Imagine a forest of bare trees, uprooting from the earth, and marching towards you, their lean trunks hulking down with each stomp. And picture that each one has a face made from the knots and lines of bark. This was what it was like for Lottie, and Grothsbladder, and Straw-Doll Man, as at least ten radgers dragged their wooden legs into position. As they approached, Lottie noticed each radger had a piece of rope tied to its hands, and each rope trailed back to the mast of a large ship.

“They look like puppets.” whispered Lottie.

Chapter 7 of The Never-Knot Witch

"Darkness hugged them as they wandered through the tunnel. It was impossible to see anything, and Lottie couldn’t help but wonder how Straw-Doll Man was able to lead them through it. She held her hand out to try and find the tunnel wall but she couldn’t.

“Lottie?”

“Are you okay, Grothsbladder?”

“It’s a bit dark.”

“I don’t mind the dark. I just wish I could see where we were going.” Replied Lottie."

Chapter 6 of The Never-Knot Witch

"Lottie and Grothsbladder settled down into a spot on the hard ground, and watched on as three little toys began their tale.

“Lotties and Grotties,” began Stuffed Monkey, “the Lost Toy Theatre Company is proud to present, Mae La Gryfon and the Tying of the Wind.”

The stuffed toy pointed towards the Raggety Princess and bowed."

Chapter 5 of The Never-Knot Witch

"The final step was a rather long slab of rock, tilted and poking out of the mountain it was wedged into. Lottie and Grothsbladder carefully stepped off, onto the ledge of the mountain, a place that Uncle Gascoigne had named ‘The Ledge of the Lost’.

Whitish specks were landing on the ground and in Lottie’s hair. There was a flurry of these bits brawling against the air, pushing their way to cling to her clothes.

“Is it snowing?” Asked Grothsbladder.

“This isn’t snow.” Replied Lottie."

Chapter 4 of The Never-Knot Witch

"There are four key things you need to begin a quest.

The first of these things, is you need questers, in this case, Lottie and Grothsbladder. Secondly, you need a place to go, this was The Hidden Mountain, a large realm invisible to most people and creatures. Thirdly, you need a reason to go, Lottie’s was to find out what had happened to the wind and to fix it in order to save the world. Finally, the questers must understand there will be a series of challenges and trials ahead of them, making their journey dangerous and unpredictable. Were there no challenges, this would be a very short story and a rather uninteresting tale."

Chapter 3 of The Never-Knot Witch

"Most people have a collection of books in their home, maybe a bookshelf or several bookshelves. Lots of people have medicines, sometimes in a cabinet or perhaps several cabinets. In Lottie Lore’s house, there was a very special place filled with bookshelves and cabinets. They didn’t contain your normal sort of items, instead the books held old secrets and the bottles were filled with mystical elements, which when used could produce quite incredible things."

Chapter 2 of The Never-Knot Witch

"At the end of Krumberly Road is Broom Park, and at the edge of Broom Park, there was a tall apple tree. A great lump of a thing that had stood for many years, home to lots of memories and stories, as well as an annual foraging festival for the luscious green apples that grew in the summer. It was one of the best trees to sit under for shade when hot. One time, Lottie’s Uncle Gascoigne climbed to the highest branch."

Chapter 1 of The Never-Knot Witch

"It has been said that to prevent catching a cold, you should avoid going outside with wet hair. This is complete nonsense of course. Colds come from bugs and it doesn’t matter if you’re stood in the middle of a sand dune, in Africa, during the hottest day of the year, or prancing about the North Pole with dripping wet locks. All that matters is avoiding the bugs and viruses that give you the itchy throat, gooey nose and shivery-jibberies."