13 September 2013
Cat Hellisen, Sarah Lotz and I hosted our first Young Adult masterclass at the Open Book festival on Wednesday 11 September 2013.
Category: Uncategorized
Spreading the Sharp Edged message
9 October 2013
I’ve been hard at work getting the word out about my new novel Sharp Edges so I thought I’d share some of my recent activities.
Short story: After Dark
After Dark
“Shathley!”
“I’m coming, Ma.”
I can’t really see where I’m going behind the stack of plastic garden chairs I’m carrying down to the cellar. I keep knocking into things, like my junior kickboxing trophy, now lying in three parts on the floor. The worst is having to navigate the stairs, so I have to concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other, praying every time my foot hovers unsteadily over the next step that I won’t fall.
My foot lands on the telltale creaky floorboard letting me know I’ve reached the bottom. Exhaling with relief, I drop the stack of chairs and spot my mother fussing over a vase of white lilies.
Interview in The Sunday Times
3 May 2013
The Dispatch Online has posted the full interview I did with The Times a few weeks ago.
Why YA?
5 February 2013
Whenever I’m out and about, trying to sell books or talking to kids about pursuing a career in writing, the question inevitably arises about why I write YA.
I’ve made it pretty clear in the past that I didn’t specifically set out to write YA. My first novel had young people in it, and as a result, became branded as YA. To be honest I had never even heard the term before then, but rather assumed that books marketed towards the teen market were simply that – teen books. I grew up devouring L.J Smith and R.L Stine after all. I had no idea they were called YA.
Potty about Potter
13 February 2013
It’s no secret that I’m a bit of a Harry Potter fan(atic). So when I saw that a parody show called Potted Potter was playing at Pieter Toerien’s Theatre on the Bay in January, my heart started beating very fast. Anything Harry Potter related is guaranteed to grab my attention.
LEGO book review: Code Name Verity
25 February 2013
You know that feeling when you have a book for a long time and you just want to kick yourself for not reading it sooner?
Fuse goes to London!
28 August 2012
IBBY – the International Board on Books for Young People – does incredible work promoting children’s fiction. I’m a member of the South African chapter, which holds regular Book Bashes to celebrate SA lit. This year’s world congress took place in August at Imperial College in London. The event looked at how children’s fiction crosses boundaries, and included an Honour Roll showcase of notable children’s fiction from around the world, including my second novel, Fuse. I had to go. It seemed like the experience of a lifetime, and I was determined to find a way to get there. And so I did.
An evening of terror
27 October 2012
Oh man, I really love Halloween.
This year I once again took part in South African Horrorfest’s literary event, Bloody Parchment, that took place at the Book Lounge on 26 October 2012.
Rock Girls
18 June 2012
Last Friday I was invited by everybody’s favourite book shop, The Book Lounge, to chat to a group of grade seven girls from Red River High School.
The group formed part of the Rock Girl grassroots program that invests in young girls from poor communities.
I read from my latest novel, Dark Poppy’s Demise, and spoke about my journey to becoming a writer.
The girls were shy at first, but after the Q&A they really opened up and started bombarding me with questions and hugs and posing for photos.
Thanks to the generosity of the Book Lounge and the creative community, each girl was able to choose a book from the huge selection of children’s and YA fiction on offer. It was great fun browsing through titles with the girls and referring my favourites.
Many thanks to the Book Lounge for the awesome opportunity.
Read the full article at Plascon Trends.
Sally Partridge 