Polly Ho-Yen
Author Tutor at The Novelry
The Exciting Children's Fiction Author
Nominated for multiple awards including The Carnegie Medal
Polly's first novel, Boy in the Tower, was published in 2014 by Random House Children's Publishers, and nominated for the Carnegie Medal and shortlisted for the Blue Peter Book Award and the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize. Her second novel Where Monsters Lie was published in 2016 and her third novel, Fly Me Home, was published in 2017. Both of these novels were also nominated for the Carnegie Medal.
Writing for children? Polly's the author tutor for you.
Polly Ho-Yen studied English at Birmingham University before working in publishing for several years. Polly used to be a primary school teacher in London and while she was teaching there she used to get up very early in the morning to write stories. The first of those stories was Boy In The Tower. She lives in Bristol with her husband and daughter. If you're writing Children's, Young Adult, or Dystopian fiction, you'll find Polly a warm, inventive and encouraging tutor.
Boy In The Tower
(Middle-Grade Children's Fiction.)
Ade loves living at the top of a tower block. From his window, he feels like he can see the whole world stretching out beneath him. His mum doesn’t really like looking outside – but it’s going outside that she hates. She’s happier sleeping all day inside their tower, where it’s safe. But one day, other tower blocks on the estate start falling down around them and strange, menacing plants begin to appear. Now their tower isn’t safe anymore. Ade and his mum are trapped and there’s no way out . . .
Fly Me Home
(Middle-Grade Children's Fiction.)
Feeling lost and alone in a strange new city, Leelu wishes she could fly away back home – her real home where her dad is, thousands of miles away. London is cold and grey and the neighbours are noisy and there’s concrete everywhere. But Leelu is not alone; someone is leaving her gifts outside her house – wonders which give her curious magical powers.
Powers which might help her find her way home . . .
Where Monsters Lie
(Middle-Grade Children's Fiction.)
The children of Mivtown have grown up hearing the legend of the monsters of the loch. But it’s only a story – a warning to stay away from the water. Then strange things start happening in the village. Effie’s rabbit Buster escapes from a locked hutch, her mum disappears without trace and slugs start to infest her home.
Along with her best friend Finn, Effie begins to hunt for clues to solve the mysteries of Mivtown. Could this all be connected to the legend? Is it really just a story or is there something lurking in those deep, dark waters?
Dark Lullaby
(Dystopian Science Fiction.)
Kit is an ‘out’, she doesn’t want children. Infertility is universal and she has witnessed the agonies of her friends and sister going through the painful and dangerous fertility treatment, Induction, and then struggling to keep their babies, and cannot face going through it herself. But then she meets Thomas, and gradually the idea of a baby becomes more and more important. She and Thomas go through Induction and have a baby girl, Mimi. At first everything goes well but then the small mistakes, ISPs (Insufficient Standard of Parenting), build up and suddenly Kit is face to face with the idea of losing Mimi, and she is forced to ask herself how far she will go to keep her family together.
The Day No One Woke Up
(Middle-Grade Children's Fiction.)
Something strange is happening in Ana’s city . . . she’s the only one awake. Confused and curious, Ana sets off to explore, bumping into the one other person who’s been able to rouse themselves – her ex–best friend, Tio. On a mission to discover what’s happening, Ana and Tio journey through the city looking for clues, their friendship mending with every step. When a mysterious creature suddenly materialises in front of them, Ana realises they’ve found the answer they’ve been looking for. But one question still remains: Why them?
My Other Life
(Children's Picture Book.)
Mae spends a lot of time in hospitals. She's had asthma since she was little and sometimes she just can't breathe. She was in hospital the very first time she saw the hole - a tear in the universe which seems to appear only to her. Before she knows it she is drawn into a parallel world, where things aren't quite the same...
This powerful fantasy story is a great way to talk about chronic illness with children. With beautiful black-and-white illustrations from Patricia Hu throughout.