Pippa is a prize-winning children's writer and teacher with a passion for creating quality books for children, for connecting children with books, and for developing new writers. Throughout a career spanning over 25 years, she's had more than a hundred books published. In 2015 she was awarded an honorary degree by De Montfort University, becoming a Doctor of Letters.
Currently for ICE, Pippa teaches a day course on writing picture books, a seven week online course 'An Introduction To Writing For Children', and also gives visiting lectures on writing for children.
Pippa began her career in books with a Saturday job at Heffers bookshop in Cambridge, later becoming manager of their Children's Bookshop. She began writing books when she was at home with young children and has been shortlisted for numerous awards. Since her first children's novel, 'Flow' came out in 1994, she's had further novels, early reader books and picture books published, as well as a novel for adults. They include the million plus best seller picture book 'You Choose', illustrated by Nick Sharrat, and 'Winnie the Witch' storybooks, written under the name Laura Owen and illustrated by Korky Paul. She has also written a historical adventure novel set in Cambridge, ‘The Great Sea Dragon Discovery’, and her ghost story, ‘The House with No Name’, was written specifically for children with dyslexia.
She has taught writing for children at degree level at Nottingham Trent and De Montfort Universities, and she has run evening classes and taken part in literary festival sessions, including at the Edinburgh Book festival. She has critiqued stories for the Arts Council and for Jericho Writers, and continues to work extensively with primary school age children as a visiting author.
Pippa's teaching mixes lecturing, always using lots of examples of books in print, with discussion, group brainstorming of ideas, writing exercised and workshopping of students' individual work.
Her current writing projects include writing a picture book for illustration by an Iranian illustrator, publishing a historical adventure for children of 8-12, writing an early reader book for a reading scheme, and working on a non-fiction book for the British Museum. She does lots of school visits, working with primary school age children. She is to appear at the Edinburgh Book Festival in 2017.
Pippa's teaching mixes lecturing using lots of example books, discussion, group brainstorming of ideas, setting writing tasks, and workshopping students' individual work.
