James Brian Jacques (1939–2011), known as Brian Jacques, was an English author from Liverpool and creator of the beloved Redwall fantasy series (1986–2011) and the Castaways of the Flying Dutchman trilogy. Before writing, he held jobs as a merchant seaman, truck driver, police constable, comedian, and milkman. He also hosted Jakestown on BBC Radio Merseyside. He developed a richly sensory writing style to help blind children "see" his stories.
🐦 At age 10, a teacher accused his animal story of plagiarism–even caned him–unwittingly confirming his talent 🚚 Left school at 15 and worked as a merchant sailor, trucker, bobby, stand-up comic, and milkman 📚 Redwall emerged from readings he did for blind schoolchildren, driven by his desire to paint stories through sound and texture 🏰 The series grew to 22 books, translated into ~28 languages, with over 20 million copies sold 🎙 Hosted Jakestown on BBC Radio for over two decades 🖋 Preferred typewriters, mistrusting computers and modern technology ⚔ Many characters (like Gonff and Mariel) are based on people in his life–his granddaughter, grandmother, even himself as a boy by the docks 🦝 Curious: he penned Redwall’s first draft on 800 sheets of recycled paper stuffed in a supermarket bag 🌳 Funny: when critics compared his work to Lord of the Rings, he responded, “It’s not another Lord of the Rings–it’s my bloody book!”