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Name Cathy Hopkins -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Star Sign Aquarius (January 23rd) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Where were you born? Manchester, England -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Did you grow up there? No. I grew up in Kenya from the age of 5 - 11. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What schools did you go to? St Joseph's Infant school, Manchester Machakos Primary School, Kenya Lugard school, Nakuru, Kenya St Cuthbert's, Manchester Hollies convent, Manchester Loreto convent, Manchester (So many schools. No wonder I'm confused!*@!) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What were you like at school? When very young, a smarmy little git then later at secondary school, a well behaved rebel -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Have you got brothers and sisters? Five brothers. No sisters. Some people say that this explains a lot. I don't know what they mean (cue maniacal laughter!) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Where do you live now? North London near Lucy, Izzie, Nesta and TJ in fact. (for anyone who doesn't know who they are, they're my characters in the Mates, Dates series) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Who do you live with? Husband Steve & Cats: Otis and Georgia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How did you get started writing? In 1987, I did a series of humour books with cartoonist Gray Jolliffe and that gave me the writing bug. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- When did you start writing teenage fiction? In 2000 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What did you do before you were a writer? Loads of things. In order since I left school: Went to art college. Rock and roll singer with Driv In Rock and the Rockettes (Click here to see picture - I'm the Rockette in the checked shirt!). Worked in cool hippie dippie shop in Manchester called On the Eighth Day. Worked in a mental hospital as an occupational therapist. Back to college to do a degree in comparative religion and train to teach (which I never did though my dad keeps reminding me that I have a degree in the attic and when am I going to get a proper job???). Taught meditation. Trained and worked as an aromatherapist. Wrote non fiction books about relationships. Wrote books about aromatherapy. Decided I wanted to be a full time writer. Did loads of writing courses. Read scripts for the BBC comedy department. Reviewed newspapers for Sky News on Friday mornings. Then hurrah hurrah, got commissioned to write teenage books and children's books and am now well and truly happy and don't want another job thank you very much. I'd like to stay doing this one. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Where do you write? In a posh shed at the bottom of the garden. It's great, with loads of shelves for my books, heating and a great sound system. Georgia the cat loves it in there and waits outside some mornings to come in. I can't leave her in there alone as she likes to walk on the computer and I've come back to my desk after a break to find whole pages wiped out and replaced by gobbledy gook and a grinning Georgia sitting there going, 'OK, I deleted that rubbish you were writing and did my own version. So what do you think of the masterpiece?' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What's your favourite TV program? Keeps changing. I used to like Buffy the Vampire Slayer when that was on. Also like the OC when thatÂ’s on. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Who makes you laugh? Mike Myers and John Cooper Clarke (he's a poet from Manchester) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What did you want to be as a child? A ballet dancer (cue maniacal laughter from anyone who has seen my attempts in more recent years) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What was your favourite book as a child? What Katy Did -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What's your favourite children's book now? I like loads of them but if I had to pick, Holes by Louis Sachar -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What's your favourite adult book? Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What's your favourite movie? Can I have 3? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes you can, as this is your web site! 1) Once Upon a Time in America 2) Wayne's World 3) The Seven Faces of Doctor Lao oh and Withnail and I (so that's 4) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What's your favourite colour? Turquoise -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What is the most important lesson that being a writer has taught you? Never give up. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How can I get in touch with you? You can write to me about the 'Mates, Dates' series or the 'Truth, Dare, Kiss, Promise' series: c/o Piccadilly Press Ltd., 5, Castle Road, LONDON, NW1 8PR. or with regard to the 'Dead Dudes' series: c/o The Chicken House, 2, Palmer Street, FROME, Somerset, BA11 1DS. And re the Zodiac Girl books, you can write to Cathy: c/o Kingfisher at Macmillan Macmillan Building 4, Crinan Street London N19 9XW -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Or through her agent: Christopher Little at the Christopher Little Literary Agency 10, Eel Brook Studio 125, Moore Park Road London SW6 4PS Where can I get the books? You can get them from your local bookshop. If they haven't got them in stock, if you ask, they will order a copy for you. They are happy to do this as it only takes a phone call. It usually takes between 3-5 days for the books to arrive and doesn't cost you anything.