When my pupils find out that I'm a writer, there is a general air of fascination for a while. They Google my books and ask if they can buy them on Amazon (they can, but - by and large - they don't) and want to know why I need to teach if I'm a published author. The answer is simple, of course: when I'm doing well, I break even as an author, I never make actual money. But recently I've realised that being an English teacher is something I would continue even if I had a sudden jackpot win on the lottery. I love my job. Take today for example: I got to teach Seamus Heaney's Digging to a group of S1s, held a mock trial for Dr Frankenstein with my S3s, read a chapter of The Graveyard Book with my S2s, and - perhaps best of all - began the analysis of M.R. James' A Warning to the Curious with my S4 class. Who wouldn't want that job? I think writers make great English teachers - and editors make even better ones! We are used to spotting little details here an...
Last April I launched Beneath Black Clouds and White . It's a book of which I'm exceptionally proud for a number of reasons. Among them, is the fact that I researched and researched, not just dates and events, but the critical thinking of the time (1790s) and the classes involved. Being somewhat limited in my interests, I have also accumulated several items which - though many have virtually no monetary value at all - are invaluable to me. Letters written in the hand of a contemporary of my book... the weave of the parchment it was written on... you can't beat the chance to hold these objects in your hands and feel the history seeping through to you. As a countdown for last year's book launch, I shared a number of objects which I've collected. Most of them are a little later than Beneath Black Clouds and White was set, several linking in to later books which I have written. Here are a handful, as well as an explanation of why I have and hold them... ...