A REDDITCH author who promotes difference and disability in her books is seeking help to fund the next installment in the series.
Jess Hiles, from Redditch, used her childhood drawings as a basis for the Jess The Goth Fairy series of books which teaches youngsters that it is okay to be different, and, having released two books and toured the country speaking at literary festivals and schools, Jess and her mother, Jo Allmond, are now hoping to generate funding for the third.
‘She’s Still My Nan’ is influenced by Jess’ grandmother’s battle with dementia and the pair have been working with the Macintyre Dementia Project to get inspiration.
“It was quite emotional writing it, we cried a lot and laughed a lot, “ said Jo.
“It helped Jess understand more about her Nan’s condition and we hope it will help others too once it’s published.”
Jess’s tales are brought to life by Bristol-based illustrator Emily Daly and the fairy character and the message behind the books are inspired by Jess, who has learning and physical disabilities and lives independently in Redditch – teaching sign language, fund-raising for national charity Macintyre and working at Where Next.
As well as raising money to publish the third book, the pair are looking to visit more schools to spread Jess’ message and are also hoping to see their dreams of animating the stories realised if they can find animators willing to help with the project.
To invite Jo and Jess to speak at your school or if you are interested in being part of the animation project, email [email protected] or call 01952 881133 or 07817 225350.
For more information about the books visit http://www.jessthegothfairy.com
