In our penultimate post of the year, Daniel Pavlu interviews Mr Martin about his brilliant dystopian novel, The Quiet ('engrossing and wholly original': Ernest Cline, author of Ready Player One).  

Interview: Kate Tempest

Teddy Ackery

I decided for my extended project to write about the poet/writer/rapper Kate Tempest, whose work I have been deeply interested in for the past couple of years. I e-mailed her management with several questions for Kate, and to my amazement she actually replied. I felt these answers should be shared as they are thought-provoking, and provide a deeper insight into her work. I highly recommend checking out any of her music or poetry if you are interested by this subject matter.

Why do you feel ancient mythology needs to be re-explored, such as in your work Brand New Ancients? 

For me, the old stories are helpful because they encourage us to situate ourselves more fully in the present. They remind us of the timelessness of the human experience. I find great comfort in remembering that we all stand on a line that goes way back to the beginning.

But I don't think they need to be re-explored. They don't need anything. To be honest with you, I just loved to read the old stories as a child and as a teenager, and when I started writing my own, they were there in the background. My internal landscape was populated with people I knew and loved from where I grew up and also the characters from the old stories that I used to read all the time. And that's why my earlier work especially is populated with so many references to mythology and South East London.

10 Things To Do Before You Leave School

10 Things to Do Before You Leave School is the story of Ruby, a teenager whose life fell apart when her father died suddenly: now she's returning to school for her final year, and not sure how she's going to cope. The night before term starts, she finds a list left for her by her father: a list of ten things he thought she should do before she leaves school ...Will she do them? And what will happen when she does?

10 Things is an excellent young adult novel, which deals with serious issues, but is full of humour and insight into a whole range of topics - everyday family relationships, the minefield of teenage social life and love, and ludicrously pretentious student drama among them. It also has plenty to say about school life - including the fabled rite of passage that is 'muck up day' - and that's hardly surprising, because it's written by none other than Bernard O'Keeffe, ex-SPS English teacher and former 8th Form Undermaster. He was kind enough to answer some of the book blog's questions.

An interview with Ms Candelaria

  What was your most awkward moment teaching a class at St Paul's?
I once misspelled the word 'sentence' on the dry erase board by shortening it, accidentally, to 'sence'.  I'm sure there have been much greater faux pas that I have forgotten, but my subconscious is being generous with me now, and I'll embrace this.

What were your highs and lows of SPS?
Highs: Pastries, the EP in creative writing, trip to Naples, visit to the Ashmolean, one-on-one meetings about personal statements for US universities, SAT tutoring sessions, the balloon debate, and getting to know pupils and members of the faculty.
Lows: I failed to adequately prepare myself for how lonely the first several months in a new country would be!