Holly Smale

Holly Smale
Born (1981-12-07) 7 December 1981
England, UK
Occupation Writer
Nationality British
Education English literature
Alma mater University of Bristol
Genre Young-adult novels
Notable works Geek Girl
Notable awards Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2014
Roald Dahl Funny Prize 2013

Holly Smale (born 7 December 1981) is a British writer. Her first published book, Geek Girl, won the 2014 Waterstones Children's Book Prize and was shortlisted for the Roald Dahl Funny Prize 2013. Smale is writing a 6-book teen fiction series, also called Geek Girl. The final book, Forever Geek, was published by HarperCollins in March 2017.

Personal life

Smale was born on 7 December 1981 in England. From an early age she loved reading and writing, and has stated that her childhood experiences of being bullied have influenced the subjects she chooses to write about. At the age of 15, Smale was recruited by a London modelling agency and became a fashion model. She modelled for two years and has stated in interviews that she didn't enjoy it.[1][2][3]

Smale studied at University of Bristol, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and a Master of Arts in Shakespeare studies. She has held various jobs, including teaching English in Japan, and has travelled extensively.[1][2][3]

Geek Girl series

Originally meant to be a trilogy, the Geek Girl series will be six books upon completion. The humorous fiction follows the life of Harriet Manners, a nerdy 15-year-old girl who tries out modelling to "reinvent herself". The first book in the series, Geek Girl, received favourable reviews and was the Number 1 debut teen fiction book of 2013 in the UK. It won the 2014 Waterstones' Children's Book Prize in the young adult category.[4][5] It also received the 2014 Leeds Book Award in the ages 11–14 category.[6] and was shortlisted for the Roald Dahl Funny Prize 2013, the Queen of Teen award 2014 and the Branford Boase Award 2014.

For World Book Day (UK and Ireland) 2015, Smale also wrote an extra spin-off book titled Geek Drama set between Model Misfit and Picture Perfect. Also, not part of the main series a Christmas special named All Wrapped Up was published in 2015, and a Summer special named Sunny Side Up was published in 2016.

References

  1. 1 2 Benfield Reading Activists; Smale, Holly (18 June 2014). "Holly Smale: I think people are starting to embrace what being 'a geek' actually means". The Guardian. Retrieved 2014-10-11.
  2. 1 2 Chilton, Martin (5 June 2014). "Geek Girl was a cathartic book to write, says Holly Smale". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2014-10-11.
  3. 1 2 Smale, Holly. "About TWG". The Write Girl. Retrieved 2014-10-11.
  4. ↑ "Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2014 winners announced". Waterstones blog (waterstones.com/blog). 3 April 2014. Retrieved 2014-10-15.
  5. ↑ "Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2014". Waterstones (waterstones.com). Retrieved 2014-10-11.
  6. ↑ "2014 Leeds Book Awards". Yorkshire Evening Post. 24 May 2014. Retrieved 2014-10-11.
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