Book Update

Ever feel like everything takes way too long?

Yeah, same. And this children’s book has been no exception.

If you’ve just stumbled onto this post and haven’t read the last few, here’s the short version: what started as a co-authored book with Kistemo’s Mia has evolved into two books. Mia and I are now each writing our own stories using our own individual characters and concepts — which is great! We both get to explore the parts we’re most excited about, and Kistemo gets an extra book to publish.

So, when both Mia and Daniel (our editor) said they liked my first draft, I naively thought we were basically done. Time to finalize things with the artist and get those illustrations going, right?

Of course I thought that. My instincts are always extreme: either “this is trash” or “this is amazing!” — no middle ground.

Part of it is that I have trouble trusting my own writing, so when something feels good or someone says it is, I assume it must be ready to share. But if I’m being honest, part of it is just me being anxious to finish something and have it out in the world. Of having something else to add to my portfolio — and sometimes that urgency blinds me to revisions that could be turning something good into great.

Which is why it’s good to have people in your corner who will look at your work objectively. I wrote a post about networking here if you're interested in reading it.

Because even when changes are small, editing is definitely a process.

First came the big stuff:

Originally, I wanted the book to end with Caleb and his friends realizing that too much screen time is a bad thing.

(Caleb, by the way, is an adventurous, art-loving polar bear cub who can literally jump into his drawings and explore them!)

Daniel suggested taking it a step further — what if Caleb and his team learned the lesson and helped the whole town understand it, too?

At first, I didn’t love that idea. It felt like too much for little cub and his friends to solve, how do you convince a bunch of adults that they're spending too much time on their phones? and I wasn’t sure how to go about it without creating a physical villain for Caleb and his friends to defeat.

But in the end, Daniel was right. That shift made the second half of the book a lot more fun, and we came up with some hilarious imagery I can’t wait to see illustrated.

Then came the small stuff:

We extended some pages to give certain illustrations room to shine.

We shortened others for better pacing.

We even cut a scene I loved — a zoo takeover where the birds were planning a coup while the primates were busy playing video games. Funny for kids, but... would a polar bear cub really imagine a zoo?

Each time I made changes, I thought we were done.

But, after working with Daniel for a couple of months now, I’ve come to realize that’s how Daniel works — no giant edit dumps. He gives feedback in rounds. He mentioned it when we first met, but I think my eagerness to get it out in the world, took over. Mostly I appreciate that. Occasionally it drives my “let’s finish this already!” brain a little crazy.

But it’s been a good learning experience — not just about writing, but about collaboration. A lesson I started learning with Mia and am learning with Daniel.

We all have different styles, personalities, and processes.

For the next book, I’ll know what to expect — and I’ll try to stop assuming “I like it” means we’re finished.

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