ollowing the publication of my Puffin poetry collections, It Takes One to Know One, The Day Our Teacher Went Batty and Family Phantoms, I was delighted to receive a flood of poems, stories, letters, postcards and e-mails. The children wanted to know what was my favourite book, favourite word, favourite place; where my ideas came from; what were my ambitions as a child. They wanted to know how I wrote, what I read now, if I have met my favourite authors and what they were like.

            In this example, Luke Owen, a Year 6 pupil at Eagle Community Primary School in Lincoln, demonstrates his skill as a young writer:

            Dear Mr Phinn,

            I am writing to you because I would like to say a few nice things about your poem ‘School Trip’ [in the Puffin collection  It Takes One to Know One]. I think it is a wonderful poem.

Firstly, it has a good and catchy stanza. I also like it because it has a rhyme on every other line (a rhyming couplet). I like it because it is about a mad teacher and I thought it was quite appealing. We once went on a school trip to Anderby Creek and our day there was the spitting image of the day you describe in your poem. There was sand being blown everywhere.

I have realized that on the first line of each verse, it begins: ‘On our school trip to Scarborough’. I thought this was quite a wonderful idea. You have inspired me to become a young poet.

Such was the interest of children about writing and writers, I thought it would be a good idea to compile The Address Book of Children’s Authors and Illustrators which would introduce children to the lives and works of their favourite writers and extend their love of literature. There would be a short biography for each author and illustrator, details of family life, pets, likes and dislikes, idiosyncracies, favourite words, food and places, a photography, signature and list of selected works. LDA published the book and it has been very successful. I soon began getting e-mails from teachers as well as their pupils.

             Just a quick note to say a big thank you for your kind replies to the e-mails sent by the children. For your information, the project began after we bought a copy of The Address Book of Children’s Authors and Illustrators. Some poets have written by poster, however the ease of writing by e-mail has proved most successful for us. The number of replies we have received has by far exceeded our expectations and we really appreciate the time spent by you all to write such individual replies. The excitement of the children was a real joy to witness. The children’s enthusiasm to read and write poetry has gone through the roof! Children are bringing their own compositions from home to school to share.

Charlie Hebborn

            You do not need my Address Book, of course, to get in touch with writers. Publishers, like Puffin, will readily pass on children’s letters and e-mails to their authors and illustrators and will often supply bookmarks, postcards and posters for display. Some authors and illustrators will visit schools to work with children, read and display their work and talk about the writing process.

            For me, the very best way of teaching children about the craft of writing and of encouraging the young writers in their own efforts is to have contact with professional authors and poets. Writers, like teachers, know that poems and illustrations and their significance in developing children’s emotional literacy. They know that to become avid and successful readers, children need to be exposed to rich and stimulating texts which will arouse their interest and develop a love of reading, and they are often only too happy to write to children, discuss their work and visit schools.