I GOT THE JOB…

By finding out what I was actually passionate about. I was a freelance sub editor in magazines, increasingly bored, not paid well. I asked myself, what brought you joy as a child? And it was drawing funny animals. So I did an MA in children’s book illustration at the Cambridge School of Art one day a week over two and a half years. A publisher saw my final project – a picture book called Good Little Wolf – and offered me a deal. That was 10 years ago and it still feels surreal.

MY TYPICAL DAY…

Usually begins with life admin – I tidy up; get things organised. Then I sit down in my studio at the top of my house. The walls are white, with no pictures – it helps me think clearly. When I’m starting from scratch, inventing stories and characters, I have to be calm and quiet. If I’m in the middle of a project, it’s a great indulgence to listen to music while I’m working – Björk, Pet Shop Boys, New Order. Other times, I’ll do the illustrations for another author’s book, which is fun, too. I eat lunch around 12pm, usually toast and eggs. Then I’ll work until around 3pm when I pick my son up from school.

WHEN I’M TIRED OR STRESSED I…

Go for a walk on Hampstead Heath with my headphones on.

Meet Nadia Shireen, the children’s author who could’ve been a DJ