I
tend to think that certain things are easy or easily done. And by easily done,
I mean quickly. ‘Let’s clean the bathrooms. Let’s prepare a baby birthday
present. Let’s
move, etc.’ In my head, this would be all done in ten minutes. However, reality
always looks different. In the end, I am frustrated with how much time the task
took.Less
frustrating yet more time-consuming than I thought was my journey to my debut
children’s
book. I always loved writing stories. Creating a new world with characters who
can do anything and everything is exceptional. But being an author did never
occur to me as an option for my professional career. In addition, my parents
had high standards and wanted me to graduate from college. I completed a BSc
and an MSc, and I still felt incomplete.
I started to write a novel. Ideas floated and sprouted, and I had a great feeling about this. I still have. However, after becoming a mother, I barely have time to put make-up on. ‘What if I drop the novel for a while and write a children’s book? This should be fairly easy! After all, some children’s books only contain 200 words,’ I thought to myself.
Naive as I was, I started to think of a story that children would enjoy. This process alone took me several months! After having an idea of the possible storyline, I questioned if I should write in rhyme. Is that still a thing? Do children still enjoy rhyming books? If you ask five people this question, you’ll get five different answers. The answer I found for myself was that at least the children I know love rhyming stories. Rhyming is easy, right? Cat rhymes with hat. That sounds nice.
The
first draft took me good four months. I wrote at 11 pm when the kids were
sleeping, and I actually should have slept, too. The late evening times,
however, were the only times I had for myself. Lucky me, this is my most
creative time. When I sent it to my editor, she was very polite. Looking back
at my first draft, I feel embarrassed. The rhyming was poor, the storyline was
non-existent, and there were no characters to get attached to. There were just
a bunch of characters with no purpose. And song-long rhymes.
I felt frustrated. I wanted this to happen. I always thought of myself as a good writer. A writer whose stories might be enjoyed. After spending another three months revising, my editor was satisfied. But what about illustrations? No child cares for bare words on paper. There needs to be colour. Can I do it myself? After a couple of trials, the answer was a definite No. The process of writing a children’s book is far more complex than I thought. It’s time-consuming and involves passion and dedication. But isn’t that worth it for holding your book in your hands? For me, this is the ultimate thing.
Irina
Bock is a mother, former soldier, toxicologist, entrepreneur, and author of her
debut children’s
book Today, I Wish For A Sister. Irina started to write stories when she was
six years old but never completed a manuscript. She will publish her first
picture book by 
the
end of 2022. Irina was in creative writing clubs in High-school and college.
When she is not thinking about future stories, Irina loves spending time with
her family, crochets pretty soft toys, and rides her bicycle. She is valued for
her heart-warming birthday cards by friends and family.
Follow Irina via her Instagram.
