Oscar Lawson, 18, has been supporting Honeypot since he was 10. Raising over £7000, he was even invited to 10 Downing Street back in 2018 for his amazing fundraising, however this November he has achieved his greatest achievement yet!

What have you been up to since we last spoke in Feb 2021?

I’ve been promoting Honeypot’s amazing work at my school, securing them as our charity of the year. The ride, stride, and glide saw over 50 pupils and staff compete, raising over £9,200 for Honeypot ! In my village, I also work with 2 shops who have collecting tins for Honeypot, bringing in over £10 per month through small change, making every little thing count.

However, this November, after working with a publisher for nearly 2 years now, I released my first childrens book! It’s incredibly exciting that it has been published and is available for people to buy. The book, called “TIGER: The secret intelligence group looking for a brilliant mind” is aimed at kids aged 8-13, and features a quirky 13-year-old genius coder who is recruited by a top-secret organisation to solve mysteries with them. The book has action, adventure, suspense, and a high-octane storyline. Plus, up to £1.50 per book goes to Honeypot.

Why do you continue to support Honeypot with the proceeds of your book?

For the same reason I started supporting you nearly 8 years ago- Honeypot is a superb charity doing much-needed work with incredible but vulnerable young people. I recently got the opportunity to visit the New Forest residential house which renewed my enthusiasm to support Honeypot, it’s such a lovely place where young carers can relax and enjoy respite from the pressures of home life. I can’t think of a more worthy cause to support, and donate the proceeds of my book towards.

How long have you been writing?

I have always enjoyed creative writing, and penned lots of short stories for my family which is a great way to get started. It was only 5 years ago that I wanted to get some of my work printed so I worked with a local printer to do a small run of 100 copies of a pick-your-path book, where every page you could choose where you wanted the story to go. I managed to sell all the copies to my family and friends at my school, and raise some money for Honeypot, but I hadn’t thought about writing a proper full-length book until the summer lockdown of 2020.

Where did you get the inspiration to write this book?

As an eager reader, I remember loving some of the classics like the Alex Rider books, Cherub series, and my all-time favourite the Mysterious Benedict Society. My junior school librarian was very encouraging and I devoured lots of great action and adventure kids’ books, and it’s in large part thank to her that I decided to write my own book. TIGER draws bits from all my favourite kids books, and I wanted to make it more interactive for readers, so as Archie the protagonist goes about solving mysteries, there are some puzzles in the back of the book for readers to have a go at too.

How long did it take you to write it? Did you have any struggles?

I properly set my mind to writing over lockdown 2020, which involved a few weeks of devising the storyline, then probably 2 months of writing every day, even just short amounts, to combat writers block and stop myself procrastinating. It worked well as by the time school started in September I had a completed manuscript which my family kindly read and gave me feedback and proofreading help!

Then another struggle was to find an agent or publisher who wanted to progress the book towards publication. It’s a competitive market and you have to be resilient – It was hard not to be disheartened as I must have contacted 20 or 30 agents and publishers before Austin Macauley Publishing got back to me and said they liked my manuscript. When I got that email I was thrilled and have enjoyed working closely with them through editing, designing, and starting to publicise the book now. They also give me a fair royalty payment from each book which is why I can proudly donate so much to Honeypot!

What have you learnt in the process?

Writing a full book was very different from short stories but it was enjoyable! You have to think further ahead in the book and just be patient and resilient through the whole process. I’ve learnt how to work with professionals in the industry as I have my own proper contract and that’s been rewarding and fun. Marketing is also a challenge amidst the vast amount of books published all the time so I had to develop my unique selling points as a young author writing in aid of an amazing charity, so hopefully all that will pay off.

I’ll get my first sales report and royalties in about 6 months so we’ll see how well the book is selling and how much money we are raising for Honeypot.

What would you say to other young people who are aspiring writers?

It’s a cliché but just write! No one becomes an author by just dreaming of it without actually getting started. Write lots, write short stories, start planning and drafting full books, and get lots and lots of feedback from your family and friends so you can hone your skills and develop your unique style. Then go out there and either approach lots of agents and publishers (if you’re prepared to be rejected 29 out of 30 times from my experience), and don’t be phased if people say no, or consider self-publishing. Maybe you could start a blog with your stories or showcase them in your local newspaper – just have a go and get creative with how you share your writing as much as with your stories.

Of course, I’d be happy to help and give advice and read other people’s work too, so get in touch at my social media accounts on Instagram and on Facebook.

buy

A great Christmas present for kids aged 8-13 interested in action, adventure, and cool gadgets. Available on Amazon, Waterstones, and anywhere other good books are sold!

Honeypot is extremely thankful for Oscar’s continued support for young carers!

Find out the numerous ways you could help Honeypot here.

Honeypot supporter Oscar becomes an author!