Four years ago Johanna Basford posted some of her intricate drawings on-line.

A publisher came calling and suggested the traditional, a children’s coloring book. Johanna wasn’t interested.  She wanted to captivate adults. It took a while but eventually she developed the perfect story, and Laurence King Publishing said yes. You see, her grandfather had been the head gardener at Scotland’s Brodick Castle Gardens.

The rest is coloring book history – 14 foreign editions of “Secret Garden,” sales of over 1.4 million copies, and a second book, “Enchanted Forest.”

Johanna thinks adults find release in her books because coloring “can be cathartic” after a long day and help people tap their “creative spark.” She has no doubt about her most creative business move.  Johanna told BuzzFeed News that “Sometimes the most valuable thing you can do is to give your work away for free.”