Sarah (SF) Layzell - Author and Editor
- litkidsmagazine
- Jul 18
- 4 min read
Originally from Lancashire, Sarah now lives near Cambridge. They enjoy playing football, going on train journeys, rambling in the Fens, and looking at the stars. Sarah's debut novel for readers aged 8+, Cottonopolis, is a story of family, friendship and first love set in Victorian Manchester. It was published by Northodox Press and is longlisted for the Little Rebels Children's Book Award 2025.
1. Where do you get your ideas from?
One of my favourite ways to get ideas is to take long walks. My first book, Cottonopolis, is set in Manchester, where I used to live. And the book I’m working on at the moment is set where I live now. Being out in the environment and experiencing the buildings, rivers, plants, birdsong, sunsets and landmarks that are here really helps me to imagine how characters might experience them. This is especially important when I’m writing about people in the past: even though we are from different times, me and my characters have something in common because we are in the same place.
2. If you could travel anywhere in the world to do your work, where would you go?
This is a really good question. Ideally I would like a time machine or a space rocket. But you asked for a place in this world, so I will answer properly: Antarctica. I have been learning about the ship Endurance which Ernest Shackleton and his crew sailed to the Antarctic. The ship got stuck in thick ice and eventually sank, but the crew kept themselves alive and eventually escaped to safety. It’s an incredible story, and as I just mentioned, I am much better at writing about places when I have experienced them for myself.
3. What’s your favourite genre to write?
My favourite genre to write is historical fiction. A lot of the history we learn in schools is about famous people doing important things. It’s also important to learn about ordinary people doing ordinary things, and so that’s who my books are about. Although I love adding a splash of magic and myth too, to keep things interesting for the readers.
The other reason I like to write historical fiction is because queer people like me are not always included in stories about the past, especially in children’s books. But we were always here!
4. What is your writing practice like?
I start by doing lots of research and collecting scraps of ideas like a magpie: photos, doodles, memories, quotes from other books. This can take many years, even though my books are pretty short. Eventually the ideas start to take a shape in my head and I can starting writing individual conversations and scenes. The tricky bit for me is weaving them all together and finding the threads that run all the way through which tell the reader what the story is about.
5. Does anyone in your family read your books?
Yes! My daughter, who is nearly 8, asked me to read Cottonopolis to her. When we got to the end she said it was “sad but cute”, which is my favourite review of the book. And we make up stories together all the time. She also helped me write a poem recently called “Feast”, which is about how amazing humans can be when we work together.
6. If you could pick a single fruit to create a story around, what would it be?
I love this question, thank you for asking it! I would like to write a book of stories which are each about a different fruit: grapefruits, lemons, pineapples, kiwis, you name it. But if I had to pick just one, it would be strawberries. My grandad told me a story about working on a fruit farm when he was a young man. It was not long after the end of the Second World War, and there were young workers from all over Europe working together on the farm. There were even workers from countries that had been at war with each other, such as Holland and Germany. I would like to write a story about these young people learning to live together on a strawberry farm. That’s a big theme in my writing: how do people build relationships in tough circumstances?
7. If you could choose only one thing to do to inspire yourself what would it be?
Doodling. Drawing doodles has saved me from so much boredom, and has also inspired me. Sometimes a simple swirl or pattern can remind me of something I had long forgotten.
8. What is the most valuable piece of advice you’ve been given about writing?
Writing can be a team effort. We sometimes think of writers as people who live in their own imaginations and who have a very lonely job. But talking about your ideas with other people, making a piece of art together, reading other people’s writing, reading aloud or performing to others – these are all things that will improve your creative practice.
Sarah, thank you for the wisdom highlighted in your interview: humans really are amazing when we work together! Please check out Sarah's debut novel, Cottonopolis, in our Bookshop and follow them on social media. Keep shining!
Website: https://sflayzell.com/
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