The Reality of Publishing a Children’s Book
I’ve had an idea for a children’s book lurking around for few years now. It was buzzing in the back of my brain, and it wouldn’t leave me alone. If I can’t shake it, then I must attack it head on. How hard could it really be? Silly me…it’s a very complicated process.
Two years ago: I took some classes at the University of Washington, dipping my toe into the idea of getting a Master’s in Digital Media (look at me, being all academic). I chose two very strategic classes: one on digital storytelling for startups (LOL), and a writing course (LOL x2).
Okay, fine….those LOLs are sarcastic. I picked them on purpose. The writing class was really for two novels I want to write—one of which is kinda in progress, but on hold while I juggle a few things like this website, recapping our trip to Africa, and oh yeah, the children’s book.
My strategy was simple: write the children’s book first. Test the waters. Get a feel for the creative process. A warm-up round! Easy win!
Yeah…no. Apparently, writing a children’s book is not the casual little side quest I imagined. Plot twist everyone saw coming: the illustrations are a huge part of it. Like, half-the-book huge.
But I’m stubborn. And overly confident in my ability to learn any skill if I just try hard enough. So I pulled out the iPad, dusted off the sketchbook, and started drawing. I was doing okay. Some progress here, a doodle there. But the truth was: I needed more time than I had. And time is a luxury when you're already wearing 15 hats.
Enter: Plan B – outsource it!
I tried my network. Crickets. I stepped back, regrouped, drank a few dews & coffee, and asked myself the big questions:
Do I find an illustrator first?
Or do I need a publisher?
Wait, should I be looking for a literary agent??
The answer? I had no idea. So I did what any determined-but-clueless creative does, I just started firing off emails.
Turns out, a lot of publishers prefer to use their own in-house artists. Good news? I hadn’t found any of my own illustrations yet. So, step one: find a publisher.
And believe it or not, I got in deep talks with one. I was seeing the vision so clearly: my book on shelves, parents snagging it for holiday gifts, me on the CBS Morning Show casually sipping coffee while discussing my wildly adorable characters… and five years down the line, my character floating down 5th Avenue in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Cue reality check: it’s expensive. Like, really expensive.
I thought, Okay, maybe I can trade some royalties to lower the upfront cost? Ha. Nope. Not an option.
After a couple weeks of tweaking the manuscript and doing mental survivor challenges, I realized the traditional route might just leave me with a finished book and zero dollars left to actually get it anywhere.
So here we are: Self-publishing Land, population: me.
I’ve officially started the hunt for an illustrator on one of those magical freelance artist sites (same place I got our family crest made…a story for another day). It’s time to find someone who can bring this story to life, one colorful page at a time.
And while I did get a super kind email from that publisher offering to meet and chat through options, the self-publish train is leaving the station. I’m planning to meet with the publisher in hopes they solve my problems but in the mean time, let the illustrator search begin.