Death in the Spotlight has been out for a month in the UK and Ireland – and so has Daisy Wells! If you’ve read it, you’ll know that in this book, Daisy finally gets her first crush … on another girl.
I’m not going to tell you who, just in case you haven’t picked up Death in the Spotlight yet – but it’s a story line that I’m so excited to have written, and I’m thrilled at the responses it’s had from readers.
Now my friend Charlie Morris, who read an early draft of Death in the Spotlight, and I have written an article for the Penguin website about what Daisy coming out means to us, and why it’s so important that children’s books should be full of LGBTQ+ characters. Enjoy – and thank you so much for your support!
Hi Robin,
Oh, wow I was not expecting that! I have still not read it yet but I am trying my hardest to get through my books. I am so happy you have touched on LGBTQ characters because it is important for people to understand that love is love and you can like whoever you like. Also, I love the book rainbow!
Thank you, Lydia! I think it’s so important to put LGBTQ+ characters in books – it’s so normal in real life but somehow people don’t expect it to happen in stories. I want to help change that!
It’s cool that you can use the books to make the pride flag!🏳️🌈
Did you always know when you started writing the series that Daisy would be LGBT?
It is really unusual to find LGBTQ characters in books especially based in historical settings
Isn’t it great? I don’t think I knew in the first book, but I was thinking about it from the second (you can start seeing hints in the way I write about her). It is really unusual, especially in children’s books, and I want to help change that, because of course LGBTQ+ characters have always existed – we just haven’t heard about them.
I love that LGBTQ characters are being included, the really nice couple that live next door to my family are gay and when they came round for coffee with mum I told them about this series, and they loved it! They also said it was clever how the book colours lined up to make a rainbow – the symbol of the LGBTQ community.
That is so lovely, Wren, thank you for telling them! I love that the books make a rainbow – we didn’t start off meaning to do it, but I’m so pleased that we have.
It’s really cool that lgbt characters are being included in your books! I was really excited when I first read it because as a teenager, it’s really hard sometimes to find people who you can relate to. And when I first started reading the series, I had no idea what lgbt was so for younger kids, it will be good for them to learn that it’s ok and normal. When I found out that daisy was queer, i re read all of the books to see if I could find any hints or things that would point to it, and now I can see so many clues that pointed towards it. Thank you so much for this, it really means a lot. Daisy really is a role model for young lgbt people like me.
This is so wonderful to hear, Lilia, thank you. It’s so important to for everyone to read about queer characters – but especially for readers who are queer themselves. I’m so pleased that Daisy can be a role model for you!
Thank you so much for “Murder in the Spotlight” I loved it! Just when I thought your books couldn’t get any better and they did!
I love that Daisy is LGBTQ+ because there is often a lack of representation especially in books for children. I was really not expecting it and that made it a very exciting surprise!
I am myself part of the LGBTQ+ community and I am very proud of Daisy for coming out to Hazel. Thank you Robin once again for writing it!
This is so wonderful to hear, Holly, thank you so much!
It was a great surprise! Me and my friend pretend to be Daisy and Hazel, I’m Daisy and she’s Hazel so really the only downside is that I can’t tease her about Alexander anymore…
Hah, oh, you totally can. Daisy will never stop teasing Hazel!
Thanks for the permission! (even though Daisy doesn’t need permission to do anything to Hazel) She can’t say anything now that you’ve said that, although she won’t be too happy when I tell her this…
Hi, I’m the friend Rabbit was talking about, she keeps teasing me and whenever I tease her back, she says “Medieval tortures, Hazel!”
NICE.
But also, do be nice to each other! Hazel is a better guide to real world kindness than Daisy …
Thank you so very much for making Daisy and some of the other characters LGBT+. I got the book for Christmas and have only just read it! I was a little confused about some parts because I only ever seem to read them out of order. At the moment I am halfway through Arsenic for tea and I keep on squeezing with joy! It’s just so nicely written and has such a clean and fluid storyline (although I do wonder how thy possibly end up with so many murders happening around them). I just have Arsenic for Tea and Jolly foul play left to read and hopefully I’ll be able to reread them in order soon! Thank you again!
You’re very welcome! I think it’s really important – and also really normal! It would be very weird if all of the characters in my books were straight … I’m so glad you’re enjoying my books, too – happy reading!
I’m very sorry Robin, but ever since I started reading I’ve been annoyed by one thing: in order of series THEY ARE NOT A RAINBOW, which has always been annoying on my neat freak series order bookshelf. In series order they go:blue, green, orange, yellow, red, turquoise, indigo, purple. Could you please please please if you ever do a new cover or something, put them in rainbow order? It would be AMAZING
Hah! Sorry, Katja! That happened because we never realised there would be so many. Maybe one day we might rearrange the rainbow – but I think for now we’re stuck with what we have!