P4 at the Book Festival

 P4 pupils enjoyed author Rose Impey's talk at the Book Festival and got a free keyring to take home. Here she answers some questions about herself:


Q: What were you like at school?
A: Usually in trouble; talked too much!
Q: What did you want to be when you were a child?
A: I hadn’t the first idea. Too busy enjoying myself.
Q: Which three words describe you best?
A: Talkative - smiley - and probably bossy!
Q: What is your favourite word?
A: veracity
Q: What makes you cringe?
A: People laughing at their own jokes
Q: What are you afraid of?
A: Lots of things but I get braver as I get older.
Q: When did you last have a really good laugh?
A: This morning - skyping my grandson who’s nearly three and lives in Australia. We were peering - and blowing down - cardboard tubes at each other.
Q: What is your most treasured possession?
A: my family photograph albums
Q: What do you do as a hobby?
A: sew, garden, dance (salsa), swim, bake...
Q: What strange habits do you have?
A: I absolutely cannot stand to be around anyone else brushing their teeth. The sound just goes through me! I have to run off or cover my ears.
Q: What’s your favourite food?
A: Oh, too many to choose from. I love food. Fresh fruit salad on good days
Pasta or baked potatoes if I’m tired and fed up.
Q: What do you day dream about?
A: Having another popular TV series like Sleepover Club!

Q: What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done?
A: I don’t think I’ve ever done anything really outrageous but I do still open my mouth and say outrageous things sometimes.
Q: What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?
A: Acting or maybe dancing
Q: Do you feel younger or older than your current age?
A: Mostly younger - a lot younger!
Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?
A: My best friend Janet Ahlberg who died at 50
Q: What quality do you most admire in a person?
A: Honesty
Q: What is the most interesting place you have ever visited?
A: The Rain Forest Queensland Australia
Q: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?
A: Don’t waste energy raging at things you can’t affect - like the weather
Q: What would you most like to change about yourself?
A: I’d like to stop raging at things I can’t affect
Q: What has life taught you?
A: Everything passes - the good, the bad - and life goes on
Q: How long have you been a writer?
A: Twenty five years! Now that’s a scary thought!
Q: Was there a specific moment in your life when you decide to become a writer?
A: No it was a slow process of nerving myself to have a go - like those divers who jump off high cliffs. I had to keep going to the edge and then walking away until I felt brave enough to finally take the leap.
Q: Where do you do your writing?
A: In a study/bedroom
Q: What are the best and worst things about being an author?
A: The best thing is feeling a bit like a magician - nothing in my pockets, nothing up my sleeves, but here they come, here come the stories....
The worst thing is the sense of being in it on your own. When you get really stuck it is....horrible
Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?
A: Remembering - listening - being quiet and waiting....
Q: What do you do to combat “writers’ block”?
A: If I ever get through the present bout I’ll let you know
Q: What was your favourite book as a child?
A: Treasure Island

Q: What book do you wish you had written?
A: One Hundred and One Dalmations.
If I could create a character one half as brilliant as Cruella De Ville I would die happy.
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
A: You need to be two things that everyone usually tells you not to be:
1 Nosey - watch and listen - all the time - even when you aren’t supposed to 2 Stubborn - if you’re someone who gives up easily you’ll never be a writer
And... Read, Read, Read and when you find someone whose work you really like read it over and over again and try to work out why.
Good Luck!