Welcome to Tortoise Publishing
My name is Victoria Eveleigh (my nickname is Tortie) and my husband's name is Christopher Eveleigh (Chris).
We created Tortoise Publishing in 2002, when we published our first pony story, Katy's Exmoor. I wrote the book and Chris illustrated it.
Katy's Exmoor, The Story of an Exmoor Pony proved to be so popular that I wrote a sequel, Katy's Exmoor Adventures, The Sequel to Katy's
Exmoor. That sold well, too, so I wrote Katy's Exmoor Friends, The Final Part of the Trilogy. All three books were illustrated by Chris.
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Our new book, Midnight on Lundy was published on 12th October 2009 and it's had some very good reviews. It was inspired by tales of a legendary Lundy stallion called Midnight who lived on the island for many years. We are thrilled because Midnight on Lundy has been made book a Book of the Month for August 2010 on the web site Lovereading4kids. The reviewer says, 'Without doubt Victoria Eveleigh is the best contemporary writer of pony stories around.' |
All four books can be bought online from this web site for the RRP (no post and packing charges) or they can be ordered from us by post, with payment by cheque. Please see the contact us page for our address. Alternatively, the books can be ordered from all good bookshops. Books bought from us can be signed by us, and dedicated, if required. Please ask when you make an order.
We are very lucky because we live at West Ilkerton Farm, which is a hill farm set amidst the beautiful scenery of Exmoor National Park. We keep Exmoor Horn sheep, North Devon cattle and (by far the most important!) Exmoor ponies. Horses have always played an important part in our lives. When we were children Chris and I both longed for our own ponies, so now we're making up for lost time. There are several horses on the farm, including a herd of Exmoor ponies (pictured right), a couple of hunters called Tempo and Bella, a home-bred young horse called Winaway and an old Exmoor pony called Tinkerbell (Tinks) who is pictured with us in the top right photo. Tinks belongs to our daughter, Sarah. When they were both younger they got up to all sorts of mischief together, which provided a lot of inspiration for the Katy's Exmoor stories!
Half our large farmhouse has been converted into a very comfortable holiday cottage which sleeps up to six people. It has three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Children and well-behaved pets are welcome. West Ilkerton is the ideal place for a holiday, especially if you like horses and the countryside. It's next to open moorland, but only four miles from Lynmouth and the North Devon coast.
I love writing stories, and I also write for magazines and other publications, like the Exmoor Magazine and the new Bradt Travel Guide Slow Devon and Exmoor.
Events
On Saturday 14th August I'll be meeting readers and signing books at Waterstone's in Taunton from 11am to 3pm.
This year I'll be a guest speaker at the Porlock Arts Festival on the evening of Thursday 9th September (with Marcia Willett, who will be opening the Festival at 7pm) and I will also be taking part in the Local Authors' Book Fair on Friday 10th September. Tickets for Thursday evening cost £8 each. The event on Friday is free.
I will be giving an illustrated talk to the Barnstaple branch of the Exmoor Society on 2nd December 2010.
My next book is going to have a boy as the main character, as there are plenty of boys who like horses and riding, but very few pony stories with a boy as the hero. I try to write in the evening because I'm less likely to be interrupted. The trouble is that I often get carried away and end up going to bed at four in the morning!
If you would like to get in touch to tell me what you think about our books, organise a school visit or arrange an interview or talk, please contact me. I love to hear from readers, and I try to reply to all correspondence. However, please don't send me manuscripts in the hope that I'll publish them, as I publish only my own books.
