Tom Gates tour - part three

Here's a few more pictures from out and about on the Tom Gates Tour.Starting at the BATH festival and other school events...

John Mclay (Bath festival Organiser) 
at the Bath Children's Festival. 

Look at Alyx's expression!
She thought I had flash on my camera when
I was taking photos of Julia Donadlson
and Axel Scheffler being interviewed
on TV before their event.

It was VERY interesting listening to both
Author and Illustrator
talking about their books.

Julia and Axel signing books.

Where's Wally?

Found him!

Empty seats before my event.
It was the poshest venue ever. 

Bath event went well (I think!)

This was the LARGEST group I've done at Highgate School - Nearly 400 children gulp. They were all VERY attentive!

What a doodle!

 

Fabulous work Harry.

Benjamin brought his own book jacket
to show me!

STAR Oscar!

Bumped into Gill (Sky Hawk)and Martin
(Horrible Histories)who
was illustrator in residence
for the festival this year too.

Tom Gates Tour - Part Two

I set off at the end of September for the Tom Gates
Book Tour for a couple of weeks 
and visited LOADS of fantastic libraries - schools and festivals.

The children (as ever) did some wonderful drawings and doodles.
Questions asked:
How old are you? 
(How old do you think?... answers varied from 83 to 33)
Why did you start writing? 
(So I could illustrate my own stories.)
Where do you get your ideas from? 
(EVERYWHERE... remembering my childhood, funny stories from friends and family too.)

It's been all go.
Here's photos from the tour below.

Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell do
their VERY funny talk at
 Read To Inspire. 

Chris Riddell drawing for the
 Read To Inspire
talk we did to teachers at the
University Of Brighton.
I was VERY intimidated to be
drawing in front of Chris!!

Not scary at all...

The ladies from my Wadhurst Library sessions.
25th September.

Morriston Comprehensive 27th September
School Swansea have posters!

School session The Hive Worcester.

Summer Reading Challenge prize
giving at Worcester -
The Hive Library 3rd October

Talking to Illustration/Graphic
students at The Hive. 

Dinner with Margret Pemberton, Catherine,
Melanie McGillowy Anne Gibson and
John McLay (Bath Festival Organiser)
in Bristol.

Churchill Academy - with Melanie who made fantastic
brownies! She also does a great blog called
LIBRARY MICE - 

Look at the great doodle Emily did!

Posters and a Tom Gates display.

These shoes were painted on a school wall 
(I can't remember which one!)

I was a PRIZE at Backwell School. We had a very
nice lunch and it was fun chatting to
the kids, asking them what funny storiesTHEY had about school.

Tour and festival round up (better late than never!)

 Part One:No excuses, I keep taking pictures and thinking I must do my BLOG then work beckons and I feel constantly guilty that I should be finishing of my writing or art work.

So here's a quick round up of the MANY fabulous people I met and things I've been up to over the summer and autumn.
Here's some pics from...Edinburgh

Lily writing in the yurt.

Steve Cole doing his thing in the yurt

Nile Rogers from afar...

Alex T Smith (check out his fantastic blog)
holding a portrait that the young daughter
of a fellow author did of him. Good likeness.

Adam Stower was a photo STAR at the festival.

Me (pretending) to write.

Alex- T- Smiths portrait!

Lily with the castle.

Emma Thompson. Very clever lady who
has done cards (Felicity Wishes)
and books (Princess Pearl)
 for nearly as long as me! 

Slightly BLURRY Rose Impy
(Shortlisted Author)
who was on the Funny
Prize Panel with Philip and myself.

The panel.

Dinner with Guy Bass and his lovely wife -
Catherine, Charlotte, Claire (book trust) and Lily.

Next day we saw the PANDAS!

They were very RELAXED.

 My very first Book Launch (ever)

Genius Ideas (mostly)September 20th 2102 

Scholastic gave me a fantastic book launch (my first ever). It was a lot of fun and a chance to say thank you to everyone who's helped make Tom Gates book a success!

It was quite overwhelming really - not like me to be lost for words.

My lovely friend Davina
who Mark and I shared a flat
with yonks ago.

The winning doodle of the night!

Silver bling nails for the night.

Andrew the Creative Director
doing bunting.

Designer Tom dancing?

Alyx Price with little Tom.

Catherine with baloons

Goodie bags

Old mates Claudia and Kate doodling.

My brother and sister in- law
Chris and Christine.

Ella - giving me a look!

Prizes for the doodle competition.

Lucy and Catherine with BOOKS.

Nicola won!

Gorgeous flowers from Scholastic.