Friday August 22nd 2025

Dear Diary,

My first of three library visits today was to Porlock Community Library. I was given a fantastic area to set up in, filled with plenty of tables and chairs. But sadly, given the early start, we only ended up with four children attending the session. Fortunately, they were all full of beans and eager to get stuck into some creative activities. And what an artistic bunch they were!

Jacob and Winnie were first through the door. Jacob loves martial arts, and both he and his sister are big fans of books… AND dragons! They drew some super dragon characters (Winnie’s was called Flyer). And we chatted about the books they’ve enjoyed, what stories I should write next, and what THEIR dragon characters would get up to in stories of their own.

Forest and Skye arrived a short while later. They also drew their own dragons then coloured in the front cover of WARNING: May Contain Dragons. And their colouring was so neat! They were brave, too, revealing they’d have no problem rescuing one another from the clutches of a dragon if the need ever arose.

They and so many of the children I’ve met during my recent library visits have been excited to participate in the Story Garden reading challenge. And Porlock Community Library has a lovely display up with the names of all the children who have completed the various levels of the challenge.

Keeping children reading is something I’m so passionate about. So, although there were only a handful of attendees during this session, it was a real joy to get the chance spark their imaginations a little more and to hear they’re now excited to get stuck into their signed copies of WARNING: Magic Can Be Dangerous! and WARNING: May Contain Dragons.