It’s a real book!
Finished copies of THE MISSING BARBEGAZI arrived in August, and seeing my manuscript as a real book was one of the best moments of my life. I absolutely love the cover! The colours are stunning and the silver foil on the title makes it even more magical. The interaction between Tessa and the barbegazi is wonderful and the overall style of the cover captures the tone of the story perfectly. You can read more about how Anna Morrison designed the gorgeous cover here.
I’ve been lost in books and inventing stories since I was a child, but I used to think becoming an author was an impossible dream. Then eight years ago, I began taking my writing seriously, and I spent five years writing, rewriting, revising, editing and querying a middle grade fantasy novel—my practice novel as it turned out.
Sarah Odedina, my brilliant editor, read that novel in 2015 and gave me heaps of encouraging comments, while making it clear that she thought I should abandon the story and write something else. I followed her advice (who wouldn’t?) and wrote THE MISSING BARBEGAZI. Luckily for me, she liked it very much and Pushkin Press offered to publish it.
Now, my little skiing story is a real book written by a real author (me!) and I’m so very grateful to Sarah and the fabulous team at Pushkin Press for helping me bring this story into the world and making my dream come true.