Astley mum writes children’s book during lockdown

Lea Rieveley, from Astley, had been entertaining children at parties since 2014 but in March 2020 she was left with no work due to the government introducing rules to help stop the spread of Covid-19.

In response, Lea turned to her talent for writing – which she has had an interest since school – and wrote her first book, a children's story titled Tommy’s Unstoppable Gran and The Magic Potion.

The story, aimed at children aged seven to 12, follows a 10-year-old boy and his gran and how their lives change when they stumble across a mysterious book in a charity shop window.

This leads to an adventure in which they meet the Queen and take on robbers and dog snatchers.

Lea Rieveley with copies of her book

The book cover

Lea, 44, said: Writing has always a passion of mine.

"I never thought that I would actually be lucky enough to be able to hold a copy of my own book.

"But after spending months researching the self-publishing process, I decided to take the plunge and set up my own publishing brand Chestanelle Publishing, a combination of my children’s names Chester, Stan and Ellie.

"This meant I could actually make my dreams a reality.

"With my background in marketing and running a small business, I decided I could have all the right qualities to make this work.

"There’s still so much to learn but I’m enjoying the new challenges."

Lea has also welcomed the "brutal" feedback she has received from her children and their friends during the writing process.

"I have three children and bouncing ideas off them for storylines has been fun," Lea said.

"They’ve loved being a part of the writing process too.

"I’ve even roped in some of their friends to have a read over and provide me with some feedback.

"The brutal honesty of nine and 10-year-olds has been invaluable."

The book, which explores themes such as kindness, respect and confidence building, has already received rave reviews and is available to buy on Amazon in paperbook and Ebook.

Lea has also been visiting parks and playgrounds to secretly leave signed copies for people to find and take home to enjoy for free.

She has also worked in television, films and advertisements as a supporting actor, appearing in shows such as Peaky Blinders, Mount Pleasant, Tango in Halifax, The Zoo and Cucumber.