Words and Pictures with Justyn Edwards

As a debut middle grade author he signed a six figure deal but that was just the beginning of his journey

This week we’re joined by middle grade author Justyn Edwards. He shares what surprised him the most about publishing after signing a six figure deal for his debut, why he learned magic tricks to promote his events and what advice he has for other writers.

Justyn Edwards is not very good at nuclear physics or DIY. In fact, some of his worst moments have involved combining these interests. Thankfully, when he writes books people seem to enjoy reading them, and this is how he spends most of his time.

His debut The Great Fox Illusion was Blackwell’s Children’s Book of the Month, listed by Waterstones as one of their Best Children’s Books of the Month, and a Toppsta Best Book of the Month.

It won the Kernow Youth Book Award and was listed for the Adrien Prize, the Phoenix Book Award, the Children’s Literature Festivals Book Awards, the Fantastic Book Awards, and the Dudley Children’s Book Award.

It is already being published in half a dozen languages and all three books in the Great Fox series have been optioned for TV.

Why are words and pictures important to you?

There are very few illustrations in my novels so I’m going to concentrate on words. I’ve always loved them. Becoming absorbed in a good book has been a real source of joy to me, so words are important because of the effect they have.

The excitement of wanting to turn another page, find out what happens next, keep on reading. It’s something my brain seems to crave.

Did you always want to be an author?

Yes. Either that or a racing driver, and writing is a bit safer. I’ve always loved getting stuck into a good novel, and writing is just having a go yourself. If you like stories, why not join in? All you need is a pen and paper.

So, from a young age I was constantly pestering my parents with my latest assault on the best seller chart. Some of the stories even made sense.

How did you go from having an idea for a story to getting your first book published?

I wanted to write a book but didn’t think I could produce sentences that were worth reading. However, I had loads of ideas.

My plan was to write a screenplay because I thought I would have the basic writing skills to turn my concept into a script, but as I started to put it together, I realised that unless I found a spare million down the back of the sofa, it would never get made into anything. So, I stopped writing.

But I was left with an idea that I couldn’t let go of, and that left me with no choice but to make myself a strong coffee and try to write an actual book.

Over the next few months, it turned into a YA thriller. Having finished it, I thought I’d send it off to a couple of agents and never expected to hear anything again.

I was very surprised when an agent took a real interest. He made some suggestions about how to improve it - I’d made one or two classic story telling mistakes (my protagonist was a bit of a loner and didn’t connect enough with other characters his age).

So, I took his suggestions and… did a bad job of implementing them. I think I was a bit sick of the manuscript by then and exhausted by the process. In the end, the book came to nothing. However, I had learnt that maybe, just maybe, I could actually write.

I love middle-grade mystery stories, and it was then that I came up with the idea for The Great Fox Illusion. I had watched some episodes of Britain’s Got Talent, seen some magic acts, and had a mild brainwave. I love a good mystery.

What if the puzzles at the heart of the book were magic tricks? What if I could write something that was a kind of trick, with story elements that were like sleight of hand and misdirection?

And so, I wrote another book and sent that off to a stack of agents and Kirsty at Morgan Green Creatives took me on. After that, the actual process of getting a publishing deal with Walker was really easy because she did all that. It only took a few weeks after signing with her.

Is writing your full-time job? Has it always been your full-time job or have you done any other work alongside it?

It’s been my full-time job for the last three years. When I wrote The Great Fox Illusion, I was still working as a software engineer.

There are similarities between writing and programming – both are highly cerebral and involve weaving complicated concepts in a sustained creative process. But of the two, I much prefer making stuff up. It’s just such fun.

Was there anything that surprised you about how the publishing industry works?

Yes. I didn’t know anything about publishing when I started. When Walker signed me, it was a six-figure deal in the Bookseller and there was quite a fanfare.

I assumed that after this they would heavily promote the series. I waited for a helicopter to whisk me off to celebrity filled events, or to declare open the latest Great Fox billboard in Picadilly Circus.

There would surely be lasers, fireworks, and an image of the book projected onto the surface of the moon.

Or not.

In the three years of publishing the Great Fox books, Walker only put a single Great Fox related post on their Instagram account. They did plenty of other things, but I learnt that getting published is only the start of the next phase.

You need to be a self-starter when it comes to writing, but you need to bring that same focus to advertising because without promotion no one will hear of your book.

The market is saturated. Cutting through is a challenge. I think I’m still on a steep learning curve in this area.

Do you have a writing routine? If so, can you tell us about it?

Over the last few years, I’ve had special writing desks, chairs, rooms, zones, and not used a single one of them. I write on a laptop, and I do it on the sofa, in the garden, in the coffee shop, in the car (although, not while driving).

The only consistent thing is that I work best in the mornings. When I’m pushing on with a book I like to start really early. There is something very special about being ahead of the day and I often find that first thing is when I have lots of good ideas.

When I’m really in the zone, my brain seems to start writing while I’m still asleep and I'll wake up with whole sections finished. Good job I’m not a landscape painter.

Can you tell us what you're working on now?

I’m currently working on two new projects, both middle-grade adventure/mystery/thrillers. When they’re done it will be the bumpy and scary process of seeing if anyone is interested.

Where do you get your ideas from?

I’m not really sure. I often have concepts pop into my head in the shower, while going for a walk or cleaning my teeth. Perhaps I should combine these activities and see what happens.

Can you give us any insights into how you promote yourself and your work?

When I wrote The Great Fox Illusion on my quiet sofa at home, I had no idea I would also need to go into schools and stand up in front of hundreds of kids and entertain them. I’ve since learnt that events in bookshops, libraries and schools are an essential part of the job.

The Great Fox series is about working out how magic tricks are done so I’ve learnt to do a lot of tricks, some of which are pretty good (even if I do say so myself).

How good are your detective skills? Come along to one of my events and find out. See if YOU can work out how the tricks are done.

What advice would you give someone who wants to get published?

Be resilient – there will be a lot of rejection. Be patient – agents and publishers will take a long time to reject you. Make your work the best it can be - write it, re-write it, put it in a drawer and come back to it and write it again. Then re-write it.

But most important – have fun with it. Love the book. Love the story. Enjoy the process. You’re inventing something totally new and that is an amazing thing. Go you!

You can find out more about Justin on his website, instagram, Bluesky or X.

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