Author & Illustrator What do you love most about kid’s books? As a non-fiction fan as well as someone who has always been a visual learner, I love how children's books can explain a challenging topic in a way that's visual, clear and fun. Did you have a favourite childhood book? I don't have one book in particular. I loved to draw and make things as a child and I remember a giant book of craft activities for each day of the year that I always turned to for ideas. I also loved to copy the illustrations from books, and would try to recreate the drawings from Helen Oxenbury's Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland book. How many books have you done? The Sea Book is my second book that followed on from The Bee Book. Both books are part of a series about environmental conservation topics. What inspires you to write/draw? I've always been inspired by the natural world and once I've found something that I'm interested in and passionate about then it sparks ideas for page layouts. The writing and drawing really goes hand-in-hand for me. Its about finding a way that pictures and words can work together to most clearly show what it is that I want people to know about, whether that’s about food chains in the Arctic or the life cycle of a honeybee. I feel strongly that people need to understand how the natural world works to want to protect it, and that’s what motivates me to make books. Do you have a favourite thing to draw? Strangely, its insects. I love the colours and symmetry in them, but wouldn't want to get too close in real life! Do you find time to read a novel? I'm a huge audiobook fan. I've always loved reading but found it difficult to find the time and place, especially when getting a seat on the train is a rare occasion. But since discovering audiobooks I listen to stories while I'm walking, travelling and even when I'm working. Are you are a cat or dog lover? I love both. Since I can remember I've always wanted a dog and I'm still working on it! Do you have a pet? I have two very fluffy cats, George and Mia. They have very different personalities. Mia's smart and makes it very clear that she likes her own space, whereas George is the dopey one who's always looking for a lap to fall asleep on. What do you do on weekends for fun? I live in London, so there's never a weekend when you're stuck for ideas of things to do. I always enjoy the occasional day visiting one of the museums or galleries that are available- the natural history museum being my favourite. I also love a craft market and have recently discovered the crafty fox market, which is great for meeting other creatives as well as enjoying some of the amazing street food that is on offer. Where is your favourite place to go? Living in a city, every now and then I get itchy feet and need to get outdoors into a natural space. I live near a national trust park, Morden Hall Park which is my favourite place to spend a day outdoors. It really is a bit of an oasis in the city with a river, farm, wetlands and a very quaint second-hand bookshop. Do you visit a local bookshop regularly? I love to look in bookshops. Unfortunately I don't have one very local to me, but where I work in Covent Garden I am spoilt for choice and will often spend my lunch breaks browsing books. Any new up coming titles coming out soon, that we should be looking out for? Its early days, but fingers crossed there will be another book coming out February next year which will follow the same themes of inspiring a love of nature and understanding different ecosystems. Thanks Charlotte for having a chat to us! For more information: Instagram is instagram.com/charlottefmilner/ You can purchase books from: www.penguin.com.au/browse/dk charlottemilner.com www.booktopia.com.au www.bookdepository.com www.amazon.co.uk www.amazon.com.au www.dymocks.com.au www.angusrobertson.com.au www.fishpond.com.au www.betterworldbooks.com www.wordery.com www.thenile.com.au
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