oxford meeting, many biscuits

Today Dave O’Connell and I went up to Oxford to meet with our publisher David Fickling and editor Hannah Featherstone about a picture book we’ve been working on for ages. We haven’t even started the artwork yet, but we’ve rewritten the text from scratch ten times, with nearly as many meetings. Dave and I are learning a lot, it’s a bit like being on a university course, and we love working with these people, even when it’s frustrating. Besides, they give us lots of nice biscuits.

Hannah Featherstone, David O’Connell, David Fickling (with a glimpse of Mo-Bot High and Morris the Mankiest Monster on the right)

This meeting was exciting, because it was the first time we didn’t come out glowing, only to realise half-way to the train that we have to rewrite the entire story. David and Hannah actually started picking away at the text itself, which means we finally HAVE something. Hurrah! Still needs work, but it will be more editing sort of work, not rewriting.

Just a note, if my Scholastic colleagues are reading this, I’m now going FULL STEAM on your picture book! This meeting clears a lot of space for me to get going. Tomorrow I’m only doing Scholastic roughs, with pot noodle lunch. Solemn vow.