Sally Nicholls
Encyclopedia
Life
Nicholls was born and grew up in Stockton-on-TeesStockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in north east England. It is the major settlement in the unitary authority and borough of Stockton-on-Tees. For ceremonial purposes, the borough is split between County Durham and North Yorkshire as it also incorporates a number of smaller towns including...
. She attended Great Ayton Friends' School
Great Ayton Friends' School
Great Ayton Friends' School in Great Ayton, North Yorkshire, England, was an independent, co-educational, agricultural boarding school, run by the Religious Society of Friends ....
until its closure and subsequently Egglescliffe School until 2001.
On finishing school, Nicholls chose to travel around the world. The author reached Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, following a period of working in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
at a Red Cross hospital.
She returned to the United Kingdom to begin a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
at the University of Warwick
University of Warwick
The University of Warwick is a public research university located in Coventry, United Kingdom...
, covering Philosophy and Literature. Completing her undergraduate degree, she signed up to continue with Bath Spa University
Bath Spa University
Bath Spa University is a university based in, and around, Bath, England. The institution was previously known as Bath College of Higher Education, and later Bath Spa University College...
, taking their "Writing for Young People" master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
, offered by the School of English and Creative Studies there.
As of 2008, Nicholls lives in London. She is a regular at Quaker meetings including Young Friends General Meeting
Young Friends General Meeting
Young Friends General Meeting is the national organisation for young Quakers in the United Kingdom. The General Meetings alluded to in the title are held in February, May and October each year, in various places in the country.-History:...
.
Publications
Nicholls's first novel, Ways to Live ForeverWays to Live Forever
Ways to Live Forever is a children's novel by Sally Nicholls, first published in 2008. The author's debut novel, it was written when Nicholls was 23 years old....
, was written during her time at Bath Spa. The story is that of an 11-year-old child called Sam who is dying of leukaemia (a form of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
), written as the scrapbook of the child.
The book was published by Marion Lloyd Books, part of Scholastic Press in January 2008. It is being made into a movie
Ways to Live Forever (film)
Ways to Live Forever is a drama film by director Gustavo Ron based on the award winning novel of the same name written by Sally Nicholls. The film stars Robbie Kay, Alex Etel, Ben Chaplin, Emilia Fox and Greta Scacchi. The film is produced by Life&Soul Productions, El Capitan Pictures and Formato...
of the same title to be released in 2010.
Nicholls has completed her second book Season of Secrets which is based on a pagan summer god. This novel originally had the working titles The Green Man and The Midnight Hunter. It was published in April 2009.
Recognition
- OrangeOrange UKOrange is a mobile network operator and internet service provider in the United Kingdom, which launched in 1994. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but was purchased by France Télécom in 2000, which then adopted the Orange brand for all its other mobile communications activities...
New Voices children's prize 2006, for short-story All About Ella. - Waterstone's Children's Book PrizeWaterstone's Children's Book PrizeThe Waterstone's Children's Book Prize is an annual award given to a work of children's literature published during the previous year. First awarded in 2005, the purpose of the prize is "to uncover hidden talent in children's writing" and is therefore open only to authors who have published no more...
2008, for Ways to Live Forever. Presented to her by Children's LaureateChildren's LaureateChildren's Laureate is a position awarded in the UK once every two years to a distinguished writer or illustrator of children's books. A biannual bursary of £10,000 is offered...
, Michael RosenMichael RosenMichael Wayne Rosen is a broadcaster, children's novelist and poet and the author of 140 books. He was appointed as the fifth Children's Laureate in June 2007, succeeding Jacqueline Wilson, and held this honour until 2009....
on 13 February 2008. - Glen DimplexGlen DimplexGlen Dimplex is an Irish-based consumer electrical goods firm. It is the world's largest electrical heating business and holds significant market positions in the domestic appliance industry worldwide...
New Writer of the Year 2008, overall winner, for Ways to Live Forever. Nicholls was presented with the prize and a cheque for €20,000 by Martin NaughtonMartin NaughtonMartin Naughton , an Irish entrepreneur, founded Glen Electric in November 1973 with a small manufacturing facility employing just ten people in Newry, Co. Down, Northern Ireland. In 1977, Dimplex, the leading brand in the UK electrical heating market was acquired by Glen Electrics forming the Glen...
on 10 November 2008 in Dublin., for (German language translation of Ways to Live Forever). The prize was presented on 11 February 2009 in Hamburg and shared with the translator Birgitt Kollmann. - Ways to Live Forever (Wie man unsterblich wird) has been shortlisted for the 2009 Deutscher JugendliteraturpreisDeutscher JugendliteraturpreisThe Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis is an annual award established in 1956 by the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth to recognise outstanding works of children's literature. It is Germany's only state-funded literary award. In the past, authors from many countries...
. - Ways To Live Forever was shortlisted for the Redbridge Book Awards 2009 as part of the children's nominees.