Holly Smale Books In Order

Publication Order of Geek Girl Books

Publication Order of The Valentines Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Holly Smale is a bestselling British author that writes young adult novels which feature awkward little girls driven by a desire to transform their images.

+Biography
Holly Smale was born in 1981 in England. She took to reading at an early age. Her mother was a teacher who encouraged her reading habit. The author likes to joke that there was no such thing as inappropriate books in their household.

It was only when she was older that it occurred to Holly that Byron, Keats, and Shelley were probably the last authors a normal mother would ever consider reading to their two-year-old daughter.

You won’t find the author complaining, though. The curious reading choices her mother made for her allowed Holly Smale’s vocabulary to develop at a rapid rate, so much so that her teachers began to commend her for some of her impressive word choices, word choices that far exceeded those of most kids her age.

Naturally, Holly’s intelligence caused her to stand out and the consequences were not always positive. Holly distinctly remembers sparking the desire to write when she was five. Of all the books that her mother gave her, Enid Blyton’s ‘Faraway Tree’ had the greatest impact on her.

Not only did she carry it everywhere she went, but when she realized that the book had been written by a real person, she decided that she would also become a writer in the future if only to give other avid readers the chance to experience the same excitement that assailed her every time she cracked the novel open.

Of course, at the time, Holly was only starting to write and she had no idea what it took to put a book together. She remembers putting a few scribbles on paper and, over time, collecting them into a volume that resembled a book, but Holly Smale admits that it wasn’t her finest work.

But even though her desire to read and write was commended by the adults in her life, the reaction from her classmates wasn’t nearly as positive. While Holly had encountered bullies before, it wasn’t until she reached the age of seven that they became a real problem.

Standing out as she did made Holly a target for consistent harassment. The fact that her biggest bully shared her class made school a living nightmare for the author. She remembers being abused, pushed, stabbed with pencils and intimidated to the point of extreme anxiety.

She never mentioned her experiences to anyone, though, and neither did she ask for help. To Holly Smale, bullies were just a fact of life to which she simply had to acclimate. And when things became truly difficult, she learned to use books as an escape.

Strangely enough, Holly remembers being a very bad-tempered girl. However, that aspect of her personality never manifested when she was at school. It was only at home that Holly would see fit to unleash her rage, going so far as to bully her sister and scream at her parents.

The author eventually overcame her relatively traumatic childhood experiences. In fact, she went on to use the trials and tribulations of her teenage years to write ‘Geek Girl’, her popular series of novels which feature a nerdy girl who tries to transform the way people perceive her by becoming a model.

The journey to the success she eventually achieved as a published author was neither simple nor straightforward. Like most authors, Holly Smale meandered a little bit along the way.

Considering how awkward she felt as a young girl, it came as a surprise to Holly when a top London Modeling agency recruited her when she was fifteen. She spent the next few years trying to walk straight on catwalks before finally giving up the fame and fortune.

While her passion for writing definitely played a part in her decision to abandon modeling, it was her desire to pursue her school work that eventually pushed Holly over the edge.

She also knew that she wasn’t that good a model, to begin with. So she chose to go to college. She studied English Literature at Bristol University, eventually graduating with a BA and MA.

She then spent a few years in Japan where she taught English. Holly remembers being culturally shocked by the drastic differences between London and Japan. Everything felt so alien, not just the language and the food but even the street signs.

But even that experience eventually proved useful once her publishing career took off and she realized that she had accumulated a wealth of stories over her twenty or so years on earth.

Holly Smales hates critics who call her novels fluffy. She thinks it is unfair that her books are so easily disregarded by some people because they feature teenage characters dealing with teenage matters.

As far as Holly is concerned, a story can be girly and feminine but also important and substantial.

+Geek Girl
Harriet Manners doesn’t make sense to most people. For instance, she knows the exact number of muscles a cat has in each ear. But no one cares about such an insignificant piece of trivia, except for Harriet, which might explain why the people in her school do not particularly like her.

Harriet didn’t think she cared what people thought. But then a model agent took notice of her and she realized that she finally had an opportunity to reinvent herself. The fact that her modeling success might ruin her friendship with her best friend who has always dreamt of pursuing modeling doesn’t matter to Harriet.

She has bigger problems, chief amongst which is a bully called Alexa who won’t stop ruining her life. Harriet’s life was already complicated enough. She’s about to find out just how much more complicated modeling and fashion can make matters.

+Model Misfit
Harriet Manners is the oddest girl in school. She thought that becoming a model would change her image but that has quickly proven to be untrue. But the career has its perks. With her stepmother’s pregnancy causing all manner of unrest, Harriet leaps at the opportunity to go to Japan for a modeling gig.

She isn’t prepared to contend with all the wackiness that is rife in Tokyo

One Response to “Holly Smale”

1. Faye Westlake Newman: 4 months ago

   I borrowed your character for a book I’m writing. My 14 year old character saved an injured raven who thereafter attaches herself to the teen. Because she is awkward due to her injury, the teen calls the bird Harriet Manners. The raven also has begun to follow a female police officer to whom the teen is giving information she can’t possibly know and solving cases for the cop. That is the extent of the reference, and I will be happy to keep you advised if it changes and provide a copy of the book when it’s finished, before I publish. I do not write anything I wouldn’t allow my teen granddaughter to read, and Harriet Manners is a good raven. I hope you don’t mind.

   Reply