Jemma Hatt is the author of The Adventurers series, an incredibly fun adventure series for kids aged 8-12 (but honestly, it’s fun for both kids and kids-at-heart). The first book in the series, The Adventurers and the Cursed Castle recently won the 2020 Children’s Selfies Award and was chosen by young readers as the Gold Award winner of the 2019 Wishing Shelf Book Awards for ages 9-12.
There are currently three books in the series, with (hopefully) more to come! Thanks to Jemma’s generosity, I’ve managed to read and review all three books (with audiobook reviews coming soon!). You can read my reviews of each book by clicking on the titles: The Adventurers and the Cursed Castle, The Adventurers and the Temple of Treasure and The Adventurers and the City of Secrets.
Not only do I have these books in ebook and audiobook, I’ve also purchased the printed versions. I can’t wait to share these adventure stories with my little nephew (he’s a bit too young at the moment but in a few years, I’m definitely going to enjoy introducing him to the Adventurers!) And since I loved the books so much, I thought it would be great to get to know the author behind the stories a bit more!
Tell us a little about yourself.
Hello! My name is Jemma Hatt, I’m a children’s writer living in the countryside in South East England and have written three books so far in ‘The Adventurers Series’ – action and adventure stories for ages 8 and up!
List three fun facts about yourself that we wouldn’t read in your ‘official’ bio.
- I once did work experience behind the scenes on the TV show ‘Big Brother’
- When I lived in America I went to the Super Bowl and Wrestlemania! Both were great fun!
- My family has two border collies who I like to borrow for walks quite often! Barney in ‘The Adventurers’ shares some of their characteristics.
Why did you choose to write books for children?
The books that I enjoyed reading as a child have stayed with me for my whole life. I think that enjoyment of reading is so important for children; books can take you anywhere in the world, or to a brand new world! I want my readers to feel like they could easily step into the adventure themselves and join in alongside the characters.
Who were your favourite authors when you were growing up?
Enid Blyton, Roald Dahl and Frances Hodgson Burnett were my favourite children’s authors. I got into Charles Dickens and Jane Austen when I was still relatively young as well.
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
I’ve wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember; I was always writing stories when I was younger. I stopped writing creatively after university but got back into it a few years later.
What inspired The Adventurers series?
As a child my family would usually go on holiday to Devon and Cornwall and I loved all of the remote beaches and caves. I’ve also always been fascinated with Ancient Egypt; so The Adventurers and the Cursed Castle was a combination of two things that I’m fascinated in.
Do you have more books in The Adventurers series planned?
I’m writing the first draft of book four in the series right now and am starting to think of some ideas for book five!
When you’re not writing, what do you like to do for fun?
I love being outside, in the countryside or on the beach. I’m not the best swimmer, but swimming in the sea on a hot day is one of my happiest feelings! Visiting people and places has been quite restricted for us all with lockdown measures around the world, but I always enjoy a good film, TV series or book!
In your opinion, what is the hardest part of writing or being an author?
Publishing can feel like a big leap of faith. When you release a book into the world you don’t know whether someone is going to love it or hate it (or even read it, for that matter!) and it has your name on it so you have to accept whatever comes! I’m not sure that I would have been as comfortable with it around ten years ago as I am now. I’m grateful to everyone who takes the time to read the books or listen to the audiobooks; it still feels a bit unreal when a child, parent or teacher writes to me to say how much they liked them.
Aside from The Adventurers books, do you have any other projects coming up that you’d like to share with us?
I’ve been commissioned to write a book which is secret at the moment, so I can’t share too much about it just yet! It’s an adventure story but the format is quite different to my usual books… that’s all I’ll say for now!
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Keep up to date with Jemma and her writing:
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