Writing · Illustration · Book Design · Self-Publishing
What started as a gift for my nephew turned into a much bigger creative adventure than I ever expected.
My nephew has always had a big imagination, and after he named a fly “Twisty,” every fly in our world became Twisty. That little family joke stuck with me, and eventually became the idea for a children’s book.
I wrote and illustrated the book as a gift for him, filling the story with little details that made it especially his: his love of bananas, his perpetually dirty hands, and a gentle reminder to wash our hands. When my family encouraged me to make it into a “real” book, I decided to figure out how to do just that.
I researched self-publishing, registered the copyright, purchased an ISBN and barcodes, and learned how to make the book available for sale and accessible to libraries. What began as a one-off gift slowly became an actual published book.
Then came another new adventure for me, I was invited to participate in a local library’s Meet the Author event, where I read my story, answered questions, and held a book signing.
This project became more than a book, it was a hands-on lesson in taking an idea from a tiny spark of inspiration and bringing it all the way to life.