MEET AN AUTHOR QUESTIONNAIRE

Name: Joan Peake

Date of Birth: 3 February, 1927

Where were you born and brought up? Cardiff

Where did you go to school?

Gladstone Junior and Cathays High School

What did you particularly like and dislike about school?

I loved school altogether and was sorry when I had to leave. There was nothing I particularly disliked – except perhaps not excelling at maths when I went to High School.

What did you want to be as a child?

I wanted to work in an office and wear the smart black dresses with white collars and cuffs I saw in my mother’s dressmaking books.

What was your favourite book as a child?

Little Women.

Do you have any hobbies?

I like gardening, baking, making jam, knitting – and, of course, writing.

What makes you happy?

Being in the garden on a sunny day.

What makes you angry?

Seeing pictures of starving and ill-treated children on TV.

When did you start to write?

In Junior school – especially after reading Little Women. I wanted to be like Jo.

Which one was your first book?

The first published one was Great Gran’s Diary.

Do you find it easy to write?

Yes, when I have an idea for a plot.

Where do you write?

I write in the smallest bedroom in my house where I have a desk and my computer.

From where do you get your ideas?

Largely from my own experiences, but also, I think they stem from the subconscious.

What advice would you give to someone starting to write?

The same advice I was given: ‘Write about what you know.’

Are some of your characters based on yourself?

Partly.

Which of your books is your favourite?

Great Gran’s Diary.

Which is your favourite character?

In Great Gran’s Diary my favourite character is Rose. But the one I enjoyed writing about is Emmaline – a witch in a book that hasn’t been published.

2

Is there something you would like to change about yourself?

Yes, I would like to have more self-confidence.

Which are your favourite television programmes? News programmes, Emmerdale, The last of the Summer Wine, and Gardeners’ World.

What is your favourite food?

Taunton chicken.

What makes you laugh?

Comedy shows like Open all hours; The Good Life ; Keeping up Appearances; Dad’s Army etc.

Are there any secrets you’d like to share with the children of Wales?

I wish I’d worked harder in High School – as so many people do. Education is a great gift and we don’t always realise it when we are young.