A group of Keswick School pupils have published a novel that has been two years in the making.
The school’s Writers & Illustrators Club have team-written What Happened at South Grove Museum? – a young adult political/historical thriller.
The members, who range from year seven to year 13, have met weekly to plan, write and edit the book.
This is the club’s third published novel over 10 years. Other books written in the club’s pseudonym, KS Aitken, are The Reader, 2014 and The Puzzle of Hazel Tree Farm in 2020.
Club leader, Helen Robinson, a published author herself as Helen Haraldsen, is amazed by the current group.
“All of the books we’ve written are fantastic, of course,” she said. “But this one has a particularly ambitious plot and took a lot of work, both in the planning stages and the editing at the end to ensure the storyline flowed and the resolution worked.
“The discussions we had around how to end such a complex story were really quite humbling. The students’ creativity and problem solving skills were a joy to behold and the way they interacted with each other so respectfully to ensure the story was the best it could be, makes me so proud of them.”
Another teacher and keen writer, Claire Thomas, also worked with the club on this project and was equally impressed by the determination, perseverance and patience members showed throughout the process.
She said: “The editing part was hard and went on a long time but they kept turning up each week, and giving up was never an option! It’s been a real team effort.”
What Happened at South Grove Museum? by KS Aitken is available to buy in paperback from Amazon for £4.99.
