Violet Ink (24 page)

She's almost asleep so I tiptoe across to her cot and lie her down. There's a worrying moment
when I think she's going to start crying, but then she finds her fingers and starts sucking, and within seconds she's completely gone. Fast asleep.

I watch her for a few more minutes, just to be sure, and then I creep out of the room and into my own bedroom. From downstairs I can hear the sound of Alex and Finn singing a song that they used to play in their band and I wonder if Alex might go back and rejoin On the Rocks. I could help Mum with the babysitting. I can hear Mum and Charlie walking Granny and Grandpa to the front door and Mum telling Granny to ring if she needs her, and Charlie laughing with Grandpa as he helps them down the front path, and it feels good to be part of such a funny, messy family.

In my room I kneel down and pull out the wooden box where Alex kept the letters she wrote to me. She left it inside the laundry basket when she ran away and I rescued it, but I wasn't sure why. I put it on my bed and find the new notebook and the pen with the indigo ink that I bought yesterday with my pocket money. But there's still one thing left to do, so before I can start writing I take Mr Cuddles off my pillow, where he's sitting next to my poison arrow frog that I got the day
that Bad-News was born. Then I go back into Alex's room.

Bad-News is dreaming – I can see her eyelids flickering and I hope it's a dream about something good. I put Mr Cuddles at the bottom of her cot. I don't want to scare her if she wakes up and sees one freaky eye staring at her. Then I lean over the cot and whisper to her.

‘I was wrong. You're not bad news at all. In fact, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me – probably to our whole family. Mr Cuddles belongs to you now. Take care of him, and welcome to the world, Violet.'

I look down at my mood ring. It's yellow and I remember nearly a whole year ago when I decided that this year would be the Year of Yellow. Yellow for happiness and joy, hope and friendship. Yellow for being me – for mattering and being important to somebody else.

‘We got there, Violet,' I tell her. ‘We made it yellow.'

Then I walk back to my room and sit on my bed and start writing down the story of you. So that one day, Violet, even if you think that life's unfair and nobody likes you and you always get everything wrong, you will know how totally and
completely and utterly loved you are. You will know that I trust only you with my words and my thoughts. And you will know that I will always be here to keep you safe and scare away the dark and love you. Forever.

Love Izzy xxxx

When I was in my late teens, my granny gave me a packet of letters that she had been keeping for me to read when I was old enough. Those letters are some of my most treasured possessions. Thank you, Mum, Granny and Granpa, for sharing your stories and memories and love with me.

Many thanks to Lizzy and Polly for once again reading an early draft and giving me lots of brilliant advice. And to Julie B, Flor, Julie N, Kate and Niki who gave their time to read this book and share their thoughts with me.

I also need to thank Holly, Erin and Eliza, three fantastic readers whose opinions were well considered, thoughtful, honest and incredibly valuable.

Thank you to Julia and Alex, for your support.

And thanks to my amazing family – Adam, Zachary, Georgia and Reuben – for your constant excitement and enthusiasm.

READ ON FOR
INSIDE INFORMATION AND ACTIVITIES FROM

REBECCA WESTCOTT

Alex is a letter writer. She says nobody writes letters any more but that they should because letters are special. She says you can hold a letter and keep it close to you and read it any time you want. Emails can be wiped and texts are gone if you lose your phone – but letters stay forever.

I totally agree with Alex. When I was a child, I used to love the sound of the postman pushing the post through our front door. I lived in eternal hope that there might be a letter for me, and sometimes there actually was. My nana and my granny used to write to me and later, when I was at university, my mum and my little sister wrote to me all the time. I've kept all those letters and they are really special to me.

We don't send as many letters today – I suppose
it's just easier (and cheaper) to email or send a text. I still think letter writing is fun, though, and it's a good way to practise your writing skills and make someone's day a bit nicer!

Try these letter-writing ideas – and if you haven't got a stamp just leave them on the pillow of someone who lives in your house. It'll give them a brilliant surprise and, if you're lucky, they might write back …

1. Write a letter to someone who is important to you. Tell them why they mean so much to you and why you're glad that you know them.
   
2. Write a funny letter describing the most embarrassing day of your life. You'll make someone laugh and, you never know, it might be therapeutic for you to put down your excruciating experiences on paper. (I know what I'm talking about here. Let's just say that the basketball scene and Izzy's subsequent total humiliation was based on a VERY personal experience. Except I wasn't twelve – I was sixteen …)
   
3. Write a letter to yourself in the future. Include details of everything that matters
   to you now: the TV programmes you watch, the music you listen to, the books you're reading, the people you like (and don't like). Then describe what you'd like to be doing in ten years' time – your hopes and predictions for yourself. After that, seal it up in an envelope, put your name and the year in which it can be opened on the front and put it somewhere safe. You'll be really glad you did this when you stumble upon it in the 2020s!
   

1. Do you think the title
   Violet Ink
   works for this story? Would you have given the book a different title? If so, what would it be?
   
2. Violet Ink
   is told from Izzy's point of view, but do you think it is
   her
   story? Which character do you feel that you get to know best – Izzy or Alex?
   
3. Izzy says she thinks that words are really important and some of her free verses are included in the book. Do you think that the verses add anything to the story? Choose your favourite line from Izzy's writing and explain what you like about it.
   
4. Izzy writes in one of her verses that: ‘Guilty has a twin sister. Her name is Memories.' What do you think she means? How does
   this personification of emotion give us more detail about what life is like after Alex has gone?
   
5. Have you ever experienced a situation where something unexpected has happened and it changes your life forever? Sometimes it can be a really small thing that causes the biggest changes. How did you react? Did you feel like Izzy, as if you had no control, or did you behave differently?
   
6. Did you feel that Mum's reaction was believable when she discovered the truth about what was going on with Alex?
   
7. In her citizenship lesson, Izzy has to answer a question – who would she choose to save if there were four people tied to a train track and a train was coming? What would your answer be?
   
8. In the same lesson, Izzy learns that dilemmas are usually dealt with in one of four ways: trusting your gut instinct; getting some advice; asking for the opinion of everyone involved or tossing a coin. Which strategy do you tend to use when you've got a difficult problem to solve? Discuss the pros and cons of each strategy.
   
9. How do you think Finn feels about Izzy? What do you think he feels for Alex? What do you think will happen next?
   
10. Were there any times that you disagreed with the actions of one of the characters? What would you have liked them to have done differently?
    
11. Did you guess the name that Izzy chooses for the Bad-News Baby? Do you think that ‘Violet' is an appropriate choice or would you have chosen another name? Explain your reasons.
    
12. How is the theme of
    colour
    used throughout
    Violet Ink
    ? Do you think that this adds anything to the narrative?
    
13. What are the differences between Charlie and Finn? Create a pen portrait of them both, describing their characteristics and personalities. Who do you prefer?
    
14. Did you like the ending? How would you have liked it to end? Are you keen to find out what happens next to Izzy, Alex, Finn, Charlie and Violet? Describe what you think they'll each be doing in ten years' time.
    

How long did it take you to write
Dandelion Clocks
and
Violet Ink?

I tend to write a first draft quite quickly – it takes me about six to eight weeks, writing after work in the evenings and at weekends. Being a teacher is great because I get lots of writing time during the holidays, which helps! Once the first draft is written I'll take my time on the edit, really developing the voice of the main character and making sure that there are no inconsistencies in the plot.

Does anyone read your books while you are in the process of writing them?

I'm really lucky to have an incredibly supportive family, who read everything that I write (and
have an opinion on everything I write too!). My eleven-year-old daughter was the first person to read both books. In fact, it was a conversation that I had with her in our garden one day last spring that gave me the idea for
Dandelion Clocks
. She also helped me to write some of Izzy's poems in
Violet Ink
. Once I'm happy with what I've written, I'll ask people to have a read and give me their thoughts. My husband, mum, sister and lovely friends are great at doing this!

Which authors have inspired you?

One of my favourite authors is Robert Cormier. He writes about topics that are quite grown up in a way that younger readers can access, without being patronizing. I often find his books chilling – they always leave me with a list of questions and wanting more.

When I was a child, I loved Judy Blume. I would read her books and feel as if I completely knew the characters, even though their lives were so different to mine.

Now, I enjoy reading books by authors like Patrick Ness, Meg Rosoff and John Green. They aren't afraid of tackling ‘big' issues. After all, life happens to everyone – not just to adults.

What is your favourite way to spend a day off from teaching and writing?

I love spending time with my family. We are all big fans of camping and what I enjoy most is sitting in the sunshine watching my husband cook us an amazing campfire meal while our three children race around on their bikes (I'm not completely lazy though – I do the washing-up!).

In the winter, if I'm not writing then I'm probably reading, while my husband cooks us a meal and the children create chaos with Nerf guns. (You can probably tell that I really, really hate cooking.) Actually, I'm not that fond of housework either, so at the weekends we play a card game after supper – the loser has to wash up.

I want to be a writer. What are your top tips for getting published?

Write for fun! When I wrote
Dandelion Clocks
I was so excited by the idea that I wanted to write it down just to find out if I could create a story from beginning to end. I didn't write to get published – I wrote because it made me feel happy.

Sometimes, write as quickly as you possibly can. Don't worry about whether it's perfect – just enjoy the excitement of writing your words down.
And then leave it. One of my favourite things about writing is returning to read something I wrote a while ago. It's a great way of figuring out what works in your writing.

Write for lots of different reasons. Being a writer doesn't mean that you are writing a book. It means that you communicate and record information using written words. So write a diary, write letters, write emails, send texts. Make lists, write a poem that you'll only ever show one person, leave notes for your family on the fridge in magnetic letters. Write using as many exciting, interesting words as you can and then write using only twenty words. Play about – they're your words and there aren't any rules.

Don't give up. If someone gives you feedback on your writing (it could be your friends, family or a teacher), then listen to what they have to say. Try out their ideas and decide if it improves your writing. If it does, then great – you've developed your skills. If it doesn't, then you haven't lost anything.

Goodnight Mister Tom
by Michelle Magorian

After the First Death
by Robert Cormier

Wonder
by R. J. Palacio

A Monster Calls
by Patrick Ness

Skallagrigg
by William Horwood

(But really, it's impossible to choose just five! I have always loved The Dark Is Rising trilogy by Susan Cooper and I've recently started reading books by John Green. When I was growing up my reading included Enid Blyton, Judy Blume, Willard Price, Lynne Reid Banks and Lucy M. Boston to name just a few. I've just read
Grace
by Morris Gleitzman and thought it was amazing.)