Can You See A Sunset Without Looking? Exploring the Visual Imagination

by Addy Farmer

I wonder if you can summon up the image of a glorious sunset inside your head? Can you capture the nuance of colour in the sky, the shape of the sun, the texture of the scene? I'll leave that one with you for now.

This ability is sometimes referred to as 'the mind's eye':

We children's authors are a supportive bunch, cheering each other on through gritted teeth

By Candy Gourlay

Hilary Mantel (Photo: Harper Collins)

Go, Hilary!

After winning the Booker Prize a second time (with the second book of her trilogy), Hilary Mantel also grabbed the Costa Prize. £30,000 prize money. Blimey.

Sally Gardner of course won the Children's Costa for Maggot Moon.

Congratulations to Patrick Ness and Jim Kay

By Candy Gourlay

My favourite image from this amazing novel.

A Monster Calls combines an extraordinary idea, a powerful story, and truly terrific illustration to create a winner. When I saw it listed for both the Carnegie AND the Greenaway, it obviously deserved both prizes and I wondered how CILIP where going to deal with it. Well they have - it's a double win for the book, and a second Carnegie in a row for Patrick. Patrick greeted the news with genuine disbelief.

Jealous? Well maybe I immediately had thoughts of putting illustration into my own forthcoming novel. But no other book so deserves both prizes. Congratulations, you two. I love A Monster Calls and weirdly feel like it was ME the reader who won! Additional bittersweet celebrations that yet again the wonderful Siobhan Dowd's voice sends echoes to us from the beyond.  And congratulations to Walker's Denise Johnson Burt, the editor who wouldn't let a good story go to waste.

To celebrate, here is some footage of Patrick Ness's recent appearance at the London Book Fair - I've been holding onto it for a future discussion of Young Adult writing. But there's no time like the present! You can also read this brilliant Guardian article on how they made the book.