Author Alex Foulkes visits St Peters 8-13

This week, children's author Alex Foulkes visited St Peters 8-13 to the delight of pupils and staff alike. In the morning, J1-3 were joined by Years 3-5 from Burton Green Primary to hear Alex talk about her spooky, funny, and exciting book series, Rules for Vampires.

Alex was an engaging and captivating speaker, and the audience was rapt as she told us about how her childhood spent roaming the countryside around her home of Stoke-on-Trent inspired her writing, especially young vampire Leo’s escapades in the sinister Dreadwald forest. She also told us about the process of writing a book and working with a publisher, and explained how much of a joy it was to work in collaboration with an illustrator. We even got a little sneak-peak of her next book which is due out in September, The Ministry of Mischief!

She finished up with an exciting game-show style quiz, where Mr Sewill and Ms Kendall were chosen to head up Team Ghost and Team Vampire respectively, while the students showed off their ghost identification knowledge. Happily, it ended in a draw, as everyone turned out be expert Ghost Identifiers!

Alex spent a busy breaktime signing books for students and answering questions, and then headed straight into workshops with J1 classes.

The workshops were a fun and creative opportunity for the students to hear Alex read from her book and then design their very own dream secret den, just like Leo’s hideout, “Hollowhome”, in Rules for Vampires. Alex spent time going around the room speaking with every child about their den, very kindly giving out special bookmarks and stickers as souvenirs of the visit, and answering lots of great questions.

The students had a brilliant day with Alex, with some even challenging her to a chess match at lunchtime! Albert in J1 said, “It was really exciting because we got to meet the author and have some conversations with her!”, and Lucy said, “I liked how we got stickers and bookmarks, and I really like the books that she wrote, and I hope there will be a third one coming out!”

After an exciting day, Alex said how much she’d enjoyed the day and how impressed she was with the children’s creativity and kindness to each other. We’re sure the school will be buzzing with vampiric excitement for some time to come!

Alex Foulkes is from Stoke-on-Trent in the Midlands of England, and lives with her partner and their dog, Mac. She has worked as a teaching assistant and a school librarian.  When she's not reading and reading and reading, she's writing her very own stories with chills, thrills, and maybe even a talking spider! Her debut Middle Grade Rules for Vampires was published in 2021 with the follow up published in 2022.