1. Please tell us a little about your background and what brought you to children’s publishing.
My route into children’s books was in many ways very typical. I did an English degree and after graduation had a vague idea that I’d like to try publishing. I then did a post-graduate Diploma in Publishing and was lucky enough to get a job very quickly in the rights department at Harper Collins. I split my time assisting the translation rights manager and the children’s rights manager and up until that time, I hadn’t really thought about children’s books as a career. But the books themselves, coupled with the infectious enthusiasm of Belinda Drake -- who was the children’s rights manager, triggered a passion that hasn’t let go since then.

2. What is your all-time favorite book?
It’s so hard to choose an all-time favourite but books that would certainly be in my top 5 would be I CAPTURE THE CASTLE by Dodie Smith and THE CHOCOLATE WAR by Robert Cormier.

3. What book(s) are you proudest of having worked on? Why?
That’s a mean question! You can’t ask an editor to choose between books – if you didn’t love each one, you wouldn’t have taken them on in the first place. I work with incredibly creative people and I’m proud of them all. I’m proud of the level of success that ARTEMIS FOWL has achieved and the excitement I’ve seen the book generate in readers; I’m proud of Melvin Burgess’s continuing willingness to take risks in his efforts to reach a genuinely teenage readership; I’m proud of Philip Ridley’s commitment to his artistic vision; I’m proud of Jill Murphy, Zizou Corder, Grace Dent, Paul Shipton, Morris Gleitzman, I could go on…They are all wonderful and it would be completely impossible to choose. Sorry.

4. How would you describe the publishing program at Puffin Books? What kind of books do you publish and how many new books do you acquire each year?
The publishing programme at Puffin has changed to reflect a market shift from backlist to frontlist. While we treasure our backlist, we are actively looking for the very best new writing talent that we can grow and develop. By the end of 2003, we will have published about 90 new fiction titles.

What opportunities are there for projects other than novels and picture books? (short story collections, poetry, anthologies, etc.)

Puffin does publish short story collections, poetry and anthologies but the opportunities for new projects of that kind are very limited. We have a small and perfectly formed poetry list but we aren’t really looking to expand that beyond those people we currently publish.

5. How linked are Penguin UK and Penguin (Putnam) US?
We have regular contact with Penguin (Putnam) US via monthly video conferences and there are visits back and forth so the teams know each other reasonably well. We exchange information about projects we are excited about and we have many titles in common such as Brian Jacques’s titles, TIME STOPS FOR NO MOUSE by Michael Hoeye, LBD: IT’S A GIRL THING by Grace Dent and LIONBOY by Zizou Corder, to name but a few. Having said that, the US and UK markets are different and we only work together if a book will work in both. We are a global company that works very effectively as part of a group but we are completely independent of each other in terms of what we acquire.

6. Are you aware of any major differences between the UK market for children’s books and the US market? Do you think they are becoming more similar or less so?
As far as I can see, there seems to be a real hunger for UK fiction in the US at the moment which must make the fiction markets increasingly similar, particularly at the older end of the market. The institutional markets are huge in the US so titles have a much longer hardback life and they publish far more novels in hardback than the UK, which is more dependent on trade sales. There seems to be a much stronger market for serious teenage fiction there. Despite some amazing novels, we still find it harder to make it work here in the UK.

7. Are there any books currently on your list that you would consider quintessentially Puffin?
When you think of Puffin, you immediately think of the wonderful classics of your own childhood, like CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, CHARLOTTE’S WEB and TOM’S MIDNIGHT GARDEN, for example. It was a real thrill when I realized that I would be Philippa Pearce’s editor and even more of a thrill when she recently delivered a surprise new novel, THE LITTLE GENTLEMAN – a surprise to her as much as everyone else, I think! Inevitably, I see that title very much as part of Puffin’s wonderful heritage. I also see new titles like LIONBOY, which we have just published, as classics of the future and very much in the tradition of favourites like STIG OF THE DUMP.

What do you look for in a book? What thrills you? Could you please give an example of writing and/or art (in published or non-published form) that you find exciting.

I’m always looking for exciting new voices, for that indefinable quality that makes an author or novel unique. I love character-led fiction and have a particular weakness for wit. On my own list, I’m very excited by Paul Shipton’s THE PIG SCROLLS, which is very fresh, funny and original. On other’s lists, Kevin Brooks stands out as a major new voice and Philip Reeve writes wonderfully exciting, sweeping narratives.

8. Anything you are definitely not looking for?
The new Harry Potter. There is so much fantasy around at the moment, it is very hard to get excited by ‘a major new fantasy trilogy’ but there are always exceptions, of course.

9. What, for you, is the role of the “ideal editor?”
Someone who is there to support and encourage the author in what they are trying to achieve. To be there when needed and not to intrude when not needed. A passionate advocate of the book in-house. To represent the reader to the author.

10. Are you aware of any trends in children’s publishing at the moment? How do you feel about them?
Escalating advances – as a publisher, it’s hard to feel good about this. I’d say fantasy is over-published – there is always room for the very best, but over-publishing in any area isn’t a good thing.

I get the impression that publishers are pulling back from YA somewhat, having been very hungry for it about two years ago – I think this is not so much a comment on what’s being published, but how tricky it is to reach that teenage market. Having said that, there are some amazing teenage novels being published.

It can be difficult for new young fiction to get a presence and sustain a backlist because it doesn’t get the same attention or promotional slots as other areas, and it is particularly dependent on the bookclubs and fairs.

11. What say does the sales/marketing department have in the look or type of the book you produce?
We work very much as a team at Puffin. The publishing process starts with a really passionate editor selling the book to the rest of the team. The support of the sales and marketing departments are extremely important and their faith in the judgment of the editorial team and their own enthusiasm for each project is vital.

12. Will you look at illustration samples? If so, do you advise an illustrator to send new samples every six months, or so?
I don’t look at illustration samples. We have an excellent design team with whom we work very closely.

13. Are you accepting unsolicited manuscripts at the moment?
Sadly, Puffin has a policy of not accepting them because we don’t have the resources to deal with the number of manuscripts submitted.

14. What do you see as some of the common mistakes authors could avoid making when submitting?
Incredibly practical things: sending a badly written or overly quirky submission letter. Not sending the manuscript double-spaced on one side of A4. Phoning the editor on a daily basis!

15. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Finding an agent will help your book find the right publisher.


Thanks!