Andy's latest news
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NEW BLOG! From now on I'm going to post news on my new blog: http://talesfromthedales.blogspot.com/ rather than here. Do have a look and sign up to follow - it'll have news on All Teachers Great and Small and the second book in the series plus anecdotes and all sorts of interesting bits 'n' bobs.
June 2011 Andy had a most enjoyable day visiting the delightful Gunnerside and Reeth Primary Schools in beautiful Swaledale. After a fun poetry session with Class 3 Andy joined the children to watch the talented Hut People for a music workshop. Many thanks to Mr Price and all the staff at the schools for making me so welcome - I shall be back!
Gunnerside in Swaledale - the school can just be seen on the left at the front
June 2011 This month sees the publication of three new books for children written by Andy and witty co-author Roger Hurn. Andy was asked by publishers Hodder to write a series that would, "help 8-12s with the basics of English and make learning it fun". The Result is You Can Do It, three books on Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar which feature a crazy gang of kids called The Odd Mob, and their mortal enemy, the evil Mr Sumo! The books have cartoon illustrations and each section tells a short visual story while teaching about the essentials of our language. The pages are packed with jokes, funny situations, puns and fantastic drawings by ace illustrator Martin Chatterton. So, look out for the gang: Ulf, Googal, Deej, Flash, Wozza, HMD, Max and their scruffy hound Shagpile - they will make you laugh at their capers, cringe at their gags and cheer as they take on the giant-bellied Mr Sumo. And what's more, you'll become brilliant at English! More here.
June 2011 Next month sees the publication of Andy's long-awaited memoir All Teachers Great and Small, a funny and nostalgic look back at his colourful days as a village school teacher in the glorious Yorkshire Dales. The book is officially released on 21st July by Hodder Headline. To celebrate this event locally there will be an exciting book launch at Hoppers, Market Place, Malton, North Yorks on Saturday July 23rd, 10am - 1pm. Come along and celebrate with Andy and pick up a signed copy of his book at a special discounted price. You can also enjoy a complimentary glass of Champagne and delicious nibbles - so have fun, enjoy the excitement and support an independent bookseller at the same time. Put the date in your diary and I'll see you there!
June 2011 Andy is now on Twitter! You can find out what an author gets up to by following @andyseedauthor and get the latest on Andy's exciting new book All Teachers Great and Small, published next month. You can also use Twitter to keep up to date with news about events, signings and visits and to leave comments so why not give it a go.
May 2011 Andy performed poems at a charity concert to raise money for Christian Aid Week. The concert was held at the Salvation Army Hall in Norton, North Yorks, and featured an array of talented local singers and musicians.
May 2011 Andy visited three schools in Selby: Barlby High School to work with Y6 and Y7 children from the area and also Barwic Parade and Brayton Juniors Schools. There are some talented writers and performers in this part of Yorkshire, I have to say, and I just loved everyone's enthusiasm. It was particularly thrilling to see how the children I worked with before at the wonderful Barwic Parade Primary School remembered the poems I taught them from two months ago - well done kids! Here's Brayton Juniors in the spring sunshine:
April 2011 The cover of Andy's forthcoming book of memoirs, All Teachers Great and Small, has now been finalised. The book tells the story of Andy and his wife Barbara moving to the Yorkshire Dales and starting a new job before buying an old house in a village, with disastrous and amusing results. This is the first volume of a series, published by Headline and the hardback will be available from July 21st. It can be pre-ordered from Amazon here. Read more.
March 2011 This busy month included a spiffing visit by Andy to Molescroft Primary School near Beverley, East Yorkshire. Andy got their Reading Champions' Week off to a start by telling a traditional story in assembly before entertaining the enthusastic and clever Y4 and Y5 classes with poetry and excerpts from his non-fiction books. Thanks to Miss Baker and the staff and children for making this such a fun visit and a special well done for the beautiful displays throughout the building. I was delighted too to see so much emphasis put on reading - what a cracking school! Here are some photos of assembly and Mrs Tippet's class enjoying Andy's wordplay poems in Razzle Dazzle.
March 2011 World Book Week has just passed and Andy visited seven schools in seven days! Hello and thanks to Cundall Manor, Marwood Infants (Great Ayton), Bolton on Swale Primary, Ravensworth Primary, Barkston Ash Primary, Barwic Parade (Selby) and Melsonby Primary. The children at all seven schools were delightful to work with and they had a great time learning rhymes, joining in poems, listening to stories, looking at books, making fun lists and asking questions. Thanks to the teachers and classroom assistants - especially those who joined in the exhausting Curly Chris poem! And thanks too for all those cups of tea - the thing that fuels flagging writers...
March 2011 Andy will be co-hosting a special evening in Malton for World Book Night. This new nationwide event will see one million free books being given away, all bestselling titles, which are being donated by publishers and other participating organisations. The aim is to promote reading and to let people know about some of the fantastic books there are out there. Andy will be presenting an evening of readings, talks, music, poetry, anecdotes and more at Hope Central Cafe in Castlegate, Malton, North Yorkshire on Saturday 5th March 7.30. Tickets are just £3 to include refreshments and of course a free book. His co-host will be the talented Mike Barfield, who is a writer, cartoonist, poet and performer. Visit Mike's very amusing Wonkipedia site to find out more about him. World Book Night in Malton promises to be a fun, entertaining event and there will be a Q&A session with the two authors along with a book signing at the end. Everyone attending will receive a free copy of the excellent 'Agent Zigzag' by Ben Macintyre, a bestselling true-life spy story set in World War Two. I can highly recommend the book myself, having read it a couple of years ago. To book a ticket call Hope Central on 01653 697796 or email office@elimryedale.net
February 2011 This month started with a great visit to Markington Primary School near Ripon. Children from five primary schools joined together for a special project which Andy helped to launch with a day of poetry and fun activities based on books and stories. The Y5 and Y6 groups enjoyed working together to carry out astronaut interviews, make fun lists like the ones in Andy's book How to Spot a Hadrosaur in a Bus Queue and perform poetry from Andy's collection Razzle Dazzle. Special thanks to Mrs Lyman and the staff from the other schools for making it such an excellent day, and hi to all the children involved.
January 2011 The publication date for Andy's first book of memoirs has been set for September 1st 2011. All Teachers Great and Small, published by Headline, can already be pre-ordered from Amazon here - this is the hardback edition (the paperback will follow soon after). Below is a picture of the manuscript!
October 2010 It was National Poetry Day on 7th October and Andy emade two enjoyable school visits that week, first to Kingfisher Primary in Doncaster to work with Y2, Y4 and Y6, and then to The Venerable Bede Secondary School in Sunderland to present poetry workshops for some very enthusiastic Y7 students. Thanks to the staff and kids from both schools for making the visits such as success - it's always great to see children enjoying poems and in particular performing themselves.
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October 2010 Andy will be making two appearances at the first Malton Literature Festival. This new festival in Ryedale, North Yorkshire features various writers and events and takes place on the weekend of 22-24th October. On Friday 22nd October at 7pm, Andy will be presenting 'Tales from the Dales' an evening of humorous stories from his days as a teacher in the rural backwaters of Yorkshire in the 1980s. This event includes a meal and takes place at Hope Central cafe in Castlegate, Malton. Tickets, costing £5 (to include food) can be bought from Malton Tourist Information. Then, the following day, Saturday 23rd October, from 10.30 to 11.30am, Andy will present a session for 7-11 year-old children featuring poetry and performance. This promises to be a lively, fun session with interaction, movement, rhyme and lots of wacky wordplay. Andy will have signed copies of his new poetry book Razzle Dazzle available to buy at the end. The event takes place at Hope Central cafe, Castlegate, Malton, and tickets costing just £1 are available from the Tourist Info Office in the town centre. Not to be missed!
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July 2010 Andy is now officially a Hodder Headline author in the world of adult non-fiction! After lots of interest in his memoirs about teaching in the Yorkshire Dales in the 1980s, Andy has been signed up by Headline to write three books of funny, warm and poignant true stories about life in this beautiful and very rural part of the country. The first title All Teachers Great and Small, will be out in 2011. Watch this space!
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June 2010 With the World Cup just around the corner, one of Andy's poems is in a new children's poetry collection called The World at our Feet. These football poems were chosen by Paul Cookson and Andy's is all about England losing to the Germans on penalties yet again... No, it can't happen, can it?
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| April 2010
Andy's new poetry book for children Razzle Dazzle has been published! After many years of writing, waiting and choosing poems it's here. The book has gone down very well in five primary schools that Andy visited recently and several children have bought a signed copy. There is also a Razzle Dazzle Facebook group - why not join? |
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| March 2010
Andy has been working with fantastic new illustrator Kate Daubney on his first poetry collection for children, Razzle Dazzle. You can see some of Kate's superb work at http://katedaubney.blogspot.com/
February 2010 Andy visited two delightful primary schools: Osmotherley and Swainby & Potto. You can read some of the children's thoughts about the visit here.
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| Jan 2010
Andy has signed up with Kate Shaw of the Viney Agency in London. Visit their website at www.thevineyagency.com
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Oct 2009 Andy Seed is being interviewed by Alan Titchmarsh on ITV1 on Monday October 5th 2009. Andy has reached the last 16 of a competition being run by Orion Books and ITV1 to find 'The People's Author'. He will be pitching a book of hilarious stories about his teaching days at a village school in the Yorkshire Dales to a panel of people from the publishing world. Why not tune in and watch Andy - if he gets to the final you can vote for him by phone!
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