WHAT IS THE TAILS OF WILLOWLEE?
Over the past couple of years I have toyed with a story in my head about two of my previous horses Luke and Joey. Unfortunately I lost both of those horses to horrible accidents and decided I wanted to write a story about them to keep their memory alive. Hence this is their story. If all goes according to plan this story will one day be a children's novella series that follows the life of Luke and Joey and their owners Sage and Catie as they embark on adventures and overcome obstacles.
SNEAK PEAKS INTO THE WORLD OF 'THE TAILS OF WILLOWLEE'
AUTHOR MOTIVATION
Sam is a writer with a love for horses. Growing up around horses, Sam has seen and done it all from mucking out stables, to making feeds, riding horses and dealing with various horse injuries. The children’s novella The Tails of Willowlee: The Spring Showjumping Festival is inspired by two of Sam’s horses, Luke and Joey and her experiences with them. Due to unfortunate and heartbreaking circumstances, Sam lost Luke in 2012 and Joey in 2015. The children’s novella which uses Luke and Joey as the inspiration for the stories is her way of keeping their memory alive. Furthermore, Sam draws on her friendship with her best friend to help create the inspiration for her characters.
IDEA PITCH
With the Spring Show Jumping Festival coming up Sage and her horse Luke must put their trust in one another in order to overcome their fears.
CHAPTER 1 SNEAK PEAK
‘Sage, watch this!’ Luke listened as his rider Sage’s older sister, Catie called. It was a warm sunny day, and the green grass was nearly up to Luke’s fetlocks. He watched as Catie’s inside leg moved behind the girth and steered her horse Joey towards the meter-high spread. Joey’s breathing increased, and he raised his head in anticipation of the jump. Catie gave a slight pull to the outside rein, adjusting his speed, Luke saw how it created an ease to Joey’s stride. With a spring from his hind legs, Joey tucked up his front legs to his chest and cleared the jump, landing with a soft thud. They always made it look so easy.