Thanks @zuntold.bsky.social for recently sending me a copy of 'Searching for the Remarkable in Things' by Natalie Lucy. An engaging read & the source of a lot of generational wealth in the UK (ie: slavery) is something well worth highlighting & reflecting on. #KidLitUK
Many thanks Caroline! We are so pleased you found the book enjoyable and thought provoking! @natalielucy.bsky.social
In this Northern Highlights interview on @cbnnetwork.bsky.social, debut author Natalie Lucy shares the inspirations and ideas that shaped her new YA novel Searching for the Remarkable in Things. Read here: www.childrensbooksnorth.co.uk/blog/intervi...
Thank you! Thanks so much for your support too.
Thank you so much! It’s been great and thank you all for listening and commenting. #ukteenchat
I agree.
Yes! #ukteenchat
But also be a bit thick skinned, tenacious and join some writing groups - the solidarity and feedback is important! #ukteenchat
I think just keep trying. As you’ve just said Emma - hopefully if you love a story it will eventually find a home. I was glad my publisher saw what I was trying to do in this one and am grateful #ukteenchat
Thank you.
Also a dystopian in the wake of a climate crisis. It’s a bit about the difficulty of being put in constraining boxes and the expectations and pressures on young people ( and the problems with the climate!). It’s early stages but I’m enjoying it. #ukteenchat
I’m trying to rehash a book I did ages ago. Also historical. Also two perspectives. I had an agent but not a publisher at the time but I love the story. #ukteenchat
Thank you - I definitely tried to do that. #ukteenchat
And discovery writing is a good thing!
Yes I definitely waste a lot of time… but I also enjoy it more . #ukteenchat
But I definitely like writing in cafes. I don’t know why but I prefer being somewhere else. I do look around and get distracted a lot but it also helps! #ukteenchat
I don’t know about rituals exactly.. I’ve got better at being more consistent and many of the great writing groups I’m part of eg Writemagic are great at instilling that discipline - and giving support! #ukteenchat
I’m actually glad I did. She seemed much more developed as a result. #ukteenchat
Yes it was quite difficult. I thought I was immersed and was getting it right but my publisher thought that Ruby wasn’t right. I think she was right actually. In my head she was believable.. but I went back to Little Women and various other books that I’d loved and tried to reinvent her in a way.
Definitely a pantser!! But I don’t think that’s the best idea.. it took a lot of rethinking and rewriting. But I am a bit stubborn and was enjoying writing it so just carried on! #ukteenchat
Thank you!
Thank you! It took a lot of time and a lot of rewrites… #ukteenchat
I also liked writing the letters - Ruby was a bit frustrating in her blindness to the world but I also liked her. It was also sort of enjoyable to try to write like a slightly repressed 1850s girl who is also very limited in her opportunities.
But I suppose I really liked writing the later parts when things are more hopeful. It felt freer in a way #ukteenchat
I liked all the characters. Clover took me longer to develop but I always liked to chance to be a bit more lyrical with Mary. #ukteenchat
Yes - I started writing this years ago but it almost seems most pressing now. #ukteenchat
Yes I think the folklore and oral tradition especially highlight that. It’s literally a history through stories which also connects to a past. #ukteenchat
But I hope teen readers take away a sense that they can change things if they want. #ukteenchat
But I also wanted to show how Britain’s past affects its present and also show that Britain has been multicultural for centuries which seems especially important at the moment.
On the plantations the Brer Rabbit and anancy stories were literally used to mock the plantation owners and connected enslaved people to their heritage - but they add important for everyone to feel a sense of self
