We have always created our art with passionate fluency and love. This is likely not at all surprising, considering the message behind our beloved books and why we chose to create them specifically for children, in lieu of countless other projects we are also working on simultaneously. While we are sure the creative process is unique for everyone, we have found that while working with our fabulous mentor, who is priming us for entering the world of professional Children’s book publishing, how very little we truly know about the process.
Our mentor is an accomplished Children’s Book Author as well as the founder of a very successful children’s book publishing company. Arielle Haughee (Hoy) of Orange Blossom Publishing has imparted so much knowledge to us in such a short time, we are so very grateful for her. You can find her website at https://www.orangeblossombooks.com/
Ironically, she also began her artistic journey with books geared towards adults and she let us know from the get-go, how challenging it can be to not only change genres but also your target audience, particularly for children. We were determined to press on, despite feeling discouraged with the flame of our passion growing cold attempting to meet certain guidelines and criteria for one type of book or another. We were unsure exactly where Dimple and their friends fit into the multiple and very distinct categories of children’s books.
Considering recent events, they may not fit in anywhere. After all, we are writing about compassion and inclusion, the love and acceptance of all humans- regardless of race, religion, appearance, gender orientation and all the beautiful things that makes each one of us unique. Unfortunately, it is specifically these types of books that are on the chopping block and the next to be banned from schools and libraries in Florida. The ‘Don’t Say Gay’ initiative is now supported by Ron DeSantis and would effectively shut down access to our target audience.
Attempting to create, write and illustrate works that will be transformative, affirming, and accessible to young children in this fractured society is more challenging than we could ever have imagined.
