The Great Firefighter of London by Georgia Pendrill is shortlisted for the 2022 Author of Tomorrow, 11 and Under.
The Great Firefighter of London:
The year is 1666. The Great Fire Of London has broken out and threatens to swallow all of the city. The fire has reached St. Paul’s and pieces have started to fall away from the cathedral. Time is ticking and the challenge is on to save St. Paul’s and London from the inferno. When one firefighter tries to help, he is faced with a dilemma which will change his life forever.
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An Interview with Georgia:
WNSF: What is your favourite book?
Georgia: Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens.
WNSF: Who is your favourite author? Or one who has inspired you and why?
Georgia: I have two favourite authors - Robin Stevens and Abi Elphinstone. Despite being from different genres, they both have this invisible hand that keeps you captivated throughout the entire story. After reading Murder Most Unladylike, my best friend and I set up our own detective society. We solved a couple of mysteries at school including The Case of the Random Sweet Wrappers where the culprit was our teacher!
WNSF: What is your favourite subject at school?
Georgia: Although I do enjoy P.E. and Art (even though I’m quite bad at both) it’s English, of course!
WNSF: What does ‘adventure writing’ mean to you? Why did you decide to try your hand at writing an adventure story?
Georgia: Adventure writing for me means action and excitement. Adventure writing is full to the brim of challenges and bravery. You have to be quite creative to write a story like this because something as normal as going to the cinema could mean that you get sucked into some random events. That’s why I tried it - an adventure story has no end to what you can do - it’s like a galaxy full of ideas that you can put in just one story!
WNSF: If you could ask an author anything, what would you want to know?
Georgia: I would love to ask for tips on how to keep my stories interesting for my readers.
WNSF: Who would you consider to be one of your heroes and why?
Georgia: Like most other kids, I’d consider my mum to be my hero. She is a school librarian and has fed me and my sister stories ever since we were little. If she hadn’t raised me to love books like I do, I wouldn’t be the person I am now - not even close! As well as being a bookworm, in my class I’m known as the speediest writer and my teacher is always telling me to condense my writing (which I don’t!). It’s all thanks to my mum.
WNSF: What is the most adventurous thing you would like to do, or place you would like to visit and why?
Georgia: I’d love to trek the Himalayas. I was first inspired to go to Nepal after seeing a brilliant Nepalese band in Brooklyn when I stayed there for the summer holidays. Later, a book by Jess Butterworth completely sold the Himalayas to me. I would also love to be in the mountains and sleep under the stars.
WNSF: Where do you find inspiration for your stories?
Georgia: I get my inspiration from books, historical events but mainly life around me. I was once out for a walk in the park behind our back gate, and there I got the idea for a story called Nature Adventure. It was all about looking after our world.
WNSF: If you could time travel, where would you go and why?
Georgia: I would go to the future, let's say 2050, to see how life is going and find out if they have found any solution to climate change. As well as being an author, I would like to be a climate scientist!
WNSF: What three words would you use to describe your story?
Georgia: Danger, choice and sacrifice.