Harrogate writer's Beatrix Potter book in publishing link-up with National Trust

World-famous author for Harrogate event in UK exclusive for Harrogate International Festivals

Rebecca Colby’s latest work, a creative non-fiction book called The Castle The King Built, will be closely followed by the February release of a picture book biography of Beatrix Potter, entitled Beatrix and Her Bunnies.

Both books are published in partnership with The National Trust and Nosy Crow, and were part of a publishing strategy Rebecca put in place for her work.

Rebecca, who started writing as a young girl before she learned the alphabet, said: “People think because you’re already published, that you stop receiving rejection letters, but it’s just not true.

“I decided in order to give my work a better chance of being published, that I would write about subjects that are part of the school curriculum, or that have a track record of appealing to the public.

"You should always think of your market. Don’t just write what know, write what you know will sell.”

The Castle the King Built is a unique take on the classic rhyme, This is the House that Jack Built. It features castle workers, and includes masons, blacksmiths, minstrels, merchants, grooms, knights and bakers.

Her second new book tells the true story of how Beatrix Potter brought her pet rabbits, Peter and Benjamin, to life in her own writing.

Rebecca said: “Beatrix was instrumental in setting up The National Trust. She donated 15 farms and over 4,000 acres to the organisation. A lot has been written about her. So I searched for a different angle on her life. What better angle than to write about the real-life animals that inspired her work?”

Having started young, Rebecca’s dreams of becoming an author were fuelled aged 12 when she won an essay contest. Since then she has developed into a children’s book author, poet, and screenwriter.

Rebecca Colby, Children's Author, Poet and Screenwriter

BEATRIX AND HER BUNNIES: The Story of Beatrix Potter, (Nosy Crow/The National Trust), 2021

THE CASTLE THE KING BUILT, (Nosy Crow/The National Trust), 2021

CROCODILES NEED KISSES TOO, Viking (Penguin Random House), 2020

PEAPOD READERS, Ivy and Mack Series (24 books), Collins, 2020

MOTOR GOOSE, Feiwel & Friends (Macmillan), 2017

CAPTAIN BLING'S CHRISTMAS PLUNDER, Albert Whitman & Co, 2017

IT'S RAINING BATS AND FROGS, Feiwel & Friends (Macmillan), 2015

THERE WAS A WEE LASSIE WHO SWALLOWED A MIDGIE, Floris Books, 2014

Web: www.rebeccacolbybooks.com

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