SCBWI FACES Lucy Farfort
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| Lucy (left) at a North-East network meet up in Whitley Bay |
What do you write?
Picture books mostly. But I have dabbled in longer fiction: a short story for The Faber Book of Bedtime Stories, a self-published collaborative choose-your-own adventure which was part of a creative residency and a chapter-book length story which didn’t quite make it to publication. Writing longer fiction is on the back-burner at the moment, but I really want to come back to it in the future when I have more time.
Do you have a ‘day job’ as well as volunteering and writing?
Yes. Last September (2024) I started as a part-time Learning Support Assistant at a primary school. It’s two days a week and I work across two Year 1 classes. I feel very lucky to have got the job, it kind of saved me to be honest, because at one point last year I thought I’d have to give up working as an illustrator and author altogether. I was moving house, my mortgage was increasing, and the income just wasn’t reliable enough. The LSA job has allowed me to continue working in books and better still I get to work with the people who are my target readers. Plus I absolutely love working with the children, and the team there are amazing. I really landed on my feet!
Describe your writing space.
A mess! At the moment anyway. The recent house move (which I mentioned) was into a place which needs a huge amount of work. So my work space is not the most aesthetically pleasing at the moment, that is unless you like peeling 70s wallpaper, threadbare carpet and faded geometric patterned curtains. Also, my son lucked out with the big room this time and my studio got relegated to the box room. Which is fair enough really, plus it is a bigger box than my son had at our last house as his bedroom. But it means that I don’t have the space to put everything, thus it’s now clutter-city. A silver-lining is the view from my south-facing window overlooking a large, green space bordered by established trees. So I can bathe in the sound of birdsong, and sometimes hear the peal of the church bell in the distance, which is all pretty idyllic.
How long have you been a SCBWI volunteer?
Just over a year and a half, as a co-regional network organiser for the North East. But I’ve been a member for about 10 years.
Describe the main tasks of your role as a SCBWI volunteer.
Organising in-person and online togethers, helping to organise a critique group, updating NE members of national SCBWI events/opportunities and any other bookish goings on that might be relevant via the NE Facebook group and encouraging potential members.
Do you do any other volunteering?
I have volunteered as a mentor, helping to guide aspiring picture book makers in the right direction. It took me a really long time to get published, so it’s a real pleasure and privilege being able to offer others an insight.
Has volunteering influenced your writing in any way?
I’m not sure if volunteering has directly influenced my writing, but whenever I share the things I’ve learnt over the years with aspiring picture book makers it always helps me reflect on my own practice. It also reminds me to check whether or not I’m practising what I preach and often gives me clarity on how to improve a work in progress.
What are the advantages of being a volunteer?
Meeting people and having a tribe of fellow writers and illustrators that I can connect with who understand what I’m going through. I also get a sense of satisfaction in feeling like I’m giving back to the community which helped me achieve my dream of being a published author-illustrator, because SCBWI gave me such a step-up in that respect.
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| Whitley Bay meet up |
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| Darlington meet up |
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| York meet up |
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| Durham meet up |
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| Darlington meet up |
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Christmas social |
How many hours per week do you spend volunteering?
It varies greatly depending on what is happening at the time. Sometimes one, sometimes seven or so if it’s a whole day doing something together, but that is only every couple of months generally.
Do the boundaries between volunteering get blurred or do you have clearly demarcated writing/volunteering times/space?
For me the boundaries do get blurred. I’m not organised enough to have designated time, so rather I just fit it in where I can around other work. Because I work part time as a teaching assistant, whilst freelancing as an illustrator/writer/creative facilitator I am frequently juggling multiple tasks, and tend to prioritise whatever thing is the most pressing at the time. It might not be the most sensible way of working but that’s just how my brain works I think.
Favourite children’s book?
Ah, the dreaded question. Dreaded, because it’s always nigh on impossible to answer as I have (like every other children’s book author-illustrator) a LOT of favourites. So I’m going to cheat and choose a current favourite, and that’s The Comet by Joe Todd-Stanton. It’s just perfection on the page, the illustrations are sublime, the narrative is brilliantly executed and the sentiment is super-sweet.
Anne Boyère is one of Words & Pictures' Feature Editors. You can find her on Instagram. She hosts #SCBWIchat, now on Threads @scbwi_british_isles. If you'd like to chat with her about your book, you can contact her anne.scbwi.bi@gmail.com
Ell Rose is a non-binary illustrator & animator based in Edinburgh and Illustration Features Editor for Words & Pictures. Their cats sometimes feature in their work in either comics or illustrations/animation. They are available for editorial, non-fiction and fiction books and commercial work as well as 2D motion graphics.
Find their work at www.fourfooteleven.com. Contact illustrators@britishscbwi.org
Tita Berredo is the Illustrator Coordinator of SCBWI British Isles and the Art Director of Words & Pictures.
Follow her on Instagram, X and www.titaberredo.com or contact her at illuscoordinator@britishscbwi.org
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