Our latest author to blog about the benefits of exercise is TURF author John Lucas:

Feel the burn

I once heard that certain chess grand masters, in the heat of competition, can burn up to 6-7,000 calories a day just by thinking. That seems outlandish, but it made me think: I clearly don’t work hard enough. The only way I can burn off calories is by going to the gym, or playing squash – one of which I try and do every other day. If I spend all my time sitting down writing… I get fat. I do get up occasionally and walk around, mulling over ideas, but those walks lead inevitably to the fridge and to scoffing lumps of cheese, which doesn’t help. Neither does drinking alcohol, which as a dampener for overheating brain cells is very effective, but a bit too effective, as I find writing any kind of decent prose with a hangover is pretty much impossible. I also love the release of endorphins that comes after intense exercise – that clarity of thought, that innate confidence, and the sense of being together, fluid and focused. I’m by no means a health nut, but I need to keep my brain and my body in check, and for me running around a lot seems to be the only way to do it!

You can read an interview with John Lucas about his latest book TURF on the Sugarscape website: http://www.sugarscape.com/tags/interview/746656/interview-turf-author-john-lucas

Welcome to our new feature, On The ‘Write’ Track, where we ask our authors how they use sport to help with the writing process.

First up is Damian Dibben, author of The History Keepers:

Exercise is tremendously important to my life as a writer and I would suffer without it. I’m sure it hardly needs saying, that sitting at a desk all day, communicating only with fictional characters can take its toll on your mind. If I spend too much time in my head, I start to go a little insane. (More insane that is) Exercising breaks up the mental knots, it calms the torrents of the mind and best equips you to carry on fresh the next day. I love walking and have a dog, a Jack Russell called Dudley, who likes it almost as much as me. Every morning we walk up the South Bank where I live, have a jaunt through St James’s and Green Parks and on to my office. Late afternoon, I will push myself into the gym – and suddenly all my tired synapses start to fire up again, ready for the next instalment.

Here is a photo of Damian with Dudley in the background (sorry I couldn’t resist!)

The second book in The History Keepers series, Circus Maximus is out this week, below are links to two readings from Damian from books 1 and 2 – he does a great Jupitus Cole impression!

Extract one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWLG1n0KRh8

 Extract Two:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ADbMGdcn_M

This week, it’s the 12th annual National Storytelling Week.  Organised by The Society for Storytelling (http://www.sfs.org.uk/nsw), NSW aims to encourage people to create and enjoy storytelling.   Storytelling is a unique art form which is very different from story writing.  However, the idea of communicating through a narrative is obviously something close to our publishing hearts.

To show our support for the oldest art form in the world, we’re giving away a different audio book each day.  Today is the beautiful Passion by Lauren Kate.

Listen to the beautiful story of Luce and Daniel.

Find out more information here: http://www.rbooks.co.uk/product.aspx?id=1846577446 To win, simply email ataylor@randomhouse.co.uk with the subject line PASSION. 

As an extra treat, we’re also releasing a video each day featuring a different RHCB author telling one of their stories.  Today, we’re kicking off with the brilliant John Dougherty reading an extract from Zeus Sorts It Out.  You won’t be disappointed. 

John Dougherty entertains with a reading from Zeus Sorts It Out.

John Dougherty tells a story

Stay tuned for more videos and giveaways during the course of the week.  Happy storytelling!

If you’ve read Dave Shelton’s fantastic A Boy and a Bear in a Boat, you’ll know how clever/adventurous/insightful Bear is.  To prove this further, Bear is currently travelling around the country (minus his boat) visiting various primary schools.   So far, four different schools have signed up to the A Boy and a Bear in a Boat ‘Travelling Bear’ project.  These schools are based in Sutton Coldfield, Oxford and Newcastle.  The wonderful Storytellers Inc (http://www.storytellersinc.co.uk/) is also participating by taking Bear on their primary school visits in Lancashire.

As part of the project, schools receive Bear, a copy of the book, postcards, posters and a range of activity sheets.  These include a colouring in sheet, a ‘Design your own Sea Monster’ sheet and an activity that asks students to write their own ending to the book.   Bear stays in a school for a week and is then sent back to us (along with the completed activity sheets) in Ealing.  It’s a very exhausting time for him indeed. 

Bear sets off for the West Midlands.

This week, Bear returned from the lovely Boldmere Junior School in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands.    Wow, were we impressed when we opened the box!  Thanks to Lisa Kinsella who clearly took on the project with enthusiasm and passion; her students have produced some amazing work.  The sea monster designs are colourful and imaginative whilst the alternative endings are just brilliant. 

It’s hard to choose a favourite (we’re leaving that up to Dave Shelton!) so I’ll pick out just a few snippets.  Imogen decided that Bear and Boy should fall in love; in her ending they meet a female bear and a girl and then they all sail off into the sunset together.  In Marnie’s ending, the double act end up in a New York hotel!  After having a quick bite to eat, they head back to the sea to take on more adventures.  Amaan went for a dramatic conclusion involving a fire breathing dragon called Flamehead!  Finally, Ben decided that Boy and a Bear arrive at Volcano Island where they have to battle with volcano monsters.  Phew!

Stay tuned for more news from Bear as he makes his way around the UK.  I’m sure you’ll agree that only a very special bear with a very special story could do such a thing…

To celebrate his 70th birthday, BBC Radio 4 paid tribute to one of the world’s most famous living scientists, Prof Stephen Hawking with two programmes – in the first, Lucy Hawking talks about writing the George books with her father and what was the inspiration behind them: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b018wh2n/Dear_Professor_Hawking_Episode_1/

Also in the media are interviews with Stephen’s former students in The Observer: http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2012/jan/01/stephen-hawking-at-70 and an interview with Stephen himself in The Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/stephen-hawking/8989060/Stephen-Hawking-driven-by-a-cosmic-force-of-will.html

Happy Birthday from all at RHCB!

Seven Stories is a fantastic gallery and archive based in Newcastle upon Tyne who celebrate the wonderful world of children’s books. They are currently holding an exhibition about one of our brilliant authors: “Daydreams and Diaries: the Story of Jacqueline Wilson“, which opens this Saturday the 15th of October, and will be open to the public for a year. Check out all the details here: http://www.sevenstories.org.uk/

The name of the exhibition has put me in mind of our wonderful Jacqueline Wilson diaries, which have been an annual treat for Jacky fans for over ten years now.

They were first published in 2001, and a brand new cover of Nick Sharratt illustrations has been designed for every new diary released since then. The old diaries are no longer available to buy, so for those who missed out first time around, here is a look at the covers from over the years . . .

What I love about these diaries is thinking about all the children who have filled the pages up with their own words, turning every copy into a unique story all of its own. I wonder if there’s anyone out there who has filled in every day for all of the diaries so far?

In addition to the main diaries, we’ve published many different journals, school diaries and address books. Here’s a selection:

Of course, even though the above books are no longer available to buy, we certainly haven’t neglected Jacqueline’s many wonderful fans in 2012! A brand new diary, address book and journal are all on sale now in an exciting new easy-to-read ringbound format. Look out for them in the shops now!

Have you been to see the fantastic PROJECT NIM yet? http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1814836/ its a film about the real-life experiment run in the 1970′s where scientists set out to prove a chimp could communicate with language if raised as a human child. Sound familiar? That may be because the talented Ken Oppel used this research when writing his book HALF BROTHER.

On his blog, Ken discusses this research in more detail plus shares details of his chimp research which included visiting a chimp sanctuary in Montreal: http://www.kennethoppel.ca/pages/novel%20studies/half_brother_discussion_guide.pdf

Half Brother received some rave reviews in the press – if you have not already checked it out we urge you to right away!

‘Oppel is pleasingly unafraid to ask awkward questions, often right at the point where readers might have made up their minds. What a particular joy for a teenage reader, to be challenged rather than instructed.’ The Guardian

‘Ben is 13 when his scientist parents bring home a chimp to raise as a human child and his life is turned upside down. Based on real-life events, it’s incredibly thought provoking.’ The Sun

Last week Rosi and I lured Anthony McGowan and David Tazzyman, author and illustrator of The Donut Diaries to lunch at the BFI restaurant on the Southbank so we could trick them into agreeing to do lots of publicity things for Donut Diaries (our trick was to distract them with piles of yummy food – it worked. Sort of.)

David and Anthony (take 2, Anthony's hair went all weird and sticky-uppy in the first photo so he made me take another)

As well as having a lovely time we got to grill them on how they started working together (Anthony asked David to do the illustrations for Donut Diaries, David read the manuscript and thought it was hilarious so said yes. Simple.), plans for the next book (Top secret, all we can say is that it sounds more gross than the first one) and other things they have worked on (David - a really cool circus-themed campaign for a nightclub in Ibiza, Anthony – he used to write chick-lit under a woman’s name, its true, but I cant tell you the name or I’ll get in big trouble)

After lots of food (there were pints of sausage rolls involved) Anthony and David shared a pudding because they couldn’t manage a whole one (girls) but demanded 2 plates as well as 2 spoons to make them appear more manly.

Donut Count: 0 (but one very large sticky toffee pudding)

Now I don’t know if its because we are publishing Anthony McGowan’s new series, The Donut Diaries, this summer but the RHCB publicity team seem to have donuts on the brain. This morning TWO members of the team rolled into the office laden with bags of freshly baked donuts. Worryingly this is the second Friday in a row this has happened which led us to the conclusion that meetings where the word ‘Donut’ is continuously repeated is bad for will power. So, in honour of Mr McGowan and his new series we are starting our very own Donut Diaries.

Great for team morale, bad for team waistlines…

Donut count for publicity team: (oh and this includes 2 work experience girls. Honest.)

Look at these amazing book-themed cakes! 

I particularly like the Where the Wild Things Are cake and the incredible conconction inspired by Terry Pratchett’s The Wee Free Men.

What book-cake would you make?