[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-world-book-day-tour-part-1":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"My World Book Day was actually three days! \u003Ca href=\"http://www.worldbookday.com/\">World Book Day\u003C/a> is a big deal in the UK and Ireland, and it's the one time when you can be certain there will be a zillion writers and illustrators running around the country doing various assemblies and workshops, and lots of kids showing up at school in costume. (Here's a \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Book_Day\">Wikipedia explanation\u003C/a> about why our World Book Day isn't the same day here as it is in the rest of the world.) \\r\n\\r\nFab publicist \u003Cb>Louise Stothard\u003C/b> planned my tour and took me to stay at her house in Northamptonshire for two nights. Here's my pirate gear, all laid out and ready to go.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/pirate_clothes-ca52bc78f4.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAs I left, I waved goodbye to our sinister studio gnome at the \u003Ca href=\"http://fleecestation.co.uk/\">Fleece Station\u003C/a>, who promised to look after the place while my studio mate Gary and I were out and about, eventing. (Gary was doing gigs in Essex.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/guard_gnome-51e1eed1a0.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Click here for more pics under the cut!-->\\r\nI left London from Marylebone, which has one of those lovely old station roofs I like so much.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/marylebone_station-417c023806.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLouise picked me up at Bicester North station, and our first stop was \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brackley\">Brackley\u003C/a>, with its rather lovely town hall.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/brackley-895e72eb45.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe explored \u003Ca href=\"http://www.oldhallbooks.com/\">The Old Hall Bookshop\u003C/a>, in a big, beautiful Queen Anne building.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/oldhallbookshop_brackley-9426e3f446.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThat place is a real treasure trove. Here's manager \u003Cb>Christine Bridger\u003C/b>, who stocked the books for my events during the next two days. And that's Louise on the right. Louise used to publicise The DFC comic, before it became \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk\">The Phoenix comic\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/christine_bridger-8a2c7f3dc1.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLouise showed me through a little door at the top of the stairs, where I discovered that the bookshop went up three (or was it four?) more floors, which don't have any electricity. It felt a bit spooky and marvelous wandering about its strange passageways in the last dregs of daylight, like something out of a book. Reminded me a bit of the \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/450206.html\">Magic Bookshop in Greenwich\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/old_hall_bookshop-4849f57914.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThen Louise took me to her house, a lovely old barn conversion in the countryside...\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/louise_house-15b0965605.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n...with two cuddly Jack Russells! Here's 14-year-old Polo, who pretended like he was going to hold still while I drew him, but who wiggled every time I thought the picture was just starting to turn out all right. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/jack_russell_2-d09c0bd19e.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnother attempt to draw Polo before he wiggled.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/jack_russell_1-ead33234d3.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd here's the baby, little Pippa, who was so excited to see me that she widdled on the kitchen floor. I took this photo just after she came back from Obedience Class, where she met a little boyfriend and didn't pay any attention to the lesson. But awww... isn't she cute?\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/jack_russell_3-b2befd8248.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd then I had two full days of school events! I'll post Part Two tomorrow. But just to say, thanks to Louise for all her amazing help with the tour, she was brilliant!\\r\n\u003Ci>Click here to read \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/463412.html\">Part 2\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/464323.html\">Part 3\u003C/a>!\u003C/i>","2012-03-02T22:18:00.000Z","world-book-day-tour-part-1",[],"world book day tour, part 1",1776628721523]