Myrtle The Turtle

For as long as he can remember, Chris has had a huge passion for storytelling. When his son Jesse was a young boy, instead of reading bedtime stories, they would make up their own far-fetched tales around the fictional superhero Deadly Derek. 2021 has marked Chris's entry into children's picture book writing. And he's been busy, publishing five fantastic books over the year. His talent for writing original and captivating stories around powerful messages is so evident - a rising star for sure!Besides having a great story to tell, Chris believes the best children's picture books have three key ingredients. The first is natural rhyme - words that feel like they should be there, not just because they match with another. The second is tantalising words and grammar - Chris's books will stretch a younger reader's vocabulary, and he uses a variety of tools to make the words roll off the tongue. And the final ingredient? Well, they must have beautiful illustrations to bring the story to life. For this, he relies totally on the genius of Becca Wain and her wonderful visual translation of his verses.