As a special treat for World Book Day, here’s a clip from the forthcoming audio book version of Zombie! – my first book for Barrington Stoke.

I was delighted when top audio producers, Oakhill Publishing, gave me the opportunity to read my own book – and I had a fantastic time in the studio with Douglas making the recording.

So, get your ears around this exclusive clip, featuring the first appearance of Jake the zombie…

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The full audio book will be available to buy in April.

Tommy

I was absolutely delighted to learn that Frozen In Time – a stunning book by my fellow Trapped By Monsters captive, Ali Sparkes, has won the Blue Peter Children’s Book Award!

Frozen In Time is the exciting story of what happens when Ben and Rachel discover a hidden bunker buried in their back garden – complete with two cryogenically frozen children – Freddy and Polly!  Once unfrozen, Freddy and Polly must learn to adapt to life in the 21st century – and avoid the attentions of some very shady characters now sniffing around.  It’s a fast-paced adventure you simply won’t want to out down!

Congratulations to Ali – very well deserved indeed!

My second book for Barrington Stoke – The Uniform – is now available to pre-order at amazon.co.uk

The book tells the story of Matthew, a new pupil at Elm Road school who is picked on by teachers and bullies alike because his mum can’t afford to buy him the correct school uniform.  When his mum eventually finds a second hand uniform in a charity shop, it looks as though Matthew’s troubles are over.  In fact, he feels better than ever when wearing the uniform – stronger, more confident, and unwilling to put up with any more trouble.  Before long, Matthew is the new king of the playground and dealing with anyone who dares to get in his way – much to the concern of his best friend, Neil.  Could it be the uniform itself is to blame?

The Uniform is a terrifying tale for anyone whose ever worn a school tie…

Tommy

One of the questions I’m most frequently asked is whether I draw the illustrations for my Scream Street books – and the answer is always a resounding NO!  I have all the artistic ability of a teaspoon.  My publishers, Walker Books, however knew of a very talented artist by the name of Lily Bernard who works for Cartoon Saloon – and it’s Lily who brings my characters and stories to life in picture form.

To demonstrate the process Lily takes, here are three images of one of my newer Scream Street characters – Kian Negative.  You can see how each image progresses from a preliminary sketch to get a feel for the character (which my editor, designer and I get to see and comment on) through an intermediate stage and finally onto the finished picture.

I’m sure you’ll agree that Lily is not only very talented, but she has a real grasp on the feel of the Scream Street series.  I’m very proud to be working with her.

Tommy

I’m back from two wonderful days performing for young readers as part of the brilliant Bounce Into Books festival!

I visited two schools in Beverley and enjoyed an anarchic afternoon at a Sheffield library (where my event was held up for a few minutes by the arrival of a Chinese dragon – not every day I get to say that!)

But, best of all, I was at the festival to talk about Zombie! – my first book for specialist publisher, Barrington Stoke.  I’m a big fan of the work they do, and I’ve now been lucky enough to write three novels for them – the aforementioned Zombie!, The Uniform (to be published in July) and Wolf (due out in 2011).

If you haven’t yet read a Barrington Stoke book – treat yourself to one soon and see for yourself just what exciting and valuable work they’re doing.

Tommy

I’ve just got back from a hectic three-day trip to London where I dashed around from one part of the city to the next, cramming in as many meetings as I could.  I spoke at a Web 2.0 seminar on how to motivate young readers by getting them to create video book trailers, discussed marketing plans for the coming books in the Scream Street series with my publishers, talked about my next series of books (details of which must remain secret for the moment), enjoyed a conference call regarding something very exciting (which must also be kept secret!), and I still managed a couple of hours in which to do this…

This is me recording the audio book version of Zombie!, my first title for utterly brilliant publishers, Barrington Stoke.  When I heard there was going to be an audio version, I made a sample recording and sent it to the producer hoping I’d be in with the chance to read the book myself – and it paid off.  Of course, that did mean I sat in a tiny booth making gurgling zombie noises and screams for an afternoon!

Big thanks to Douglas, the recording engineer, for making everything as enjoyable and easy as possible (and for taking the picture!)  I’ve arranged to feature an excerpt from the recording on my website – so watch out for that soon.

Tommy

Hello to all my readers on the other side of the world!  I hope you’re ready for some fiendish fun – for THREE new Scream Street titles are published in Australia and New Zealand by Walker Books Australia today!

Scream Street 5: Skull of the Skeleton, Scream Street 6: Claw of the Werewolf and Scream Street 7: Invasion of the Normals are available NOW in the southern hemisphere!

What a scream!

Tommy

It’s taken me a while to get to as I’ve been swamped by deadlines recently, but I’ve finally managed to sit down and read And Another Thing… – the sixth installment of Douglas Adams’s Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy series, written by Eoin Colfer.

Now, I suspected I might enjoy the book as I’m a huge fan of Adams’s work AND a huge fan of Eoin Colfer.  But what I wasn’t quite expecting was the scale to which the Hitchhiker’s galaxy would spring back to life as though Douglas himself was wielding the pen.  That’s not to say you can’t feel Eoin’s touch – you can, and it makes for a wonderful new sheen to the characters we know and love so well.  Many fans thought it unwise to continue the series but, to me, it just all felt so, well… right.

I don’t want to give anything away – but if you’ve ever enjoyed an afternoon in the company of Arthur, Ford, Trillian and the stupendously shallow Zaphod Beeblebrox – then you’re in for a real treat with this book.  Plus, we are introduced to a fantastic new character (among others) in the lumpy shape of caring Vogon, Constant Mown.

If you’ve never read a Hitchhiker’s book before – you’ll love And Another Thing… And, if you’re a dedicated H2G2 fan – it’s just like visiting old friends.

Highly recommended!

Tommy

I was delighted to receive this picture today – it’s of a boy named Luke who was caught secretly reading my book, Zombie!, in a school science lesson!  Well, I suppose decomposing corpses and the things that live in them are a kind of biology experiment…

I’ll be visiting Luke’s school in January, so I’ll be able to congratulate him in person, then!

Are you thinking of booking me for an author visit in 2010?  Download my new Author Events eBook, which tells you everything you need to know – from organising the day to how to get my books for your pupils on sale or return, with free delivery!

Click here to download your copy!

Tommy