Debbie Roxburgh Author

Debbie Roxburgh has worked in classrooms with children with SEND needs, as well as supporting teenagers. This is her debut novel. Debbie describers her work, professional experience and writing history here:

'I have spent a large part of my working life supporting children and young adults with special
needs. Being immersed in that environment, I quickly became aware of the need for diverse
books. I currently volunteer with reading in a local primary school.
I discovered my tribe in the online writing community, Write Mentor, where the support is
second to none. I write young adult, middle grade and lower middle grade books.
I have always been an avid reader. My dad worked in the book trade so our house was always
full of books and I would regularly devour a whole book in a day. One of my MG books was placed in the Chicken House Open Coop Competition and another shortlisted in the Skylark Marvellous Middle Grade Competition.
In 2024 I won the Wells Festival of Literature Local Writer’s Award with Flyboy.'

What or who inspires you?

The young people I have worked with continue to inspire me to write. Being a part of their
lives and watching them grow is very much ingrained in my stories.

How you came to write your novel

Overhearing how some of the teenage boys I worked with communicated emotional issues
got me thinking. There was an awkwardness around how they approached these kind of
topics, a fear of losing face and perhaps being seen as weak. Then one of them adopted the
voice of a well-known fictional character and immediately spoke more freely.
This gave me the idea of placing two teenage boys in a highly emotional situation with their
shared love of all things Star Wars to help them through a challenging journey.