Hey Friends,
Guess what? I wrote a book. A children's book. It started as a fun little story that I wrote on vacation and turned into an actual book because Evan made me. Let me explain:
Firstly, I write little stories all the time. I always have. Plopped right in the middle of my desktop is a folder called, "stories," and it's filled with short stories about Dilbert, Stevie, and Biloxi, as well as tales about hockey life. When I'm writing a story and get on a roll, I can feel my heart rate increase (my Garmin will actually alert me to a "stressful event"), and I get this dose - a mixture of dopamine and endorphins that make me feel...well, alive, I suppose. I've written these little stories from the day that I began forming letters into words with my pencil. In grade 2 I had a teacher, Mrs. Bannerman, who recognized my affinity for writing and encouraged me to write a new story every week to share with the class. I spent my Sunday afternoons crafting a new story. I delivered the story to my class on Monday and waited on bated breath for my cohorts' reactions. As I watched my classmates smile, laugh, and listen intently to my words, I received that adrenaline rush upon realizing that my stories had an effect on others. I read to transport myself on an adventure and discovering that my written words could do the same for others felt pretty powerful and exciting for a 7-year-old!
I just realized this may feel like a Pinterest recipe. Are you scrolling with frustration to get to the damn point? Sorry!
Back to my book.
When Ev and I were in Costa Rica last year, we visited the Jaguar Rescue Center, a facility that rescues sick, injured, and/or orphaned animals. We had an excellent tour guide, and I really enjoyed the back story on each animal in the facility, as well as a description of each animal's personality. I was most captivated by the story of the caiman who sat quietly in the pond, while turtles sunned themselves on her back. I heard a few people from our group comment, "Look! A crocodile!" One woman said, "Those turtles shouldn't be so close to that crocodile or they'll be lunch!" The tour guide explained that the animal was not a crocodile, but was in fact, a caiman. Most of the tour did not know what a caiman was, so he patiently explained that differences between caimans and crocodiles. As he spoke, I watched the caiman, peeking her eyes from the water to observe us. She appeared, to me, like an active participant in our tour. She must have heard this spiel a thousand times. I could hear her reptile voice saying, "I'm not a crocodile. I'm a caiman!" When the guide described where the caiman was found, everyone's' jaw dropped, and I instantly fell in love with this reptile. I had so many questions. How did the caiman end up THERE? How did the people react when they discovered the caiman? This reptile had a story to tell! (you'll have to read my story to get the full story - I can't give it all away in a blog post!)
As soon as we returned to our hotel, I stole Ev's laptop for a few hours, made myself comfortable on a beach chair, and quickly drafted the story of Katie the Caiman.
We returned from holidays, and like all the stories that I've written over the years, the story of Katie sat stagnant - this time, however, on Ev's laptop.
Fast forward 6-months to a rainy morning at Candle Lake when Ev beckoned me into his office.
"Look," he began, "I found your story about the caiman on my laptop, and I've submitted it to illustrators. I've narrowed it down to 3 illustrators that we can hire to transform this into a book."
"You did what?" I responded angrily, "That story is not finished. It is not my best work. What have you done? Cancel the illustrator."
I was pissed.
My stories belong to me. I keep them hidden on my laptop and now Evan STOLE my story and wanted me to share with others? The nerve.
I was pretty angry with Ev for a few days, to be perfectly honest...until he showed me the illustrations submitted from Narek.
Narek brought Katie to life with such beautiful colors and expressions. Katie was exactly as I had envisioned. It was like he had insider access to my imagination and was able to recreate it on paper. I felt my heart pumping, just as I do when I write my stories, and decided to pursue this (Like I had a choice! ha).
I began working with Narek in August. First item on the agenda: I had to finish the story! I spent a few days thinking about the level of vocabulary I was using, ensuring it was consistent with the vocabulary of a child in kindergarten to grade 2, but also including a few higher-level words to spark discussion. I thought about how I could incorporate targets that I would use in my speech therapy sessions. I thought about how a teacher could use my story to target early literacy skills. I thought about how parents could use the story to expand their child's vocabulary and encourage interactions. I thought carefully about every word and then enlisted the help of my awesome mom.
Mom, the queen of grammatical structure, has been my editor from day one! You may not know this, but my mom is a very talented writer and writes articles for the Western College of Veterinary Medicine.
Mom was so so helpful. I think that she spends most of the time omitting commas, as I tend to overuse them, all, the, time. :)
She provided suggestions to assist in making the dialogue smoother.
Mom even caught the extra space after quotation marks in the first proof! (which was incorrectly printed horizontally, by the way...oops).
I would not have felt confident in producing this book without my mom's careful eye.
And here we are. Katie the Caiman arrived on island on Friday!
I'm very pleased with the illustrations. Narek did a fantastic job.
I feel like Katie is a good start. I'm feeling quite insecure about sharing with others, but as Evan has reminded me time and time again, one must start somewhere. I'm no longer mad at Ev, by the way. I am grateful that he recognizes how much happiness writing brings me and opened my eyes to the realization that my stories could also bring happiness to others. He also reminded me that as an experienced speech therapist, I possess specialized skills that could help parents and teachers target skills in a fun and interactive way. Evan gave me the push that I needed (maybe more like a loving shove).
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| It's definitely my FIRST rodeo, and I'm hanging on! |
I've already written the first draft of the next book in the series, and I can't wait to share that one with you. As I see Katie in print, I envision how to improve upon the next. Now that you've been introduced to Katie and the core group of animals in the Jaguar Rescue Center, I think that you'll really enjoy the next book in the series. Soon come.
As for Katie the Caiman, here is my advice (and my vision):
Cuddle up with your kiddo in a warm, comfy spot.
While you read the story together, use the story and the illustrations to spark conversation. How does Katie feel? What do you think will happen next? What would you do if that happened to you? If you could bring a jungle animal to school, which one would you pick? What would your friends do? Don't just read the book but talk about it.
I see so many parents busy curating the perfect Christmas for their families right now. I also see a lot of children who appear overwhelmed and overstimulated by all of the festivities. Take some quiet one-on-one time with your child during the holiday madness. Turn story time into a fun and cozy interaction with your child. No screens, just a fun story, beautiful illustrations, and your imagination.
Link to my website (in progress): Kirstie Lindsay Books
If you'd like to own the book: buy the book
For my Canadian friends: buy the book in Canada
Enjoy.
Merry Christmas!
