It's feedback like that, that makes all the effort worth while...

I had a good morning at Clifton Library Summer Craft Fair on Saturday. I met a lady who'd bought a copy of Doodle Mayhem from me at a Christmas fair, and her grandson had loved the book.

But the part that really made my day was getting an email later that evening from a mum who had bought a book for her daughter. She'd read But I'm Not Sleepy 8 times in the afternoon, and then again when it was her daughter's chosen story at bedtime, and she went to sleep with the little knitted sheep in her cot - it's feedback like that, that makes all the effort worth while.

 

#LostinaBook 

Downboy the sheepdog. What's that...it's just a new elaborate form of procrastination...? Not a bit of it...

Downboy the sheepdog meeting his first sheep before he gets thrown in the deep end with the whole flock...

 

But surely we've met Downboy before I hear you say - well... the prototype Downboy wasn't quite to scale, and only worked with some careful camera angles - but now I have one just the right size to take to book signings to keep those unruly sheep in order.

 

What's that...it's just a new elaborate form of procrastination...? Not a bit of it... 

#LostinaBook

#sheepdog 

Sheep...!

New in my etsy shop - and - my online bookshop

But I'm Not Sleepy gift pack

What is it about sheep...? 

These cute little characters have been a great addition to my table at book signings, and now due to the attention my knitted sheep have been getting in my etsy shop I've added this brand new gift pack:

Rummaging about in my online bookshop - Lost in a Book

April at Lost in a Book

3rd April

Well the snow has yet to arrive, so I'm feeling that A face Full of Snow maybe isn't the best choice to be displaying on my table at the front of my bookshop, so bare with me, I'll just have a reshuffle and put...

hmmm... now what else is topical? Well there are spring lambs being born, so maybe But I'm Not Sleepy would be the ideal feature book this Easter:

...it's got a Lucy who can't sleep, and a whole lot of sheep... what more could you want? 

    

Lucy isn't sleepy. She's feeling bouncy and full of energy.

She listens to Granny's bedtime stories, then jumps about pretending to be the characters.

Granny suggests counting sheep, but when the sheep start running around Lucy's bedroom, even Downboy the sheepdog can't round them up.

Finally Lucy gets tired, and finds her own solution to the sheep problem.

32 page full colour paperback

ISBN 978-0-9560232-1-6

Lost in a Book

For personalised signing give name of recipient in 'note to seller' box at checkout.

Sheep - Promotion or Distraction...?

Wool shopping done, future sheep emergency averted..

So what's with all the sheep...?

Well, they started as a fun thing to put on my tables at book signings, and soon became a talking point. From the small child in a buggy who pointed and said "Baa" to the lady who bought one to put in her crib scene at Christmas - they certainly get noticed.

But where did they come from...?

They're the unruly characters from But I'm not Sleepy - who'd have thought that counting sheep to try and get to sleep could have led to this? So this morning instead of doing what you'd expect an author to be doing, I've been sourcing some more wool to build up my flock.

Is Stonegate ready for a flock of knitted sheep I wonder...?

OK things are getting out of hand now - where did that black sheep come from...? There're no black sheep in the story but I thought why not... he'll be among the flock on Saturday, lets hope he doesn't cause any trouble...

is Stonegate ready for a flock of knitted sheep I wonder...?

Book merchandising, sheep and knitting patterns...how's that for diversification!

Diversification seems to be the buzz word for keeping business moving along - so when I was looking for a fun addition to my table at book signings, sheep sprang to mind... in fact they seem to have been springing up everywhere ever since...

The sheep were a great hit, but they did seem to take up every evening during the Christmas fair season, just to keep up with demand. So now you can buy your own knitting pattern from my online bookshop - then you can knit as many sheep as you want, and count them along with the story...  zzzz

...how's that for diversification!

It all started with the book - then the sheep came along...

Who let the sheep out...?

Who let the sheep out...?

The best part of working for myself is that I can plan my own day, and if that leads me to doing a photo call of knitted sheep, then so be it...

So where did they all come from - they just kept dropping off my knitting needles last winter, as I knitted more and more to keep up with demand as I did book signings at Christmas fairs. And it wasn't just the children who wanted them, it seems all age groups have a secret soft spot for sheep.

Find out how to get one in my online Bookshop
or how to knit one with a free pattern

Bestseller at special birthday price...

But I'm Not Sleepy was 5 years old on the 1st August, so what better way to celebrate than to have a special birthday offer...?

So, for the whole of August But I'm Not Sleepy will be at the special birthday price of £5 (while stocks last) and still come with a free sheep (also while stocks last) - a knitted one that is, handing out real sheep would be a little impractical.

Bestseller at special birthday price

So, if I haven't got your attention with the cover - which is surprising given that everyone at fairs is immediately drawn to this one... apparently everyone has a Lucy - a few even admit to having been one...

Surely you can't resist this little character - or at least want to know where it fits into the story and how you can get one...

 You should also be wondering why more keep cropping up... well, you're just going to have to read the book. But don't start counting the sheep, I don't want you nodding off before you've visited my little bookshop with big ideas.

zzzzzzzzzz 

But I'm Not Sleepy... how to get some sleep

I’ll let you into a secret,” said Granny. “When I can’t sleep I count sheep. It always works for me.”

“Have you got sheep Granny?” asked Lucy, her eyes wide with excitement. “Where are they? Are they in your knitting bag?”

from But I'm Not Sleepy my bestseller is 5 years old today!!

First there was Lucy jumping up and down on her bed, then there was Granny reading calming bedtime stories... and then came the sheep. So all that was left was for Downboy the sheepdog to make an appearance and it looked as if nobody would be getting any sleep - but finally even Lucy felt sleepy...

Because it seems that everyone has a Lucy - some even admit that they used to be one too...

The Great Yorkshire Show, gentle giants, storms and all things woolly...

 It's a busy time in Yorkshire, with the Great Yorkshire Show in full swing. I was there on Tuesday, sat on the grass banks waiting for the heavy horses to come into the main arena, as heavy clouds gathered overhead... The storm clouds went wild, sending everyone rushing for cover and purchasing anything waterproof - my daughter and I totally carried off the kiddies rain ponchos in fetching doggy print.

Luckily the heavy horses were calmer than the weather, they're such gentle giants.

The shopping was good too, so much more fun than chain store shopping, from kitchen knives and an olive wood chopping board, to some beautiful artwork they had it all covered.

So my hands were pretty full of shopping by the time I made my way to the sheep pens, trying to find some sheep who looked like my characters from But I'm Not Sleepy. There were some funky looking sheep, and I think the ones most like mine were tucked away in the sheep shearing pen, but I did find these:

I wonder what this sheep is trying to say...?
"A up Pearl, sit up, we're having our photo taken..."

Knitted sheep, adding a woolly dimension to story time... 

“We’re not trouble makers are we Pearl?”

“No Hilda, certainly not.”

“It’s just that we’ve been rounded up so many times our heads are spinning.”

“Yes spinning.”

“Spinning into wool?” asked Lucy.

“No… spinning into a flock of dizzy sheep,” said Downboy.

(from But I'm Not Sleepy)

Lost in a Book, knitted sheep and book signings...

Well on Friday I got totally lost in a book, and all mundane jobs and worries went out of my head, in favour of editing ready to  get a print quote for my next book. There are a lot of photos despite my best efforts to edit some out, so I think I'll be taking a deep breath before opening the quote, and hope I don't have to edit out any more.

Meanwhile... sheep production is back in full swing to promote But I'm Not Sleepy at my Christmas book signings - the next one is in the beautiful Tithe Barn in Nether Poppleton near York on Saturday 7th Dec 10am - 4.30pm There'll be one free knitted sheep with every purchase of But I'm Not Sleepy, while stocks last.

Counting sheep

Counting sheep... it's the tried and tested way of getting to sleep - but what happens to all the sheep once you've finished counting them? I bet you didn't think about that...?

Here at Lost in a Book things are in danger of getting out of hand. 

It all started with a notion to merchandise my book But I'm Not Sleepy.  One sheep took shape and sprang from my knitting needles, then one sheep lead to another until it is fast becoming a flock of sheep...

And where are all these sheep heading? Well they'll be making an appearance at Christmas fairs around the York area. The first one is Huntington School this Friday - who knows how many they'll be by then...

Knitted sheep - inspired by the book But I'm Not Sleepy

Meet the sheep...

You must always remember you saw it here first...!

This is the first sheep in the flock, the prototype you might say for the ones to follow. And follow they will, as now I have a pattern, written down as I knitted, on the plain side of the paper band from the ball of wool.

Where, you might ask are all these sheep headed? Well they could follow each other around the kitchen table, get lost in the knitting bag, but ultimately they're  headed for Christmas fairs around the York area to promote the book that inspired them But I'm Not Sleepy.

So next time you are tempted to count sheep as an aid to going to sleep, bare in mind the chaos that could ensue when a flock of sheep start rampaging around the bedroom, not to mention the knitted sheep that will inevitably follow...

Merchandising a book on a shoestring

OK so I seem to do everything else so why not merchandising too...? and so production has begun on a flock of sheep to go with my best seller But I'm Not Sleepy. And when I say production has begun I mean I have knitted a sheep's head... but the rest will follow I'm sure, after all following is what sheep do best...

So, after two false starts, where I realised that 11.30pm is not the best time to start a new creative project, I set off again with knitting needles and wool, and made a start. What was that, do I have a pattern...? No of course I don't, that would be far to easy... after all the wool started off as a sheep, I just have to turn it back into a smaller sheep - I don't think I'm quite ready for a life sized sheep to take along to fairs with me, I do have a wheelie crate now to take the strain, but that might be taking things a bit far.

As soon as I have a completed sheep I will post a picture  - oh dear, I do like to put pressure on myself don't I...

Yorkshire Day and Birthday

Happy Yorkshire Day 1st August and Happy 4th Birthday to my bestseller But I'm Not Sleepy

One look at this cover brings a smile of recognition to so many faces - it seems that everyone has a Lucy who just doesn't want to go to sleep.

But does everyone have a Downboy the sheepdog to help round the sheep up if the age old method of counting sheep leads to a herd of unruly sheep crashing around the bedroom...?

Another print run needed!

But I'm Not Sleepy is still my best seller, and stocks are getting low, and as I've now added another book signing event at the end of the month - 27th November at The Merchant Adventurers Hall, York, I've asked the printers for a quote for another print run...