This project started in back at the beginning of 2017 after a conversation with Eva O'Donovan from the Friends of Meltham Library. I am always keen to get children interested in writing and I needed somewhere that was willing to provide a place for me to do it.
The Carlile Institute, Meltham was also having a renaissance at the time and was reinventing itself into a community hub and the new location for Meltham library.
So, we thought, what a great opportunity to get the local children interested in visiting their new library and maybe creating something special along the way.
We didn't know what response we were going to have, but we kept our fingers crossed and then September came around...
We were amazed, at that first workshop, to meet a group of youngsters from 5-10 years old that were enthusiastic, creative, excited and very entertaining.
Over the next few weeks, through a creative process of drafting and illustrating, they produced a collection of short, illustrated stories all from their own imagination. This book is the product of all that hard work.
These youngsters have never been published before, never even written for a book before, but now they can hold their heads up proud and say, 'I am a published author!' Well done to you all.
I was very proud to be a part of this collaboration and I hope all the children featured here go on and do well in the future ? maybe we will have a future novelist among them, who knows.
Keep on writing guys!
All the Best,
Martin Rothery.
Editor & Author, Fishcake Publications.