Julia Jarman

Julia was born on 28 March just after the war had ended. Her parents called her their peace-baby. She lives in Riseley, a village north of Bedford, with her husband Peter and two cats. The cats are called Mr Grey and Ms Mitten.

“I put all my pets into my books so I can remember them after they’ve gone. Ka, the cat in ‘The Time Travelling Cat’, is a mixture of the two cats and a third, Mrs Gingerbits who died a few months ago. She has the wandering nature of Mr Grey, the super-intelligence of Mrs Gingerbits and the affectionate nature of Ms Mitten.”

Julia became a teacher after studying English and drama at university. She got married and had three children, who have grown-up now and left home. It was her daughter who encouraged her to start writing. “One day I told my daughter Josie about something very naughty I’d done as a child and she said ‘You should write that down. You’ve always said you wanted to be a writer really.’ So I did – in ‘When Poppy Ran Away’.”

When she was a child, Julia read as much as possible, finding secret places where no one would disturb her. She also went to the library, sometimes twice a day. She is convinced this helped her to become a writer.

Her advice for want-to-be writers is, “Read, read, read. Write, write, write. And don’t expect it to turn out right first time. Most writers do many drafts. I do. And spend some time every day doing nothing except thinking and imagining.”