Author: Niel
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I had a great first day at North Durham Academy yesterday. I’m Patron of Reading there for the next year and was looking forward to meeting the pupils who I’ll be working with. As well as an assembly talk and a library meet & greet I did a creative writing session for the Gifted &…
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I was born in the Lunar Age. By the time I’d made my appearance on the planet we’d already walked on the moon twice. (It would have been three times if not for the near-death accident that aborted Apollo 13’s moon shot.) Even though I was only two years old when the last man walked…
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Last week I was lucky enough to go to a garden party at Buckingham Palace. The actual Buckingham Palace. In London. Where the Queen lives. I know! It all started last year when I volunteered to to join the committee of the Society of Authors sub group, Authors North. Since then I’ve helped out with…
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Sometimes a job comes along that is, quite frankly, ridiculous. That was my first thought when Director friend Adam Miller called me a few weeks ago. “We need some animation of Tony Blair,” Adam explained. “Right,” I replied cautiously. “In a tiny submarine.” “OK…” “Really tiny, as in microscopic.” Adam said. “He’s inside an artery…
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I’m thrilled to let you know I’ve been appointed as the Patron of Reading for North Durham Academy in Stanley, County Durham. What is a Patron of Reading? A Patron of Reading (PoR) is a school’s special, designated children’s author with whom the school forms a personal attachment. The patron might be a writer…