Anne Fine wants to encourage all children to read. She believes this is more important than ever in the modern world where we are bombarded with electronic media and entertainment. 'Now that youngsters are surrounded by screens of all sorts, they need to be able to interact with the real world around them. Everything happens too fast [on screen] and children develop a high tolerance for images, but this reduces their natural curiosity. Books demand more effort, but it is really worth it,' Fine says. She should know. Fine is the author of more than 40 books - mostly for young readers - that have won numerous awards including the prestigious Carnegie medal and the Whitbread Children's Novel Award. While she is not a great fan of prizes, she appreciates that they are a way of recognising quality writing. 'Nowadays publishers often only accept work that will be commercially successful. And that is not always the best.' Fine, who is now a grandmother, recently spent two years as children's laureate in Britain and enjoyed promoting greater access to literature, especially among visually-impaired young people. She also helped co-ordinate three poetry collections. Her latest book Frozen Billy, which was published last month, is the first set in the past. 'I chose the late Victorian world of the music hall. It is a rather spooky story about two children, Clarrie and Will, and their uncle who is a brilliant ventriloquist.' Clarrie and Will come up with a clever scheme to enhance their uncle's fame with some unexpected consequences. Although she began writing at school and encourages children to write, Fine warns of the dangers of trying to write a book too soon. 'I was simply given a title by the teacher and about an hour of peace and quiet. I scribbled and it flew out of my head. But to write a good book, writers need more experience of life than most children have. Children should read, read and read whenever they get the chance. And they should join a library.' Fine herself began writing one bleak winter's day in Edinburgh, Scotland when a blizzard prevented her from getting to her local library with her infant daughter. 'I sat down and began to write a book of my own and never stopped writing,' she says. She tells readers in her website ( www.annefine.co.uk ) that 'the best advice I was ever given at school was: 'find out what you like doing most in the world and then find someone who'll pay you to do it'. Since books have always been my greatest pleasure, it's not surprising that I've ended up in a career that entails mostly reading and writing'. Fine encourages young writers to write things they would want to read themselves. She recognises the importance of knowing the basics of punctuation and grammar, but says that budding authors should 'write freestyle and find their own voice and not worry about what other people will say'. Anne Fine will be holding reading sessions for students at the British Council. Two extra sessions have been added due to heavy demand - Thursday (4-4.45pm and 5-5.45pm) and Saturday (9-9.45am and 10-10.45am)