UNDISCOVERED VOICES INTERVIEWS Emma Green

In this week's Undiscovered Voices writer interview, we're delighted to introduce Emma Green.

Tell us what you write

I generally write middle grade stories because I think this is where my sense of humour became stuck. I'd love to write Scandi-noir crime novels but, whenever I've tried it, the fart jokes seem to ruin the tension.

Why did you enter Undiscovered Voices?

I'd been unsuccessfully submitting to agents off and on for about ten years. After joining the SCBWI network finally, I read a lot of good stuff about UV and thought it would be the way to go to see whether I was any good or not. Of course, that could have all backfired horribly.

Tell us about the book you submitted

Everyone else describes it as 'very silly'. Fortunately, that was what I was aiming for. It's a story about a witch who wants to be a knight and (if you look very closely) Trump's Wall.

How did you feel about winning Undiscovered Voices?

Other than having my two children, it was one of the best things that has ever happened to me.

In what ways was the feedback from Undiscovered Voices useful?

They told me I use a lot of capitals and exclamation marks! CAN YOU IMAGINE????!

Have you had any success with your book as a result of Undiscovered Voices?

Yes, I got my dream agent Joanna Moult at Skylark and so I am one lucky girl!

You can download the Undiscovered Voices 2018 anthology here to read an extract from Emma's book.

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Undiscovered Voices is an anthology published every other year by the British SCBWI and aims to help fresh, new voices in children’s literature – both writers and illustrators – find agents, publishers and ultimately readers. Undiscovered Voices has launched the careers of writers and illustrators, who have gone on to publish more than 200 books. These authors have been nominated for, and won, an amazing array of literary prizes: including the Carnegie Medal, Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, Branford Boase Award, Blue Peter Award, the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award, and nearly 30 regional awards. Visit www.undiscoveredvoices.com for all the details and news when submissions will open for the next anthology.