A.F. Steadman, author of the 'Skandar ' series - Bestselling children's author discusses why experience makes things tough, a frantic five years, and trying to find your voices

This week we chat to A.F Steadman, the bestselling author behind the phenomenal 'Skandar series'. The fantasy saga has taken the literary world by storm, was reported to have sold for a seven-figure deal, and was believed to be the biggest advance ever given to a debut childrens author. The series is praised as the biggest children's fantasy since Harry Potter.

In this episode, we dive into her journey from practicing law to becoming a celebrated writer, explore the inspirations behind her imaginative world of bloodthirsty unicorns, and look inside her working day.

The first, 'Skandar and the Unicorn Thief', was selected as the Waterstones Children's Book of Year 2022, and won an Indie Book Award in 2023. The 3rd, 'Skandar and the Chaos Trials' is out in paperback right now, and the 5th and final book is released in August 2025.

You can hear why it was inspired by a train journey listening to James Blunt, and why she sat on it for years simply drawing ideas before finally getting the first book out in a frantic rush. We discuss her busy 5 years, sometimes working on 3 books at the same time, in a rush to get these stories published. Annabel runs through why big screens don't work for her, how she knows she's good in the morning... but struggles to get up and make the most of it, and whether she's found her voice yet.

You can get a copy of the books here - https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/writersroutine

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