Author Profile - Helen Orme

Author of: the Siti’s Sisters and Streetwise series, and, with David Orme, the Thunderbolts and Trailblazers series. Also Fighting Back, Who Cares?, No Good and What About Me? (Shades 2.0 series), Don’t Even Think It (Cutting Edge series), and Penguins and A Great Day Out (Reading Stars).

I was a teacher before I started writing. At first I taught maths and science, but soon became interested in students with special needs.

My final teaching job was running a unit for students that had been excluded from their secondary schools. Some of these students had very serious problems and very difficult lives. It was hard work, but I learnt a good deal, and I think it helped me become a better writer.

I have written fiction and non-fiction. My non-fiction books are on a wide range of subjects such as science, animals, the environment, and astronomy. More unusual subjects include Fashion and Death! The most boring book I have ever written was called 150 Daily Maths Lessons!

My fiction is based on real life and the problems people have to face in their lives. This sounds a bit gloomy, but it doesn’t have to be – I hope readers find my Siti’s Sisters series, about a group of teenage girls, entertaining and funny. I had a lot of fun writing them. Siti’s Sisters have their own website at www.sitisisters.co.uk.

It’s very useful being married to another author, David Orme. When we get stuck, we can help each other out. When one or the other of us has been very busy we have even written books for each other, but please don’t tell our publisher that!

I write on my laptop on the kitchen table. Cooking is a hobby of mine, and this means I can write and cook at the same time! This was really useful when I wrote Yucky Food for Ransom Publishing!

You can find out more about us and our books at www.magic-nation.com.

Read our interview with Helen on the Ransom blog.