Meet Charlotte Barkla, who discusses her latest novel 11 Ruby Road: 1900, a series set over a hundred years in the same house, capturing the essence of family, friendship, community, and historical events. Charlotte shares her journey from engineering and teaching to becoming a children's author, the challenges and joys of writing for young readers, and her processes in research and idea generation for her books. The episode concludes with insights into authors' careers, tips for writers, and a library's unique cat-themed event promoting book forgiveness.
00:00 Welcome to the world of writing and publishing 02:18 Nat's writing tips 06:48 Win Butter by Asako Yuzuki 09:10 Word of the week: cupreous 11:19 Meet Charlotte Barkla, author of 11 Ruby Road: 1900 18:26 Journey into middle grade writing 18:41 The art of writing for younger readers 19:20 Behind the scenes of 11 Ruby Road: 1900 19:42 Researching for historical accuracy 22:57 The creative process and series planning 23:52 Navigating the publishing world 24:31 Balancing creativity and commitments 25:38 Engaging with readers beyond the page 28:59 Finding inspiration and managing ideas 35:36 Advice for aspiring authors 38:21 Closing thoughts and fun library fact
Charlotte Barkla worked as a civil engineer and physics teacher before rediscovering her love for children’s literature. She now writes picture books, middle-grade fiction and feature articles.
Charlotte’s books include the Edie’s Experiments series and All Bodies are Good Bodies. When she’s not writing or running school workshops, you might find her teaching, reading, spending time with her family or drinking coffee. Lots of coffee.
