Here are some of the questions I am often asked:
Are you going to write any more Professor P books?
Yes, there will be three books
in the Jurassic series - a Jurassic
trilogy! The final book in the series is called Professor P
and the Jurassic World.
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Why did you decide
to become an author?
To be honest, I wasn't
much good at English when I was at school. But when my son was
little, I used to tell him bedtime stories about an inventor called
Professor P, to help him get to sleep at night. Then, when my son
was eight years old we bought a caravan and parked it at Golden Cap
in Dorset. We had so much fun finding fossils on the beach that it
gave me the idea for a Professor P story. After I'd started writing,
I just couldn't seem to stop...
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When did you start writing?
I started writing in
March 1999. By July 1999 I had finished my first (unpublished) book,
Professor P and the Time Machine and I gave it to my son for
his ninth birthday (on 4 July 1999).
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How long did
it take you to write your books?
It took me five years to
complete Professor P and the Jurassic Coast. I kept revising
and altering the story until I was happy with it. I took about 3
years to complete Professor P and the Jurassic Island. I'm
getting quicker!!
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When did you start
collecting fossils?
I stated collecting
fossils when I was eleven years old. My father took me to a quarry
near where I lived (in Sevenoaks, Kent) and we made some amazing
finds.
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Why did you create the character of Professor P?
The character of Professor P is based on myself.
Like Professor P, I studied at Cambridge and lived there for many
years. I am also an inventor and I've designed many electronic and
computer products. In
many ways Professor P is the character I would like to be! I'd love
to make a real time machine and explore the world of the
dinosaurs...
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What have you invented?
Most of my
inventions are to do with electronics and computers. When I lived in
Cambridge in the 1980's, I founded a company (Cambridge Computing
Limited) to sell my inventions - these included a digital
oscilloscope, a programmable joystick interface, a high resolution
graphics card and an EPROM programmer. More recently I've been
involved in designing simulators and control systems for tunnelling
and directional drilling machines.
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Who is your favourite
author?
As I child, I
used to love Enid Blyton, especially the Famous Five series. I tried
to recapture the innocence of her books in my writing, while
bringing the stories up to date with modern technology.
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Where are the best places to find
fossils?
There are many excellent fossil sites in the UK. The
Dorset coast is especially good, particularly around the Lyme Regis
area. The North Yorkshire coast is another excellent location and
you can find many Jurassic fossils in the Scarborough and Whitby area. For more
detailed information visit
UK Fossil Locations.
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I would like to become an author -
can you give me any advice?
It’s a good idea to keep a notebook to write
down all you ideas. - then every so often you can look over what
you’ve written and you’ll find you have new thoughts and like a
jigsaw, you can fit the pieces together. It's also important to
really believe in your characters, to know them and care about them.
Sometimes it’s even worth writing down background information that
you may never use in the actual story. When you really know your
characters you’ll find that the story is much easier to write.
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