Deborah Roxburgh Author

Deborah Roxburgh is a former SEND specialist and creator of social stories. 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.