I have recently joined Facebook after resisting for many years.  The reason behind this was a school reunion that I was not able to go to which had its own Facebook group and photographs.  I found myself itching to see how well or otherwise people had aged.  Within a very short time I was back in touch with people who I had not had any contact with for, in some case, 30+ years.  I discovered that one of these, the writer of “Sacred Crystal Pyramid”, the first book in the Angel Messengers Series,  Benita Jayne, I knew under another name and that she was my old school pal who I used to travel on the 207 bus to school in the mornings.  Benita and I have had our own little reunion thanks to the “Sacred Crystal Pyramid” and I am delighted to welcome her to my Author Strikes Back thread where she has gamely answered questions which sprung to my mind whilst reading her book.  So without further ado……………………

Benita Jayne

How did the idea of a series based around the Angelic Kingdom develop and why was Amethyst a good candidate to enter the kingdom?

I regularly use meditation to relax. During my relaxed state I had the vision to create guided  meditations (describing the place in detail like reading a book) that can take a person on a journey to a healing Angelic world to help reduce stress, aid relaxation and inner healing. The  places that were created for meditation were magical and this inspired me to create an adventure book, based around the places descibed.

I wanted Amethyst not to be the usual type of character that would journey to these places.  The experience for her would be unbelievable, hence her reaction from being a feisty character to one of awe and disbelief. To me she was the girl I wish I could have been.

What comes across well is your warmness towards the healing power of angels.  Can you tell us more about that?

I have used Reiki angelic healing for quite some time for myself, friends and family. Some experiences have been overwhelming and have created my passion to explore this area further. I have read and heard of many accounts of amazing and lovely experiences with Angels. There are many different beliefs and I respect everyone’s personal belief, however Angels cross many different religons and cultures. I wanted to share my experiences in the form of a fantasy adventure book.

With children’s books we are often aiming to create lasting memories.  What children’s books have been close to you since childhood?

The books that I remember most were the Enid Blyton Adventure series of books. It is funny how you never forget the characters and amazing adventures they have. To me they remain an important part of your childhood experience. Like your favourite sweets and TV characters, when you remember them it brings a good feeling inside.

Do you know, the Enid Blyton Adventure books really never made an impression on me when I was a child, whereas I do read adventure books now.  The Enid Blyton books I loved were her magical stories aimed at younger readers.  I was particularly obsessed with a tale about a pixie market for a number of years.  It’s amazing to think now how much influence she wielded on quite a few generations of young readers.  Anyway, I digress…next question

It’s very clear that the Angel Messenger series is a labour of love.  You have developed a website  which has  special message cards and have been in charge of design and cover illustration for both books and website.  How important is this multi-media approach for children’s books today?

The strange thing is I started creating the Angel message cards before the book. I wanted to be able to inspire young people, to feel they are amazing, caring, capable of following their personal dreams. The book concept was born from the characters on the cards and the places I had created in my meditations. 

My background is in design and illustration so it was a passion to create something that would work and support the series of books. The messages have been developed further and are now an extension of the books inspiration.  I wanted to share the experience of the angelic adventure being able to build confidence, vision, hopes and dreams.

Many books and characters now exist in a multi media form, Harry Potter is a prime example. I think multi media is now expected by the majority of industries, including books. 

The essence of a book can sometimes be lost in translation in a film as some of the detail and thoughts of the characters are lost.  Some of the popular books are then seen as a highly commercial and profitable business in the world of licensing and manufacturing and may dilute the original thoughts and message of the author. 

However if multi media is thoughtfully created,  it can be used in a positive way to communicate very important messages from the author to the reader. 

What’s next for Benita Jayne?

It is very important for me to help children know they are special no matter what their beliefs, culture or country they belong to. I have left the story open to enable me to take the characters to many places in the world to explore different countries and cultures. 

I am thinking about creating meditations for young people to help with daily stress, relaxation to help with studying and being creative. Look out for the next exciting announcements on angelmessengers.co.uk or follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for inspirational messages.

Many thanks for Benita for answering the questions and I would like to wish her luck with the rest of her Angel Messengers series of books. The first in the series, “The Sacred Crystal Pyramid” can be purchased on Amazon by clicking on the book title.  The book has attracted some great reviews.

Let’s not leave it another 30 years, Benita!