Authors4Oceans

I work hard to broadcast the message about the importance of insect conservation, but this is not the only area of our relationship with the natural world that concerns me. Anyone who saw the Blue Planet cannot help but feel the urgent need for change in our behaviours and habits, or we will destroy many species and habitats through laziness and ignorance.

I believe the state of the oceans is the biggest and most important environmental issue of our age and I am proud to be a part of the Authors4Oceans project founded by Lauren St John. It is a coming together of many authors and illustrators who feel as strongly as I do about this issue and we hope by uniting and leading a series of powerful initiatives we can effect change in people's behaviour and their use of plastic.

You can read more about the project in The Guardian.

Please do take the time to check out the website and follow our twitter, facebook or Instagram channels for more news.

How I overcame my fear of insects - ARTICLE for The Pool

Every now and then I write an article. Here's one I wrote for The Pool, which is a great online magazine that I contribute to occasionally. I decided to write about fear, and the way it controls us, but if we learn to understand fear it can help us with all sorts of things, like anxiety, or a fear of creepy-crawlies. You can read it here.

Overjoyed to have been invited on the Standard Issue Podcast

Me with Podcaster extraordinaire Mickey Noonan in the studio

I had a great time meeting the Standard Issue ladies and talking to them about beetles and other invertebrates.

You can listen here on Acast or listen here on iTunes

Standard Issue is the online magazine by women for women takes to the internet airwaves with its much-loved blend of opinion and humour.

WARNING: There is bad language.

Listen to M. G. Leonard on Fun Kids Radio

I had a fab time chatting to Bex on Fun Kids Radio. You can hear the interview here, but also listen to me reading from Chapter One of Battle of the Beetles.

Check it out!

World Book Day 2018

I wanted to make a blog post to celebrate the frankly incredible costumes you guys put together for this years World Book Day. I think you all look amazing. 

Some children dressed up even though school was cancelled due to snow (that’s you Max!) 

I was told one librarian dressed up as Lucretia Cutter and her assistant dressed up as a rhinoceros beetle, and Lucretia chased the beetle around every classroom in the school! 

To all you wonderful readers, Thankyou. Here’s a gallery of images of your wonderful costumes.

If you dressed up and want to be added to the gallery just send me a picture via Facebook, twitter or email.

M. G. Leonard on Lauren Laverne's Memory Tapes for BBC 6 Music

This morning I had a lovely chat with Lauren Laverne on BBC 6 music about my Beetle Boy trilogy and how I came to write three books inspired by the insects when I was originally scared of them.

I put together a playlist of five tracks that encapsulated each of the three books, so fifteen tracks in all, and Lauren selected five to play on the show.

You can listen here and find out what the other tracks were. If you're a Humphrey and Pickering fan, then you won't be disappointed. I've got tracks in there for Novak, Lucretia, Darkus and of course the beetles.

Enjoy!

Battle of the Beetles is PUBLISHED!

ON February 1st 2018 the final instalment of my beetle filled trilogy was published. I hope you all enjoy how this epic story ends. Perhaps it might inspire you to go out into your gardens and befriend some beetles.

If you want to help me get the beetle books into the hands of readers, then please do hop over to Amazon and give the books a review. This is the single nicest thing you can do for an author whose books you've enjoyed.

I must also give a shout out to all the wonderful children who've sent me selfies of themselves with their books. These pictures rock my beetle loving world. Thank-you!

Battle of the Beetles - Special Sprayed Edges

A limited number of the first edition of Battle of the Beetles will be made with beautiful sprayed edges. These will be exclusively available through Waterstones in the first weeks of publication. If you want one to complete your collection you'll have to be quick!

UPDATE - copies of the book have been spotted in the wild. If you want to grab one call your local Waterstones.

Battle of the Beetles is printed and on its way to the shops

Just before Christmas I had the joyous experience of going to the book printing factory and seeing the final part of my beetle trilogy coming hot off the printing press. It was such fun I made a video about the experience to share with you. I can't wait till this book wings it's way out into the bookshops and people get to read the final part of my story.

I'm a judge for the BIG IDEA COMPETITION 2018

If you have an idea for a story that could be a children's book, an animation or a movie, then you have a big idea! And, if you fancy submitting it to the big idea competition, then you could win £1000 and see it turned into any or all of those things. I am joining a very prestigious panel of judges who will be reviewing the ideas and choosing the winners. You can find out all about it here.

COMPETITION! Win all the Tom Fletcher Book Club books for your school library

COMPETITION! Watch the video to find out how you can win all of the Tom Fletcher Book Club books for your school library.

Email the name of your school and the librarian or teacher who looks after the library, with their contact email address to info@mgleonard.com

Closing date 1st December

For UK Schools only.

Beetle Queen is nominated for the 2018 Carnegie Medal

I am delighted that Beetle Queen has been nominated for the 2018 Carnegie Medal.

The Carnegie Medal is special because to be nominated is to be chosen by librarians up and down the country for this prestigious prize.

The second book in a trilogy often gets very little attention, rather like a middle child, and I love my middle child. She may be villainous and frightening in places, but I'm proud of her.

It means a great deal to me that librarians rate the book, as my reading world was built in libraries, and my taste developed by librarians. I owe them everything, including my career.

So hoorah for Beetle Queen and all librarians everywhere.

Exclusive! Read a deleted scene from Beetle Boy

As part of the Tom Fletcher Book Club for WHSmith, I let them have an exclusive scene that was cut from Beetle Boy, and which no one has ever read before. Originally the book had a prologue which explained how the beetles came to Nelson Parade and built their home in the mountain of mugs in Humphrey Gamble's bedroom. Now you can read that missing scene.

Tom Fletcher reads Beetle Boy

Why don't you sit back, relax, and listen to the wonderful Tom Fletcher from McFly reading you the opening chapter of Beetle Boy.