Hairy, scary blogs and newsletters!
It feels daunting and exciting all at the same time… my first blog/newsletter post!
The journey started in 2020 (during the height of the pandemic, which seems like a lifetime ago!). Like swathes of people around the world, I had more time on my hands than I had ever had, with nowhere to go to spend and enjoy it. Cue story-writing…
It started with making scribbles and notes on scrap pieces of paper, of the odd children’s story idea that popped in my head. But then I realised, “Hey, I’m kind of enjoying this. Maybe I should work at it… like properly, properly work at it!”. So, I did. Started working on it, that is. But I know that I, and my writing journey, are still a work in progress. I’ve barely just left the start line.
The free picture book story that’s available on my website is called, "Hairy, Scary Pineapples!", although over time, I’ve started calling it “Pineapples” for short. It’s one of the earlier stories I wrote for children, and also one of my favourite picture book stories out of the several children’s stories that I’ve written so far.
The date and time stamps from Microsoft Word show that I started working on “Pineapples” in July 2021. Since that time, I’ve worked on several iterations of the story.
“Pineapples” is currently available only in audiobook format, although you’ll also see in the link the fantastic animated gif that was created for it. The main thing though, is that it’s published, which means, technically, I’m a self-published author! Scary! Proud!
It was a pleasure to work with the talented and super professional voice over artist, Anna Lawrence, who recorded the audio for “Pineapples”, and truly brought the story to life. I also loved every minute of collaborating with Ellie Beykzadeh, who did the lovely illustration and gif animation… working with other professionals in the story creation (publishing) industry to bring a vision to life deserves its own post, which I’ll share in time.
I hope you enjoy the “Pineapples” story! I’m off to revise and refine some other children’s stories that I’m working on. See you in the next post!
Dee Ann
London, England