Frank Cottrell Boyce’s inspiration for the Our Read book
With only ten days to go until the launch of Our Read, in an interview with Catherine Jones in the Liverpool Echo today, Frank Cottrell Boyce talks about what inspired him to write The Unforgotten Coat for Our Read, and how a train journey with Jane Davis sparked the whole thing off:
This time, the idea came to him as he and Jane chatted on a train to London to meet the publishers Walker Books a year ago.
“I have this notebook which is my ideas notebook, and I had three or four really good, what I thought were really good ideas for stories,” says Frank.
“And on the way down to London on the train, for some reason I just started talking about this girl, Misheel, who’s a real girl.
“Jane said, ‘that’s the story I want in the book’. And I went well, it’s not actually a story, it’s just something that happened. I’ve got these other really great stories that I’ve worked out.
“But she said ‘no no, that’s the one’.”
Here is a photo of Frank, with Fiona McDonald from Walker Books, just after the contracts were signed for Our Read:
If I wanted to make a request for Mr Cottrell Boyce to come to Smethwick , which is near Birmingham- to maybe do a mini- book reading during the hours we have our ‘Make Friends With A Book’ – who would I need to contact, please?
We read ‘Millions’ recently and our facilitator is looking into letting us watch the film, while at the library.
I know ‘Millions’ is a children’s novel but it provided us with many a week of literary enjoyment.
If Mr Cottrell Boyce does not do PA’s unless they are paid, then please do not worry as I am only a volunteer helper making this enquiry and not a facilitator or anything.
Thank you for your time, All the best, Livvy (07890 317479)