Caroline Baxter lives in Oxford, UK with her husband and two young children. From an early age she always had her nose in a book – and now does so for a living!
After graduating with a BA in English Literature from Cardiff University, Caroline held a variety of management roles at UK universities including, most recently, at the University of Oxford. The Bear Cub Bakers, her first book, was written while on maternity leave with her daughter Annie. Her second book, Pilot Jane and the Runaway Plane, will be out early next year. Caroline loves travelling, yoga, baking (and eating) cake, dogs, days out and snuggling up with a good story.
Q and A with Caroline Baxter:
Q. How did ‘The Bear Cub Bakers’ come about?
I wrote The Bear Cub Bakers when my daughter Annie was only a few months old. Annie didn’t like sleeping too much when she was little, so I was awake a lot at odd times! I started thinking about stories in the middle of the night and often wrote a few lines in the early hours, and then at other times during the day when I had some free time. I decided to write about baking because I made (and ate!) a lot of cakes when my children were very little - it’s such a fun thing to do together! After a lot of re-writing and editing, the story was finished after a few months.
Q: When did you start writing?
I started writing when I was quite young, and even managed to win a couple of writing competitions as a child. But when I look back, most of what I wrote was terrible! My mum and dad have kept lots of notepads in their attic and I hate it whenever my husband or children take a look at them! I always loved reading and writing, though, and went on to do a degree in English Literature. Several jobs at UK universities followed, where much of the focus was on publications and communications-related work, which I loved.
Q: Where do you get your inspiration?
I often get inspiration in the shower! I love long, hot showers and baths and often think up possible stories then. Sometimes I even get out to jot down some notes, though it’s really tricky when you have shampoo on your head!
Q: What was your favourite book when you were growing up?
There were lots! I read so much Enid Blyton (The Famous Five, The Secret Seven and Malory Towers, in particular), I loved The Katy Books too (especially What Katy Did), Judy Blume as a teenager and when I was little I loved the Topsy and Tim series. The Bear Cub Bakers is all about six bear cubs learning to bake at Miss Betsy Bear’s School.
Q: What do you like to bake best – and why?
That’s easy! I love chocolate cake best of all. The bigger, the better… I also love licking the spoon and ‘cleaning’ the bowl when I bake. My little boy Joseph enjoys that a lot too!
Q: Do you have any more books coming out?
Yes – Pilot Jane and the Runaway Plane will be out early in 2017. It’s a picture book again, but this time about an adventurous pilot called Jane who travels the world having adventures with her best friend Rose, a sparkly pink passenger jet. But when Rose falls ill, Jane is paired with “lean, mean flying machine” Macho Mitch and the two have to battle a dangerous storm. Will Jane save the day?
Things you didn’t know about Caroline
1. She is originally from Wales and moved to Oxford eight years ago.
2. When she was little, she had a toy lamb called Larry that she carried everywhere.
3. She loves chocolate, but hates all sweets (even looking at them makes her sick!)
4. Her favourite food is breakfast cereal.
5. She loves all animals, especially dogs, horses, giraffes, penguins and monkeys, but she is a bit scared of snakes.
6. She always wanted to be called Annie when she was growing up – but happily now has a daughter called Annie!
7. She loves travelling and her favourite countries (outside than the UK) are France, Norway and New Zealand. Her favourite city is Paris.
8. She loves all things old, especially old houses with quirky layouts. One day she would love to live in a thatched cottage.
9. She is absolutely no good at cleaning and tidying – and will find any distraction to avoid this. She is lucky to have a tidy husband.
10. She would like to be an extra in a film and at some point learn to fly a plane. Ideally, she would do both of these things together.
