A book – sheets of paper bound together. But those sheets of paper have squiggles written or printed on them, and that is where the magic lies… the code that we learn when we learn to read.

Writing is magical, from the first spark of imagination, a spark that glows and grows as characters begin to populate it. The characters jostle about, and some of them start talking to each other, friendships are struck, while others begin feuds, stories begin to form. But there are many voices and no clear path in, a writer needs to bide their time, not trying too soon to pin a story down into print, for fear of it disappearing in a puff of smoke.

But once a way in is found and words start flowing onto the page, the trick is to listen, let the characters have their say, and there it is, the magic of writing, to let the imagination flow, just to see where it goes. To write for yourself, as if no one else is going to read it, is very freeing for the imagination.

And what of illustrations?

To visualise the story and its characters, and to coax the perfect image out of a pencil, paint brush or any other medium. Of course the images will want to have their say. Adding illustrations to a story involves a bit of argy bargy as words and pictures vie for the most attention. Words and pictures can even merge as letters distort themselves to form part of the picture.

Where do ideas for books come from?

Doodle Mayhem came about when I read an article about not letting your characters take over – well that just sent my imagination into overdrive, why shouldn’t a character take over? And how can you stop them anyway? I find that once a character starts to speak, they take on a life of their own, and then there’s no knowing what’s going to happen...

I knew that I really had something when I read an early draft to a group of primary school children. I was soon aware of the silence that had descended over the group, and realising I had the attention of everyone there, I was soon as immersed in the story as everyone else, as our surroundings slipped away, and we were right there with Eric, as Iver No-Idea ripped letters off the page and started throwing them at him.

But what about true stories?

Outnumbered by Cats is a true story of how a tabby kitten came into our lives, and went on to have a litter of her own. Taken from the kitten diaries, written as kittens climbed on me and chewed the corners of the note book, it’s all in there, from the tom cat and the broken cat flap incident, to the kittens’ first birthday, and everything in-between. Not everyone has been ‘asked’ by their cat to search for missing kittens in the middle of the night.