It’s not an exaggeration to say that just about every literate girl aged eight to 13 has read at least one of Jacqueline Wilson’s books. And considering Wilson’s large and devoted following, she can give any teen pop star a good run for money. The phenomenally successful creator of Tracy Beaker, Hetty Feather and many others, Wilson writes unflinchingly — she has more than 100 books to her credit — with the curiosity and imagination of a child. She has sold millions of books worldwide — more than 35 million in the UK alone — which have been translated into some 30 languages.
“I know my family and friends wish I’d slow down a little, but I can’t ever see a time when I’d want to stop writing. The day after I’ve finished one book I have to begin another,” says the author, who is battling serious health problems — she was fitted with a heart defibrillator some years ago and is now on the list for a kidney transplant.
An unstoppable force, Wilson celebrated her 70th birthday in December. She has the same enthusiasm, if not more, when she first started getting published 43 years ago.
It’s been 25 years since “The Story of Tracy Beaker”, the book that shot her to teen fiction super stardom, was published, but Wilson admits she needs something to “distract and delight” her all the time. “I’ve got so used to thinking about imaginary characters that I’d miss them terribly if they disappeared altogether. I love to do events, too, because it’s a wonderful way of connecting with my readers.”
In March, the author, famed for long book signings (some last up to eight hours), will be connecting with her young fans here at the 2016 Emirates Airline Festival of Literature. “I’ve been [to Dubai] twice before and had a marvellous time. I’m looking forward to my three events, and catching up with all my friends,” she says.
Undoubtedly, much of her ability to express the concerns of children comes from talking and listening to them. With an instinctive understanding of modern young girls coping with less-than-perfect lives, her tales of bullying and divorce, of death and inadequate parents, obviously strike a nerve. In “Katy”, the protagonist is a headstrong tomboy who becomes an invalid after a terrible accident, “Bad Girls” deals with the subject of bullying while the sisters in “The Illustrated Mum” have a bipolar alcoholic mother.
Yet the one thing Wilson does aim for is a happy ending. “Although a lot of my books do deal with painful issues, I always try to resolve things and have a happy though realistic ending. I try to ease the tension in my stories by having lots of humorous incidents, too. In fact, one way of dealing with worrying situations is to try to find the funny side of things.”
Though often overlooked, children understand far more emotionally than we give them credit for, she says. “They are far more aware of worrying situations than they used to be, because of television and the internet. They can cope with reading about sad things as long as the story is aimed at their level and is reassuring.” And so, if her readers find new strength, hope and happiness at the end it’s never of the fairy-tale kind.
The 70-year-old author who wrote her first novel “Meet the Maggots” when she was nine feels life is more “challenging” for teenagers today, as they have to cope with so much. “There’s such an emphasis on the way young people look and whether they’re wearing the right cool clothes. They’re expected to be successful and clever and popular and if they’re different in any way they’re often bullied on social media ...”
In an age when digitisation has had a major impact — iPads and PlayStations can easily hold a child’s attention to ransom — Wilson, who spearheaded a campaign to encourage parents and carers to read aloud to children in the UK, was awarded an OBE in 2002 for services to literacy in schools. She shares the credit of her ability to win over a young audience to Nick Sharratt, illustrator and author who has worked on more than 200 books — more than 40 with Wilson, including “The Story of Tracy Beaker”.
“Most of the children who read my stories like to collect them in book form, especially as Nick gives them such bright attractive covers. The key to getting children to read is sharing stories with them when they’re very young. If you read aloud to a toddler every day then they associate books with fun and cuddles and laughter, and will want to learn to read for themselves.”
Evidently, Wilson has a huge appetite for books — both writing and reading, and her prolific work rate is partly down to a regular daily routine; she can write anywhere with absolute sincerity. “I write early in the morning, sitting up in bed in my pyjamas, but if I have to go out early I can actually write anywhere — in trains, waiting for an appointment, in the middle of a noisy office ...”
Not surprisingly then, her success extends beyond the printed word to TV and stage adaptations of her work, “The Story of Tracy Beaker” series was CBBC’s top-rated children’s drama and “The Illustrated Mum” won an Emmy award and two Baftas. Wilson’s red-haired Victorian foundling, Hetty Feather, was brought to life from page to stage and has been turned into a BBC drama as well.
Although her most famous creation is the corkscrew-haired orphan Beaker, Wilson freely admits Hetty is her favourite creation. “I’ve loved writing five books about her. I thought that ‘Little Stars’ might be the last story about her, but now I’m wavering. I wonder how many people saw the brilliant stage adaptation of Hetty Feather when it was on in Dubai last year.”
It was a departure of sorts. Her first historical novel, the first Hetty book, was published in 2009, and was followed by the sequels “Sapphire Battersea” in 2011, “Emerald Star” in 2012, “Diamond” in 2013 and “Little Stars” in 2015.
Ask her what she’d choose, of the hundred novels she’s written, for a film adaptation and pat comes the response: “I’d love a film adaptation of ‘Katy’!”
Her recent novel “Katy” is a modern version of “What Katy Did” by Susan Coolidge that thrilled Wilson when she was growing up. The author says she wanted to show what life is really like for children with serious spinal injuries in “Katy”. “I didn’t want any sudden unlikely miracle cures for my Katy. She’d have to learn to lead a very different life; she’d need to be tough if she was going to cope.”
So what’s she writing next? “I’ve just finished a book about a little girl desperate to be a bridesmaid — and now I’ve just started a new Victorian book, though it’s not about Hetty this time.”
Having 103 published works to date that could fill a small library, Wilson says that her time as a journalist with “Jackie” magazine gave her the discipline to write. Writing tirelessly, she considers herself lucky because she never had writer’s block.
“It’s no use telling your editor you aren’t in the mood for writing or aren’t feeling inspired — you have to churn out the number of words required by the deadline or you’re in big trouble. I do get anxious about my writing though, and often worry that a book’s not going well. I think the trick is to keep on going, day after day, until you get to the end — and then you can revise and rewrite as much as you want,” says Wilson of her massive literary output.
Giving aspiring authors some sage advice on how to succeed by drawing from her own experiences, Wilson says, “Learn to write regularly, every day if possible, and trust your imagination to steer you through the story rather than planning everything out in detail first.”
Then again, there’s more to her life than non-stop writing. She’s an animal lover, with a passion for animal rescue. “I love to read, I like browsing in bookshops, I swim, I take my dog for long walks, I like going to art galleries and to the cinema and theatre, I chat with friends, and I love watching boxed sets at home.”
A heroine to a generation of children, her zest for life makes her ageless, stylish and fabulous. No wonder, between the jam-packed events at the Lit Fest, Wilson’s looking for some me-time. “I’d like a daily swim, a trip out to the desert, a boat trip up the Creek, a paddle on the beach, and at least one wander round one of the amazing shopping malls.”
In “Jacky Daydream”, the first volume of her autobiography, Wilson says, “I wish to be a real writer and have a book published one day.” She’s certainly done much, much more than that. And what’s on her wish-list now? “I simply wish I can keep on going, and write lots more books.”
Suparna Dutt-D’Cunha is a writer based in Pune, India.
Jacqueline Wilson will take part in the 2016 Emirates Airline Festival of Literature to be held at the InterContinental Hotel, Dubai Festival City, from March 1 until 12.
QUICK-FIVE
What would you be if you hadn’t been a writer: I’d have loved my own second hand bookshop.
A book you wish you had written: “Jane Eyre”.
The first novel you read: It was probably one of Enid Blyton’s “Faraway Tree” books.
A recent book you will remember in 10 years’ time: “The Story of Alice” by Robert Douglas-Fairhurst.
If you had to take one of your characters out for dinner you would choose: I’d choose Hetty Feather, because I’m sure she could do with a good meal, and she could tell me all the things I’d like to know about Victorian times.
