Well, I'm softer than my face would suggest...

Hello pop kids

Firstly, any US readers in the vicinity of Hurricane Katrina, I hope you guys and your families are all well and safe. After a very soggy summer, we've had two glorious days of sunshine in London. Yet, I'm sitting at home on this Bank Holiday Monday, trying desperately to clear up some freelance work. I've just recently started writing a column for ELLE UK called "I wish I didn't..." and I need to write two at once as I'm heading off on my holidays next weekend. There'll be a week in Devon before I fly out to New York for almost a fortnight.

I'll be doing a book reading and signing while I'm there at:

Books Of Wonder, W18th Street
Between 12am and 2pm on Saturday, 17th September

I think some other teen writers will be reading and if anyone's around, hey, come down! I've only ever done a reading once before at the little launch party we had for Guitar Girl at the Boogaloo Bar (favourite haunt of Pete Docherty and Kate Moss!) just up the road from me in Highgate, I had a terrible choking fit somewhere in the middle so I'm hoping there won't be a repeat performance.

What's the next item on the agenda? A question from Rowena:

Dylan and Edie: were these names chosen because of Bob Dylan and Edie Sedgwick, who had were allegedly involved at one point? Just curious.

YES! Yes! Yes! Well, spotted! I was absolutely obsessed with Edie Sedgwick when I was a teenager, after reading this wonderful book, Edie: An American Biography by Jean Stein. So, when it came to writing Diary Of A Crush, I had to call my heroine Edie and Dylan was a natural choice for the love interest. (Incidentally, Rowena, did you know that Dylan's Blonde On Blonde album was meant to have been written for Edie, especially Just Like A Woman?) There's been a renewed interest in Edie Sedgwick, with a film of her life planned called Factory Girl, allegedly starring Sienna MIller and a lot of the catwalk shows for Autumn/Winter 2005 picked Edie as their inspiration. She was tall and skinny with hair dyed silver like her mentor, Andy Warhol, and wore skimpy little t-shirts and thick black tights when she went out. Not a look I could ever carry off!

I'd also like to thank Lady Julieanne for her lovely comment. What happened to J17 was an absolute tragedy. I can say no more. And I was really devestated when I found out this week that Ellegirl UK, which I launched with one of my very dear friends, Sarah Bailey (who gave me my very first full-time job when she edited Just Seventeen as it was then,) and went on to edit, is closing too.

Oh, and I've had to disable anonymous comments on this blog, after it got spam-bombed. But I would encourage all of you to have your own blog, especially if you want to be writers. Sharing your thoughts and feelings every day is great experience.

Anyway, columns to finish, laundry to do.

Be safe, be well, be stylin'!

S x