How did you feel when you watched the winner announcement?

Very, very shocked! The other extracts were so good that I was waiting to hear which of the other shortlistees would have won. But as Lauren Gardner began to describe something that sounded like it could have been my story, I began to feel very anxious indeed. Then I was just really happy and a bit overwhelmed.

How did you celebrate?

I started by apologising to the people that I really should have thanked in my acceptance speech but completely didn’t (wife, son, loyal friends who have read my work, writing group…). Having not dared to hope that I would win, I really hadn’t considered anything sensible to say which I was a bit embarrassed about. Then I had a glass of prosecco and got on with the school night routine! Now that restrictions are easing, I might see if I can go for a meal with my wife and son to celebrate.

Tell us a bit about your writing journey to date.

I’ve enjoyed writing for as long as I can remember. From forcing parents to read newspapers I made as a child, through to a creative writing module at university which was really fun. I’m now part of the Cambridge branch of the National Writing Project and we meet every few months to talk about writing, share ideas and take part in creative writing sessions. I’ve written a couple of plays which are occasionally performed by amateur theatre companies and I enjoy creating murder mystery parties for friends and family but my real passion is for writing fiction novels for children and young adults. I have a few completed projects which sit on my desk and get infrequently tinkered with and I have an increasingly not-so-secret ambition that one day something I’ve written might get published!

Tell us more about the winning book, ‘1666’.

I’ve really loved this project. It’s about Flick Cutler who’s a street-wise, quick-thinking, no-nonsense 14-year-old illusionist at a time when girls weren’t really encouraged to be any of these things. The story begins on the night that the Great Fire of London starts. Flick is woken in the middle of the night by the King’s soldiers who are looking for her father. Before they can enter her house, they are distracted by shouts of ‘fire’. That’s when Flick discovers there’s a dead body in her cellar. Helped by her friend Fairfax, Flick finds herself following a trail of clues through the city in a race against the fire. It is a mission that is hampered by Skit and Muscle – a pair of trained assassins who seem to be able to pre-empt their every move.

Read more: Interview with WriteMentor Novel Award winner Sean Dooley

WriteMentor's 5 essential elements of Story Structure

About the Award 

"We are delighted to relaunch The Golden Egg Award open to writers from backgrounds under-represented in children’s publishing. We are keen to hear from unagented, unpublished children’s fiction writers in the UK, who may identify as Black, Asian or from a minority ethnic group, LGBTQ+, disabled or other groups not traditionally represented in the industry.

We are offering two places on our popular Write Your Successful Children’s Novel course from September 2021."

Applications for the Golden Egg Award are now open.

Submissions

We're looking for manuscripts aimed at young readers and your work must fit into one of these two categories:

1. A picture book for 4 years plus. No more than 800 words OR

2. A short chapter book for the 7–9 age range between 10,000–15,000 words

All manuscripts must feature a Black or mixed-Black main character. (Read our FAQs for more guidance.)

The prize

The winner of each category will receive:

• £500 cash, funded by Knights Of

• Editorial consultancy with Anna McQuinn from Alanna Max or Carla Hutchinson from Piccadilly Press and Hot Key Books at Bonnier Books

• Design consultancy with author-illustrator Ken Wilson-Max from Alanna Max

After that, if you manage to publish your book you'll also receive:

• A listing with inclusive-led bookshop Round Table Books in their physical and online stores

• A book review published on Candid Cocoa plus six month's promotion on Candid Cocoa's social media