Local author Alex Marchant visited Yr 7 this week, to talk about her life as a writer and her passion for Richard III. Born and raised in the rolling Surrey downs, and following stints as an archaeologist and in publishing in London and Gloucester, Alex now lives locally, working as a freelance copy editor, proofreader and, more recently, an independent author of books for children aged 10+.
Her first novel, Time out of Time (due out 2019), won the 2012 Chapter One Children’s Book Award, and her second was put on the backburner in 2013 at the announcement of the discovery of King Richard’s grave in a car park in Leicester. As a Ricardian since her teens, that momentous announcement prompted her to write about the real Richard III for older children (there being no such book available), and so The Order of the White Boar and its recently released sequel The King’s Man were born. The Order of the White Boar has been described as ‘a wonderful work of historical fiction for both children and adults’ and The King’s Manas ‘a brilliant, gripping, heart-wrenching sequel’.
Students asked Alex a number of searching questions about her writing, such as ‘What would write about if you didn’t have Richard III?’, ‘How many books are planned in your series?’, ‘What’s your next book about?’ ‘How long does it take to write a novel?’. Alex talked about how important it is to draft and redraft work, as you spot different errors or find a better way of describing situations over time.
Extended writing has been a key theme of this academic year, Alex bought all of this into sharper focus and helped students make the link with careers and the ‘real world’.
