Book Inspirations

A common question I am asked is where I get my inspiration for my characters. The answer is that I am inspired from many different things! But if you are seeking something more specific, you may read the following:

Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny were both pets I kept.

The Tailor of Gloucester was a real tailor in Gloucester! (and a true story, except that the tailor’s assistants helped him out, and not mice. But mice are so enchanting, do you not think so?)

Hunca Munca, of The Tale of Two Bad Mice fame, was another pet had at the time, as was Mrs. Tiggy-winkle.

Mrs. Tabitha Twitchit and the kittens (including Tom) are based from little kitties that ran about at my farm in the Lake District called Hill Top.

Jemima Puddle-duck as a duck at Hill Top. And because ducks often forget to sit on their eggs to help them hatch, the farmer’s wife would take the duck eggs and place them under the chickens. But Jemima really did try hard to keep track of them and found a nest quite far from the farm eventually.

And, many of the settings were based from Hill Top and the village of Sawrey- a lovely place to be!


Sources
Lane, Margaret. The Magic Years of Beatrix Potter. Frederick Warne Publishers: London, 1978, pp. 49, 72, 82, 132, 152, 155, 181.