Darren Sexton

Name: Darren Sexton

Novel name: Dragon Soup -PB

Darren grew up around the corner from a castle, about twenty metres from the sea and lives about as far inland and away from a castle as it’s possible to get on in Britain. 

Despite enjoying drawing and writing as a child, Darren stopped doing either after secondary school. It was only after having children, and enjoying reading silly stories aloud, that he picked up pen and paper (well, keyboard and mouse) and decided to direct his imagination to writing and illustrating again. 

His early writing efforts can fairly be described as ‘awful’, which can be put down to a lack of knowledge of writing as a craft and the sleep deprivation provided for free by small children. Ten years later, his writing has progressed to ‘mostly competent’ and sometimes hits higher notes.

What made you enter the Cheshire Novel Prize?

I didn’t really expect to get this far, but thought at least I’d get feedback regardless. It’s always hard to step back and critique your own work, so any chance for feedback is welcome.

What did it feel like when you were LL and then SL? 

Being long-listed was a mixture, as I was pleased Dragon Soup had made it, but slightly gutted (but not surprised) my early Middle Grade effort hadn’t stumbled through.

The short-listing was unambiguously good news. I got the news whilst trying to hide from a bitter Yorkshire wind as my children were playing.

What was the reaction from those around you/family and friends?

My children greeted the news with the indifference they display to the entire adult world that doesn’t directly affect them, despite my wife’s best efforts at enthusing them - I think they were more excited by the burgers we were about to order. And to be fair, the burgers were excellent. I even had a cheeky day-time pint to celebrate, demonstrating my rock and roll credentials.

You were unrepresented when you entered the Cheshire Novel Prize, can you say what’s happened since?

I’d been having a bit of a deliberate pause in my writing before I heard the news (partly as I had finished a book and wanted a break before editing it, partly just the usual balancing of family and work-life).  Being long and then short-listed, along with the feedback from my work that wasn’t long-listed, re-motivated me to get back to the editing. In fact, the feedback has been a huge help in editing my current book.

How did you come up with the idea for your book?

My children used to have a lot of Playmobil, including Knights and Dragons. That sparked a number of ideas, including this one.

An element I particularly enjoy about Picture Books is the ability for the text and the images to be completely at odds and so I specifically wanted to make use of this device. I like the idea that you have an adult reading the text out aloud as the child looks at the pictures and realises how stupid their adult is. Very young kids don’t get many opportunities to get one over the adults.

What’s it about?

Dragon Soup is about a group of over-confident knights who set out to trap a Dragon for dinner. They refuse to listen to the one doubter in their group and so fail to notice that the dragon is pulling the strings all along…

What’s your writing routine?

I spend all day in front of a computer for my job, so being motivated to sit in front of one in the evening, especially when it’s nice and sunny or I’ve spent all day working and doing family things, is not something I’ve built into a routine. Luckily, I write quickly. So my while ‘routine’ is lumpy, I do move forwards.

What’s next for you?

Editing. And more editing. The feedback has really made me go back to some of my existing work and want to improve them.

What are your favourite children’s books and why?

As a child, the Asterix books really helped get me into reading for pleasure and so I‘ve enjoyed seeing my own children pick them up (and I’ve now also realised just how many jokes had gone over my head the first time). I love the fact that children now have so much choice, particularly with comic style books (such as the Treehouse series) to get them enjoying reading with confidence.

I’ve also still got a selection of picture books my children have long since grown out of, but I’ve kept because I love the illustrations.

Any tips for writers intending on entering the competition?

Do it with the expectation of nothing more than really helpful feedback. You’ll definitely get the latter, and anything else is a bonus.