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📘 Joe Brown: Being a Writer

Joe talks about how he became a writer.

I wrote my first stories when I was about 12, but I really didn't know how good they were. My friends weren't interested, but my teacher sent some of them to a national magazine for children. The magazine didn't want them, but then my mum heard about a competition while she was listening to the radio. So I sent in one of my stories and it won first prize. Then I thought, "I can do this."

During my years at school, I continued writing when I had time. Then when I left school, I went to university. I didn't study writing - I studied French and Spanish. After university, I worked in a bookshop and in a library, but I wanted to write again. I decided to move to France.

At first, I worked as a waiter. I worked every day except Sunday. I wrote my novel on Sundays and in the evenings.

I love writing and I'm never bored. You spend a lot of time alone, but this isn't a problem for me. I've finished my second novel now and I've got ideas for another, but I wanted a break first so I've come home to England for a while.

My parents live in London, I have a brother in Liverpool and my sister lives in a village in the countryside. I'm staying with my parents, but this weekend, we're all going to go to my sister's house to have a family party.