An interview with Jacqueline Wilson + win a subscription to Jacqueline Wilson Magazine

This month Belle had a very exciting opportunity – the chance to ask some questions of her literary hero, none other than Jacqueline Wilson. How cool is that?

Jacqueline Wilson interview

Photo credit – Trish Beswick

We actually saw Jacqueline Wilson speak at Hay Festival last year and really loved her – she had such a warm and open presence on the stage and Belle was very taken with her. For this interview, Belle invited her friends Ella, Josie, Ewelina and Georgina to our house after school and they came up with three questions each.

Here’s what Jacqueline Wilson had to say:

Is there any link between Gina from Tracy Beaker Returns and Gina from the Dustbin Baby?!

No link between the two Gina’s!  The television people make up their own story lines and characters for the Tracy and Dumping Ground series.

What’s your favourite thing about being a famous author?

I love it when the story is almost writing itself and I’m totally immersed in my characters’ world.

Why did you decide to become an author?

 I loved reading and making up my own stories so I wanted to be an author from the age of six.

What is the weirdest question you have ever been asked in an interview?

I’ve been asked where I bought my boots!

When you were little did you like reading ?

I’ve always loved reading.  Even before I could read myself I would pore over my picture books.

Is there any reasoning behind your books?

I suppose I’m always on the side of the odd one out – and I want to be a comfort to anyone going through a tough time.

What are your top three favourite illustrations Nick has drawn for you?

I like ALL the illustrations he’s done for The Butterfly Club, I like his depiction of Marigold with her tattoos in The Illustrated Mum, and I Iike the gothic fairy illustrations in Midnight.

When you were younger did you have anybody you looked up to and why?

I liked the child actress Mandy Miller and collected photos of her.  I met her once when I was eleven and she was very sweet to me.

What is your favourite book that you have written?  

My favourite book is Hetty Feather.

Would you recommend being a author ?

Yes, I think I’d recommend being an author – but it’s very hard work and there’s no guarantee you’ll be successful!

Have you ever written a book that hasn’t been published?!

Yes, long ago when I was first starting to write.

Are you planning on writing any more books about Hetty and Diamond?

Definitely. I’m on chapter three of a new book about both of them.

Is there anything you hate about being an author and why!?

I hate proof editing – it’s such boring finicky work.

What’s your least favourite book you have written?

 I don’t really have a least favourite.

If you could go back in time what would you change?

If I went back to Victorian times I’d try to make life easier for poor or unwanted children.

Win a six month subscription to the official Jacqueline Wilson Mag

Fancy six whole months of stories, crafts, quizzes and all sorts of other fun things? Of course you do! If you’d like to win a six month subscription to the Official Jacqueline Wilson Mag, just do as many of the Rafflecopter widget thingamajigs as you can. Good luck!

Jacqueline WIlson Magazine
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Belle was sent a copy of the magazine to have a look at but this post hasn’t been otherwise compensated.

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66 Comments

  1. laura banks
    24 February, 2015 / 9:15 pm

    a book my mum used to read to me called mervyn the mouse

  2. Natalie Crossan
    24 February, 2015 / 9:41 pm

    I absolutely loved reading Tracey Beaker as a child :) xx

  3. Leanne Lunn
    25 February, 2015 / 12:47 am

    Enid Blyton Famous five, loved these books

  4. 25 February, 2015 / 2:47 am

    I’d be the best dad in the world if I won this for my daughter! Jacqueline Wilson is her absolute favourite author at the moment!

  5. 25 February, 2015 / 3:53 am

    Aww man I used to love the Jacqueline Wilson books! I remember queuing at Waterstones for ages to meet her and get a signed copy of her book Best Friends. I still love her books and I’m so glad that the younger generation still love her too!

    Jess
    x

  6. kim plant
    25 February, 2015 / 12:32 pm

    mine was a big book full of princess stories x

  7. Lucy Pasifull
    25 February, 2015 / 2:31 pm

    My favourite book was Charlotte Sometimes by Penelope Farmer. It is the story of a girl who goes to boarding school and when she goes to sleep she swaps places with a girl from the same boarding school but in 1918. I recently bought it for my nine year old and she loved it also, was the best bedtime reading ever! The story is even better than I remembered.

  8. Jo welsh
    25 February, 2015 / 2:35 pm

    A great prize my daughter would love my favourite book was A Book of Brownies about 3 brownies called Hop, Skip and Jump.

  9. Tracey baker
    25 February, 2015 / 2:41 pm

    My favourite book as a child was The Secret Garden still love it know x

  10. Kelly L
    25 February, 2015 / 3:44 pm

    Tracey Beaker was awesome! :)

  11. Susan Peart
    25 February, 2015 / 3:46 pm

    I loved Enid Blyton, think I might be showing my age ;)

  12. COLLEEN Thomas
    25 February, 2015 / 3:53 pm

    Enid Blyton’s famous five books

  13. 25 February, 2015 / 3:59 pm

    Enid Blyton wishing chair, my little girl is a book worm loves all books

  14. 25 February, 2015 / 4:10 pm

    Anything by Enid Blyton, especially the Famous Five series

  15. 25 February, 2015 / 7:37 pm

    I used to read the Enid Blyton books. My favourites were The Wishing Chair & The Magic Faraway Tree series

  16. olivia kirby
    25 February, 2015 / 9:39 pm

    I Loved The Magic Finger and the Mrs Pepperpot books

  17. charlotte qualter
    25 February, 2015 / 10:13 pm

    any enid blyton books famous 5 were my favourite

  18. Dianne Brewin
    25 February, 2015 / 10:31 pm

    I liked the famous five and re read all Roald Dahl books over and over

  19. jodie
    26 February, 2015 / 12:43 am

    love jacqueline wilson :)

  20. Gill Gaffney
    26 February, 2015 / 12:57 am

    Ballet Shoes or Little Women

  21. victoria thurgood
    26 February, 2015 / 7:17 am

    I loved the Twits brilliant book

  22. claire fawkner
    26 February, 2015 / 7:54 am

    Enid Blyton the Magic Faraway Tree

  23. 26 February, 2015 / 8:21 am

    I absolutely loved Jacqueline’s books as a child, and my 7 year old daughter has just started reading them too. It’s so lovely to see my daughter go through the same stages that I did!

  24. Claire Nutman
    26 February, 2015 / 8:57 am

    I love all the Black Beauty books, because I loved horses x

  25. julie smith
    26 February, 2015 / 9:14 am

    Groovy stories for groovy kids. We just love Jacqueline Wilsons books !!!

  26. Kelly glen
    26 February, 2015 / 10:05 am

    Dick king smith books

  27. Anita Hooper
    26 February, 2015 / 10:06 am

    My favourite was the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. I could believe I was there with them.

  28. Natasha M
    26 February, 2015 / 11:01 am

    I used to adore the worst witch books by Gill murphy

  29. Stacey B
    26 February, 2015 / 11:28 am

    My favourite childhood book was Matilda by Roald Dahl :) xx

  30. claire blaney
    26 February, 2015 / 11:51 am

    My favourite childhood book was black beauty i loved horse’s & that book was amazing

  31. Holly S
    26 February, 2015 / 12:44 pm

    The Babysitters Club! Read one again recently and it felt so dated :S

  32. Sarah Lambert
    26 February, 2015 / 12:50 pm

    I loved Charlottes web when I was younger :)

  33. Lisa C
    26 February, 2015 / 1:55 pm

    I loved the Jacqueline Wilson books growing up, my favourites were the lottie project and double act. I love that my daughter now loves Jacqueline Wilson, and ive been able to pass down my old books for her to enjoy as well x

  34. simone mcdonald
    26 February, 2015 / 2:18 pm

    My fave childhood book was alway the glorious tracy beaker having the imagination she hadmakes you believe everything will turn out ok in the end xx

  35. Sherry Poppy Owen
    26 February, 2015 / 5:44 pm

    I loved Roald Dahl’s books as a kid (still do!), Charlie and the chocolate factory was my favourite, along with Matilda :)

  36. Lisa Evans
    26 February, 2015 / 8:56 pm

    The st. Clare’s series by Enid blyton

  37. Emma Bennett
    26 February, 2015 / 10:07 pm

    My favourite childhood book is The Folk of the Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton.

  38. Lucy Robinson
    26 February, 2015 / 11:27 pm

    Famous Five. x

  39. 27 February, 2015 / 12:49 pm

    What an inspiration experience for Belle. My son wants to be an author (at the moment) and I wish I could get him to meet someone like this x

  40. 27 February, 2015 / 3:13 pm

    aww, i used to LOVE jacqueline wilson books when i was a young’un!

  41. jodie yorke
    27 February, 2015 / 4:11 pm

    bangers and mash- eggs is eggs.

  42. 27 February, 2015 / 6:04 pm

    The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe

  43. Leah Wheatley
    1 March, 2015 / 10:34 am

    My favourite was The Secret Garden

  44. 1 March, 2015 / 10:41 am

    My fave book as a kid was “The suitcase Kid” – I love her stuff. Love this post x

  45. justine meyer
    1 March, 2015 / 2:26 pm

    My daughter has all the Jaqueline Wilson books and they are all her favourite

  46. Tammy Tudor
    1 March, 2015 / 7:59 pm

    My favourite was Alice in Wonderland

  47. kelli flanagan
    2 March, 2015 / 3:35 pm

    The fantastic Mr Fox

  48. 3 March, 2015 / 3:42 pm

    I loved Enid Blytons Cherry Tree Farm

  49. clair downham
    4 March, 2015 / 10:45 am

    anything by enid blyton thankyou

  50. 4 March, 2015 / 9:31 pm

    I bought a subscription to this a few years back for Fifi, and she loved it hat much we extended it for a second year, its an amazing magazine.

  51. Harley
    5 March, 2015 / 10:08 pm

    I loved peter rabbit, mu mum was fab at reading it x

  52. katrina walsh
    6 March, 2015 / 12:00 am

    Loved the BFG as a child

  53. Julia Nicholls
    8 March, 2015 / 2:04 pm

    I loved the book Tom’s Midnight Garden. It created such a magical world for me that I read it many times.

  54. 8 March, 2015 / 8:59 pm

    Oh, Jaqueline Wilson was one of my favourite childhood authors, along with Judy Blume and Roald Dahl. I used to love Tracey Beaker!

  55. 10 March, 2015 / 11:13 am

    So many to choose from but I loved books by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Noel Streatfeild and Louisa May Alcott. My teen favourite authors were Paula Danzigar and Judy Blume but would have been Jacqueline Wilson if I was younger! x

  56. Suzanne Howell
    13 March, 2015 / 11:48 am

    My favourite book as a child was The Borrowers. I loved the idea that another tiny world existed. I got my own daughter to read it and was gutted that she was not keen on it!

  57. jen jackson
    13 March, 2015 / 8:19 pm

    the Jolly postman

  58. Christine Lockley
    13 March, 2015 / 9:21 pm

    As a child I used to love reading “Milly Molly Mandy” but must admit love reading the childrens books now and have been known to read them while they’re at school.

    Thanks for the chance to win x

  59. Daniel Stacey
    14 March, 2015 / 8:15 am

    The Faraway tree

  60. steph lovatt
    14 March, 2015 / 7:31 pm

    I used to love the beatrix potter books

  61. Rosalind Blight
    15 March, 2015 / 12:15 am

    I loved the tracy beaker books. my daughter has dark curly hair so for world book day I said lets dress her up as tracy beaker, she said but mum tracy beaker is just on tv, she has read loads of jacqueline wilson books but no tracy beaker. I have remedied that by giving her a few of my old ones :D

  62. Diana
    15 March, 2015 / 3:20 pm

    Alice in Wonderland was my favourite :)

  63. Prerna Gupta
    15 March, 2015 / 7:33 pm

    Cindrella!

  64. Claire Ward
    15 March, 2015 / 8:24 pm

    Matilda

  65. Monika S
    15 March, 2015 / 11:19 pm

    Winnie the Pooh

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