When did you start writing and why?

I started writing for leisure at junior school, thanks to a teacher called Miss Morphew. Once a week the class spent an hour writing a story. All the other children wrote a new story every week, but I asked Miss Morphew if, instead of doing this, I could spend the whole term writing one long story and write a new chapter each week. And Miss Morphew said yes. So I wrote a long story about a group of gnomes who went on an adventure, meeting magical creatures. This is the point at which writing became something I chose to do in my free time because I enjoyed it. 

What is your favourite book that you’ve written?

The Santa Trap. It’s the story of a greedy brat called Bradley Bartleby who sets out to trap Santa Claus so that he can steal all of his presents.  One reason it’s my favourite is because it’s slightly autobiographical. As a child, I built a series of increasingly complex Santa traps over several Christmases. I didn’t want to steal Santa’s presents, I just wanted to catch a glimpse of him. The story of my final trap is too long to tell here, but very funny. Another reason this book is my favourite is the illustrations. Although the story was quickly picked up by a publisher, it took an awfully long time to find an illustrator. Two illustrators agreed to do it and then pulled out. Then, after three years of looking, my editor Emily Ford found Argentinian illustrator Poly Bernatene. He was perfect for the story and well worth the wait. Poly and I went on to do three more books together and I’d love to do more.

What were you like as a child?

I was quite a good student, but also quite cheeky and mischievous and sometimes got into trouble for this.

What superpower would you like to have?

I’d love to be able to fly. I often dream about it.

Do you have any pets or what imaginary pet would you have?

I don’t have any real pets, but I’ve always like the idea of being friends with a big bird of prey like an eagle. But it would be a wild animal, not a pet that lived with me.

Where do you write and what do you use?

I have an office in what used to be a bedroom of our house. I’m slightly dyslexic, so I do all of my writing on an iMac, which helps me to correct the spelling mistakes I make. I also have a light box and a huge old drawing board which I make my novelty books on.

What happens in your virtual author sessions?

I offer a range of sessions. They all include one or two readings of my books and a Q&A, but many include additional content like craft activities or talks about the inspiration or development of a particular book.

What’s the best thing about being an author?

Being able to make a living out of doing something I enjoy.

What’s your favourite children’s book by another author?

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. I borrowed it from the library countless times as a child. I think I liked it so much because it was the only picture book in the library that had genuinely scary-looking monsters in it. It was a big influence on my early writing and my oldest child, Max, is named after its hero.

And finally, what’s your top writing tip?

Get stuck in! Start writing now, and don’t be disappointed if the first things you write are not as impressive as you’d hoped. You will get better if you keep at it.

You can book a virtual visit with Jonathan via his website at jonathanemmett.com