Her presentaton was followed by a book signing. The library has three signed copies of 'Flirty Dancing' available so now is your chance to read the whole book and find out what happens to the shy heroine Bea in her quest to win a TV dance competition.
In Jenny's own words:
"When I began writing Flirty Dancing, I
wanted to write a book that combined the warmth and realism of Jaqueline Wilson
and Hilary McKay, with the humour of Louise Rennison and Grace Dent.
Being a huge fan of the classic romance novels I also wanted to give teenage
readers a spine-tingling fairytale ending."
After her presentation in the Hall she gave a creative writing workshop in the library to 40 students.
Lucy Jackson, Year 9, writes:
Yesterday the author of the book ‘Flirty
Dancing’ visited our school to tell us about her writing career and answer any
questions we may have had.
During
period 2 she talked to us about her ideas for the story and a bit about her
life and what she was like when she was a teenager. Firstly she described her
teenage life and explained that she was always shy and this is represented in
the book with the character Bea. She also shared some really funny and
embarrassing moment from her teenage years. Then she told us about the
importance of reading, showing us a slide with the picture of the brain and how clever the brain is when
we read. At the end of the session we had a chance to ask any questions we may
have wanted to know, and purchase a signed copy of her first book ‘Flirty
Dancing’.
During periods 3, 4, 5 we were lucky
enough to experience a fun-filled workshop lead by Jenny. She gave great tips
and writing skills on how to create the perfect book. Such as: have a heart
beating for the book, leaving gaps for the reader to fill in and a slowing and
speeding up time to make it more interesting. We learnt so much on how to write
a great book and even some help about where to look to get books published. The
day with Jenny McLachlan was so inspiring for us all and
we hope to meet her again!
