A 30-Year Journey – from Toddler Mom to Self Published Author

You may have read about some of my world travels, but this is a different kind of adventure.

By the time my son was three years old, he could count and recite the alphabet.  He could recognize colors, shapes, numbers, and letters.  He still had two years before starting Kindergarten.  I thought, “What next?”  To me, the logical next step was to help him learn to read. “But how?”  It seemed he needed to learn the sounds of letters.  I looked for a book that would repeat the sound of each letter multiple times on a page. Dr. Suess’s ABC book was good, but I wanted an alphabet book with a complete story – beginning, middle, and end. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for.

Two and a half years later, I was in the same boat with my then three year old daughter. Assuming other parents would be interested in a similar book, I decided to write one myself – the idea for A to Z Animal Picnic was born.

As a single mother with a full-time insurance career, life was busy. Slowly but surely, I wrote and illustrated the story I had sought. When it was done, I placed the pages in a binder and set the binder on a shelf.

In 2022, I retired from insurance – my children were raising children of their own – and I independently published A to Z Animal Picnic!

My best advice to aspiring authors and artists is to never give up on your dreams!

Check out all of Kim Marie’s books!