How Lum was born
A frequently asked question by both children and adults is "What inspired you to write Lum?" It is possible that I have given more than one answer to this question, dependent on how much time I had to explain, the age of my audience or even my energy levels when I was...
My Inspiration
Writing stories for children is the perfect "job" for me. I spend a lot of my time talking nonsense just to amuse myself and this works well for children's stories. When I am asked a question, if I don't know the answer, I am often tempted to make something up. It...
Encouraging Your Child To Read
Do you have a reluctant reader? A child that would do anything rather than pick up a book? Read on for 8 ideas to encourage reading. Join your local library and visit regularlyAs well as stories to suit every taste, the library will also have a range of non-fiction...
Getting Children Active Through Stories
Perhaps more often than not, reading does stop us from getting outside. So what can we, as parents, do to counteract this? I've put together a few ideas to encourage our lovely bookworms into being more active at an early age. Read on to start your outdoor story...
The Importance of Bedtime Stories
JK Rowling has been quoted as saying "I will defend the importance of bedtime stories to my last gasp", which always makes me wonder what the context of this quote is. Was she speaking with Government Ministers who were threatening to send every child to bed at 7pm...
Being A Bookworm
The stereotype of a bookworm is a girl (or boy) wearing glasses, pale skin, no style and no social skills. I certainly tick some of those boxes. I feel, though, that I have other attributes and interests to take me beyond that stereotype. And, in fact, a stereotype is...
The Story Idea
Every author gets asked "where do you get your ideas from?" and I suspect every author has a different answer. In my case, the ideas come from things I see and hear around me every day. For instance, the rhyme Making Friends (working title) came about through two...
Writing – A Point of View
Writing doesn't always come easily to me. Take this blog for instance. I know that I want to publish a new blog every Thursday. I even have blog topics planned through until July. But have I written the blogs in advance? Well, some, but not all. Specifically not this...
Lum’s Adventures in Fenwick
Josie and I have had a busy week in Fenwick. Josie spent a lot of time reading her/my stories, sharing stickers, talking to children and their families, making announcements on the tannoy and organising her display table. She did...
Read more from Josie
To be kept up-to-date with Josie’s blog and stories, sign up for the newsletter here.
You’ll also receive Josie’s latest news and the occasional marketing message.