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Helen Cresswell

Helen Cresswell (1924-2005) was born in Nottingham and educated there and at Kings College, London. She began writing when she was seven and had over seventy books published. She won the Phoenix Award for The Night Watchman and was runner-up for the Carnegie Medal four times. Many of Helen's books have been televised and she also adapted stories by Nesbit and Blyton for TV.

PLACE AND DATE OF BIRTH:
Nottingham; 11 July 1934

FAVOURITE BOOK:
You must be joking - hundreds of them.

MOST TREASURED POSSESSION:
The pens I write with.

FAVOURITE SONG:
'Land Where Coral Lies'

FAVOURITE FILM:
Guys and Dolls

When did you start writing?
When I was six. Most of what I wrote during my childhood and teens was poetry. My first published poem was in Mickey Mouse comic, it was called 'The Gull' and I got 10 shillings (50 pence) for it. The first stories I wrote were for adults and some of them were read on the radio.

Where do you get your ideas?
Anywhere, anytime The Piemakers came from a newspaper story, The Bongleweed from an item on Blue Peter. Moondial came out of a visit to Belton House, and other books are inspired by places - Lizzie Dripping (my own village), The Watchers (Alton Towers), Stonestruck (Powis Castle), The Secret World of Polly Flint (Wellow and Rufford).

Can you give your top three tips to becoming a successful author?
1. Read, read, read.
2. Write, write, write.
3. Read, read, read and write, write, write.

Favourite memory?
I think I was around nine years old. We spent all day sliding and skating on flooded fields nearby. Then the sun set in a great red ball and the trees and hedges darkened and the ice gleamed and the only sounds were our hissing blades and the bleat of bewildered sheep.

Favourite place in the world and why?
Venice. Because it is the most beautiful man-made place in the world. It reassures me that if man can create something so exquisite, he can't be all bad...

What are your hobbies?
Walking, reading, gardening, reading, painting, reading.

If you hadn't been a writer, what do you think you would have been?
Either an actress or a painter.