Hi everyone,

You may have heard already but J. K. Rowling is releasing chapters of her new book ‘The Ickabog’ every weekday on her website for you to enjoy:

https://www.jkrowling.com/j-k-rowling-introduces-the-ickabog/

She is also encouraging children to take part in an illustration competition for you to illustrate the chapters that you read. If you’re lucky, they could even be used in the final print of the book. See more information about the competition below.

Let your imaginations run wild Oulton!

The Illustration Competition

Having decided to publish, I thought how wonderful it would be if children in lockdown, or otherwise needing distraction during the strange and difficult time we’re passing through, illustrated the story for me. There will be suggestions about the illustrations we might need for each chapter on The Ickabog website, but nobody should feel constrained by these ideas. I want to see imaginations run wild! Creativity, inventiveness and effort are the most important things: we aren’t necessarily looking for the most technical skill!

In November 2020, The Ickabog will be published in English in print, eBook and audiobook formats, shortly followed by other languages. The best drawings in each territory will be included in the finished books. As publishers in each territory will need to decide which pictures work best for their own editions, I won’t be personally judging the entries. However, if parents and guardians post their children’s drawing on Twitter using the hashtag #TheIckabog, I’ll be able to share and comment!  To find out more about the Illustration Competition, go to The Ickabog website.