Ben Lerwill studied French at university but never tells French people this. He's been working as a freelance travel writer for more than a decade, which means his house is cluttered with atlases, guidebooks and ill-fitting socks he had to buy from a Serbian market after forgetting to pack any of his own. Again. His writing has appeared in more than 50 national and international publications, from The Sunday Times to National Geographic Traveller.

Ben's passions include the outdoors, music, wildlife, running and reading. He is thrilled that, through children's books, he can share his enthusiasm about the wider world with young readers. He's at his happiest when he's on a long walk and his children haven't yet pinched all the snacks.

Katharine McEwen has been illustrating children's books for over 20 years, working with some wonderful authors including Allan Ahlberg and Michael Rosen.

After years of longing to illustrate a book about bears, she eventually bit the bullet and penned her own, Bear Hug, which was published in 2014. She lives in Kent and often seeks inspiration from the surrounding countryside.

Katharine is clueless about computers, so creates her artwork with gouache, watercolour, coloured pencils and paper collage.

As well as illustrating, Katharine is a mummy to her little boy, Finley, and when able, enjoys making ceramics, seeking out small adventures and exploring new places.