PublishU EDITION THIRTY TWO
SPECIAL INTERVIEW WITH MARTIN LEE
FEATHERSTONE THE GRUMPY DUCK A fun winter adventure on the farm
COLLINGWOOD FARM STORIES A children's book series of entertaining, emotive and educational stories by Dr Martin Lee
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Matt Bird is the Founder of PublishU, an international publishing house that helps first-time and serial non-fiction authors write, publish and market their books worldwide.
Welcome to this edition of the PublishU Magazine featuring Dr Martin Lee and his delightful new book, Featherstone The Grumpy Duck. Drawing on his background as a doctor and bedtime stories with his children, Martin completes his seasonal Collingwood Farm series with a fun winter adventure. The story follows a grumpy duck who wakes up to a frozen pond and struggles to understand his friends when they use confusing idioms. This special feature invites you to explore how the four seasonal books fit together to entertain and educate children. We are proud to share Martin's creative insights and charming stories with you.
Matt Bird Founder of PublishU.com
AUTHOR INTERVIEW
ONE FARM, FOUR SEASONS
Interview with Martin Lee, author of the Collingwood Farm Stories book series. Martin, tell us about you.
I’m a doctor, a rheumatologist, and I’ve been working in Northumbria Healthcare Trust. I’ve got lots of little bits on the side as well and one of them is writing childrenʼs books. I do all my writing in my spare time. What was it that inspired you to start
start writing? How it initially came about was my children love being read to and I read to them every night. I guess some children’s books were excellent, but some of them not so much. And I thought I could perhaps do better than this. And it’s one of these things, you’re sort of just lying in bed at night, falling asleep, and suddenly you wake up with an idea in your head and you think, oh, I should put that on paper. And
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And it just went from there, really. Featherstone The Grumpy Duck completes the series. How do the four books fit together? The first book I wrote for the Collingwood Farm Stories, Lambley The Last Lamb, was set in spring when lambing season occurs. After I wrote that, I started having ideas for the other books. And it seemed to make sense to try and follow a seasonal pattern, because I had an idea in my head that there were four books in a series. The first one’s set in the spring, why donʼt we do Embleton The Curious Cat set in the summer, Pegswood The Peculiar Pig set in the autumn, and weʼve now come to the winter, and itʼs Featherstone The Grumpy Duck.
use, the less he understands, and unfortunately, the grumpier and grumpier he gets. This brings the whole series together. What feedback have you had locally, Martin? The local feedback is fantastic. All the names of the characters in the story are named after local villages, and Featherstone is no different. There’s an educational element to this because there are homophones in some of the stories and different idioms throughout the book, and it's very useful for children to look at those as well. So the local independent bookshops, local cafes, local hospitals where I work, local schools, the teachers, the pupils, they're all loving the stories. To be honest, it's great.
What happens to Featherstone in the story? He wakes up in the morning on Collingwood Farm and walks down to his pond to swim. And essentially his feet get very cold and his pond’s covered in ice. Heʼs a bit of a grumpy character, and with all the cold he gets even grumpier. Then his friends see him and use phrases or idioms in the language, which he doesnʼt understand. Heʼs just very literal. The more phrases the animals use
There is an educational element throughout the book, and it's very useful for children to look at. Martin Lee Author of the Stories series
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Collingwood
Farm
Available in paperback, eBook and audiobook Click here to get your copy now!
Published by PublishU
Available in paperback, eBook and audiobook Click here to get your copy now!
Published by PublishU
Available in paperback, eBook and audiobook Click here to get your copy now!
Published by PublishU
Available in paperback, eBook and audiobook Click here to get your copy now!
Published by PublishU
“Massive thanks Matt for helping me get this far! Without the ‘Writing My Book’ course, I would never have put pen to paper and created my book.ˮ Sheralyn Pattison
YOU HAVE A BOOK IN YOU TOO There comes a moment for many people, sometimes quietly and sometimes persistently, when a thought begins to surface… I have a book in me. It may be a story you have lived, a lesson you have learned or a message you feel called to share, something that could encourage, guide or change the life of someone else. And yet, for many, it remains unwritten, held back by doubt, uncertainty or not knowing where to begin. The truth is this. You do have a book in you and you are more capable of writing it than you realise. Writing a book is easier than you think, but only when you know how. With the right structure, support and encouragement, what once felt overwhelming becomes achievable, even enjoyable. That is why PublishU exists, to walk with you from idea to manuscript, from manuscript to book, and from book to opportunities.
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“Matt and my fellow writers were cheering me on, which was just the motivation I needed. And I nearly finished my first draft within the 100-days. I recommend this course to anyone who has a book in them but is honest enough to admit that it has a better chance to see the light of day with support and accountability.” Athane Scholtz
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