“Well, I have been to the Stuarts, the Second World War, the Tudors, I do like the Tudors, and I’m working on a new one set in Roman London. [...] So I could go anywhere really!” Ally Sherrick, an award-winning children’s author and time traveller, based in Surrey, saw her fantastic new book, The Queen's Fool, published by Chicken House Books on the 4th of February 2021. A key theme of the adventurous novel, in Ms Sherrick’s words, is that ‘you have your own unique voice’ and that ‘you should be open-hearted and open-minded to people’s potential.’ These are especially valuable pearls of wisdom during this troubling time. Ally also speaks about her life as an author and her extraordinary experiences in the world of literature.
The Queen’s Fool is Ally's third historical fiction novel for children. The story is set in Tudor times with the backdrop of the Field of the Cloth of Gold: a magnificent event where Henry VIII met François I of France. “It was my husband who suggested this setting, following a visit we made to Hampton Court Palace, where we saw a painting of the event, and I thought ‘gosh! That would be really colourful and interesting,’” she revealed. The novel explores the character of a young girl with learning disabilities, named Cat Sparrow. Inspired by another painting at Hampton Court of the mysterious jester, Jane Foole, the book follows Cat and her quest to find her sister, Meg, who had been kidnapped from the convent in which they were living. Ms Sherrick declared, “For me, it is a story of sisters as well. I have a sister who I love very much and with Cat’s main mission to find her sister, I feel it’s a celebration of sisterhood.”
“I loved creating Cat, in fact, I am even getting goosebumps just saying that. She really came from my heart and she is such a joyful character. I thought that a learning-disabled character would be really interesting to portray in a historical fiction novel since you do not really see these sorts of voices reflected much in history. And I thought it would be interesting to put Cat and Jacques in a place which would be really flamboyant and strange and see how they both dealt with it.”
A challenge which any author for young children faces is engaging the audience immediately. However, this does not seem to be a hurdle for Ms Sherrick as all of her books are gripping from the very beginning. For example, there is a death even before the first chapter of The Queen’s Fool alongside a cliffhanger kidnapping before the second chapter. This phenomenal technique makes the reader desperate to continue in order to discover what will happen to the characters.
Ally commenced her career as a writer and began to develop her creative techniques while she was in school. She also became fond of stories and novels. “I couldn’t imagine a world without stories,” Ally declared passionately, “they certainly have had a huge impact on my life. I became a reader, and I couldn’t get enough of books after that. They give your brain a good workout!” As well as writing long and short stories, she also involved herself in poetry during her time at university. “When I went to university, I joined a group of like-minded students who enjoyed poetry and we co-funded a little poetry pamphlet which we distributed and sold on the campus.”
This spectacular author has visited numerous schools prior to the pandemic and has inspired countless young people to become a part of the storytelling experience. She continues to do this through both short stories - such as a 64-page version of Jane Eyre - as well as her extended novels for children.
“It is quite interesting when you read a book when you’re a young person and then you read it when you’re a bit older, especially with Jane Eyre, I found that I have taken different things from that book at different stages of my life. I really like that with books because they can really speak to you,” Ally asseverated. This is definitely the case with her first novel, Black Powder. Set in the Stuart time period and inspired by her visit to Cowdray House in Sussex, the home of the wealthy Tudor courtier, Lord Montague (an ex-employer of Guy Fawkes), the book is filled with adventure and heart-racing action which is aimed at the younger audience. However, the book is also suitable for an older audience who would understand the context, and appreciate the religious tensions she portrays between the Protestant majority and the Catholic minority.
Having identified her passion for English and History in primary school, Ms Sherrick has studied for a first degree in Medieval History and English at the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne. She then went on to earn a Masters in Writing for Children during a later career break. On the subject of history and her books being based on historical events, the question of where and when she would travel to, if she had the opportunity, arose. Ms Sherrick disclosed that she would not really mind, “Well, I have been to the Stuarts, the Second World War, the Tudors, I do like the Tudors. And I’m working on a new one set in Roman London. I have other ideas, in note form really, of going back to the Anglo-Saxons at the time of the Norman Conquest and I have an English Civil War idea as well. So I could go anywhere really!”
As a result of her zeal for these subjects, she has travelled to many inspiring places including to Suffolk to see the site of an Anglo-Saxon ship excavation on the eve of WW2. This inspired her book: The Buried Crown which was published in 2018. “Places are really important springboards for me,” she explained.
Ms Sherrick also provided some advice to young people trying to write their own books: “When I first started out writing, I would attempt short and long stories and I would arrive at chapter three and become unsure about where the story was heading. But you have to have discipline, just as with your studies. One thing I picked up when writing my four books, now, is that I know I have to plan - not the minute details, but in broad terms. Also, if you are serious about your writing, I think you need to think of it in terms of having the three Ps: patience, perseverance and passion for your story. ”
Ally’s ideas and her ability to identify events that could lead to interesting possibilities has definitely led to her success. In addition, basing her fictional stories around historical events creates an alternate reality where the reader is motivated to muse about what could potentially happen in other scenarios. “I am really pleased when young people are inspired by the past,” she asserted, and her books definitely encourage this mindset.
Do look out for more of Ally Sherrick’s truly terrific novels and, in the meantime, Ally has one request if you're thinking of buying books right now. Support your local bookshop and help keep the wonderful stories of the world alive!
For more information about Ally Sherrick and her novels, visit her website at: https://allysherrick.com/ or follow her on twitter using: @ally_sherrick.
