 and Don't Call Me Ishmael was first published in Australia in 2006. Templar are very excited to bring this fantastic read to UK bookshelves in 2012!

Michael now lives with his wife and two children in the beautiful Brisbane suburb of Ashgrove where he grew up.

How The World Works Wins the Royal Society Young People's Book Prize 2011

2011-12-02T04:01:00.000-08:00

Well it certainly feels great to be the WINNER!

It was such a proud moment for the Templar team last night to step up and accept the top prize from The Royal Society at their very smart awards ceremony for their Young People's Book Prize 2011 for How the World Works.

Very nice things were said to us (and about us) by the adult judges and we watched a hilarious video made by the younger judges from schools all over the UK. Lying in a pile of autumn leaves in a park, alongside a motorway, one young judge said, holding up our book, "You can read it anywhere!"

One thing that came over most strongly was that the interactivity of the book made it stand out head and shoulders from the rest of the field. The scientists (there were lots of them there) and the judges all praised the fact that the pops weren't just for decoration, they actually contributed to the understanding of the content.

Christiane made a lovely speech and both she and Beverley were congratulated by the other shortlisted authors and illustrators - with Nick Sharratt being especially complimentary about the book.

We then rounded off the evening with a bite to eat, before heading off home - weary but so glowing from the praise.

Good on Templar!

The winning team (left to right): illustrator Beverley Young, author Christiane Dorion and paper engineer Andy Mansfield proudly hold their award!

Templar's Teen Fiction Christmas Raffle!

2011-12-01T01:04:00.001-08:00

Roll up, roll up! Enter Templar's Teen Fiction Christmas Raffle and Santa might fill your stocking with some fantastic young adult fiction. The raffle will run for one week only so don't hesitate to enter or the elves might forget you this year...

Winners will be picked out of an elf's hat at random and prizes chosen at random from Santa's sack. So here's a look at what you could be burying your nose in this Christmas:

Down Under Pack

Here are two incredibly moving stories from the other side of the world, brought to you by Templar earlier this year. A Small Free Kiss In The Dark by Glenda Millard hails from Australia while The 10pm Question by Kate De Goldi is a tale from
the heart of New Zealand.

Historical Pack

Delve into past with these gripping reads: VIII by H. M. Castor and Wickedness by Deborah White. Plus two VIII postcards and a bookmark.

Jack Christie Adventures Pack

Johnny O'Brien's time travel adventure series has gone down a storm this year with their new-look jackets and the latest release, Day of Vengeance. Enjoy all the thrills
of the series so far!

Stephanie Burgis Pack

Like magic, adventure and Regency England? Love Stephanie Burgis! Follow the escapades of feisty Regency heroine Kat Stephenson with the first two books in the series, A Most Improper Magick and A Tangle of Magicks.

Teresa Flavin Pack

Escape to another world through a magical painting and fall through a painted door into 18th century London. Prepare for your imagination to take you into your wildest dreams with The Blackhope Enigma and The Crimson Shard by Teresa Flavin.

North America Pack

There are some fantastic stories being told on the other side of the Atlantic and this year Templar have worked hard to bring you the best of the best. This pack contains a limited edition of the heart-stopping survival thriller POD by Stephen Wallenfels and a copy of the side-splitting coming of age comedy Swim the Fly by Don Calame, complete with Swim the Fly drawstring bag, towel, postcards and a pair of goggles
for all those aquatic emergencies!

So, how does it work? Well, it's just like a raffle! Everyone can enter once for free but you can "buy" extra tickets by fulfilling certain tasks. Just follow the steps in the Rafflecopter form below - you never know, you may already qualify for extra tickets so make sure you click as many "I Did This" buttons as you deserve. Please be aware that this raffle is for UK and ROI residents only. GOOD LUCK! You can also enter the Children's Books Raffle here.

Templar's Children's Books Christmas Raffle!

2011-12-01T01:04:00.000-08:00

Roll up, roll up! Enter Templar's Children's Books Christmas Raffle as we're giving away a sackful of unmissable prizes. The raffle will run for one week only so don't hesitate to enter and be in with a chance to win some gorgeous gifts and splendid stocking fillers this Christmas.

Winners will be picked out of an elf's hat at random and prizes chosen at random from Santa's sack. So here's the bit you've all been waiting for - the prizes:

Alison Jay Pack

Win a gorgeous selection of Alison Jay books including Touch and Feel Toys, Welcome To The Zoo, Fairy Tales and Christmas Time plus an Alison Jay cloth bag
to keep your books in.

Amazing Baby Pack

Make your amazing baby's Christmas special this year with the latest Amazing Baby books, Incy Wincy Spider! and Round and Round The Garden!. Plus, sing along to your favourite Christmas songs with Jingle Bell Baby! while playing with these fun toys.

Bob, Man on the Moon Pack

Get set for some incredible galactic adventures with children's favourite, Bob, Man on the Moon. This pack includes Simon Bartram's award winning picture book Man on the Moon and Bob's Best Ever Friend as well as Bob's latest lunar adventure in Clone Choas. Plus a poster, stickers and a build your own rocket pack!

Grahame Baker-Smith Pack

We're so proud that Grahame Baker-Smith won the 2011 CILIP Kate Greenaway Award for his beautiful and moving picture book, FArTHER, so we're giving away a copy along with another Grahame Baker-Smith illustrated picture book, Leon and the Place Between.

Nanette Newman Pack

This year Templar have been extremely fortunate to publish some fantastic picture books from Brubaker, Ford & Friends and here are two picture books from the unforgettable Nanette Newman.

Shaun Tan Pack

It's been a brilliant year for the unique talent that is Shaun Tan winning an Oscar and the 2011 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award no less for Eric. These are definitely little treasures to keep on your bookshelf forever!

Snappy Pack

Ever a favourite with children, this set of Snappy Play Set Pet Shop, Snappy Sounds Toys, Snappy Felt Fun Farm and Snappy Little Christmas will keep creative minds occupied for hours!

StoryWorld Pack

Be inspired and create your own Christmas stories with StoryWorld and the StoryWorld Christmas Tales pack. Pick a card, any card, and see where your imagination takes you. Plus a luxurious McQueens scented candle for mum or dad!

Tessa's TEMPLAR CHRISTMAS HIGHLIGHTS!

2011-11-24T01:56:00.000-08:00

December is on our doorstep; the Dorking Christmas lights are now switched on and I finally found where I’d stashed my mittens over the summer. We’ve been working hard this year to produce a bumper list of Christmassy books, and here are my five festive favourites...

First up is Follow the Star: a lavish pop-up book with a foil silver star on every spread, and a sparkly red cover that will look fab under any Christmas tree.

Next is Black Dog, by the incomparable Levi Pinfold, last year’s winner of the Booktrust Early Years Best Emerging Illustrator award. When the Hope family wake up one morning to find a big scary dog outside, they are understandably a little alarmed... but it’s no good hiding from your fears, and only the littlest member of the family has the courage to go out and face the overgrown visitor.

As you can probably tell, we do like a shiny cover here at Templar, and we’re especially proud of our sumptuous retelling of Aesop’s The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse. With its glorious golden cover, this classic will really stick out on the bookshelf, and features stunning mousy artwork by Templar favourite Helen Ward.

Poor old Santa’s got an awful lot on his plate at this time of year, so the elves have put together a Santa’s Christmas Handbook to make sure nothing gets forgotten. Get to know Rudolf & co., study the Skyway Code (always keep left when overtaking Jumbo Jets) and for goodness’ sake watch out for skylights...

And my final favourite is the wonderful Bumper Book of Bob. It’s packed with stuff to do for all you Bob fans out there: puzzles, colouring-ins, masses of stickers, some super-stellar recipes and a new mini-lunar adventure! Perfect to keep you occupied on those long, boring space-trips to visit the relatives at Christmas!

HAPPY 'NEARLY' CHRISTMAS FROM TEMPLAR!

Behind the Scenes at Illusionology Filming

2011-11-17T04:41:00.000-08:00

On Monday, there was an opportunity for the Illusionology team to escape from the office to take a road trip. The shiny sparkly lights of Hove, not Hollywood, was the destination.

The scripts had been prepared, props accounted for and a moustache grown!

Lights, camera... action!

Consultant and master magician, The Deceptionist, readies himself in front of a magical green screen and the camera starts to roll...

Illusionology tricks were performed and secrets were revealed to the camera. With some added magical effects, The Deceptionist materializes on a old theatre stage.

He starts to guide you through classic tricks from magic's illustrious history. Amazement is followed by enthusiasm and precious knowledge is gained.

Watch out for these special Illusionology films, but remember... IN SECRECY LIES WONDER.

Teresa Flavin in Sussex

2011-11-14T01:52:00.000-08:00

Teresa Flavin ended her week in Sussex on a high - well on top of Devil's Dyke!

Teresa on Devil's Dyke

Flying in from Glasgow to Gatwick on Sunday the 6th November, she was off to Hassocks, Steyning, Angmering, Goring, Haywards Heath, Ardingly, Burgess Hill and Brighton.

As a shortlisted author in the West Sussex Children's Book Award all the schools she visited were taking part in the voting and discussions on their favourite books. Lots of great feedback and happy children - especially for those who had never met an author before - it was a terrific tour. Thanks to all at West Sussex Library service for making it run so smoothly.

Teresa with year 7 at Oathill Community College

Vanessa and Julie from The Book Nook in Hove, Brighton finished off Teresa's visit to Sussex with a flourish - her largest school event to date - over 100 children who were thrilled with their special visitor.

After calling into the Just Imagine Story Centre in Chelmsford on Saturday for her last event in the south, Teresa heads back to Glasgow - and our thanks for all her hard work.

Teresa and Jayne enjoy the view

School Library Information Book Award

2011-11-03T05:14:00.000-07:00

At last night's School Library Information Book Award, Templar's The Life and Times of William Shakespeare won the Children's Choice vote in the 12-16 age category, and then went onto win the Children's Overall Favourite book.

Around 90 books were submitted and a shortlist of 9 books was chosen by a panel of librarians and Peter's Library Services manager.

The awards were split into two with the Librarians voting for the title they liked the best, and then participating schools voting for the book they wanted to win.

Unsurprisingly, the children's and librarians' choices were different - but we were thrilled that the young teen age group nominated Shakespeare.

How the World Works was also on the shortlist and the artwork and content, along with the paper engineering were highly praised by the judges - but sadly it lost out to How to Make the Universe with 92 Ingredients.

Illustrator Beverley Young was there along with Christiane Dorion and Emma Goldhawk accepted the award (as Editor of Shakespeare) on behalf of authors Ari Berk and Kristen McDermott.

Congratulations again to the Templar team - and once again, the librarians and other publishers at the ceremony all heaped praise on our books.

Meet the Templar team! - Queen of Ologies "the delightful" Nghiem Ta

2011-11-03T02:51:00.000-07:00

Drum roll please .... Introducing the "always happy to help" and bright as a button Nghiem Ta - Queen of Ologies!

How long have you been at Templar
Nearly 10 years, I’ve been ‘Ologizing’ all that time!

What does your job involve?
Working with some very nice to people to create fun books. From drawing matchstick men to typesetting and art directing, with some photoshopping and paper-engineering thrown in.

What is the most satisfying element of your job?
Watching people, especially kids, looking a finished Ology book. Most people scan the pages using their sense of touch, trying to find the novelties, whilst others are off in a world of their own!

Have you had any funny awkward moments?
We had Brian Froud visiting, on my way to collect some printouts from the other end of the studio, I found myself walking behind him. Suddenly, our MD shouts out, “Nghiem, will you stop stalking Brian Froud!” I wanted faeries to whisk me away!

What is your most memorable moment or biggest achievement at Templar to date?
After a bumpy, stomach-churning flight to Glasgow... we won the British Book Award for Design and Production for Egyptology. Yay, Templar’s first Nibbie!

How do you take your tea?
British tea = with milk, Chinese tea = with lots of dim sum :)

Fave book related blogs / twitter accounts/websites ?
Blogs... It would have to be the Booksniffer and Jabberworks. Tweets... My friends, tbktweet and waldopancake.

What are you working on at the moment?
Working the finishing up Ology #11/Illusionology, pondering about Ology #12 and wading through the digital books swamp.

Are there any authors or illustrators you haven’t worked with yet who you would like to work with in the future?
How do I answer this without sounding like a stalker...? I’m a huge fan of Niroot Puttapipat. A few years ago. I wrote a standard art test brief, this was his interpretation...

What are their favourite books (both Templar and non Templar)?
I love fairy tales! From Templar’s Aesop’s fables by Helen Ward to the Coloured Fairy Books by The Folio Society.

QUICK FIRE

Bookshop or library >> Library as kid, Bookshops as a grown-up
Physical or digital >> Physical
Mac or PC >> Mac, RIP Steve Jobs
Coffee or tea >> Both, it depends on time of day
Biscuit or cake >> Cake
Heatwave or snowstorm >> Snowstorm

Simon Bartram at the Science Museum

2011-10-26T01:38:00.000-07:00

This event at the Science Museum in London really made Simon Bartram's day - as he got to wear a REAL spacesuit! It was taken out of one of the Museum's display cabinets for Simon to put on after he had done his work (draw an alien, sign books and chat to very excited parents and children who were very pleased to meet him). The NASA suit from the Apollo XVII mission was worn by an astronaut by the name of Cernan - and it was this suit, along with proper Moon Boots that Simon got to wear. Luckily it fitted. After a few star jumps Simon calmed down long enough for us to take some photo's. What a brilliant event - and a real treat for Simon and all of us there. This is definitely one for the scrap book.

Thanks to Rachel and the team from the Science Museum bookshop who made this happen.

P.S. We also went up to the Launch Pad to see the winning drawing from the alien competition held by the Science Museum as Simon was one of the judges. It looks brilliant full size - congratulations to Aishling for a winning design.

Word Up! Festival

2011-10-26T01:21:00.000-07:00

Three days at Word Up! the new South London children's book festival held in Dulwich saw Templar's Adam Stower, Emma Dodd and Kelly Gerrard and Simon Bartram play to sold out events. First up with Adam and despite a young fan knowing that the doggy was in fact a bear, and kept on shouting this out - Adam, as ever, was delightful with the children who just love guessing his drawings. The parents are pretty keen on him too!

That was on Saturday, then on Sunday - it was a Roman Rescue graphic novel session with Emma Dodd and Kelly Gerrard - and this being an area of very motivated children they really got stuck in with their graphic novel spreads - based on the Red Riding Hood scene - with Emma scaring herself with her own picture of the wolf. It was one of the children's suggestions that Red Riding Hood arm herself with a gun, but we are pleased to say that no wolves were harmed in this event.

Monday morning, bright and early had Simon Bartram in the main theatre at Alleyns School, which was the venue for the Word Up! festival. Very smart school - even have a Costa Coffee on site. Again, a packed house literally brought the house down with their excitement and shouting. A best alien fancy dress competition was judged - and following the X Factor lead we had best boy, best girl and best group winners.

Simon's writing and drawing workshop was well attended and some brilliant ideas were discussed, drawings done and a superb alien drawn by the children at the end of the session.

Thanks so much to Word Up! for inviting us - its was very well run and everyone enjoyed themselves.

Baking in Bath!

2011-10-04T04:44:00.000-07:00

Whew what a scorcher! Another great weekend for Templar authors and illustrators at the Bath Childrens Literature Fest where Jonny Duddle, Sam Lloyd, Jamila Gavin and Dug Steer all enjoyed the welcome given to them by their audiences and Festival support staff.

A gathering of young pirates on Saturday morning could only mean one thing - Jonny Duddle was about dressed in his outfit and looking remarkably cool despite the heat. Over 100 children and their mums and dads filled the Guildhall with their oooaargh's and cheers and listened amazed as Jonny told of his life as a real pirate. Lots of questions followed and an excited band of pirate costumed children lined up to get their books signed and have another look at the maggoty ship's biscuit that Jonny found in his pocket.

Across the city, in the Mission Theatre at lunch time - Sam Lloyd - helped by Middleton Mann - did two lovely events. Sitting down amongst the children on cushions, Sam read her books - the children made masks to frighten off Wendy and they all sang songs, accompanied by Middleton on guitar. Despite the heat the children had a great time and all clearly adore their Monster Mates books - and were keen to get the new Ernie and Norman ones too.

Back in the Guildhall, calm and tranquility followed with Jamila Gavin's atmospheric readings from Tales from India . Again the audience were thrilled to meet her and talk to her about their childhood stories too.

On Sunday morning the pirates in the Guildhall had been replaced by dragonologists - as three Dragon Masters entered The Den. Dug Steer, aka Dr Ernest Drake chaired a panel discussion with Jasper Fforde (The Last Dragon Slayer) and Chris d'Lacey (the Last Dragon Chronicles) in which sightings and encounters with dragons were earnestly discussed.

Enthusiastic dragonologists in the audience tried to find out where to see dragons (Wales according to Jasper is stuffed with them - or St Leonard's Forest in Sussex where Dr Drake thought he caught sight of one).

And this is a little video put together by The Telegraph to get some of the atmosphere at the Festival.

Tea at Fortnum's with Kate de Goldi

2011-09-23T03:53:00.000-07:00

Before Kate De Goldi left London to fly back to her home in New Zealand, she joined Dinah Hall, Sunday Telegraph book reviewer and blogger, Jo from Foyles Children's Department CXR and Jess from Primrose Books in North London for tea at Fortnum's in Piccadilly. Also enjoying the delicious cakes and ice-creams (they do these little mini-cones with different flavours as a 'starter') were myself, Templar commissioning editor for fiction Helen Boyle and Lesley Preston from Bounce!

Kate kept us entertained with her stories of her travels around Britain - she started off in Edinburgh and worked her way slowly south - falling in love with each new city and region as she went. Her indefatigable travelling companion was Reena - an extraordinary walking talking powerhouse of knowledge and wisdom. They made a great pair - I won't forget them whistling in harmony in the mornings at our Edinburgh flat.

Dinah Hall has also written up a short blog - http://ladybookbird.tumblr.com - which sums up Kate perfectly!

Click here for an extract

The 10pm Question
Kate de Goldi

Twelve-year-old Frankie Parsons has a head full of questions. Only Ma takes him seriously, but unfortunately she is the cause of the most worrying question of all, the one Frankie can never bring himself to ask. Then a new girl arrives at school with questions of her own: questions that make Frankie’s carefully controlled world begin to unravel.

"De Goldi is the brightest star in Templar’s new and exciting fiction list. This is an effusive novel packed with garrulous dialogue and layers of characters, that really capture the themes of family complexity and mental health. Definitely one to watch in young adult fiction this autumn."

The Bookseller Highlights of the Season

The Crimson Shard Blog Tour 3rd October - 14th October

2011-09-20T08:00:00.000-07:00

Well, it had to happen at some point... Templar's last young adult novel to be published in 2011 is almost here but we're definitely ending things on a high with The Crimson Shard, the fantastic time travel adventure sequel to The Blackhope Enigma by Teresa Flavin.

THE CRIMSON SHARD
Teresa Flavin

This sequel to The Blackhope Enigma is imbued with alchemy and intrigue. During what seems like an ordinary museum visit, tour guide Throgmorton lures Sunni and Blaise through a painted doorway into eighteenth-century London. When Throgmorton demands secret information from the pair about their Blackhope escapades, they attempt to flee, encountering body snatchers, art thieves and forgers in this gripping time-travel adventure.

Read an extract!

Teresa will be visiting 8 exciting young adult and children's book blogs to drop off some fantastic guest posts, provide the As in some Q&As and of course, it wouldn't be a proper blog tour without the odd giveaway...

3rd October

First up Teresa with be at Nayu's Reading Corner to talk about where, or rather when, she would go if she had a magical painted doorway through time.

4th October

Teresa picks out her favourite books over at Serendipity Reviews on day 2: time travel books, historical books, books that inspire and books that must be on her shelf at all times!

5th October

Readaraptor has the first giveaway and the first interview of the tour so head here if you want to find out how Teresa's work as an illustrator influences her writing and perhaps what her favourite dinosaur is too...

6th October

You can find Teresa's next guest post at Our Book Reviews Online where she will be talking all about the inspirations behind the magical worlds of the paintings in her books.

7th October

The tour's next interview will be hosted by Heaven, Hell and Purgatory Book Reviews so head here for more juicy insights!

8th October

Heading into the weekend, Teresa will be dropping off another guest post for Steph Likes Books - you'll just have to wait to find out what it's about!

9th October

Lyrical Reviews will be hosting the third and final Q&A and here is the place to find out more about Teresa's research, who her favourite artist is and what she thinks of the cover designs for her books. There will also be a giveaway so make sure you enter to win a copy of The Crimson Shard.

14th October

Don't think that is it! There's one more stop a few days later with Tall Tales and Short Stories who will be hosting Teresa's last guest post and also your last chance on the tour to bag a copy of the new book - definitely not one to miss!

Teresa was born in New York and studied Illustration at Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston. Since 1993 she has illustrated a number of picture and chapter books for children and young adults.

In 1995 she moved to Glasgow, Scotland, where she began writing her own stories to illustrate. She was awarded a 2006 Scottish Arts Council New Writers Bursary to work on her first illustrated novel for 9-14 year olds, The Blackhope Enigma, of which The Crimson Shard is the sequel. Teresa is currently working on her third novel.

Find out more about Teresa Flavin on her website or follow her on Twitter!

Meet the Templar Team - Introducing Laura Garrod

2011-09-15T08:03:00.000-07:00

Meet Laura Garrod - Uk Sales Administrator

How long have you been at Templar?
I have been at Templar for 4 months, I joined as an intern where I worked in the foreign rights department and was then lucky enough to bag a job in UK sales!

What does your job involve?
My job primarily involves assisting Clare, the UK Publishing Manager. I also work closely with Bounce! Our sales and marketing agency. We meet on a bi-weekly basis to discuss sales developments and it gives us a chance to present current and future titles to them.

What is the most satisfying element of your job?
As cliché as it sounds, seeing a book finally finished. I haven’t been at Templar long enough yet to see the entire process but being able to hold a finished copy is really satisfying.

Have you had any funny awkward moments?
Not that I can remember, but I am sure in time there will be a few.

What did you want to be when you were a child?
I really wanted to be a Doctor when I was younger. I even had work experience at Epsom hospital in Accident and Emergency, but fainted on my first day when a lady had a nose bleed (not my finest hour!) I was then advised by the Doctor I was shadowing to rethink my career choice.

What is your most memorable moment or biggest achievement at Templar to date? Presenting to the Sales reps at the Bounce Spring Conference in August. It was the first time I met all the reps together and really enjoyed the whole experience.

How do you take your tea?
I don’t drink tea.

Fave book related blogs / twitter accounts/websites ?
The Book Sniffer for interesting book reviews, the bookseller for industry ‘gossip’ and cupcakesandcashmere.com for fashion and food.

What are you working on at the moment?
I am currently preparing sales material for a meeting with Early Learning Centre and WH Smiths.

Are there any authors or illustrators you haven’t worked with yet who you would like to work with in the future?
Growing up I really loved reading Hans Christian Andersen stories. It would be really nice to see a Templar collection of these.

What are your favourite books (both Templar and non Templar)?
My favourite Templar books (because I cant choose just one) are Monstrous Book of Monsters, Santa’s Handbook and Jack and the Baked Beanstalk. My favourite non Templar books are The Hungry Caterpillar and The Cat in the Hat. I also love the Alice Sebold books; The Lovely Bones, Full Moon and Lucky.

QUICK FIRE

Which Monster Mate are you? Nancy
Bookshop or library Bookshop
Physical or digital Physical
Mac or PC PC
Coffee or tea Neither..diet coke!
Biscuit or cake Biscuit – chocolate!!
Heatwave or snowstorm Snowstorm

Thanks Laura - You're the TOPS!

VIII Blog Tour 26th September - 3rd October

2011-09-13T09:28:00.000-07:00

So, how much do you think you know about the most infamous King of England? Well, if you haven't read VIII by H. M. Castor then you don't know the half of it! Prepare to enter the mind of Henry VIII and discover just why he turned from an ordinary, fun-loving boy into the cruel tyrant of his later years.

VIII
H. M. Castor

Destined for greatness; tormented by demons... VIII is the story of Hal: a young, handsome, gifted warrior, who believes he has been chosen to lead his people. But he is tormented by the ghosts of his family's violent past and, once he rises to power, he turns to murder and rapacious cruelty. He is Henry VIII. The Tudors have always captured the popular imagination. In VIII, Henry is presented afresh for a new generation of teenage readers.

"Succeeds brilliantly in portraying the troubled soul of Henry from youth to old age." Bookseller Pod

"A real page-turner for older readers." Bookseller

Read an extract!

To welcome this fantastic historical novel onto our bookshelves, Harriet Castor will be making her way around eight blogs run by historical fiction lovers up and down the UK. Definitely not something to miss if you want to solve the enigma of Henry VIII, have a passion for historical fiction or just plain love a good story. Here's what you can expect:

26th September

First off, Harriet will be over at The Book Zone where she'll be talking about why Henry VIII as a character has such a timeless appeal and why his story is so relevant to the modern reader.

27th September

If that whets your appetite, there will be an exclusive extract from VIII at Daisy Chain Book Reviews along with a giveaway so make sure you enter to win the beautiful hardback of VIII.

28th September

On day three, Harriet will be at The Overflowing Library to drop off another brilliant guest post, talking about all her research for VIII with perhaps a sneak preview of the next project...

29th September

The first Q&A of the tour will be held over at A Little Sun Shy so don't miss the chance to find out all the juiciest gossip!

30th September

Find out why Elvis, Elton and Robert Downey Jr were essential to building Henry's character profile over at Floor To Ceiling Books - especially Robert Downey Jr!

1st October

Cheezyfeet Books will be hosting the next Q&A. What better way to celebrate publication day?

2nd October

You can find Harriet's final guest post over at A Dream of Books and she'll be talking about why villains make such good heroes. Embrace the baddy!

3rd October

It's the last stop but it definitely promises to be a goody over at The Book Bug who will be grilling Harriet in her final interview and posting a review just in case you need one more reason to grace your bookshelf with VIII.

H. M. Castor has been obsessed with the Tudors since primary school. She studied Tudor History at Cambridge University, and despite spending time after that doing a variety of jobs – including teaching English in Prague and working as a Benesh Movement Notator for the Royal Ballet – the Tudors have never lost their hold on
her.

H. M. Castor lives in Bristol with her husband and two daughters.

For more, check out Harriet's website or follow her on Twitter.

A Wicked entry from the desk of Templar fiction

2011-09-02T02:04:00.000-07:00

After a few days soaking up the bookish culture at the Edinburgh Book Festival we've returned to find summer is officially over, it's September and the starting gun for autumn and Christmas titles has sounded. One good thing about being back in the office after a nice break up North was returning to find some lovely sparkling and shiny new books waiting on our desk. Oh yes they look so pretty, we do love seeing the finished book all brand new and waiting to be read by new readers.

September marks the start of a busy two months for Templar fiction with some big new titles and debut authors coming over the autumn months. As many of you know the epic survival thriller POD by Stephen Wallenfels has been invading blogs and bookshops these last few weeks and now launches with an extremely cool new website. Check out www.podinvasion.co.uk and play our survival game to be in with a chance to win an iPad.

Two of the shiny new books we returned to find were Wickedness and Frogspell, (more to come in a later post on Frogspell antics). Both are outstanding debut novels from two new authors on the Templar fiction list and we're super excited about them both.

Wickedness is a real genre-busting book, combining historical, paranormal, magic and romance. It tells the interconnected tales of two red-headed girls living 400 years apart, an ancient prophecy and a sinister and seductive stranger...It's gripping, magical, scary, romantic, heart-stopping all at the same time. Add to this beautifully crafted story-telling skills from author Deborah White and we reckon we've got a real new talent in teenage writing.

To celebrate the publication, Debbie has just embarked on virtual tour, so check her posts out at the following blogs. There are lots of exclusives, extracts and extras, personally I'm very much looking forward to 17th Century make-up and Day in the Life of an Egyptian teen!

Thurs 1st Sept I Want to Read That Competiton to win 5 signed books, pens and intro
Fri 2nd Sept Fluttering Butterflies Extract exclusive
Mon 5th Sept Books for Company Character profile
Tues 6th Sept My Favourite Books 17th Century make-up
Wed 7th Sept Wondrous Reads Day in the life of Debbie
Thurs 8th Sept Musings of a Bookshop Girl Q&A with Debbie about writing
Fri 9th Sept Once Upon a Bookcase Day in life of an Egyptian teen
Mon 12th September Love Fantasy Sci-Fi Novels Why Egypt is inspiring
Tues 13th Sept The Great, the Good & the Bad I wouldn’t be here without

So to celebrate the publication of Wickedness, why not do something wicked this September!

And whilst all that's going on the fiction team are still planning and plotting ~~world domination,~~ our fiction list for 2012. There's so much exciting stuff, we can't wait to tell you all about it...

Picture books at Edinburgh Festival

2011-08-30T00:37:00.000-07:00

Saturday - day 6
Time for our lovely illustrators to show case their talent starting with Levi Pinfold and his Storybox event. Parents and children filled the space , sitting cushions and all happily drawing the Django to Levi's expert tuition. Drawing games followed along with Levi reading his story encouraging the children to spot where the Django was hiding. After a vote all decided that John wasn't to blame for the mischief making ....

Then it was Adam Stower's turn - also in the Storybox and again a lovely family audience. Adam used the Slam! Big Book and soon the kids were shouting out what they thought would be happening next. Silly Doggy! Made everyone laugh and then Adam drew their magical wish list for a pet which had a dolphin head, giraffe neck and six frog legs with high heels. As you do!

Levi was back in action that evening in a Book Trust Best New Illustrators panel with Viv Schwarz chaired by Teresa Flavin. He showed an early working of Black Dog which included his editor's notes which intrigued the audience. Lots of questions about his painting techniques and why he chose to work in tempera.

Once again lots of compliments from the audience in the signing tent about Templar books

LABYRINTHS, MAZES AND INTRIGUE AT EIBF

2011-08-29T03:57:00.000-07:00

Day Four (Friday) in the authors' yurt, and Teresa Flavin, author and illustrator of The Blackhope Enigma and The Crimson Shard, is preparing to go into the RBS Corner Theatre for her event, (seen here with Templar editor Emma and event Chair Nikki Gamble)

Teresa has a fantastic visual presentation to go with her talk, and begins by showing covers of her favourite childhood books, the Nancy Drew mysteries. She also makes an instant impression by telling the rapt audience of 11 year olds she was heavily into Manga as a child and can still draw a mean Manga character!

As Teresa gets into the story of how The Blackhope Enigma came about, kids shift in their seats for the best view of the intriguing pictures of sea monsters and paintings of mythological characters that pop up on the big screen in front of them. She tells the eager listeners how, when she first came to Scotland from America, she would travel in the Borders, visiting as many castles as she could. After all, there aren't castles in America!

As labyrinths feature heavily in her first book, Teresa whets our appetite with several pictures of mazes and labyrinths from around the world, before reading from the chapter where her main characters walk the labyrinth in Blackhope Tower and find themselves inside a painting. Even though I've read the book several times, Teresa has me, along with the young audience, completely gripped.

As the pictures on the screen move from mazes to examples of trompe l'oeil, she explains to the audience how 'trompe l'oeil' means 'fool the eye'. The kids are very impressed by what they are seeing and hearing, as is clear from the odd 'wow' and wide-eyed expression, and are excited to find out that trompe l'oeil is one of the themes of Teresa's second book, The Crimson Shard, to be published on the 1st of October. She treats us to a short taster reading and leaves everyone desperate to know more!

The forest of hands that sprouts when question time begins really shows how Teresa has fired the minds and imaginations of her audience. Some ask very good questions indeed: Did you base your child characters on real people? (Answer - they are all bits of me in one way or another.) Was Fausto Corvo a real artist? (Answer - no, he is fictional, but was loosely based on Caravaggio.) And, the question that drew a sharp intake of breath and a chuckle from all the adults in the room... How old are you? (Answer - I'm not telling! How old are you?!)

I think it's fair to say that as mysteries go, The Blackhope Enigma and The Crimson Shard would definitely be right up Nancy Drew's street!

Edinburgh - Day 2 - part 2

2011-08-25T06:52:00.000-07:00

It's like stepping into another dimension when entering the yurt at Edinburgh Book festival, conversations go off on an entirely different tangent to the real world happening outside…

"Do you want the fish tank?" ask the helpful staff at the ediburgh book festival.

"Well, only if you have one. I can make do with the book, the clock, I can just explain the fishtank without a demonstration and I've always got my rubber duck". Said Christiane Dorion in her French Canadian lilt. You wouldn't imagine this is the type of thing you might hear from a teacher/doctor/environmentalist/WWF consultant and all round science expert!

But Christiane who left her native Quebec to study a phd in the UK over 20 years ago and stayed, is in fact referring to the visual aids for her schools events. An impressive CV you must admit, and now author can also be added to her list of many talents. She is the writer of the hugely successful series of pop-up science books, How the Weather Works and Blue Peter Award nominee, How the World Works.

Each page is bursting with interactive facts about the universe we live in and the science that surrounds us here on earth everyday.

So… as a class of primary 4 children file into the RBS imagination theatre ready to absorb the knowledge Christiane is eager to pass on.

You could say it is a lot to cover in one hour… starting with the big bang, how the universe was created, our solar system, where weather comes from, the water cycle, what are fossil fuels and even right through to what the future holds for humans on earth. Although some of the children believe we will need to move to another planet entirely, which is not entirely out of the question, she adds.

Christiane is impressed with the huge amount of science knowledge the children already have, even before she has a chance to explain or show her experiments, hands shoot into the air to tell her exactly what all the names of the planets are.

So, you may wonder why the clock and the rubber duck... well... using the 24 hour clock to simulate the existence of the earth until present day, we all learned that the dinosaurs arrived at 23:40, and we humans only arrived at 23:59:46. And as for the duck..? Well, did you know that scientists discovered how the currents of the worlds oceans worked by a shipwreck of plastic toys that spilled it's cargo into the sea and various toys washed up on shores all over the world, including Scotland!

As Christiane prepares herself for the onslaught of questions which range from... 'how did the dinosaurs die?' through to… 'are we alone in the universe?', and as a scientist, she is open to all theories and is happy for the children to come up with their own explanations, but also reminds them that according to current research what she has written in her book is what we believe to be best explanation.

But what facinates Christiane and the message she is keen to get across is the fact that everything on earth moves in cycles. Everything has a life cycle, humans, animals, plants... even the water we drink, the air we breathe and the clothes we wear.

As Christiane concludes her presentation, she is happy to point out the positive message to take from doing events like this, is that children even as young as 8 years old are aware of the changes we need to make to save the fragile environment we live in, and are taking steps towards providing themselves with a sustainable future.

Edinburgh - Day 2 - part 1

2011-08-25T06:08:00.000-07:00

I'd bet my last, precious hardback edition of The 10PM Question that Templar author Kate De Goldi has travelled the furthest of any of the hundreds of authors appearing at the festival - further even than Shaun Tan! Having made the mammoth 27 hour journey from Wellington, New Zealand, Kate opened her festival programme with a lively panel discussion alongside author Saci Lloyd and chaired by Nikki Gamble. In front of an audience of around 100 teenagers, Kate told entertaining anecdotes about her Irish-Italian family, who 'talk a lot' and of how she is from a line of 'threes' - three sisters, three aunties, three great-aunts - the latter of which being her inspiration for the eccentric but lovable 'Aunties' who are the heart of the family in her novel. Most candid however, was her description of how she used her young son's anxieties and nightly questions as her inspiration for 12-year-old Frankie, who is at the centre of a chaotic but loving family impacted by mental illness, and the asker of the all-important 10 p.m. question of the title.

After Saci had shown some mind-boggling futuristic images to illustrate her action-packed dystopian novel, Momentum, a hush came over the audience as Kate read an extract from The 10 P.M. Question; it's obvious why Kate has had a successful radio show in New Zealand for the past few years - this blogger was so enthralled while listening to her read, she forgot to take photos for the blog! Frankie's worries, his big sister Gordana's biting sarcasm, the contentment of the family cat (the brilliantly named Fat Controller), even the 'rodent voices' of worry in Frankie's head, were all brought to life in Kate's musical Kiwi voice.

As the floor was opened up for questions, hands shot up, eager to know how Kate and Saci started as authors and whether they liked writing at school. Despite their novels being very different in theme, Kate and Saci discovered they had both been avid readers as children and shared a festive tradition of reading A Christmas Carol every year.

Moving next door to the signing tent, Kate and Saci were kept busy for half an hour by a huge line of young people wanting everything signed - books, leaflets, bags - some of the teens standing wide-eyed and mute in the presence of these two brilliant authors and some brave enough to ask more questions.

As Frankie and his best friend Gigs might have said, this was an event of 'bonga swetso' proportions (read the book to find out what that means!) and luckily for Edinburgh, there is still more to come from the fabulous Kate De Goldi...

Edinburgh - Day 1 - part 2

2011-08-25T05:01:00.000-07:00

After a brief sejourn it was back to business for the Templar team at the Edinburgh book festival on Day One. We excitedly awaited the arrival (no pun intended) of Shaun Tan, the visionary creator of Tales from Outer Suburbia, Eric, The Bird King, The Lost Thing - the list goes on and on.

Now as you all know it's been a big year for Shaun (an Oscar, a Hugo, the ALMA ) so we are so delighted that he's flown over 20 hours to be with Templar at the Edinburgh book festival. Even more exciting was catching a glimpse of Neil Gaiman and Shan deep in conversation - now that's the meeting of two amazing creative brains! When we tweeted this sighting, the twitosphere responded excitedly about what sort of book the two could create! Oh well we can but dream!

Anyway, onto the main event - Shaun Tan's Masterclass. Over 150 people packed into the RBS Corner Theatre to hear about Shaun's inspiration, how he works and how he views his own work. We were treated to a clip from the Oscar winning animation The Lost Thing, as well as a storytelling by Shaun of his tale Eric. He even showed the audience some of his early childhood and student illustrations. It was a truly inspiring event and we all can't wait to hear Shaun talk again on Thursday.

After an hour of signing books with his trademark stamps, finger prints and drawings, we decamped to Centotre on George Street for some italian food - delicious scottish squid and more inspiring and bookish conversation.

The end to a perfect Edinburgh Book Festival day.

Templar in Old Reekie - the view from the Edinburgh Festival

2011-08-25T04:45:00.000-07:00

The intrepid Templar 5 (pr guru Jayne Roscoe, editor supremo Emma Goldhawk, Ology mastermind Nghiem Ta, design and photographer extraordinaire Will Steele and bibliogeek Helen Boyle) have headed up to Old Reekie with a whole host of Templar authors and illustrators appearing at the Edinburgh Book festival.

Day 1 - Bombs, medals and stuffed rats
We sometimes wonder how Johnny O'Brien gets through airport security. At his packed schools' event on Tuesday morning, out the suitcase came a WW1 German pith helmet, medals, a telescope, a water pistol (which surely must look dodgy in the x-ray machine) a minature bomb and... a stuffed rat. Yes readers of a sensitive disposition - a stuffed rat!

It was somewhat of a homecoming for Johnny as he kicked off events' schedule for Templar Fiction at this year’s Edinburgh Book Festival. Johnny Duddle had had the accolade of being Templar's first EdBookFest 2011 event when he donned piratical gear for a pirate crunching last Monday, but Johhny O'B heralded the start of some exciting events, talks and discussions from Templar fiction authors.

To whet the audiences’ appetite for adventure Johnny began by reading an extract from his first book in the Jack Christie Adventures series Day of Assassins. He plunged them straight into a battle scene where they have travelled back to World War 1, Jack finds himself on the front line with rifle in hand and comes into close contact with the opposition. As the children become immersed in the combat situation where Jack is being held at the mercy of a German soldiers bayonette, Johnny decides to leave the story there, quite literally, on a knife-edge!

The kids were hooked by Johnny's historical time-travel patter and eager to get their hands on the historical loot that had come out of the suitcase as it was handed round - well apart from the rat, who took pride of place on the stage's speeker. Amongst the audience for the event were even a group of children from Johnny's old school in Peebles. They had lots of questions for Johnny, including asking if he was the Johhny O'Brien who'd won a history award and whose name adorned a plaque in their school.

An hour passed in a flash and after the event a large signing queue quickly formed in the bookshop tent - we think they may have even sold out of Day of Assassins stock - hurrah!

The team and Johnny headed back to the authors' yurt for a well-earned cuppa tea, before Johnny jetted off back to his city day job.

Shaun Tan visits Seven Stories

2011-08-25T02:29:00.000-07:00

Well, despite a marathon flight over from Melbourne to Edinburgh, there was no sign of fatigue or jet lag from Shaun Tan as he met his first audience at the book festival last night. As ever, everyone was entranced with his story of how he works, the themes of his books and the wonderful miscellaneous stories he willingly offers up. Still full of energy he joined the rest of the Templar team for a late night meal. Pick up at 9.30 am this morning, Wednesday to catch the 10 o clock train down to Newcastle. For Shaun, a treat - as he hasn't been out of London on previous visits to the UK - so a chance to catch the stunning scenery on the journey south, through Berwick on Tweed. We were met at Newcastle by Alison Gwynn from Seven Stories who took us to the centre's special collection depository. A quick coffee and a choccie biscuit and then we were being shown amazing original artwork and notebooks by Edward Ardizzone right through to Polly Dunbar's work. Onwards to the Seven Stories building itself and a quick tour round the current Anthony Browne exhibition before getting ready for the event itself.

To a packed room, Shaun started his event guiding us through a pictorial description of 'A Day in the Life...of Shaun Tan'. Where letting iguanas out in the morning refers to a part of his normal domestic life before his starts his 'job'. We all sat in wonder as suddenly the little things in our daily lives could be seen in such an extraordinary way if we just make a small 'adjustment' to the familiar. We were further amazed as we were shown pictures Shaun had drawn through his childhood – Star Wars-like spaceships by the age of 12!

The following 60 minutes, we were treated to insights into the creation of The Lost Thing, both book and award winning film. The Arrival and why it didn't need words. The Red Tree and it's ability to be valued by people in many different ways.

A short 'questions and answers' session was following by a very long queue for a unique Shaun Tan signature! Definitely worth the wait!

Day of Vengeance Blog Tour 5th September - 12th September

2011-08-22T08:21:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but history lessons at school were always the time for me to catch up on sleep and as a result my history knowledge is holey at best. So, when the Jack Christie Adventures landed on my desk I was horrified to think I was going to have to show up my utter lack of knowledge in trying to remember what happened when, why and how as Jack and his friend Angus went on their adventures through time. I opened the first book, Day of the Assassins, and after an amazing adrenalin-fueled adventure was spat out of the last page with a very odd sensation. I knew how the First World War began! And I hadn't even noticed learning it! Not only that but I had met the assassins of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (yes, I know his name now too!) and had stood there as the assassin, Gavrilo Princip, prepared to fire, wondering if I would have stopped him (I still don't know the answer to that). If only my history lessons had been this thrilling!

Well, I'm very excited to announce that Johnny O'Brien's third time travelling adventure, Day of Vengeance, will be hitting a bookshelf near you in September and to celebrate, Johnny will be touring some of the best young adult fiction blogs in the UK.

DAY OF VENGEANCE
Johnny O'Brien

Schoolboy time-traveller Jack Christie is thrown back to 1940s France with the Second World War at a crucial point. The Battle of Britain and the German Vengeance programme are underway, as Jack and his best friend Angus take a more senior role in VIGIL's bid to prevent an intervention in history that could go nuclear. With Spitfire dogfights, jeep races and thrilling chases, the boys have met their most hair-raising adventure yet, including involvement in an assassintation attempt on Hitler.

"Johnny O’Brien has created the ultimate thinking-boy’s hero in Jack Christie. Smart, intuitive and determined to tackle history head-on..." Rachel Williams, Editor

"Jack Christie is a very relatable hero - a regular schoolboy caught in, and coping with, circumstances beyond his control rather than a slick James Bond type of hero who always has all the answers." Teenreads

So basically, get ready for some serious adventure! You may also notice the fabulous new look cover for Day of Vengeance and Johnny will be toting not only his third book but the new look Day of the Assassins and Day of Deliverance too, so watch out for some exclusive giveaways on the tour.

Here's what's coming up on the tour:

5th Sep

On the first day of the tour Johnny will be dropping off his first guest post at Bookhi where you can find out where the characters of Jack and Angus came from, which character from the series was most fun to write and which character presented the most challenges. Bookhi will also be posting a review and hosting a giveaway so don't miss it!

6th Sep

Empire of Books will be the next stop and here Johnny will be talking about where his inspiration for the time travel series came from and also looking at why time travel is such a powerful genre for the modern audience.

7th Sep

Over to Books 4 Teens for the third day of the tour with Johnny's first Q&A. Not to be missed if you want to find out where Jack Christie's 4th adventure will take him..

8th Sep

If you're curious about the writing process then you should definitely stop by Teenage Fiction For All Ages as Johnny will be explaining how he turns his stories from ideas into a published book, including the importance of sheep!

9th Sep

The Bookzone will be hosting the next stop where Johnny will be talking about how writing about history can engage younger readers and in particular those reluctant boys.

10th Sep

High time for an extract from Day of Vengeance to get your juices going and there will be an exclusive excerpt at Bookbabblers who will also be hosting a giveaway.

11th Sep

It's the penultimate stop over at Bookster Reviews where you can find out which particular period in history is Johnny's favourite - or at least which three periods are his favourite...

12th Sep

Last up is Booktastic Reviews who will be putting Johnny to the test with an interview where you can find out the inspiration behind the Taurus time machine and what Johnny's favourite takeaway is! Booktastic Reviews will also be posting a review so if by some miracle you are still undecided at this point make sure you have a read!

For more information on the Jack Christie Adventures, check out our website here or take a look at the Jack Christie Adventures Facebook page here.

Meet The Templar Team ...INTRODUCING Libby Hamilton!

2011-08-18T04:54:00.000-07:00

Meet the deeelightful Libby Hamilton Managing Editor!

How long have you been at Templar?
Over five years – since February of 2006.

What does your job involve?
It’s a bit complicated-sounding – I manage the editorial department alongside Emily Hawkins. Together we’re responsible for the editorial staff, other highly interesting management things which I won’t go into (as I don’t want to lose readers on only the second question) and the quality of the editorial content across the list. I also edit and project manage a number of books myself.

What is the most satisfying element of your job?
I love that feeling when a finished copy comes in – it takes at least two months to print and ship a book, so by the time it’s in my hands I’ve forgotten all the hard work and just marvel at how fantastically it’s turned out. I had exactly that experience this week with The Bumper Book of Bob by Simon Bartram.

Have you had any funny awkward moments?
I once called our managing director “Mum” – but I’m hoping she doesn’t remember!

What did you want to be when you were a child?
I wanted to be an actor-doctor-writer-explorer-superhero. Just the usual really.

What is your most memorable moment or biggest achievement at Templar to date?

‘Farther’, a picture book I edited, won the Greenaway Medal this year, which was pretty big for me. But I feel incredibly proud of loads of books we’ve made over the last five years.

How do you take your tea?
Green and without milk.

Fave book related blogs / twitter accounts/websites ?
I like Book Sniffer and am just starting to follow quite a few people on twitter. I like reading Publisher’s Weekly online, which makes me a nerd. I’m always looking for interesting new illustrators for our picture book list, so often go to their websites and follow their links. Owen Davey’s website had me entranced for far too long. At the moment I’m obsessed by a site called Big Cartel where great illustrators from Bristol and the surrounding area sell their wares. I’m saving up for a Mexican wrestler sculpture!

What are you working on at the moment?
Mike (our art director) and I are just finishing a clutch of amazing picture books for this year – ‘Black Dog’ by Levi Pinfold, ‘The Pirates Next Door’ by Jonny Duddle, ‘Jack and the Baked Beanstalk’ by Colin Stimpson and ‘Knight Night’ by Owen Davey to name but a few. I’m also super-excited about the publication of our new revolting novelty book ‘Monstrous Book of Monsters’, which I wrote. Andy Mansfield did an amazing job on the design and paper engineering and I haven’t had so much fun with a book for a very, very long time.

Are there any authors or illustrators you haven’t worked with yet who you would like to work with in the future?
The list for me of great authors who I’d like to work with is endless. I was lucky enough to work with Michael Morpurgo on ‘Not Bad for a Bad Lad’ and the experience taught me that the most talented people will surprise you by also being the nicest.

AND FINALLY - A few questions sent in via our Facebook site...

At what stage do you like possible submissions?
I think once you’ve got to a stage when you’ve absolutely done everything you can to make it the very best it can be, send it in to a publisher. Remember that unsolicited submissions have to go through a judging process alongside those from established authors and manuscripts from agents – never send anything to a publisher where you’re conscious something about your story isn’t working and expect them to fix it. My other tip is, don’t be prescriptive about the illustrator you see with it, as you’re limiting your appeal to editors who agree with your taste in illustration.

What do you look for in a submission? And when you consider a submission, do you think it's ability to work well as an e-book or app is important?
I look for an original concept, with a twist that I don’t see coming. I also look for someone who has their own voice and an obvious connection with their audience. I specialise in highly illustrated novelty books and picture books, so I’m always looking for someone who can tell an exciting story in very few words – an incredibly difficult skill to master.

I think the idea of it working as an e-book or app is quite separate for me. Things are evolving in that area very quickly, and making an app that actually pays its way is a very difficult thing. I’m definitely still looking primarily for a great story that will make a great page-turner of a book.

POD Blog Tour 29th August - 5th September

2011-08-16T08:00:00.000-07:00

Is it weird to keep a book on your desk so that you can stroke it in times of stress? I hope not because that's what I do with POD by Stephen Wallenfels. Not only is it a brilliantly gripping survival thriller that gets my heart pounding even thinking about it, but the cover has a super matt finish that beats any of those squishy balls in the stress relief department. OK, so I'm sounding a little odd but you'll be doing it too when you get your hands on this fantastic read.

POD
Stephen Wallenfels

PODs hover menacingly in the sky, zapping anyone who ventures outside.

Josh is 15 and stuck in his house with his dad. They're running out of food... Megs is 12, alone and trapped in a multi-storey car park. The hotel next door is in the hands of dangerous security staff. She has something they want...

When the aliens invade, the real enemy becomes humanity itself.

"This masterful debut grabs readers by the throat from the first page and never lets go." Kirkus

"A gripping post-apocalyptic novel that keeps you on the edge of your seat, yet has human character and human relationships at its heart." Wands and Worlds

The PODs will be invading bookshelves on 1st September and seeing as you can't risk going outside you might as well stay in and check out what Stephen Wallenfels has to say about his debut young adult novel. Stephen will be hopping around 8 fantastic YA fiction blogs from 29th August to 5th September and if you're a fan of thrilling survival fiction or just like to give your heart some exercise then this is not to be missed!

29th Aug

First up, Stephen will be under the spotlight at Planet Print for an interview and your first chance to get your hands on a very strokeable copy of POD in a giveaway.

30th Aug

The last bank holiday before Christmas is over but not to worry because Stephen has his first guest post lined up for I Want To Read That, so it's not all bad!

31st Aug

At this point you may be pondering: should I add this to my wishlist? Comacalm's Corner will help you make your mind up on the day before publication with a review and you may not even have to add it to your wishlist if you enter the giveaway.

1st Sep

Happy Publication Day! To celebrate, Stephen will be at Book Passion For Life with another guest post and yet another giveaway. Yup, we're totally spoiling you!

2nd Sep

Stephen's second interview of the tour will be held at Writing From The Tub so swing by for some PODtastic insights.

3rd Sep

The Bookzone has challenged Stephen to remember the books and films he enjoyed as a kid and to take a look at how these have influenced his writing. Definitely one not to miss!

4th Sep

The giveaways are back in play and Fluttering Butterflies will have a gripping guest post to boot so if you haven't decided your life is incomplete without this book by now there's something wrong with you :-)

5th Sep

We've reached the end of the tour but I promise it'll be a good one with a review from The Slowest Bookworm alongside the final guest post and giveaway, so don't miss out on the last chance on the tour to bag POD and get some survival action in your life!

Check the skies before you step back outside when the tour is over, I don't want to be responsible for any nasty zapping incidents! Stephen will also be hitting Mostly Reading YA on 23rd August for the Debut Summer Event if you want a sneak preview of him prior to the tour. Find out what inspired POD and more shockingly what time Stephen gets up in the morning...

Stephen Wallenfels is a freelance writer with over 60 feature articles, columns and interviews to his credit. He has also published short stories in national magazines for children and adults. POD is Stephen's first novel and he is currently working on POD 2.

For more on Stephen check out his website.

Boris enjoys the Templar Summer Party!

2011-08-15T03:32:00.000-07:00

The great and the good gathered on Saturday at the Templar Summer Party with staff, authors, illustrators and agents getting together for a good old knees up.

With a monstrous hog roast, humongous bouncy castle, crazy stilt walker, camping (for the brave) and bands, Templar really did make this a party to remember.(and the rain held off!)

Boris of Calm Down Boris fame also made an appearance taking full advantage of the hospitality.

Here are a few snaps he took along the way (expertly assisted by Grahame Baker-Smiths daughters Flossie and Lily).

As you can see a great time was had by all!


A pre party drink...


At Haslemere station - making friends with the fat controller...

Mingling at the party


PUT ME DOWN!!!!!


Chillin' with some chicks


Enjoying the hog roast!


Making a speech...


With Libby, Flossie and Lily


Feeling woooozey on the bouncy castle

With Will and Libby

With special thanks to Libby, Flossie and Lily - who looked after Boris at the party and made sure he didn't get up to any mischief..almost. !

Meet the Templar Team!

2011-08-10T02:02:00.000-07:00

A moment in the spotlight with Designer and Paper Engineer Andy Mansfield

Who are you?

Andy Mansfield. I live a couple of miles south of Dorking with my wife Debs, and three year old son Rufus.

How long have you been at Templar?

I think it’s coming up for 11 years now.

What’s your job?

Designer and paper engineer.

Did you work at another publisher’s previously or come straight to Templar?

Before Templar I worked for Ron van der Meer, where I honed my paper engineering skills over five years. Ron was a bit of a pioneer of the modern pop-up book, developing hugely complex pop-up books aimed at adults, like the Art pack and the Architecture pack. It was a great place to learn the tricks of the trade.

The Sydney Opera House from The Architecture Pack

What are the best parts of your job?

Coming up with an extravagant pop-up that looks like it shouldn’t fit in the page – but of course it does. Plus you can’t beat the feeling of seeing a finished copy of a book you’ve been toiling over for months.

What are the worst parts of your job?

Having to constantly reign in the amount of paper and glue points we can use in order to save money in the manufacturing process. The once extravagant pop-up ends up being just a flap!

Why is your job is the best one to have in publishing?

Who else can spend half a week trying to get a pop-up bed of nails to work. I don’t think cutting up little pieces of paper and just having fun with them can be beaten in the best job stakes.

Who makes the best cup of tea in the office

I don’t drink tea, so I can’t answer this one. I know I probably make the worst though.

Scummy tea...

What are your favourite books (both Templar and non Templar)?

I love Bob – man on the moon. It’s great to read it (again and again and again) with my son, who loves searching out the aliens. Jan Pienkowski’s Haunted House is also a favourite, as it was my first pop-up book.

What are you working on at the moment?

At the moment I’m working on several non-fiction novelty titles including the Junior Pop-up Atlas, and How we make stuff (the next in the ‘How the World Works’ series). I’m just about to start working on the pop-ups for the next classic sounds book – Cinderella, which should be fun.

Which projects have you been most proud of?

I’m really pleased with Monstrous Book of Monsters, a bit of a gross-out look at the world of monsters, due out this September. Everything came together really well, and we’ve ended up with a great product that looks fantastic. During my years at Templar I’ve been very lucky to have worked on a variety of really exciting titles, but I’m probably most proud of the Marvel True believers pop-ups I worked on a few years back. I pretty much had a free reign to do what I wanted with Marvel’s back catalogue of classic comic artwork, and I think they worked out really well.

Quickfire Questions ...

Which Monster Mate are you most like? Nosey Norman...
Bookshop or library Bookshop
Physical or digital Both have their own place, but probably physical
Mac or PC Mac
Coffee or tea I don’t drink either
Biscuit or cake Cake
Heatwave or snowstorm Snowstorm.

A Bundle of Boris!

2011-08-03T09:51:00.001-07:00

One of the especially cool things about working with Children’s books is all the colourful characters we have coming through our offices.

So, when someone emptied a bag of Boris’ onto UK Sales Manager Clare’s desk, I couldn’t resist grabbing a snap.

Aren’t they irresistable? Hands off everyone!

Shaun Tan on Tour!

2011-08-02T08:36:00.001-07:00

Shaun Tan - Award winning author and illustrator of The Bird King, Tales from Outer Suburbia and The Arrival : winner of the Astrid Lingren Memorial Award for his contribution to children's literature and an Oscar for his short film, The Lost Thing is in the UK this August.

He will be appearing at the Edinburgh Book Festival on Tuesday 23 August and Thursday 25 August

On Wednesday 24 August he is at Seven Stories in Newcastle.

He arrives in London on Tuesday 30th August and will be doing a book signing at Foyles, Charing Cross Road from 2.00pm.

Later that same evening, he is in conversation with Paul Gravett - Director of Comica Festival and editor of “1001 Comics You Must Read Before you Die” at Waterstone's Piccadilly at 7.00 pm. This is a ticketed event. For more information, please contact 0207 851 2400 or events@piccadilly.waterstones.co.uk.

Finally, a wonderful exhibition of over 30 original paintings and prints of Shaun's artwork is on display at The Illustration Cupboard in Bury Street, London from 9th August to mid-September. www.illustrationcupboard.com

Check out shauntan.net

www.illustrationcupboard.com

www.templarco.co.uk

www.paulgravett.com and www.comicafestival.com

POD has landed

2011-08-02T04:27:00.000-07:00

We are so chuffed to have our very own POD adorning the front of the Bookseller's Children's Buyer's Guide this month. Have a look at this:

It's great to see this fab book in the spotlight, getting the attention it deserves. POD is the first book by American author Stephen Wallenfels and follows Josh and Megs, who have to find a way to survive when the arrival of invading alien 'PODs' hovering in the sky mean they're trapped inside. What would YOU do to survive?!

POD

Stephen Wallenfels

Surviving a massive alien siege is one thing-surviving humanity is another. I'm all cried out. I'm still alone. The sky is full of giant spinning black balls that kill anyone stupid enough to go outside. I've only been out of the car twice-once to pee and once to look at the sky. That one look was enough for me. Now I sit alone in the car, staring out the window like a rat in a cage. But I don't have anyone to look at. The parking garage is empty, except for twisted-up cars, broken glass, and the smell of leaking gasoline.

POD is the story of a global cataclysmic event, told from the viewpoints of Megs, a twelve-year-old streetwise girl trapped in a hotel parking garage in Los Angeles; and sixteen-year-old Josh, who is stuck in a house in Prosser, Washington, with his increasingly obsessive-compulsive father. Food and water and time are running out. Will Megs survive long enough to find her mother? Will Josh and his father survive each other?

Check out Stephen's own website for links to book trailers, sample chapters and more.

And, only one week left until the POD website goes live. Be sure to check back here for the launch of http://www.podinvasion.co.uk/

A Tangle of Magicks Blog Tour 1st August - 9th August

2011-07-20T04:45:00.000-07:00

As a huge fan of The Unladylike Adventures of Kat Stephenson I'm so thrilled to be organising a blog tour for Stephanie Burgis' second novel, A Tangle of Magicks. Steph is now an award-winning author with her first book, A Most Improper Magick, winning the 2011 Waverton Good Read Children's Award and we're certain that A Tangle of Magicks will soon be doing just as well. After all, how can anyone not fall in love with Regency England's feistiest twelve year old?

A TANGLE OF MAGICKS
Stephanie Burgis

When Kat Stephenson's family arrive in Bath in search of a suitor for her sister, it's not long before Kat discovers that the town of Bath is fizzing with wild magic. Stumbling upon a plot to harness the magic in the Roman Baths, Kat finds that her brother is unwittingly involved. To foil the plot and save her brother she must defy the Order of the Guardians and risk losing her magical powers, forever...

"A Tangle of Magicks is 300 pages of fun, fabulousness and magical frolics." So Many Books, So Little Time

"Mysterious, adventurous and absolutely hilarious." The Guardian, Children's Books Website

Steph will be hitting 9 of the most vibrant UK teen fiction blogs starting on publication day itself, 1st August, and ending on 9th August. Each stop will be offering an array of Katastic features including guest posts, Q&As and a vlog from Steph along with extracts and giveaways. What more could you want?

1st August

First off Steph is stopping off at the wonderful Chicklish where she'll be talking about her own adventure in Bath, trying the foul tasting waters of the Pump Room. Nice.

2nd August

So Many Books, So Little Time will be hosting the tour's first Q&A so make sure you visit to find out Steph's desert island books. The lovely Sophie has already posted her review so for some pre-tour reading, head there now.

3rd August

Find out about Steph's thoughts on literary heroines and why Kat turned out the way she is over at Fluttering Butterflies. Heroines forever! There will also be a review just in case you need a bit more persuading.

4th August

Writing matters over at Serendipity Reviews where Steph will be answering questions all about her writing techniques and her influences for Kat's adventures. There will also be a review and the first giveaway of the tour so make sure you enter!

5th August

Next Steph will be at Leanne Luce discussing her love of Bath and why she absolutely had no choice but to go and explore her favourite city once again when she decided to send Kat there for her second adventure. No choice whatsoever! Head here for another giveaway too.

6th August

Steph will be on the Book Angel's Saturday Spotlight today, writing about how the library in her American hometown gave her a chance to escape to England through the eyes of wonderfully written heroines. The Book Angel will also be posting her review.

7th August

The tour's extract hotspot will be at Turn The Page, so if you want a taste of Kat's second adventure this is the place to be. Turn The Page will also be hosting the last giveaway on the tour so make sure you enter to avoid a Kat shaped hole in your life.

8th August

The last Q&A of the tour will be over at Portrait Of A Woman so head here to find out Steph's take on writing YA/MG books and what she has coming up in the near future.

9th August

We arrive at the last stop with a first for the tour at Love Reading X where Steph will be dropping off a vlog for Kat fanatic Iffath where she'll be reading out an extract from A Tangle of Magicks. Definitely a highlight not to be missed!

And there you have it! Plenty of news, views and reviews that will delight any Kat fan and hopefully gain our heroine a few more followers. Trust me, you need this girl in your life!

Stephanie Burgis decided to be a writer when she was seven and sold her first short story when she was fifteen. She fell in love with Regency England when she discovered the novels of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer. Now she writes full-time and lives in Wales with her husband, fellow writer Patrick Samphire, their son, and their crazy-but-sweet border collie, Maya.

For more from Steph, check out her website here or follow her on Twitter.

Steph will be signing copies of A Tangle of Magicks in Waterstone's in Bath from 1pm on Saturday 6th August and also in Waterstone's in Abergavenny on Friday 12th August from 6pm (pop into the store for a special invite for this event).

A day trip to the north with "the delightful" Simon Bartram

2011-07-13T05:57:00.000-07:00

Well it's not often that we get the chance to take a jolly jaunt to the north but this week the opportunity arose to accompany (the delightful) Simon Bartram to the CLPE reading conference in Huddersfield.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Simon's work you simply must visit his fabulous blog here...
His Bob books have been a staple on the Templar list for some years and have delighted readers across the country.

Simon wowed a crowd of budding librarians with stories about his work, inspirations and influences and tried as hard as he could to enthuse then in his first love Football (sadly to no avail)

After a brilliant hour long talk with the aid of a powerpoint presentations, several fabulous vintage comics and a high tech lazer pointer Simon stayed to have his picture taken with smitten librarians and sign a huge pile of books (which could have quite possible reached all the way to the moon).

What a cracking day and what a super star Simon is, a genuine 100% lovely chap, he deserves a trophy!

Swash buckling tales with Jonny Duddle at the Pop Up Festival

2011-07-05T07:10:00.000-07:00

Swash buckling tales today with Jonny Duddle at his Pop Up Festival of Stories event in West Library, Islington, north London. Along came some well behaved young land lubbers from Vittoria School and soon they were all joining in with shouts of "Ahoy!" and a very loud 'BURP' at the end as the Pirate Cruncher ate up everyone - except for the macaw and the strange pirate with strings attached. These year 3 and 4 children have been making a play featuring the ending of Pirate Cruncher - and they took back to school a very large drawing of a pirate, that Jonny created for them.

Looking forward an exciting array of fiction for 2012

2011-06-28T08:54:00.000-07:00

It's not even August yet but there is much excitement in the Templar offices as we took delivery of advanced reading copies of our fiction highlights for 2012.

It took a team of 8 budding body builders to unload this lorry of delights.

We've gone for an exciting glossy new look - we hope you'll agree they look utterly smashing.

We can't wait to start sending them out and spreading the word about all of the fabulous new titles winging their way to you in 2012!
Bring it on....

AND THE WINNER IS......Grahame Baker-Smith!

2011-06-24T02:25:00.000-07:00

We are absolutely and completely thrilled to announce that Templar Picture book author and illustrator Grahame Baker-Smith is the worthy WINNER of the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2011.

The lavish ceremony held at BAFTA in central London kicked off at mid day and was hosted by the super eloquent news reader Jennie Bond.
With awe inspiring videos by children reading on behalf of the RNIB and introductions to the books by esteemed members of the YLG. We were all sat on tenterhooks eagerly awaiting the winner announcement and Grahame was utterly thrilled to be announced as winner and called to the stage to receive his prize.

Grahame made a rousing and inspiring speech! as did the winner of the Carnegie Medal the ever so dashing Patrick Ness.

After mingling with lots of love librarians and movers and shakers we headed off to Fortum and Mason for celebratory tea with Grahame and his family.

What a smashing day!

Paul Thurlby signs a mountain of books!

2011-06-24T01:48:00.000-07:00

The ever so fabulous Mr Paul Thurlby signed a huge stack of his book Alphabet - Look out for them in local book shops - these are sure to be a collectors item very soon!

Grahame Baker-Smith, the 2011 CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal winner

2011-06-24T01:47:00.000-07:00

It's the morning after, and we are still buzzing with the announcement that Grahame Baker-Smith is the winner of the 2011 CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal for his incredibly beautiful and moving picture book, FArTHER.

When a father who dreams of flying does not return from the war, his son decides to make that dream come true.

Grahame Baker-Smith's moving story shows how, with love and a bit of ambition, you can reach seemingly impossible goals.

Here's the Greenaway press release:

Baker-Smith’s book was inspired both by his own father, and by being the father of a son himself.

Of this year’s winning book, Ferelith Hordon, Chair of the CILIP Kate Greenaway judging panel comments: “FArTHER is a beautifully conceived picture book with a dream-like quality that captures the imagination of readers of all ages. Its wealth of detail conveys both dark emotions: the storms of war and weather, and a powerful sense of loss and bereavement; but also a great sense of hope, particularly as vested in future generations”.

Grahame Baker-Smith lives in Bath and has been working as an illustrator for the past 30 years. His work includes several books, and an album cover for Robert Plant. Five years ago, he evolved a new way of working, and a striking change of style. His first “new look” book, Leon and the Place Between, was shortlisted for last year’s CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal, and FArTHER is his second. Both are published by Templar.

Inside FArTHER

On winning the CILIP Kate Greenaway, Grahame comments: “It’s been an extraordinary, painful, joyous, frustrating and wonderful trip, this making a living from my imagination. I am utterly amazed to win”.

The CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal, established in 1956 and named in honour of the distinguished illustrator is awarded for “outstanding illustration in a children’s book”. Sister award to the CILIP Carnegie Medal, it is judged by an expert panel of children’s librarians from the Youth Libraries Group (YLG), and follows the same unique process of nomination, and judging. Since a bequest left in 2000 by children’s book and illustration collector, Colin Mears, the winner receives a cheque for £5,000 in addition to the coveted medal. Distinguished former winners of the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal, which celebrated its 50th birthday in 2007, include Shirley Hughes, Raymond Briggs and Quentin Blake.

That pretty much says it all really! Thank you to everyone who has sent messages of support, we are really proud publishers and know there will be many more incredible books to come from Grahame. For more information on FArTHER as well as other work by Grahame Baker-Smith, visit our website here.

Grahame Baker-Smith

Forgive My Fins UK Blog Tour 27th June - 8th July

2011-06-13T04:46:00.000-07:00

On 1st July 2011, Templar is publishing US blockbuster Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs. I'm going to use my British tendency for understatement and say we are quite thrilled to be doing so... And now I'm going to tell the truth and say we are absolutely over the moonfish to be bringing such a successful author and her adorable mermaid heroine to our shores. See what I did there!

Click here for an extract

FORGIVE MY FINS
Tera Lynn Childs

When a mermaid has her first kiss, she 'bonds' for life with the person she kisses. For Lily, a mermaid princess living in secret on land, this means she has ended up accidentally bonded to her obnoxious neighbour, instead of to the boy of her dreams. So begins a tidal wave of relationship drama, as Lily discovers that happily-ever-after never sails as smoothly as you plan it to.

Forgive My Fins had me hooked from page one, and I can’t wait to immerse myself in its sequel! I simply adored this book! Alyson Noel, author of The Immortals Series

This lighter-than-air read will charm teens and tween girls who prefer their supernatural romances to be more Meg Cabot than Stephenie Meyer. ALA Booklist

Tera will be visiting a massive 12 blogs on her tour, starting on 27th June and coming to an end on 8th July and if you miss even one of these stops you'll be seriously disrespecting your love of YA fiction. So, here's the line up:

27th June

With a kick of our fins we're starting the tour off at I Want To Read That where Tera will be dropping off her first guest post and the lovely Sammee will be posting her review - and believe me, this girl knows her YA!

28th June

If that wets your appetite, swim over to The Slowest Bookworm where you can read an exceprt from the first pages of the book and check out how The Slowest Bookworm has rated Forgive My Fins in her review. If you've already decided this book is for you, you can also enter the first giveaway of the tour.

29th June

On day three, Tera will be talking about how writing has worked its way into her life over on Nayu's Reading Corner and there will be a third review from Nayu if you wreckon you still need convincing.

30th June

If you're into your music as much as you're into your books then Book Angel Booktopia is the stop for you. Tera will be discussing her musical moments, the music that has influenced her and Forgive My Fins. The Book Angel will also be hosting the second giveaway on the tour so make shore you enter!

1st July

It's publication day and Tera will be coming ashore at Books For Company for her first Q&A so head here for some juicy insights and another chance to get your hands on a copy of the book.

2nd July

Tera will be dropping off another fintastic guest post at the halfway stop over at Cheezyfeet Books where you can also read another review and - yes, we're spoiling you rotten - enter another giveaway.

3rd July

It's the end of the first week of the tour and Tera will be at Mostly Reading YA with her 5th guest post. It's the perfect plaice to be if you've got those Sunday evening blues...

4th July

Whilst Tera is shellebrating Independence Day, she'll also be at Girls Without A Bookshelf to discuss how she imagined and created a mer world - how do you translate mattresses, cars and fridges?

5th July

Heaven, Hell and Purgatory Book Reviews are running a Summer Reading month during July and today they will be featuring a crabulous guest post from Tera. Keep your eye on this blog during July if you want to improve your summer bookshelf.

6th July

Time for Tera's last guest post of the tour at My Keeper Shelf but don't get your flippers in a twist because it's going to be a good one! Tera will be talking about her books for keeps - the ones that take pride of place on her bookshelf and are read time and time again. You can also read the My Keeper Shelf review and enter a giveaway.

7th July

We've reached the penultimate stop and it's with Templar's good friend The Reader Room. Here you'll find a krilliant Q&A with Tera plus Alice's review and yet another giveaway. If you haven't entered one of these by now, there's something wrong with you!

8th July

Time for the tour's grand finale and we will be at Book Passion For Life where there will be the last review and giveaway combo so it's your last chance to make up your mind that you want to read this book. And believe me, you really want to read this book.

~

So, at last Tera will be able to give her typing fingers a rest - perhaps a nice soak in some salt water? Make sure you keep an eye on our Facebook page for all the latest news about Forgive My Fins and all our fantastic YA titles.

Tera Lynn Childs is an award-winning author of teenage fiction. She spends her time blogging and writing wherever she can find a comfy chair and a steady stream of caffeinated beverages. Forgive My Fins is her first book with Templar and the sequel, Fins are Forever, will be published in 2012.

P.S. If you groaned your way through this post due to all the bad nautical puns I'm very sorry!

Hay Festival Frolics

2011-06-08T07:56:00.000-07:00

THE HAY REPORT

It always feels like going on holiday when I set off for the Hay Festival and last week was no different.

I love the setting, the way its so laid back, the eclectic mix of folk - the amazing events and of course, the lovely Templar illustrators and authors who came along this year, to what seemed a bumper number of visitors.

Jonny Duddle and Adam Stower quickly teamed up and had lots of fun – their events were great too. Though poor Adam had a late Friday afternoon session, when it was at its hottest. The Hexagon venue was a mini-conservatory and at one point a few of the children were lying spread out on the cushions almost comatose – but still listening to the story.

For Jonny’s events people were encouraged to dress up in pirate costume - and they all joined in with their ooo aaaargh’s in hearty pirate voices. Jonny looked a pretty convincing pirate too, in his new gear and I rigged up our very sad parrot on his flip chart.

Thomas Docherty brought his usual magic to the festival and his two events were lovely – the children and parents really joining in, and lots of compliments from teachers there with their own children.

On Friday evening Adam very kindly met up with 15 students from Hereford Art College for a mini-masterclass – they passed around their sketch books and chatted about life as an illustrator. I think Adam was very impressed with the standard of their work.

Not too much partying that night as Adam had a 9am event on Saturday morning – which went well. Much cooler for a start and he had charmed the bookshop lady so he was signing books for ages.

Johnny O’Brien arrived in the nick of time for his 11.30 event - which played to an audience of over 100 and everyone loved the enactments and his memorabilia. He also took a writing masterclass later that afternoon with about 10 people ranging in age from 12 to 30’ish. Then he was off – flying to Japan I believe.

A delightful afternoon with Nanette Newman and Emma Chichester-Clark

2011-06-03T09:07:00.000-07:00

This week we had the pleasure of attending a delightful book signing for What Will You Be Grandma? At the magnificent abode of the delightful Nanette Newman.

The hugely talented Emma Chichester-Clark joined us to sign 300 copies of this adorable picture book .

Much tea was quaffed and many many slices of cake later we sat surrounded by lot's of signed copies ready to wing their way to a book store near you!(just in time for Christmas).

You can read a fabulous review of this book on the Library Mice website!

To receive a review copy of What Will You Be Grandma and have your review posted on our website and Facebook pages please email

emma.odonovan@templarco.co.uk

Swim the Fly Book Launch

2011-05-26T06:48:00.000-07:00

The Covent Garden Hotel was the place to be last night at the Swim the Fly book launch. Well, it was the place to be if you could find it… After making a wild guess as to which exit I should take at the Leicester Square tube station, I stumbled out onto a busy street and promptly starting marching off in the wrong direction along said street. After a moment’s mental negotiation as to whether or not I would look like a tourist checking my phone for directions, I took the risk and eventually managed to navigate my way to the quiet little streets of Seven Dials and the fantastic venue that was the Blue Room at the Covent Garden Hotel.

Upon entry, all the guests were greeted with spectacular bright blue cocktails – I didn’t ask what was in them, my mother would probably be too shocked. They were deliciously sweet whatever they were! The room had been beautifully decked out with candles and copies of Swim the Fly stacked on the tables. By happy coincidence I had dressed in blue and managed to convince everyone that it was totally planned…

Swim the Fly galore!

After half an hour of blue drink sipping we were all ushered into the screening room where we were witness to Phil Perry’s unparalleled technical skills as she attempted at least 15 times to start the video player on her Mac. We still love her! When she finally managed to get it going there were plenty of laughs all round as we watched the hilarious book trailer starring the man of the night, Swim the Fly author Don Calame. I wonder if that really was a clamato and chocolate milk cocktail he drank or a clever film trick… After getting to know Don a bit more, I’m leaning towards the ‘it was’ end of the decision scale.

The guests were then treated to a wonderfully insightful interview with Don, led by the journalist and writer of teen hit Life, Interrupted, Damian Kelleher. It’s very true that there is a distinct imbalance between the volume of teen chick-lit and teen dude-lit available. What Swim the Fly offers is a genuine story of what happens to teen boys, what goes through their minds and the kind of situations they find themselves in due to out of control hairbrain schemes. The characters are so real and loveable despite all their flaws – maybe because of their flaws – and the protagonist, Matt, takes you through his boy-to-man journey with great honesty and candidness. The story has great sympathy for teen boys but also an irresistible insight for girls too – and what the heck it had this grown woman ROFLing for hours!

Damian Kelleher interviews Don Calame

The real treat of the evening was when Damian persuaded Don to give all us grown up kids a reading from Swim the Fly. The extract was a completely irreverent exchange between Matt, his Grandpa Arlo, his older brother Peter and his mum. As they drive to the funeral of a neighbour’s husband, Grandpa Arlo makes his plans to get lucky with the widow – much to Peter’s embarrassment and Matt’s interest. I’m not entirely sure where I stand trying to gather pick up tips from your grandfather… Don reads so well, playing all the characters much better than I imagined them in my head and he had us all sniggering like a bunch of year 10s.

Don reads from Swim the Fly

After the reading the guests all gathered back in the Blue Room, nibbling on mini burgers and clutching our copies of Swim the Fly to get them signed by Don – it’s for my nephew, honest! It was lovely to meet the author, although I’d probably scared him before we met with my numerous emails demanding blog posts for the Swim the Fly blog tour starting tomorrow. No wonder he ran away from me as soon as he could!

Just kidding!

A huge thanks to the Covent Garden Hotel and Phil Perry and her team at Templar for setting everything up and making it a really special evening for everyone. And of course a massive thanks to Don Calame for providing us with all the entertainment!

Left to right: Roy Butler (Muswell Hill Children's Bookshop), Wendy Cooling (Children's Book Consultant), Don Calame, Helen Boyle (Fiction Commissioning Editor, Templar) Joanne Cocadiz (Children's Buyer, Foyles Charing Cross Road), John Newman (Newman Bookshop)

Don’s UK tour continues at the Hay Festival and his UK blog tour starts tomorrow, 27th May. For more details click here.

Blogger: Leonora

Don Calame encounters with Grey Friar’s Bobby and avoiding eating Haggis in Edinburgh

2011-05-23T03:33:00.000-07:00

We have just returned from 3 fabulous fun filled days in Edinburgh with Swim the Fly author Don Calame.

This was Don’s first visit to Edinburgh so it was a treat to be able to show him around the sights of this great city (although his resistance to eating deep fried haggis was impossible to penetrate).

After a frantic day of school visits and interviews Don had well and truly charmed the teens of Scotland who were in stitches as he read extracts form his hilarious book (one boy almost fell of his chair he was laughing so heartily) here is a photo of Don with the three lucky young journalists who got the chance to interview Don for Teen Titles.

The interviewers of Teen Titles with Don at Broughton School

To hear more about this riotous leg of Dons UK tour check out his blog here...

With thanks to the Scottish Book Trust who made us so welcome and to Julie from Blackwell's who accompanied us with her mobile book shop and a huge smile!

To keep up to date with Don’s latest movements and all the gossip from the tour follow Don on Twitter @doncalame

Blogger: Emma

Don Calame visits Bristol (and Jayne argues with her satnav...again...)

2011-05-20T02:51:00.000-07:00

Click here for an extract

Back in the office today after three days in Bristol with Don Calame - for both of us a first time in the city and we were made to feel so welcome. As you may remember I do have satnav difficulties on my travels and this was no exception, but I think it was more down to me than the technology. Don was rather amused when at one point I was shouting at the instrument - but I was right, the school wasn't down a cul-de-sac! I am not sure how he felt about my driving - as I was on the 'wrong side' for him coming from Canada and I noticed his foot pressing down on a non-existent brake pedal now and again...

Our first stop on Tuesday was at Backwell School and a hundred year 9 students, marshalled into line by librarian Anne Gibson. Don started off by showing his trailer, which got everyone into the mood and although some students had to leave early for other lessons, they all stayed awake and paid attention, laughed at the dirty bits - of which there were quite a few. Good questions and answers.

A call came through from LBC - could Don do a quick live interview with Julia Hartley-Brewer on her afternoon phone-in show? The subject was why teenage boys can't concentrate and how that affects their reading. Perfect platform for Don, so we arranged to take the call at 2.00pm when we were at the next school, Broadoak Computing and Technology School in Weston-super-Mare.

Don with pupils at Backwell School

Off we sped - towards the seaside resort - sadly not sunny - grey and misty and there were seagulls on the playing fields. Broadoak's librarian, Frances Tout very kindly lent Don her office to take the call from LBC. This audience was a mixture of Y9 and Y10 students and very different from the morning lot. Here we had lots of very direct questions about the sex or implied sex in the book, which Don coolly dealt with and his reading of an extract from Beat the Band bought the house down.

At the end of the session, one of the Y9 students approached Don with some writing of his own, which he asked for some advice and so had a personal tutorial.

Plenty of books to go round at Broadoak school

On the way back into Bristol we went over the Clifton Suspension Bridge, which delighted me and rather perplexed Don - but I do like a good bridge! After a quick cat nap, off we went to explore the delights of Bristol - spotting a Banksy on the way down to the harbour (which again delighted me!). After wandering around, we ended up in an Indian restaurant (recommended by one of the sales team here at Templar) and then staggered back to the hotel, full and tired. Don's quite a foodie so we spent a lot of time discussing favourite chef's and cookery writers and what a hard time Jamie Oliver was having in America.

Up and off again on Wednesday morning - this time to the very smart and traditional QEH school for boys. Very grand buildings with portraits and statues placed around the reception. Librarian Annette Robbins marched us up seven (yes 7!) flights of stairs to the library. The boys were very polite and listened intently to Don's reading. Sadly we couldn't show the trailer as they didn't have a screen available. Again, some interesting questions - not only from the boys but also their English teacher. Coffee and lunch at QEH - we both chose broccoli and stilton quiche.

A lucky pupil gets his book signed at QEH School

Last stop on our Bristol leg of the tour was Nailsea School - newly re-built and amazing architecture with a wonderful atrium in the centre and fantastic auditorium. The audience here were handpicked year 9 and 10's - all were good at English and enjoyed their books and it really showed. They were terrific - and really picked up on the different characters and the dialogue Don uses. Thanks to Alex Jones for her support.

Swim the Fly is a hit with the girls at Nailsea school

Finally, a mad dash to Bristol Airport for Don to get his Easyjet flight up to Edinburgh. He was 2kg over on weight and it turned out to be the cookery books we had bought the night before... luckily there was room in his hand luggage - as I was feeling very guilty at having persuaded him to try Nigel Slater's recipes.

Now he's enjoying the delights of Edinburgh - my thanks to Don for entertaining company and I hope he's not missing his wife and dog Scooter too much.

If you want more, check out what Don thinks of his UK tour so far on his blog.

Blogger: Jayne

Swim the Fly UK Blog Tour - 27th May to 5th June

2011-05-11T08:25:00.000-07:00

With just 3 weeks left to publication, Swim the Fly by US author Don Calame has already been making waves in the book world here in the UK with its abundance of laugh out loud coming of age cringe moments. So what better way to celebrate this ambassador of dude lit than with a tour of some of the UK's most vibrant teen lit blogs? Don is packing his bags as I type ready to fly over from Canada for a whilrwind tour of the UK to promote his first teen novel - fingers crossed he'll remember his trusty laptop so he can write all his posts for the blog tour!

Click here for an extract

Swim the Fly
Don Calame

Fifteen-year-old Matt Gratton and his two best friends, Coop and Sean, always set themselves a summertime goal. This year? To see a real-live naked girl for the first time. But this impossible mission starts to look easy in comparison to Matt's other challenge: to swim the 100 yard butterfly (the hardest stroke known to man) and impress the gorgeous Kelly West.

Don Calame, a screenwriter, serves up jokes and gross-outs in the style of filmmakers like Judd Apatow...boys will probably love it. This one did. The New York Times Book Review

Swim the Fly is a great breath of fresh air in teen publishing... Perfectly pitched for teenage boys, this story hits the nail on the head when it comes to awkward moments, coming of age and working out the opposite sex. A really fantastic read. Elizabeth Horne, Waterstones

Don will be hitting 10 stops on his blog tour, starting on 27th May and running to 5th June with plenty of laughs in between. So, here's what you can expect:

Fri 27th May

First up, we'll be at Jess Hearts Books where Don will be dropping of his first guest post, talking about the importance of balancing out all the chick lit out there with some decent dude lit and promoting summer reads for boys.

Sat 28th May

Next up there'll be a tantalising exclusive extract over at our good friend Chicklish. You'll also have a chance to win one of very few exclusive signed copies of Swim the Fly with the first giveaway of the tour.

Sun 29th May

On the third day, Don will be over at the first blog for boys on the tour. Bookzone 4 Boys will be hosting another great guest post from Don so don't miss out!

Mon 30th May

Mostly Reading YA will be hosting the first Q&A on the tour, probing Don for some juicy insights and giving readers another chance to win a signed copy of Swim the Fly.

Tue 31st May

On the eve of publication, we'll be at The Crooked Shelf for another guest post from Don, counting down those last few minutes of a United Kingdom full of people without Swim the Fly in their lives.

Wed 1st June

Publication day, and if you still have reservations then make sure you read Daisy Chain Book Reviews review and another exclusive extract. If that leaves you convinced you can enter Daisy Chain's giveaway to win one of our exclusive signed copies of Swim the Fly.

Thu 2nd June

Past the halfway mark and Don will be dropping off another guest post over on Overflowing Library, so if you want some more revelations or are just plain nosey then head over here.

Fri 3rd June

You'll find another great interview at Love Reading X today so check it out to see what Don has to say for himself.

Sat 4th June

The penultimate stop will be at Empire of Books where you can find another dude's perspective on the book with the final interview of the tour. You'll also have your last chance on the tour to get your hands on one of our signed copies of Swim the Fly so make sure you enter!

Sun 5th June

On the last day we'll be with Magic Bean Review with a mystery feature... Stay tuned for more!

Well, we might just give Don a rest after all that... Somehow I doubt it! Make sure you keep checking our Facebook page for updates on Don's trip around the UK but if you fancy just staying in your armchair then the blog tour is the tour for you!

Don Calame

Don Calame is a Hollywood script-writer and former teacher. He is a screenwriter of films including Employee of the Month and Hounded. He now lives in British Columbia with his wife, stepson and their dog Scooter. Swim the Fly is his first novel, its sequel Beat The Band, will be out in the UK in 2012 and Don is currently working on the third installment of the lives, loves and mishaps of characters Matt, Sean and Coop.

Swim the Fly is out on 1st June 2011.

NEW Teen novel makes waves! - Reviews for Swim the Fly by Don Calame

2011-05-04T06:48:00.000-07:00

The following comments about fantastic teen fiction title Swim the Fly were made by members of Cardinal Wiseman School’s Gripped Book Club

This book is a wonderful (and rather disturbing!) insight into the
minds of teenage boys and is absolutely hilarious – I would recommend
it to everyone! Siobhan, aged 14

“Swim the Fly” is one of the funniest books I’ve ever read. I laughed
so much when Sean’s sister caught the boys wearing her clothes and
make-up!” Aleena aged 14

The author, Don Calame, sets up jokes really well, building comic
situations. Readers who liked Jeremy Strong books when they were
younger would love this book once they are teenagers. Bronya, aged 14

I wasn’t surprised to find that Don Calame has been a screen writer,
the story would make a really good film – I could really visualise the
scenes. Paul, aged 14

I thought the characters were funny – and not only the main ones – I
loved Grandpa! I would definitely read other books by the same
author. Nobody better try things like that on me!! Laura, aged 14

Check out the Don Calame website here ...

GREAT STUFF - for a proof to review please email emma.odonovan@templarco.co.uk

An abundance of cakey delights to celebrate the impending Royal wedding!

2011-04-28T04:52:00.000-07:00

Tessa Rose, Templar's Foreign Rights Assistant, seen here displaying her patriotic cupcake skills. She'd been up since dawn today baking and decorating and the results were judged a huge success. More please Tessa!

Dragonology at the Cambridge Lit Fest

2011-04-18T06:07:00.000-07:00

Dugald Steer and Middleton Man wooed a capacity audience at this weekend's Cambridge Festival!

Dressed from head to toe in Victorian attire Dug and Mids arrived (by dragon ...natch) to entertain over 100 children at Saturday’s Dragonology event.

As well as a “powerous pointus” presentation on the identification of said dragons including a lengthy discussion regarding their toilet habits the audience were treated to a “how to walk like a dragon work shop” and sworn in to the Top Secret Dragon Research society.

An abundance of questions from the audience followed and there was a healthy stream of enthusiastic young Dragonologists at the subsequent book signing.

Duglad Steer tempts fans with The Dragon's Apprentice, the latest novel in the Dragonology Chronicles - out 1st May!

Simon Bartram Writing Workshop

2011-04-14T08:13:00.000-07:00

Our very lovely author Simon Bartram, Blue Peter Award winner with his book ‘Man on the Moon’, will be holding a free adult story writing workshop in Conference Room 4 of Birmingham Central Library on Wednesday 20th April.

Come along between 12-2pm to meet Simon and learn how to write a children’s story and create amazing illustrations. Lunch will be provided.

Attendees will each receive a free goody bag, containing a signed copy of Simon’s newest book in the ‘Bob 'n Barry Lunar Adventures ’ series: Clone Chaos. Plus notepad and pencils to get you started writing your very own children’s story!

To register your place at the Munch Time Adult Story Writing Workshop contact Jovana Lakcevic on 020 7395 7141 or Jovana.Lakcevic@fleishmaneurope.com

Simon is the author ambassador for the Munch Time Storytelling Competition, which gives budding children’s story writers the opportunity to have their winning book published, plus a £1,000 cash prize. Five runner ups will each win a £500 cash prize. To enter visit the Munch Bunch website: http://www.munchbunch.co.uk/parents/win/

Thomas Docherty and Ruby Nettleship at The Oxford Lit Fest

2011-04-14T02:30:00.000-07:00

Thomas Docherty - Guest Blog from Oxford

"I have done quite a lot of literary festivals now and feel very comfortable telling my stories to groups of children and their parents and my event in Oxford on Saturday seemed to go down very well. I have made some large cardboard cut out props to help me tell my stories and I do some live drawing. I also project the illustrations from the books at the same time but I find that the cut outs grab the children’s attention in a way that the images on the screen do not. The fact that they are obviously quickly hand drawn and painted and can be passed around and held also makes them more ‘real’ to the audience. Having said that, I have a giant ice lolly prop, which if I invite the younger members of the audience to take a bite and say what it tastes like, they will happily do so and say ‘apple’ or ‘lemon,’ where as the older children tend to say ‘cardboard!’ Because the event was centred around my latest book ‘Ruby Nettleship and the Ice Lolly Adventure’ the publishers had arranged for there to be and ice cream bicycle at the exit and everyone who wanted got a mini milk, which presumably tasted better than my cardboard props!"

Hip Hip Hooray! Owen Davy has won a Junior Design Award!

2011-04-13T04:20:00.000-07:00

Hip Hip Hooray!
Get the bunting out and line the streets for today we are proud to announce (with a riotous fanfare) that Owen Davey has won the category of Most Promising New Talent in the Junior Magazine design awards with his smashing picture book Foxly's Feast!

There will be a special 164 page Collectors' Edition of Junior magazine (July issue, on sale June 3) which will showcase all the winners. The Junior website, http://www.juniormagazine.co.uk will also feature the winners.

Find out more about Owen here...

A well deserved win

SLA - Guest Post by Author Teresa Flavin

2011-04-08T04:49:00.000-07:00

Here is a guest post by Templar Author Teresa Flavin after her recent trip to the SLA conference

Last weekend I ended my winter hibernation and got on a train south to do something for the very first time: attend a School Libraries Group conference. It was my first time speaking about my writing to an adult-only group, let alone a conference of librarians. This might have been daunting except that I was able to mingle, share a meal and be on a quiz team with the friendliest librarians you could wish for.

There was a terrific buzz about the conference centre and it was infectious. Many librarians told me how much they enjoy meeting authors and what a great time they have at the SLG Conference.

Johnny O’Brien and I were the Sunday morning speakers on a panel chaired by Templar Publishing’s Helen Boyle. Any pre-speech nerves I had evaporated when I recognised familiar faces in the audience – although I did ‘encourage’ Johnny to speak first so I could see how it’s done properly!

Johnny is a really engaging and interesting speaker. I got so engrossed listening to him talk about the inspirations for his Jack Christie books that I almost forgot that I was there to speak about mine. Luckily, I love speaking about the story and inspirations behind The Blackhope Enigma; and for the first time, I spoke a bit about the forthcoming sequel, The Crimson Shard.

One of the nicest parts about speaking to audiences who love books is meeting them when I sign their copies afterwards – and the school librarians were no exception. It’s especially thrilling when people tell me they’ve connected with something I said, or they know a child who will love my books. A number of librarians mentioned that they would be giving The Blackhope Enigma copies as school prizes, which makes me very happy.

Thanks to all the lovely SLG conferees who made me so welcome!

A Small Free Kiss In The Dark Blog Tour - 25th Apr to 7th May

2011-04-04T04:17:00.000-07:00

Here at Templar we're huge fans of the talent down under and this month we're taking renowned Australian author, Glenda Millard, on an unmissable tour of some the UK's best loved teen fiction blogs. Glenda will be bringing along her award-winning book, A Small Free Kiss In The Dark, released in the UK on 1st May, for some exclusive extracts, interviews and guest posts as well as some fantastic giveaways and revealing reviews from our blog hosts.

Click here for an extract

A Small Free Kiss In The Dark
Glenda Millard

Skip's an outsider. He's never fitted in. So he takes to the streets. Life there may be hard, but it's better than the one he's left behind, especially when he teams up with old homeless man Billy. Then come the bombs which bring little Max and Tia, the sad dancer with a tiny baby, into Skip and Billy's world. Scavenging for food, living on love and imagination - how long can Skip's fragile new family hold out as war grips the city?

If you loved Meg Rosoff’s How I Live Now and Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, you will be left breathless by this stunning novel. Canberra Times

A beautiful story... this book is delightful and stands as a testimony to the power of family, friendship and love. Viewpoint

Tell me more about this tour! Where should I go? What will I see? Well, Glenda will be taking in an epic 13 stops starting on 25th April and running to the 7th May. For more details, here's the line up:

Mon 25th April

First up on Easter Monday is My Favourite Books and if you're an aspiring writer this is definitely the stop to take in as there will be a guest post from Glenda all about the writing process of A Small Free Kiss In The Dark. Our blog host, Liz, will also be posting her review.

Tues 26th April

Day 2 and we're stopping off at The Slowest Bookworm where you'll be able to read the tour's first exclusive extract and enter a giveaway to win a copy of the book.

Wed 27th April

Next up, Glenda will be calling in at The Reader Room to deliver her next guest post. Our lovely blog host Alice will also be posting her review and hosting another giveaway.

Thur 28th April

A stop at Fluttering Butterflies is next on the agenda for Glenda's first Q&A session. Blogger Michelle has lined up some great questions so don't miss the answers!

Fri 29th April

On the day of the Royal Wedding we're heading over to Library Mice where you can delve a little further into the world of Australian teen and kid lit as Glenda will be talking about her top 5 Aussie novels.

Sat 30th April

If you're recovering from a great Wedding party the day before, it might be time to sit down and relax with Asamum Booktopia. Here you'll be able to read a guest post from Glenda about her thoughts on libraries - a pretty hot topic at the moment.

Sun 1st May

On publication day make sure you head over to Planet Print for the second exclusive extract on the tour, plus a review and giveaway from Liz.

Mon 2nd May

Glenda will be giving her second interview over at Heaven, Hell and Purgatory Book Reviews and if you've missed the giveaways so far, you'll find one here too!

Tues 3rd May

Teenage Fiction For All Ages will be hosting another great exclusive extract and giveaway combo so if you haven't signed up yet, we're definitely doing something wrong...

Wed 4th May

Day 10 and Glenda will be dropping off another exciting guest post over at So Many Books, So Little Time and blogger Sophie will be giving us her views on the book in her review.

Thur 5th May

Literary Enchantment TBC!

Fri 6th May

The penultimate stop will be at Book Babblers with Glenda's last guest post and giveaway so don't miss out on this one!

Sat 7th May

Last stop and Glenda will be at The Book Bug for an unmissable interview with blogger Chloe who will also give the last review so make sure you read what she's got to say.

Phew! I'm exhausted just writing all that but it's definitely got my juices going! Glenda is going to need some serious hand massages after all that typing but it's all for a great cause and we're really looking forward to having you all on the tour to share the excitement and discovery of a real gem of a book.

Glenda Millard

Glenda Millard is an award-winning Australian author. She began thinking about the main character for A Small Free Kiss In The Dark after noticing a newspaper headline about urban tribes, and she wondered what life would be like for a young homeless boy, living with people thrown together in circumstances beyond their control. While the backdrop for this story is war, her intention was to capture the indomitable nature of hope.

Glenda lives in the Goldfields region of Central Victoria. Her book The Naming of Tishkin Silk was an Honour Book in the 2004 CBC Book of the Year Awards. Layla Queen of Hearts was a winner in the 2007 Queensland Premier's Literary Awards and her picture book, Kaito's Cloth, was also shortlisted in the 2007 Queensland Premier's Literary Award.

A Small Free Kiss In The Dark won the prestigious Queensland Premier's Literary Award for Best Young Adult book, 2009.

Emma Dodd at Bookfeast Schools Festival 2011

2011-03-21T03:39:00.000-07:00

It was an inspired move to stage the Bookfeast Schools Festival in museums and galleries in and around Oxford as yesterday, Emma Dodd presented her A Roman Rescue book to an eager and excited group of school children - who not only got to meet a real live author but then went on a treasure hunt around the fabulous museums. My school days were never like this.

We were in the gallery in the Pitt Rivers Museum - a smallish, darkish wonderland of amazing artefacts collected over the years by those Victorians who went off with a knapsack (apparently its not the done thing to ask about the shrunken heads) and gathered stuff. All around us were cabinets of curiosities, huge totem poles, canoes hanging from the ceiling...

I did feel very proud of myself in getting Emma to the Museum dead on 9am as requested - driving from Guildford to Oxford in foggy conditions wasn't wonderful but we did it.

Her first event was at 9.45am and year 3 from Manor Primary School arrived in their smart blue blazers. After listening to Emma explain how she did her graphic novel, they set about creating their own storylines using Little Red Riding Hood meeting the wolf dressed as grandma. Again, their creativity was wonderful - and as a special treat for them all, Emma drew lots of pictures of their pets, ending up with a drawing of her own dog, Bart.

Emma draws her pet dog Bart for the children at Manor Primary School

After a quick whizz around The Ashmoleum Museum, we were back for our second session - same as above - but this time with a slightly older year group from St Ebbe's Primary School - who once again, wowed us with their creative writing and drawing.

A lovely day with lots of good feedback from teachers and Blackwell's who were very impressed with A Roman Rescue and definitely looking forward to the Egyptians.

Emma Dodd and Thomas Docherty at the Discover Children's Story Centre

2011-03-08T03:22:00.000-08:00

It feels like we haven't seen Jayne for ages! She was out and about last week with Simon Bartram and Emma Dodd and on Sunday (6th March) she spent the day with Emma again as well as picture book creator Thomas Docherty at the Discover Centre in Stratford. She has been keeping in touch with her blogs, however, and here is what happened over the weekend.

Click here to see more of Emma's books
Click here to see more of Thomas' books

The Big Write is a festival of children's literature run by the Discover Children's Story Centre in Stratford, east London, during March. On Sunday, two Templar authors and illustrators, Emma Dodd and Thomas Docherty told stories, drew wonderful pictures and charmed the children and their parents.

Thomas had a storytelling event and picture drawing workshop and even the tiniest tot joined in. His wife, Helen and two children Lucia and Bethan came along too and joined in with the others. Thomas put a huge piece of card on the floor and asked all the children to help him draw a magical playground - and they did! Wonderful imaginative work by all. I do hope this picture goes up on the wall alongside all the others.

The magical playground takes shape...

Emma's audience once again enthusiastically joined in with all the animal noises for her Miaow Said the Cow reading and their drawings too were lovely.

The fans queue up to get their books signed by Emma

Thanks to all at Discover for making us so welcome and to all those who came along for joining in and making it such a fun time.

Simon Bartram's South of Newcastle Tour

2011-03-07T03:12:00.000-08:00

Day 5: Lewes Old Grammar Junior School

Bob and Barry's 4th lunar adventure
is out in April

Friday morning - the last day of the tour and I think Simon was feeling a little weary by now as we had an early start in order to get to Lewes by 9.am. Sue Giles who organised our visit to Lewes Old Grammar Junior School had invited Simon to their school a few years ago, so she knew what to expect - and laid on cakes and mugs of tea. Wonderful.

Tiny little reception age children filed into the hall - whilst a few parents joined in at the back. Quite nice for Simon to have a gentle beginning to the day especially as the next session was with the very grown-up older juniors. They were hilarious with lots of backchat and when Simon said he couldn't see any aliens, one shouted out "You should've gone to Specsavers!" and we all fell about.

A quick pub lunch - we were in Lewes, home to Harveys beer after all - and back into school for the last session with a lovely group of 7 and 8 year olds, who of course, loved all Simon's dodgy jokes. More tea and cakes and Anna from Bags of Books set up shop. Interestingly, she sold quite a few Watch Out For Sprouts! and one boy said he could recite The Dog Ate my Homework off by heart as it was his favourite. A photographer from the local paper rushed in, took a few pics and rushed off again.

The pupils of Lewes Old Grammar School with alien friend

Back to Bags of Books shop in the town for a final reading of Bob's Best Ever Friend to children and parents. So pleased to see this terrific shop still doing great business - and obvious fans of Templar books as they were everywhere - including our new fiction in the teen section.

And there ended Simon's tour 'south of Newcastle' - it was a pleasure to see yet again the response to his books and the huge warmth children, parents and booksellers feel towards him. Thanks Simon - we had fun, met lots of lovely people - and now its back to that shed, to bring us another wonderful picture book. We can't wait!

Simon Bartram's South of Newcastle Tour Day 4

2011-03-07T02:24:00.000-08:00

Day 4: Stanford Infant School and West Hove Junior School, Brighton

Bob's second adventure

For World Book Day on Thursday, Simon headed down from London to Brighton and first stop was Stanford Infant School. An alien in underpants met us at reception, and a Shirley Bassey bird took us into the hall. Strange things going on here - we know Brighton has a bit of name for itself but these characters were definitely a little bit different. And they were just the teachers! Inside the hall were over 250 children, all dressed up as their favourite book characters - and it was great to see a fair few astronauts and aliens lurking amongst the Where's Wally's, Alice in Wonderlands and Harry Potters.

After Simon's wonderful and energetic event, the children sang us a lovely song all about opening up a book and seeing what's inside. Very touching and I think the first time we've been sung to.

The children from Stanford Infant School in their alien costumes

Vanessa from The Book Nook in Hove was on hand to help with the book sales as Simon and I looked through some project work on Bob Man on the Moon. I loved the DT work around the patterns on Bob's tank top. There were poems and drawings and even a playground installation. Brilliant work Standford Infants.

Then it was off to West Hove Junior School, where their theme was Shakespeare - so a rather loose connection with astronauts and aliens, but no one seemed to mind. A rather fetching trio of witches met us in reception and we found ourselves in front of another 250 children. Once again their shouts and laughter raised the roof and Simon stayed on to meet parents and talk to the children about his work. They were all so excited with the news of another picture book to look forward to.

More great costumes from West Hove Junior School

Vanessa whisked us back to her charming little bookshop in Hove and Simon valiently read his book to a noisy crowd of children and parents. Prizes were given out to the best dressed aliens (I especially liked the little tinfoil with green spots one) and we said our goodbyes.

Fun and games at the Book Nook

Thanks so much Brighton and Book Nook for making our World Book Day so much fun.

Simon Bartram's South of Newcastle Tour Day 3

2011-03-03T07:12:00.000-08:00

Day 3: Corpus Christi School, Brixton

Jayne has taken a break from the Simon Bartram Tour to spend the day with Emma Dodd at Danes Hill School in Oxshott - the winners of a picture book competition run by ReadingZone. So, she's handed over to the lovely Becky who has taken some great snaps of Simon's day with the pupils of Corpus Christi School in Brixton.

Here's what Becky had to say:

Simon Bartram presented three (Nursery & Reception/Year 1/Year 2) incredibly lively Bob sessions at the Corpus Christi School yesterday, my ears are only just recovering!! He was on FIRE and the children loved it! I was incredibly impressed with the school, the children were so polite and well behaved.

A big thanks to the pupils and staff at Corpus Christi School for a great day!

Simon Bartram's South of Newcastle Tour Day 2

2011-03-03T02:26:00.000-08:00

Day 2: St Francis School, Peckham

Simon Bartram

Day Two - sounds a bit Big Brother, especially with Simon's Geordie accent - but what a day. Once again, road works foiled my satnav so I arrived at St Francis School in Peckham, South London just as Simon had finished reading Man on the Moon to the reception class. He said some of them were about 3 years old but all sat and listened as quiet as mice.

The hall had been decorated with a huge moon painting done by the children with lots of rockets and space stuff all over it. It looked really good.

If the reception class were quiet and a little over-awed by this strange man reading them a story, then Year 1 and Year 2 (around 150 children in all) soon put paid to that. The noise levels and the unbelievable enthusiasm by them for all things Bob was fantastic. We agreed that this class was one of the best we have come across. They clearly adored the book which they had been working on before half term, and one boy came forward with his rocket model, with his drawing of Bob and himself in the 'cockpit'.

After a quick cup of tea, in marched the next set of year groups, 3 and 4 - this time wearing space inspired hats, which they waved around and whooped and cheered all the way through. Another terrific response to Simon - who I think is going to expect this level of audience participation all the time now.

Years 3 and 4 wearing their space hats as they watch Simon Bartram

We decided to bunk off from the staff room and school dinner and went out to look for lunch - rather a change from Dulwich village where we were yesterday, with its smart shops and delicatessens. High rise flats and boarded up shops - but we found a greasy spoon and Simon had sausage and mash (with gravy - £3.50) and I had omelette and chips. No sauce.

The afternoon session was with the 10 and 11 year olds, who insisted they weren't too old for a story, which Simon incorporated with his chat about becoming an illustrator. They really liked his comment that in this busy world they should keep a little quiet space in their brains, as "ideas are like little birds trying to find somewhere to land".

We had a Q&A session afterwards with questions such as "what feelings occur to you when you are writing" (happy); "what would you like to have been if not an illustrator?" (footballer) and "who helped you at school?" (wonderful art teacher, Mrs Scott).

Tales on Moon Lane set up a bookstall in the school hall, and we were mobbed. Amazing - sold out of Bob's Best Ever Friend and made a serious dent in the rest of the stock. Delighted with the response and so nice to meet the parents, all keen to meet and talk to Simon and have their children's photo's taken with him.

What a brilliant school and so much admiration for the teachers who have obviously inspired their classes. Huge thanks to Jilly and Danielle, the literacy co-ordinators for all their work.

A sample spread from Bob's Best Ever Friend (click to enlarge)

As a special treat I had promised Simon we would go to the Norman Rockwell exhibition at the Dulwich Picture Gallery. We rushed in (last entry at 4.30) at about 4.45 and I pleaded with the receptionist to let us in - which they very kindly did and we savoured the extraodinary artwork of this American painter. Really inspired Simon - and it was great for me to have a personal guide to someone who's work I have only ever seen on those iconic front covers of the Saturday Evening Post. Really recommended and on until end of March.

That evening saw us in the Angels and Gypsies tapas restaurant in Camberwell (a wonderful place, thoroughly recommended), where around 10 booksellers, librarians and literacy co-ordinators came together for a lovely meal and lots of good chat. Most had not met Simon before, so it was a great opportunity for them all - even if one was an Arsenal supporter (Sunderland are playing the Gunners on Saturday).

A weary late night journey home, but what a great day... I hand over the Bartram baton to the lovely Becky, who's out and about with Simon in Brixton for his next day of events.

I'll be with Emma Dodd in Surrey... but that's a whole new story.

Simon Bartram's South of Newcastle Tour Day 1

2011-03-01T03:30:00.000-08:00

Day 1: Dulwich Hamlet Junior School

Simon and Bob have blasted off on their adventures south of Newcastle with their first stop at Dulwich Hamlet Junior School. Templar's Press Officer, Jayne Roscoe, reports back on the day's events...

Man on the Moon won the
2004 Blue Peter Award

In the beginning: Please can we have Simon Bartram visit our school - the children would just love it and he's fantastic. The pleadings of two head teachers I met at a seminar (back in the autumn last year) that Simon had just done for teachers on his books featuring Bob, Man on the Moon. And so began the planning for this week in March, which would take in three days in south London schools and two days in Sussex schools. As Simon lives in the north east, it makes sense to tempt him out of the shed with the promise of several school dinners in a row.

A cold and wet Monday morning and we rendevous at Dulwich Hamlet Junior School at about 9 am - well, Simon got there before me as I didn't listen to my satnav and found myself up a cul-de-sac with the school on the other side of the roadworks. Still it was quite nice gazing into the chi chi shops whilst waiting for the green light.

He kicked off with the year 3's. Sweet lovely children who when asked what pets they had, one insisted he had a camel. They also had a great idea to give Barry, the alien dog, a call sign of brrrrrbrrrrrbronngg whenever they saw him, rather than the traditional woof woof.

A five minute break and the year 5's came into the hall. Slightly bigger and with a little more attitude. Simon re-adjusted his talk to include more about his drawing process and they all loved seeing his sketch book and the different stages of how he constructs a painting. After another short break, the year 5's were replaced by the year 4's, who were determined to out-shout the rest of the classes.

Simon shows the year 4's
his sketch book

Their roars when aliens were spotted practically deafened us all and they shrieked with laughter at their own silliness. Simon was being pretty silly too and that just added to the general mayhem and noise.

Now time for lunch and off we went to queue jump the dinner line up - there are some perks to being with an illustrator. Rice and 'mixture' was the order of the day and after ducking and diving back across the playground, we found the staff room where peace and quiet reigned. Most of the staff were catching up on their half term news, which gave us a time to relax.

For the last session we had the top year group, the year 6's. Very smart and sophisticated and for them the funniest thing was Simon's accent. Soon, however, they were all with him, booing and hissing at the dog catcher, barking when Barry came into view and when Simon said he got the idea for Bob's Best Ever Friend from his own situation, i.e. man in shed on his own most the day - one young person wise-cracked, Why didn't you get a guinea pig if you were lonely? No answer to that really.

Ruby Craven and Maame Jehu-Appiah interviewing Simon for their school newspaper,
The Dulwich Hamlet Junior Press.

With all the class events over, Leah from Tales on Moon Lane set up shop in the school hall and as we waited for the parents and children to come and get their books, Ruby and Maame, both aged 10, interviewed Simon for their school newspaper. Quizzing him about his own school days and his favourite books amongst other things, the two intrepid reporters wrote copious notes for their article.

Unfortunately, Mrs Case, the headteacher who had originally asked Simon to visit was in a staff meeting as we left, so we weren't able to say a personal thank you for a great day and to all the children at Dulwich Hamlet Junior School - there are no such things as aliens!

The 10pm Question Blog Tour - 28th Feb to 5th Mar

2011-02-08T04:28:00.000-08:00

Well, it’s official. The dates are set, the exclusives confirmed and Kate is currently squirreling away to create some revealing guest posts and put the all important As in the Q&As. Hold onto your proverbial hats because we’re off on a UK virtual book tour, taking The 10pm Question by Kate de Goldi to some of the most vibrant and exciting teen fiction blogs out there.

Click here for an extract

Here’s the line up:

Mon 28th February

Our first stop is at Chicklish where Luisa Plaja will be posting an exclusive extract from The 10pm Question to get your mouth watering.

Tue 1st March

The second stop will be at The Book Mogul where blogger Kirsty Scard will be posing some probing questions for author Kate de Goldi.

Wed 2nd March

Next we’re at The Bookette where the lovely Becky will be posting an exclusive extract with a twist. Kate will be posting an introduction to the extract to trigger a discussion so if you want in on the chat then make sure you head to this stop.

Thu 3rd March

Nayu’s Reading Corner is up next where Kate will have her first guest post, writing about how writing fits in with her life and the ups and downs of being an author. Keep an eye out here as there is also a copy of the book up for grabs.

Fri 4th March

If you still have the hunger for Kate’s guest posts then head over to Once Upon A Bookcase where our host Jo will be posting a second guest post by Kate. This time Kate will be discussing writing about mental illness in novels and the tough subjects posed by The 10pm Question.

Sat 5th March

Our last stop is at I Want To Read That where you have the chance to bag yourself one of three copies of The 10pm Question in a giveaway that YA fiction addict and blogger Sammee will be organising. Sammee’s post will also have a review of the book and a Q&A session for the author just in case you had any last minute doubts!

In a nutshell, we’re conspiring to spoil you rotten so if you’re a fan of Kate de Goldi then make sure you don’t miss out and if you’re just plain intrigued then make sure you don’t miss out either!

Kate de Goldi

With special thanks to all our blog hosts!

A Roman Rescue Book Launch

2011-01-25T12:23:00.000-08:00

Here at Templar we like nothing better than a good party and if there are togas involved all the better! Well, I should say we like nothing better than a good party except for a good book… ahem…

A Roman Rescue by Kelly Gerrard
and Emma Dodd

Last Thursday (20th Jan) the London Coliseum hosted a knees-up Roman style as we celebrated the launch of A Roman Rescue, a stroke of time-travelling comic book genius and the brainchild of popular children's illustrator Emma Dodd and gifted writer Kelly Gerrard. This talented duo first came up with the idea for A Roman Rescue whilst waiting to collect their children from the school gates. Initial hesitation ensued at the thought of venturing into the unknown of comic book creation but with the full support of Templar, Emma and Kelly soon clamped their teeth around the proverbial bullet and have come up with a whopper! Emma’s trademark chunky-lined illustrations have the characters spilling out of the pages and are a perfect partner for Kelly’s snappy and engaging dialogue.

And the party was no flop either!

Of course, togas and laurel wreathes were the obligatory dress code for the evening, although there were several differing opinions to be had on how to properly toga oneself… The do was held in the American Bar at the London Coliseum which boasts floor-to-ceiling wood panelling and antique mirrors that really lend the venue to its theatrical setting. And of course, what is a theatre without a performance?

Mixy's Roman rapping was a real treat!

The guests had a surprise gift waiting for them from Book A Poet rapper and poet Mixy who spends most of his time packing the heads of school children with rhythmical facts.
Especially for us, however, he had written both a fun rhyming verse and an educational rap, just to make sure our Roman facts were up to scratch… “Like me, kids,” he said, proffering his fun poem before switching to his serious notebook. “Now, learn something!” It was truly a memorable treat.

So, it looks like it might be time to come up with a new publishing formula for Templar: good book + good party = roaring success! How can we fail? Ok, so I might have over-simplified the process just a little… As a first escapade into comic book writing, however, A Roman Rescue certainly marks out Emma and Kelly as a flagship creative duo for Templar and we’re really excited about what the future holds for Charlie and his canine sidekick Bandit.

A Roman Rescue is available from 3rd March 2011. For more information click here.

Emma and Kelly's speech
Toga trouble...

The lovely display!

Emma and Kelly with their husbands
Emma and Kelly with Mixy

For more photos from the launch click here.