PUPILS at an Enfield school learned tips from an award-winning children's author on Monday when he visited them to run workshops.

Joe Craig, author of the Jimmy Coates series of books, visited pupils at Enfield Grammar School in Market Place to tell stories and work with children on their writing skills.

The 30-year-old writer, who grew up in North London and used to be a musician, regularly goes to schools around London to work with children.

Diane Coxon, librarian at the school, said: “We are delighted that Joe made a return visit to Enfield Grammar School after a very successful visit last year.

“He spent the whole morning meeting our Year 7 pupils and they were very enthusiastic and loved every minute of what he did.

“He is quite inspirational because he's quite a young guy and really seems to connect with the children – we'll certainly have him back again.”

Mr Craig worked with the pupils to tell an improvised story with audience participation and read from some of his books.

He rose to prominence after his novel, Jimmy Coates: Killer, became one of the biggest-selling debuts of 2005, winning the Manchester Book Award, and built his fan base on social networking sites like Facebook.