Seawigs Rock Edinburgh!

I'm just back from the Edinburgh Book Festival, where Sarah McIntyre and I got up to all sorts of Seawiggy shenanigans. I think it's safe to say that that Oliver and the Seawigs has been well and truly launched (though that's not going to stop us launching it again on September 4th).

Here are a few snapshots from the Festival. (Photos by Sarah or me, unless otherwise credited).

As soon as we arrived we were jumping in the air with Neil Gaiman, on the orders of festival photographer Christopher Close.

Photo: Hannah Shaddock

Dr Who reviewer Patrick Sproull is horrified by my new casual look...

 ...and also by the news that Sarah McIntyre is to play the 13th Doctor (with husband Stuart as her glamorous assistant).

Margaret Atwood was intrigued by Sarah's seawig...

Photo: Elaine MacQuade

 ...as was Mr Gaiman...

...though it proved a bit too roomy for EIBF's children's programme director Janet Smyth.

Personally, I preferred myself in the Superhero head-wings which Sarah wears when she's promoting her new picture book Superkid.

One of the best things about attending festivals is meeting other authors (Edinburgh is where I first ran into McIntyre, after all.)  Here we are with the brilliant Gillian Philip...

...and here's illustrator Nick Sharrat, posing with Sarah in her full regalia.

And we did a long interviewing with Hande Zapsu Watt from the Istanbul Review.

Of course, there's a lot of hard work going on behind all the glamour. Here's OUP's Elaine MacQuade hoisting Sarah into her Seawigs frock.

                           

All the copies of Oliver and the Seawigs in the festival bookshop had been sold before we did our final event on Tuesday, but it should be in a bookshop near you NOW.

Here's another view of Edinburgh, by book blogger Sister Spooky. Sadly, she'd left before Sarah and I blew in, but her blog includes the wonderful Andy Robb, and some Haggis.