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Hi, I’m Helen MacKenzie. I’m an author, seeking representation for my debut novel Hagstone – an upper middle grade magical realism thriller.

Hagstone was recently selected for Undiscovered Voices 2020, run by the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. It was also longlisted for the 2020 Mslexia Children’s Novel Competition, while in 2019 it was shortlisted for the Kelpies Prize, run by Floris Books.

An earlier story of mine – Psigns, a Young Adult fantasy – was longlisted in the Bath Children’s Novel Award in 2017 and the opening chapters of the book secured me a Scottish Book Trust New Writer’s Award for Children and Young Adult Fiction in 2017. As part of this, I worked on the novel for nine months with my mentor, award-winning author Julie Bertagna.

Psigns was also shortlisted in the Mslexia Children’s Novel Competition in both 2016 and 2018, and helped me gain a place on a 2016 Curtis Brown Creative online course on writing for children, mentored by Catherine Johnson.

“Helen MacKenzie is a strong and intriguing new voice in YA fiction. With twisty, pacy storytelling, diamond-cut writing and a compelling mix of sci-fi and fantasy, Helen has created an absorbing world and a unique young Scottish heroine with guts and heart in an original, mind-bending read.”

Julie Bertagna