Record breaking week...

WOW!!! What a fantastic week! Things just keep getting better and better!!!

 

My school visits are proving even more popular with the children and teachers. I performed my showcase at Elburton in Plymouth and it went down a storm with record breaking book sales during the signing event. Here's what teacher and event organiser Emma Marriot had to say:

 

"Thank you so much for arranging the author visit, the children were enthralled, inspired and really enjoyed the opportunity to meet an author and have their booked signed.  I was amazed at the audience participation during the showcase and think that nearly every child volunteered to become part of the show.  WOW!  The next day I was speechless at the number of children who wanted to get their own booked signed...I really didn't think we'd have enough time!  The next day (and throughout the next few days) the children have been busy reading the adventures of Bradley Baker in their freetime - they were certainly inspired! I have written a piece for our school website, which the ICT technician should have uploaded.  Please take the time to have a look."

 

This is a great testimonial and I'm really pleased that everyone enjoyed the event. But the week didn't stop there... St Joseph's Roman Catholic Primary School in Devonport also recorded the following comments on their website; "We had such a wonderful time together, he came back on Tuesday 8th October to sign our new books! The show was fantastic and the children were all enthralled, as were the staff! We were all very curious about the beautiful but curious Victorian bath but soon everything became crystal clear!"

 

Here are a few pictures taken during the event;

 

 

School visits were concluded this week at Willowbrook Primary in Exeter. Massive thank you to all the staff for a very warm welcome and again another amazing response to the showcase presentation.

 

I received some great news this week too... I'll be revisiting the Gloucester area in November and it will be great to catch up with some old friends and new schools. I love the Cotswolds and here's a chance to view the TV coverage during my last two visits to Waterstones and Abbeymead Primary:

http://www.furryfeet.tv/mobile/tabletvideolist.php

 

And here's a "Date for the Diary"... don't forget I will be making my first official appearance as a new Patron for "Families for Children Adoption" at Devon's Crealy Adventure Park on Friday 1st November during the Halloween Celebrations. I'll be supporting the charity and also signing copies of my new Bradley Baker adventure ... "Bradley Baker and the Gullfather of New York"

That's all for this week folks... hope to catch up with you again very soon! Best wishes DLJ

UK launch date set for new BB book...

It's been another very busy week with more visits to schools and also meetings to set the date for the UK launch of the new Bradley Baker adventure book.

 

I started the week at St Michael's C of E Primary School in Newton Abbot. In the morning, the children and teachers enjoyed my popular showcase presentation, which was followed by a full day of workshops with the year six students. I returned the following day to complete the literary workshops and sign lots of Bradley Baker books during a library event.

 

A visit to Plymouth on Wednesday and I met with some very excited children at St Josephs RC Primary School in Devonport. Everyone enjoyed another author performance and the children who joined me on stage were particularly animated (I even jokingly suggested a contract for them to join me on tour... they were so good at improvising the parts of the main characters!!!). I look forward to a return visit on Tuesday next week and I'd like to offer my thanks to Finola Gill for organising a brilliant event.

 

A meeting with those lovely folks at "Families for Children" produced another inspiring topic of conversation. We agreed that the fourth Bradley Baker book (which supports and plotlines the theme of adoption) would receive its official UK launch at Crealy Adventure Park in Devon. The location is very appropriate, as this is where I met with Ally Colton (fundraiser for FFC) last year during the Halloween celebrations... I was keen to support the charity and a year down the line I have now been appointed a vice patron. I am very proud of my new appointment and look forward to working with the team at Buckfast.

A cuddle with Buddy Bear at Crealy... pictured with Caroline Davies CEO for FFC

A day out with some of the kids from Families for Children Adoption

 

 

I hope some of you will be able to visit Devon's Crealy for the book launch of "Bradley Baker and the Gullfather of New York"... look out for the "Families for Children" marquee on 1st November during the Halloween celebrations, where I will be signing first edition copies of the new book :)

 

 

Catch you all again next time. Have a great week folks!!!

Best wishes, DLJ



Climbing some Broad-Stairs!!!

What a wonderful week spent touring schools in East Kent... Braodstairs, Margate and Ramsgate hosted some great events with showcases at Bromstone Primary, St Lawrence College, Haddon Dene and Wellesley House!!! Here are a few pictures to provide a taste of some really inspiring moments... more to follow soon :)

 

Avid readers that couldn't wait to start... straight after I signed their books!!! Fantastic stuff



Year 6 students at Haddon Dene in Broadstairs

 

Good to meet Ellie and Henry Uden at Haddon Dene School

 

Another photo opportunity during the book signing event at Haddon Dene

 

A break from signing books to answer some questions posed by school councillor Gabriella

 

I love reading stories written by children following my presentations. It means a lot to know that my visits have potentially inspired a new generation of authors! Here is an adventure story presented to me by pupil Tommy-Lee at Bromstone Primary School.

 

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all the event organisers that made my visit to East Kent very memorable:- Ellen Rowe, Headteacher at Haddon Dene... Hannah McDermott, Literacy Lead at Wellesley House... Maria Stanley, Literacy Co-ordinator at Bromstone Primary... and Helene Cohen, Head of English at St Lawrence College Junior School.

 

And to finish things off this week... I thought I'd share a sneak preview of the first character sketches created by my illustrator Abie Greyvenstein for the fifth Bradley Baker book, which is planned for release some time next year. Please keep this to yourselves though... it's top secret!!!

 

"Bradley Baker and the Sentinel of Aakoria"... character sketches designed for the 5th book in the series... due to be released during 2014

 

Hope you enjoyed this week's BlogSpot... looking forward to my creative writing workshops with the children at Pinhoe C of E Primary over the next few days. I'll catch up again same time next week and tell you all about this latest book publication project with local schools.

 

Best wishes for now, DLJ

 

 

Great to be back in Plymouth and Exeter...

Wow... what a fantastic start to the new academic year. I journeyed back down to Plymouth this week to visit three more primary schools and what a great response to my showcase presentations!!!

 

Children from St Paul's Roman Catholic Primary School were happy to see me again when I returned for their book signing event on Monday, which was held in the library. All four Bradley Baker books were in great demand and I signed lots of copies for all the pupils... with copious amounts of smiling faces from children leaving with books tightly clutched to their chests.

 

On Tuesday I paid my first visit to Horrabridge Primary School, which is part of the Tavistock learning community. This event was organised following my appearance at the Children's University Graduation Awards at Plymouth University, where I attended as Chancellor for Torbay. Here are some of the children at Horrabridge with their signed copies of the Bradley Baker adventure books.

 

Later on Tuesday, I received an urgent call from St Paul's RC with more book orders from some of the children... so I headed back over to sign more copies before my next school visit to Laira Green near Plymouth's city centre in the afternoon. I had a great time at Laira Green School and here are some pictures taken by the teachers...

 

The audience really liked my author presentation!!!

 

Bradley Baker disappears down the plughole!!!

 

The boy hero reappears for a quick photo opportunity!!!

 

 

Here are some of the pupils representing their KS2 year groups during the book signing event in the school library. Each year group received a full set of Bradley Baker books, which were generously funded by the senior management team at Laira Green school.

 

You can see the full web report about my visit to Laira Green School in Plymouth by clicking on the following link: http://lairagreen.com/2013/09/20/visit-by-author-david-lawrence-jones/

The end of the week soon came around and I completed my school events with a return visit to Pinhoe C of E Primary in Exeter. I showcased my Bradley Baker books before the summer and I was invited back to host a series of creative writing workshops. The first session lasted all Friday morning and I worked with the children to help them create characters for a story, which they will write and publish in a school book. Looking forward to returning a week on Monday to continue with the project and I'll display some of the pupils excellent work on this blog in due course.

That's all for now folks! Thanks for popping by and I'll catch up with you all after my trip to Kent next week, where I will be visiting four more schools in the Ramsgate and Broadstairs area.

Best wishes, DLJ :)

And then there were four...

Hello everyone.... it's been a while since my last blog post and it's great to be back on line to share some recent activity from my wonderful world of writing!!! It has been a very productive summer... I finished the fourth book and I'm looking forward to the UK release on 30th September. Signed "First Edition" copies are available from the website... here's a link if you'd like to order your copy before the official release date; http://www.bradley-baker.com/book_shop_8.html

 

And then there were four!!!!

 

Interest in the new book has been very positive and has resulted in a date being set for the US launch. I'm looking forward to attending New York Public Library in New York 16th December.

The new academic year in the UK started this week and I have resumed my popular author visits to primary schools. Demand for my interactive showcase presentations is overwhelming and I already have a diary full of events leading up to Christmas. If you would like to organise an author visit to your school, please get in touch as I a few slots to fill. I stayed local for my first two schools with a visit to Pennycross (pictured) and then onto St Paul's RC in Plymouth. The reception from both schools was fantastic and I'd particularly like to convey special thanks to Sarah Pope at St Paul's for organising an absolutely brilliant event.

I will be travelling further afield to other counties within the UK over the coming weeks, with tours planned for Kent and South Yorkshire. These will be followed by more events in Devon and Gloucestershire.

 

The plot lines for the new book include some carefully researched adoption issues that affect the boy hero and I'd like to that the senior management team at FFC for their kind support. In turn I am very pleased to continue my support for Families for Children throughout 2013/2014.  I'm also looking forward to advocating my new role for the charity and an official announcement will be made over the new few weeks.

 

My world is full of fantastic stuff and there's lots going on behind the scenes. I'm looking forward to sharing my incredible journey with you over the coming months. It's good to be back!!!!

 

All the very best for now and thanks for reading my latest BlogSpot, DLJ :)

Introducing the Gullfather of New York...

The busy schedule of school visits is now over till the start of the new academic year in September... so it's time to focus on the launch of the new BB book, which will be available on general release from 30th September 2013.

 

I still have lots more to do till then and I'll be spending the next few weeks putting the finishing touches to the manuscript for Bradley Baker's fourth adventure... the Gullfather of New York!

Bradley Baker fans will be able to purchase the book from the official website before the general release (earlier in Sept)... please look out for more updates on Facebook, Twitter and www.bradley-baker.com

The BB brand will soon be adding a new merchandising line... BB mobile phone covers will be exclusive to Bradley's Shop on the official Bradley Baker website. Feedback has been great so far and the 4 book covers will be depicted and will prove a welcome addition to the new range of mobile phone covers, which will be made available in various sizes to suit most smart phones very soon... so watch this space!

 

 

My time during the summer will also be spent working on a new literary project in association with Families For Children... I'll also be announcing some special news about my new role within the charity too very soon, so again watch this space for further updates!

 

Hope you will keep in touch over the next few months and I look forward to posting more updates relating to the above!

Best wishes for now, DLJ

A hot week in 'sweltering' Swindon!

I spent the penultimate week of the school academic year in Wiltshire... and boy it was hot in sunny Swindon. As with many parts of the UK, the temperatures soared above 30 degrees but my author visits to four schools proved a great hit!

I arrived in South Marston on Sunday evening to be greeted by a wonderful eccentric landlady at "The Old Post Office Guesthouse" (which proved to be perfect base for my working week). Jackie offered me a tour of her well-presented abode, including the vintage rolls in the garage. Then I was afforded an operatic rendition, as she opened her arms in the middle of the garden to deliver high-pitched notes that rattled the windows on the 18th Century cottage. What an unusual but lovely welcome start to what turned out to be an absolutely fantastic stay in Wiltshire.

On Monday I paid a visit to two schools near the city centre of Swindon... in the morning I showcased my Bradley Baker presentation to the pupils at Oliver Tomkins and then later in the afternoon I met with children from King William Street. Thankfully both school halls were kept cool with open windows and the students displayed a heightened level of enthusiasm as I introduced the main characters in the books. The signing events that followed were a great success with hundreds of new Bradley Baker fans receiving signed copies of the books.

Even Swindon Primary was my next port of call on Tuesday and tour organiser Tracey Badenski had arranged a fantastic event. The stage in the hall was put to good use with my smoking bath taking centre-stage! More record breaking queues of eager youngsters lined up to get their hands on the boy hero and his amazing adventures! Even the children from both classes in year 5 wrote me some fantastic letters to thank me for presenting at their school... brilliant to read such wonderful messages of support - it makes what I do so worthwhile!!

My final author visit took place back in South Marston on Wednesday, so it was a short journey from the Old Post Office to the village school. Wow... what a reception from the 90 children. We had a blast and the event proved to be a big hit with both the students and the teaching staff. I was even asked to sign some of the year 6 leavers school shirts!!!

 

Here's just a few of the many pictures taken by the pupils during the two days I spent at the school;

So, with the Wiltshire tour completed... I headed back to Devon and finished the week with a visit to Start Road Primary in Plymouth. We celebrated the opening of the new library with a fantastic show and all the 300 students were very excited during the presentation. I'm looking forward to a return visit on Monday to meet the children again in the library to sign their Bradley Baker books.

With the end of term fast approaching, I'll be visiting a few more schools during the early part of next week... including a rescheduled event at St Margaret Clitherow in Brixham. I'll let you know how I get on and bring you right up to date this time next week.

Thanks for popping by again folks. Best wishes for now, DLJ