Sketches, School, and So much more!
If you could see me right now, you’d notice the permanent smile I can’t seem to shake—because the sketches are officially here!
Yes, actual sketches. Pages that once lived only in my imagination now exist on paper, full of personality and promise. I’ve been reviewing them, sharing feedback, and very soon… color will be added. COLOR! It feels like watching a dream slowly wake up.
One of the most meaningful parts of this journey is what comes next:
I’ll be sharing the manuscript of this very first book with the students at the school where I teach.
I’ll be popping into classrooms, reading the story aloud, holding up the sketches as I go, and sharing how this whole thing started—from an idea to a real book in progress. I want my students to see it. To know that authors aren’t just names on book covers… they’re real people. And they can be one too.
If I can plant even one tiny seed of “maybe I could do that someday,” my heart will be full.
Here’s the part that still makes me pause and whisper, how is this real?
I now have an investor.
This means I can publish the books one after another, allowing the series to roll out more smoothly—and sooner—than I ever imagined. Even more exciting? My incredible illustrator, Sandie, has agreed to take this project on for the remainder of this year!
Once one book is finished, Sandie will jump right into illustrating the next. Knowing the series will grow consistently, lovingly, and with the same artistic heart feels like such a gift.
I’ve also been reached out to book reviewers and teacher accounts who are excited to read and share the book once it’s published. The idea that these stories might reach classrooms and families I’ve never met? That’s a kind of magic I’m still wrapping my head around.
I continue to ask myself:
How is this even possible? How did I get here?
I’m hopeful.
I’m nervous.
I’m excited.
I’m eager.
I’m all of it—at the same time.
I believe in these books. I hope they’re as successful as I feel they deserve to be. And no matter what, I know this journey has already been worth it.
As always, the support from friends and family is everything I need to keep going. Every kind word, every share, every “I believe in you” is fuel. And I don’t take a single bit of it for granted
