Rise Up

Amanda Li specialises in creating non-fiction, humour and activity titles for children and teenagers. Since becoming a full-time writer, she has learnt how to run a marathon in space, how to communicate with aliens and how to survive alone on a desert island. She hopes to use one of these skills in the future.

Amanda has worked for clients from The Imperial War Museum to The Scouts Association and has had more than seventy books published. She also works as a ghost writer and as a creative consultant, devising ideas for children's brands and licences. Before becoming a freelance writer, Amanda studied illustration and design, then worked as a commissioning editor in children's publishing for many years. She lives in south-west London with her husband and two daughters. Amy Blackwell was born and raised in the middle of England to two creative parents, and was actively encouraged from day one to paint, print, make, mend and draw. It was in her blood and unavoidable.

She's inspired by the weird and wonderful, clashing colours, the natural world, history, fashion and folklore - which is to say most things. Her drawings appear in all shapes and sizes, sometimes appearing on a digital platform or a bit of cardboard, wooden beads to fabric, walls to watercolours. Amy's work is bright and colourful, playful, a bit scribbly and often can be a little bit of an overload on the eyes. "If in doubt, cover it in patterns" is a quote she could quite happily live by.

www.amyblackwell.co.uk
@amyjpeg (100+K followers)

Stands out for readability and range. Punchy biographies are interspersed with how-to-tips, from knot-tying to leadership skills, encouraging young readers to have a go themselves The Guardian