Malorie Blackman: Waterstones
Children's Laureate
Bestselling author Malorie Blackman has been named the Waterstones Children's
Laureate for 2013 - 2015. Blackman takes over from outgoing Children's Laureate
Julia Donaldson and was presented with her medal at a ceremony at King's Place in
central London on Tuesday 4th June 2013.
Malorie Blackman was born on 8th February 1962 in London. She trained in computer
science and worked in computing before publishing her first book at the age of 28.
She has since written 60 children's novels, young adult novels, picture books, short
stories and readers for early, and more confident readers. In addition, she writes
television scripts, including episodes of the children's television drama, Byker Grove,
and original dramas for CITV and BBC Education. Her stage play, The Amazing
Birthday, was performed in 2002.
Her best-known books for young adults are the multi award-winning Noughts &
Crosses series which includes Noughts & Crosses (2001), Knife Edge (2004),
Checkmate (2005) and Double Cross (2008). Although most of Blackman's characters
are black, until this series she had chosen not to foreground the issue of race or
ethnic identity, but rather to depict characters without an overt focus on race. With
Noughts and Crosses, Blackman addressed racial issues more overtly, depicting a
world in which black people, or 'Crosses', are the ruling elite and white people, or
'noughts', are confined to minority status, denied legal rights and work in menial
jobs. The novels focus on the frustrated love affair between a black girl and a white
boy.
“There wasn’t any one (inspiration). It grew out of a lifetime of experiences. Some of
the racist incidents in the book were based on real events from my own childhood.
And I also wanted to play with the idea that ‘history is luck’ to a certain extent. What
if Africans had invented trans-oceanic travel and colonized Europe and America? Or
what if the Aztecs and Incas had ‘beaten Cortez to the punch’ and converted the
Catholics in Spain and Portugal at the point of a sword? You put all that together and
you have the germ of an idea which led to Noughts and Crosses”.
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When asked if racism should be addressed in children’s books more, Blackman
replied:
“Absolutely! And not just in Children’s books. I think a lot of racism comes out of
ignorance, and we can start to combat it by showing different cultures, races,
religions in story contexts. Stories promote empathy, a sense of being able to see
through the eyes of others and being able to walk in another person’s shoes. I
generally make my major characters black because that’s who and what I am and I’m
seeking in part to redress an imbalance regarding ethnic diversity in children’s
literature that I felt acutely when I was a child, but the ethnic identity of my
characters is never the whole story. I try to make my characters real people who are
trying to live their lives and deal with their problems. For example, a black boy who
needs a heart transplant is pretty much the same as a white boy who needs a heart
transplant (Pig Heart Boy)”.
In 2004, she also wrote a novel entirely in verse, Cloud Busting (2004), which won a
Nestlé Smarties Book Prize (Silver Award) the same year. In 2007, she edited
Unheard Voices, an anthology of stories and poems to commemorate the
bicentenary anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade, and in 2009 she
contributed to Free?, a book of stories celebrating Human Rights.
In 2005, she was honoured with the Eleanor Farjeon Award in recognition of her
distinguished contribution to the world of children's books; she was also awarded an
OBE in 2008.
Her most recent novel is Noble Conflict (2013).
The Children’s Laureate role
The role of Children's Laureate is awarded once every two years to an eminent
author or illustrator of children's books to celebrate outstanding achievement in
their field. She is the eighth author to be bestowed with the honour. Blackman said
on her appointment:
"I am honoured to have been chosen as the eighth Children's Laureate. A love of
books has opened so many doors for me. Stories have inspired me and taught me to
aspire. I've been a professional author for over 20 years, so I feel now is the time to
give something back. I hope to instil in every child I meet my love and enthusiasm for
reading and stories. And as I would never have become an author if it hadn't been for
my local library as a child, I intend to continue Julia Donaldson's amazing,
indefatigable work advocating for our nation's public library service."
What will the Children’s Laureate do?
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As the Waterstones Children's Laureate for 2013 - 2015 Blackman will call on
teachers and parents to spend at least ten minutes per day sharing a book with their
pupils and children in an impassioned bid to get 'more children reading more'.
Drawing on her years of experience talking to her teen readers, Blackman will be
working to make reading ‘irresistible' for teenagers, encouraging them to explore a
range of literature genre and forms, from short stories to graphic novels. She will
also be encouraging them to make their own creative responses to books, using a
range of expressive mediums, to include music - Blackman was referenced in Tinie
Tempah's 2010 song ‘Written in the Stars' - art, film, drama, animation, poetry, and
spoken word.
Blackman, who started her working life as a computer programmer, is also
passionate about the role that technology plays in making literature come alive for a
generation of digitally-aware young people
Malorie’s top tips for anyone who wants to be a writer
“Read, read and then read some more. After that write, write and then write some
more! I don’t believe you can be a writer unless you have a feel for the way words
play together on the page. And the way you get that is to read – voraciously! Try
reading books from different genres, even genres you’re not so keen on. You may be
pleasantly surprised. Give it a try. Try to analyse what you like and what you don’t
like in each book you read, to help you in your own writing. Develop your own style,
don’t copy anyone. And don’t give up”.
Malorie’s website can be found at:
http://www.malorieblackman.co.uk/
Copyright © Kick Start Enterprises 2013