First Word

  Children's books make great Christmas presents. Ant Trails and Butterfly Dreams - A Story About Happiness by Selwa Berbawy is an ideal gift to bring inspiration to all.  This enchanting book shares with children how to easily switch their thoughts from sad to happy. It's based on self-help teachings, but brought down to the level of children.  Here is what some reviewers said: Direct sentences and frequent dialogue make the story accessible while providing tangible recommendations for increasing happiness in one’s own life. Arney’s tale is familiar to readers of all ages, and its satisfying ending provides hope to those for whom happiness is elusive. ~ River Dancer I love books like this that share messages that appeal to all ages. That is what Selwa is able to achieve with her new book ANT TRAILS AND BUTTERFLY DREAMS. We are able to see how happiness is something we can choose, even if every day is not perfect. We can make the choice to focus on the good and...

I have situations arise all of the time where I am just amused. Now I have to admit most authors who do these things are doing so in pure innocence and lack of knowledge, which of course, I am aware ... but none the less, it still entertains me. You always have to keep your sense of humor in this business. So, here are two things I find infinitely amusing. The hand-drawn, homemade illustration . Many children's authors make this mistake. As a part of their pitch, they will whip out the homemade drawing their kids produced and say how cute it would be to use their kid's work in their professional children's book. All right, that's cute ... okay ... BUT it's a far cry from "professional" and while you may be astounded by your little Suzie's talents (and perhaps little Suzie is a master hand at the Crayolas), but you're not alone in your "cute" idea. In fact, it's a common idea among many new children's book writers who don't k...

We are presented with dozens of concepts and ideas for children's book. In fact, I have been pitched more children's books ideas than adult fiction. I resisted doing a children's book for a number of reasons. 1. Cost of color print runs is expensive and makes it difficult to make a project profitable. 2. Most authors wanted to force a particular illustrator on the project. Most of those illustrations were subpar. (Hint: You think it's cute to use your kindergarteners to illustrate a book, and maybe it's a sweet idea, but it is still a bunch of five-year-olds' drawings you're suggesting for a professional book you hope will become a classic.) 3. Costs to hire a professional illustrator are very expensive. Again, the added cost makes it difficult to turn a profit on not only a labor-intensive and expensive project, but also a full-color book (as noted above). Those three issues alone kept 3L Publishing from jumping into this market. I didn't not w...