[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-oxford-lit-fest-2016":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"Even though two of my three publishers are based in Oxford and I go there often for meetings and such, the town has a special magic to it that never really goes away. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_1_zpsayxhtl8d-7d028949b6.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThis year for \u003Ca href=\"http://oxfordliteraryfestival.org/literature-events/2016/Sunday-3/pugs-of-the-frozen-north\">Oxford Literary Festival\u003C/a>, I got to stay in Exeter College and have breakfast in their dining hall, which was pretty awesome. (Also slightly embarrassing because I didn't have time to get into costume after breakfast, and the few people in there were too polite to ask questions.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_breakfast2_zpskqwohc6i-143e39465c.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThe very first event I went to, I got to sit in the audience to hear \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/WomackPhilip\">Philip Womack\u003C/a> interview \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/philipreeve1\">Philip Reeve\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/FrancesHardinge\">Frances Hardinge\u003C/a>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_fran_phils_zpsrjjhxlvu-f50862705c.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Click here for more under the cut!-->\\r\nHere they are, getting papped by festival photographer KT Bruce. (You can see her photos \u003Ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/oxfordliteraryfestival/photos\">here on Facebook\u003C/a>.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_ktphoto_zpsu7crhhcs-9f808abfca.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nPhilip talked about his new \u003Ci>\u003Cb>Railhead\u003C/b>\u003C/i> book and Frances, about \u003Ci>\u003Cb>The Lie Tree\u003C/b>\u003C/i>, which deservedly has got lots of press lately when it won the overall Costa Award. They're both brilliant books, I recommend them to adults and teenagers alike.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_panel_zpsgdfqwf9w-fcf9903068.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nRespect to Philip Womack: moderating an event is much harder to do and takes more time with research than talking about one's own books. I wish I could have heard him talk a bit more about his book \u003Ci>\u003Cb>The Broken King\u003C/b>\u003C/i> but at least I managed to nab the bookseller's last copy. (You can read Philip Reeve's review of \u003Ci>The Broken King\u003C/i> \u003Ca href=\"http://www.philip-reeve.com/?s=the+broken+king\">here on his blog\u003C/a>.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_womackbk_zpswga0ljx5-a6bcd05c0a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOn the way out, I finally met \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/kdbrundell\">Katherine Rundell\u003C/a>, author of \u003Ci>\u003Cb>Rooftoppers\u003C/b>\u003C/i>, which beat out \u003Ci>\u003Cb>Oliver and the Seawigs\u003C/b>\u003C/i> for the Blue Peter Prize.. and I didn't mind, because it turned out to be very good! (If it had been bad, I would have been FURIOUS!) ;D \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_rundell_zpszosero52-456570d777.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI was too caught up in my \u003Ci>\u003Cb>Pugs of the Frozen North\u003C/b>\u003C/i> event with Philip to get any good photos of the Story Museum setting, but we had a good crowd and a great time, and I recognised a certain pug hat from World Book Day dressing-up photos I'd seen on Twitter: \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_pugs_hat_zpsvkbrevyx-101d848733.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThe pugs in the back of our book all have names, but Philip and I loved how these girls found the unnamed pugs at the beginning of the books and gave them all their own names! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_pugs_endp1_zpsmfz3swzr-0c0e2819e3.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's a little close-up. Pimples, Macaroon and Sticky Tack are all very fine names.\\r\n  \\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_pugs_endp2_zpsdsm9rw5q-2eb24ef0ff.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnother girl had started writing a sequel to \u003Ci>Pugs of the Frozen North\u003C/i>, called \u003Ci>Pugs of the Special Spring\u003C/i>. We hope she keeps going with it! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_pugs_notebook_zpspn79q6sd-1d088ddaca.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAh, and evidence of another World Book Day Pug costume. Love the pug costumes. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_wbd_costume_zpsymcfvdyq-e78610358c.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nBig thanks to the \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/TheStoryMuseum\">Story Museum\u003C/a> and to the \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/blackwelloxford\">Blackwell's Bookshop\u003C/a> team who provided our books!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_storymus_zpshugejpfl-38b32e64d7.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAfter our event, I changed out of Pugs gear into something a bit more comfortable and ran into \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/mayhewjames\">James Mayhew\u003C/a> back in the Green Room. James does live drawings at concerts with full orchestras backing him, which sounds incredibly daunting, but he pulls it off with panache.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_james_mayhew_zpsbiqi8j7l-2c64d3f4a0.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOo, and it's \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/gingerdoodles\">Cathy Brett\u003C/a>, who was waiting for \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/jocotterillbook\">Jo Cotterill\u003C/a> to arrive to do their event about \u003Ci>\u003Cb>Electrigirl\u003C/b>\u003C/i>, their book that's not quite a comic, not quite a novel, sort of a mix of several things. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_cathy_brett_zpsfzoxhnkm-063b5107b5.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nMy second event was right next to the awe-inspiring Sheldonian Theatre with its mad-looking heads. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_sheldonian_zpsi9u4yqlz-4ace76fbe1.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd right there at the base of the theatre, it was so great to see people reading my \u003Ci>\u003Cb>Dinosaur Police\u003C/b>\u003C/i> book.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_sheldonian_bk_zpsme2ocdlt-9527e04211.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nInside the Blackwell's Marquee, I read from \u003Ci>Dinosaur Police\u003C/i> and then taught everyone how to draw silly T-Rex characters. We got some good ones from people of all ages! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxlitfest_dinos16_zpsnnyxtpin-4d3e451d5b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/ReeceAndrea\">Andrea Reece\u003C/a> who organised the children's part of the festival and invited Philip and me. Thank you so much, Andrea!! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_andrea_reece_zps8fzkhkhy-083d1f62b7.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe had dinner with Andrea, our fabulous OUP publicist Harriet Bayly, Philip Womack and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/SeonaidMacLeod\">Seonaid MacLeod\u003C/a> (pronounced 'Shona'), who was at the festival bigging up a \u003Ca href=\"http://www.publishers.org.uk/campaigns/reading-for-pleasure/become-a-reading-ambassador/\">Reading Ambassadors scheme\u003C/a>, promoting reading for pleasure. Besides the great company at Brasserie Blanc, we got to order a Baked Alaska, which we hadn't had \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/480051.html\">since Philip and I first signed our contract for \u003Ci>Oliver and the Seawigs\u003C/i>\u003C/a>. And it was JUST AS TASTY. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_bakedalaska_zpsoreiiovc-8c3dd6288a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nRight before I headed back to the station, I stopped by the Eagle & Child pub (where the \u003Ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inklings\">Inklings\u003C/a> used to meet) to see friends \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Sally_Nicholls\">Sally Nicholls\u003C/a> and her new baby, comics friends \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/jinty\">Jenni Scott\u003C/a> & \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/tortipede\">Richard Buck\u003C/a> and their kids, and my amazing OUP designer \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/9peace8\">Jo Cameron\u003C/a>. The kids were very excited and sitting is hard in a pub, so we ended up doing lots of drawing, which always suits me just fine! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oxfordlitfest16_jennirich_zpsdb7hhfgs-fabf44430b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n(You can find out about more of my events over on the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.jabberworks.co.uk/events/\">events page of my website.\u003C/a>)","2016-04-06T22:57:00.000Z","oxford-lit-fest-2016",[],"oxford lit fest 2016",1776628728280]