We caught up with another of our Wonderful Authors Peter Erlam, after many years in journalism Peter moved down to the Kent coast, and found his love of writing.
Tell us a bit about you.
A journalist for 40 years, I decided in retirement I would do something completely different, something I’d never done in my professional career. Invent stories! And oh, what fun I’ve had. How liberating an experience it’s been. No longer constrained by hard facts and harsh reality, I have been free to let my imagination run
wild.
The further east I have moved in Kent - first from Maidstone to Whitstable and then to Ramsgate -
the more the shackles have come off. Thanet district has been home since 2018, and Ramsgate’s history, its architecture and its people have positively inspired me to create books for children. I believe it’s a town with ‘stories in its bones’.
And so, you began writing, tell us about the books.
So, I set about creating a character that is familiar and admirable, yet mythical and mysterious at the same time. A raven called Ravi emerged; a super-clever bird with a backstory to beat any reality TV star.
He was once a Tower of London raven, who due to his mischief, was expelled from the elite flock which, legend tells, must be at least six in number or else the kingdom will crumble.
When Ravi returns from exile, his avian pals advise him to make a fresh start in the seaside resort of
Ramsgate.
And so, his adventures begin - in a town whose name comes from the Anglo-Saxon phrase meaning ‘raven’s cliff gap’.
First in a trilogy of tales is “Ravi the Brainy Raven”, followed by “Ravi and the Tales of Tunnel Town”,
which is based on an elaborate underground network in which Ramsgate residents took refuge
during German bombing raids. In each book, Ravi solves a mystery.
The third book, about a raven ‘queen’, is due out later this year.
Have you any other books Published?
In between times, I wrote “Caress it like Messi” which is based on an 8-year-old called Rye who has incredibly curly hair and is, like his older sister, fanatical about football. Rye’s problem is that he is incapable of controlling the ball when it hits his corkscrew curls, as if it has landed on a trampoline and takes off in any random direction. This leads to him getting called names, which upsets him. The narrative focuses on how children can develop a thick skin and cope with the challenges of peer-group bullying.
Peter and his books will be at The Pop-Up Bookshop on the 8th April, taking place at The Royal Albion Hotel, Broadstairs.