Posted Thursday September 17th 2009
by James Smith

All good things come to an end, and Patrick Ness’s tenure as Booktrust’s first-ever online writer in residence is no exception.

It’s been an exciting six months: Patrick’s written 20 blog posts, ten sets of writers’ tips and an exclusive short story about how Viola came to crashland on Todd’s planet (if you’re a fan of The Knife of Never Letting Go and The Ask and the Answer – and why wouldn’t you be? – you’ll realise what a coup this was). ‘The New World’ has been viewed more than 1,500 times since the end of June.

Patrick’s also been interviewed by a class of knowledgeable and enquiring teenagers, and a teacher has written a lesson plan for The Knife of Never Letting Go.

Somehow during all of this, he found time to finish the third book in the Chaos Walking series, which we were told in 3 August’s blog entry is to be called Monsters of Men. Another exclusive!

And (can there really be an ‘and’?) he ran the London marathon, bloodying his leg in the process, but getting himself patched up and carrying on regardless.

Throughout Patrick’s virtual residency we have been given a fascinating insight into the writing process. If we can distil one essential nugget from the many that Patrick has provided, it is that writers should work hard and believe in themselves. Okay, that’s two things, but they do seem to go hand in hand. Patrick’s writing – be it a blog entry, a piece of fiction or a writers’ tip – is a joy to read, precisely because it has been crafted and shaped to be exactly what Patrick wants it to be. It helps that he is witty and one of the most exciting storytellers around.

So we wave a fond virtual farewell to Patrick with many thanks, and we look forward to Monsters of Men with an almost unbearable sense of excitement. Roll on next May.

(The fruits of Patrick Ness’s online residency can be found in the writer in residence section of this website.)

Coming next: our second online writer in residence, Nii Ayikwei Parkes.