Jen Storer is the author of children’s books

The first book in your

That is entirely right. Except that Tan is more like the Famous Five simply because that was the series I followed as a kid. My brothers read the Secret Seven so I assumed those books were boring. Also I didn’t like the dreary, blue covers—or the smell of the pages. I was totally devoted to the Famous Five.

My daughter called

I have always used humour to cope with life’s ups and downs, so writing that way comes naturally. As for the spooky stuff, I have always been drawn to all things creepy and gothic. As a child I spent a lot of time playing in the local cemetery, reading the gravestones (the more secluded and crumbly the better) and daydreaming about all the dead people below my feet. I’m not scared of ghosts or vampires or monsters. I am, however, terrified of the Old Melbourne Gaol. Just the thought of walking through those entrance doors makes me panic. Perhaps it’s a past life thing…

Tan and her family have a great collection of pets, including a dog named Awesome. Have you your own curiously-named menagerie?

We only have one pet, a dog called, Charlie. She is a poodle/Maltese cross. She’s very old and quite dotty. She was the inspiration for Doodad. We once had a cockatiel named Bubblegum but she flew away. That bird hated our family. All she ever did was hiss at us—except for my husband. She absolutely loved him. She would flap her wings and sing her mean-spirited little heart out, the minute his car turned into the street. It was uncanny. I worked as a vet nurse when I was young so that’s basically where the animal storylines come from. Also, I adore Gerald Durrell’s books, especially My Family and Other Animals, and of course the James Herriot series.

Can you give us a hint about what’s next for Tan and her family?

In the next book, Tan’s dad buys a broken down tram. This has creepy consequences—the tram has a dark past. Also, Tan and her friend, Gloria, are forced to take their Secret Spy investigations to the streets. We learn much more about the actual town of Peppercorn Valley and the eccentric characters who live there.

One final question that comes to you direct from my daughter: “How did you come up with Wandering Wanda?”

When I was a kid growing up in the country, there was a man who lived in a shack on the outskirts of town. I guess you could say he was hermit. He was known locally as Hairy Jack. He looked rather like Cousin Itt from the Addams Family. He had long, grey hair, a long, grey beard, and he always wore a baggy overcoat and women’s sunglasses—the kind with thick white frames and green lenses. We hardly ever saw Hairy Jack but when we did it was cause for great excitement. It was like seeing Santa Claus. Wanda is loosely based on him.

Thank you, Jen Storer!