Aside from being an Indie and small-press author, I also work in a grammar school. My day profession provides a steady income that my writing doesn’t. Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m doing it simply to pay the bills; I enjoy helping to support young people academically and get them through their GCSE and A-levels with – hopefully – the grades they want to achieve.
When I was at school, Art and English were my favourite subjects. I spent a good deal of my break and lunchtimes in the school library either borrowing books on Klimt, or on Celtic art, or the newest horror additions to the library once I had read all of the Stephen King, Dean Koontz or R.L. Stine books. But in my early childhood, it was a different story…
No books for my hungry young mind…
Can you believe that I grew up in a working class household where books were not valued? In fact, when I was a pre-schooler, there were no books in my household at all. I have no memories of anyone ever reading a book to me in my early childhood. Isn’t that a shame? As you can imagine, I struggled when I started compulsory education and I was in the bottom reading group from when I was in P1 (age 4-5 years, for folks reading outside of Northern Ireland) through until I was P3 (age 6-7 years).
Getting books as prizes
Don’t worry, my boo-hoo-bookish story gets happier. Thanks to my teachers at school who pushed me to read, as well as my Nanny (grandmother for those outside N.I.), who gave a few old copies of Enid Blyton, A Child’s garden of Verses, and Grimm’s fairy tales that I began trying to read by myself. I was artistic as a child and started winning art prizes from an early age and my teachers always gave reading books for those prizes too. I also started buying books out of my pocket money from around the age of 8. My reading level improved until I ended up in the top set in class from P5 (age 8-9) going forwards. I got a top grade in my GCSE English in the end too.
Nurture children’s brains
As a parent myself, my hubby Joseph Robert and I spend time reading with our youngster everyday. Our eager bookworm is at an age where he can now read parts himself. Books nurture young minds. I’m happy to say that our house is coming down with books; in fact we could seriously do with more bookshelves to cater for the stacks of overspill on top of the bookshelves we already have. It’s a happy, bookish household where literature is valued, not scorned.
Plus, there’s nothing more nurturing for your parent-child relationship than cuddling up with a book, spending quality time reading and sealing that lovely bond you have with your kid. Can’t beat it!
Leilanie Stewart 