Josh Lacey

My new book is out today: The Victorian Revolution
The 5th in the Time Travel Twins series
Illustrated by Garry Parsons and published by @andersenpress.bsky.social

This February, join Josh Lacey, author of The Dragonsitter series, for a fascinating discussion about writing his bestselling books.

Tickets cost £8, which includes entry, refreshments, & a copy of his newest book Time Travel Twins: The Victorian Revolution.

I’m going to be speaking at this @andersenpress.bsky.social event on 26 Feb

The brilliant Lydia Monks @lydiamonks.bsky.social has drawn this logo for the campaign - you can read all the details on the @societyofauthors.bsky.social website or in the @thebookseller.com

The actual writers get a fee, but no recognition; they might be thanked in the book’s acknowledgements, but they won’t be mentioned when the celebrity is sitting on the sofa of a TV show, smiling and laughing and discussing how they “wrote” their book.

These are the writers who work in the shadows, crafting the words that are published under the name of a celebrity.

For the past three years, I’ve been a member of the CWIG committee of the Society of Authors - we’re the Children’s Writers and Illustrators Group - and we’ve been working on a campaign to come up with guidelines for publishers, agents, etc, for ghostwriters.

...which isn’t exactly relaxing, and has boosted my veins with fear and fury, but is absolutely worth reading, particularly on a day when people are thinking about books.

@literacy-trust.bsky.social

@andersenpress.bsky.social

#take10toread

Today the National Literacy Trust is running a lovely campaign, suggesting we all take 10 minutes to read for the sake of our mental health, because reading is relaxing and will boost my mood.

I’ve taken 10 minutes to read Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury...

Ways into creative writing Want to have a go at creative writing in a supportive environment? Join one of these introductory courses. Guided exercises will give you the tools to explore language creatively and find your own wri...

For anyone interested in creative writing:

I’m teaching this course at @citylit.bsky.social @citylitwriting.bsky.social - an 11 week introduction to creative writing - and there are still some places available

www.citylit.ac.uk/courses/ways...

The exhibition includes fascinating visual material, interviews with Marlorie Blackman and Elizabeth Hawkins, and of course lots of books

Don’t miss this fantastic exhibition, showcasing the work of students @citylit.bsky.social who have completed a course in children’s writing and/or illustration, and gone on to publish their own books

The Story Starts Here: the craft of children’s book writing and illustration at City Lit

You can download these teaching notes here:

bit.ly/MayaResource

For any teachers who are teaching the Maya this year...

My publishers @andersenpress.bsky.social have produced some amazing free teaching notes connected to The Maya Sacrifice, full of infomation and ideas

There’s a wonderful review of The Maya Sacrifice on @lovereading4kids.bsky.social by @reeceandrea.bsky.social

“the story sparkles, full of detail and incident as well as believable characters, and provides readers with a great sense of Maya daily life”

www.lovereading4kids.co.uk/book/24975/T...

There are now 4 books in the Time Travel Twins series -
the Stone Age
the Maya
the Romans
the Vikings
- ideal for any primary school children learning about history

Writing for children: workshop For experienced children's writers, this ongoing workshop offers an opportunity to develop your work-in-progress with constructive feedback from tutor and classmates.

There are still some spaces on this @citylit.bsky.social workshop on Monday evenings starting 12 May

For experienced children's writers, this workshop offers an opportunity to develop your work-in-progress with constructive feedback from tutor & classmates

www.citylit.ac.uk/courses/writ...

If you're a #primaryschool staff member & you're looking for #cpd please have a look at @joshlacey.com , we're sure he would love to talk to you about teachers as writers or using fiction to teach history: authorsalouduk.co.uk/speaker/josh...

Writing for children: workshop For experienced children's writers, this ongoing workshop offers an opportunity to develop your work-in-progress with constructive feedback from tutor and classmates.

Are you writing a children’s book?

Come and join this weekly workshop at City Lit, it’s a wonderful way to improve your work with constructive feedback from other people also writing for children

Monday evenings, starting 12 May @citylit.bsky.social

www.citylit.ac.uk/courses/writ...

The Maya Sacrifice is book of the month on Authorfy this month

I’ve recorded a short video about the book with a reading and some information about the Maya

I hope it’s useful for any classes studying the Maya

@andersenpress.bsky.social @authorfy.bsky.social

authorfy.com/books-of-the...

The Time Travel Twins: A Blog by Josh Lacey | Centre for Literacy in Primary Education Revised 17 March 2025There are two sides to every story.That’s obvious, isn’t it? A truism.And yet when we study history, we often see things from only one ...

I've written about the Time Travel Twins for @theclpe.bsky.social explaining why I have written a history series showing historical events from 2 opposing perspectives

Updated to include my new book The Maya Sacrifice

clpe.org.uk/blog/time-tr...

The Maya Sacrifice arrives in bookshops this week - with brilliant illustrations by Garry Parsons

This is the 4th book in the Time Travel Twins series, following the Stone Age, the Romans, and the Vikings

All published by @andersenpress.bsky.social

Free to download PDF reading list for Year 2 – perfect for promoting #ReadingForPleasure or holiday reading challenges. Includes titles by Joseph Coelho, Atinuke, Michael Rosen & more.

📥 Download here: buff.ly/O4Fqsqv

The cover for my new book, coming in May
Full of delicious hot chocolate and human sacrifice

THE MAYA SACRIFICE - illustrated by Garry Parsons and published by @andersenpress.bsky.social

Writing for children: getting started Develop your ideas for children's stories in this practical and interactive short course. Topics will include plot, characterisation and viewpoint, and how to approach the children's publishing indust...

Are you interested in writing for children?
I’ll be teaching a one day short course at City Lit @citylit.bsky.social on Saturday 1 Feb.
This course is fun, engaging, and full of useful exercises and advice for anyone thinking about writing a children’s book.
www.citylit.ac.uk/courses/writ...

The Stone Age Clash is the perfect book for any KS2 children studying the stone age, and will transport them back to a simpler, colder era of human history

Illustrated by Garry Parsons & published by @andersenpress.bsky.social

In the bleak midwinter, I wonder how I would have fared in the Stone Age, huddling around a fire with my family, wearing animal skins for warmth, dreaming of the summer…

It was very resonant to read these words in Shrewsbury (which is still very different to “Pekin”, even if we have already surrendered a great deal of our humanity to The Machine).

It’s a world in which one place is no different to another, and all human connection is mediated by The Machine.

Forster describes a world in which humans have surrendered their agency to The Machine, which fulfils their needs, and prevents them from having any direct connection with one another. Robbed of direct contact, let alone intimacy, humans communicate only via screens.