Sophie Kirtley
Sophie Kirtley is a prize-winning poet and author. Her debut novel, The Wild Way Home, was published by Bloomsbury in 2020; it was Waterstones Children’s Book of the Month and has been shortlisted for numerous awards. Her second book, The Way to Impossible Island, was selected as one of Waterstones’ Best Children’s Paperbacks of 2021. Sophie grew up in Northern Ireland where she spent her childhood climbing on hay bales, rolling down sand dunes and leaping the raw Atlantic waves. Nowadays she lives in Wiltshire with her husband, three children and their mini-menagerie of pets and wild things. Sophie loves reading, writing and inspiring others to be creative too. Sophie has appeared at many festivals, including Bath Children’s Literature Festival, Cheltenham Literary Festival and Oxford Literary Festival and she has led writing workshops for Booktrust, National Literacy Trust and the Arts’ Council.