Colouring-in can be calming and good for control — but it’s not the same as drawing. Drawing builds thinking, memory, language and confidence. Here’s a plea for “beyond the line” creativity (plus easy ways to encourage it)

Adventure isn’t about recklessness — it’s about agency. A practical, publishing-savvy guide to writing children’s adventure stories that move, matter, and endure.

What does it mean to be “cancelled” in the modern world? Using the sudden professional disappearance of David Walliams as a case study, this essay examines how institutions withdraw, how language disguises erasure, and how individuals survive when their name, role, or legacy is quietly removed.

From David Walliams to The Salt Path, Kate Clanchy - and the moments when publishing suddenly acts fast When a phrase like “after careful consideration” is deployed, readers are meant to hear thoughtfulness, balance, and moral gravity. What they are usually hearing instead is the soft click of a filing cabinet closing. Here we have the gap between what publishing says it is doing - and what, with remarkable consistency, it actually does. It is not about guilt or innocence. I

The Booker Prize Foundation has launched a £50,000 Children’s Booker Prize for ages 8–12 — with child judges at the table and 30,000 free books for those who need them most. Here’s why it matters, how it fits the National Year of Reading, and what schools, parents and publishers should do next.

Illustrator/Author Jo Surman blends graphic flair, gothic imagination, and heartfelt storytelling. From picture books to middle-grade novels, she creates worlds steeped in colour, character, and curiosity.

Every parent remembers their child’s first word. Some say “Mum”, some say “Dad” – our son said “digger”. In this post I show how those early obsessions with diggers, fire engines and other machines can become the raw material for a bedtime story picture book. From emotional arcs and page plans to onomatopoeia and illustration, here’s how to turn one small word into a full 32-page goodnight story.

New reports reveal a troubling decline in children’s reading for pleasure. Fewer children are being read to, and reading is increasingly seen as schoolwork—not joy. From misused reading programmes to celebrity book distractions, we urgently need a smarter, more joyful approach.

Learn how to write a children’s publishing press release that sounds human, not hysterical. Practical tips, common pitfalls, and why "thrilled" is the biggest giveaway of all.