LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 95

LITERARY LINCOLNSHIRE

With thirty titles to his name, his books

have sold worldwide with over twenty

translations including Chinese, Korean,

Turkish and Arabic.

Some of his work has also been

adapted for radio, television and theatre.

We sit down with him on a sunny day

at the seafront and ask him all about his

writing.

How did you get into writing books for

children, is it something you’ve always

done?

When my eldest daughter was about

three I started telling her bedtime stories

- made up on the spot! It was fun for

both of us. Then I decided to write the

stories and that became a hobby. After a

few years I tried my luck with magazine

and annual publishers and I was

surprised how successful I was. Then in

1987 I had my first picture book, The

King Bird, published by Andersen Press.

What a joy!

What inspires you to create these

fantastic stories?

To me an inspiration can be anything:

a phrase, an action, a situation, a mental

picture… Anything like that can trigger

an idea for a story. However, most of the

time I rely on my lively imagination. I

daydream. I make up things in my mind.

I create a problem and I try to solve it.

That’s how a story is born.

Being based on the Lincolnshire coast,

would you say you are inspired by the

sea or the coast?

I love the sea and I’m lucky to live in

Cleethorpes. Most of the ideas I have

come to me when I’m walking. Quite

often I take a stroll along the beach or

the promenade for inspiration. Little ideas

pop into my head just like dream

bubbles!

What other authors do you admire,

both children’s and adults?

My favourite children’s author is

without a doubt Roald Dahl. In my

opinion he has no equal. He’s simply a

genius, the true children’s writer! My

favourite book of his is James and the

Giant Peach.

I’m not sure I have a favourite

author for adults

but if I had to pick

one it would be John

Steinbeck. He’s a

master storyteller.

What do you think

makes a good story

for children and do

you have any tips for

those interested in

writing themselves?

A story, be it for

children or adults, must have

the proper ingredients: an

interesting storyline, a solid

plot, credible characters and

a strong narrative. If you wish

to write for children respect

them first; don’t preach to

them, they won’t like it; be their friend,

see everything from their perspective…

And above all, be honest.

With ‘The Big Splash’ do you think

parents will read it with their children

or do you think children will take a

look through in their own time?

The Big Splash is quite a simple story

really. It has familiar words, rhythm and

repetitions and that’ll make it easy to

follow. I think after children have heard

the story a few times they will remember

most of it and will want to read it

themselves.

Making abig splash!A H Benjamin is a children’s author based in Cleethorpes. His newbook ‘The Big Splash’ is a wonderful way to get kids interested inreading and seems relevant to our issue on all things coastal.