From Being a Book Worm To Becoming a Children's Book Author

From Being a Book Worm To Becoming a Children's Book Author

By: Esther I. Kim

When I was a kid, I was a huge book worm. One of my favorite hobbies was to go to the local library and immediately, I would dive into the children’s book section. I’ve read hundreds of books including: The Rainbow Fish, The Hungry Caterpillar, Where the WIld Things Are, and so much more. Reading helped me escape into the unknown, while developing my critical reading and writing skills. It also helped me to become a more confident speaker since my family was bi-lingual.

In high school, I was on the yearbook staff for a student body population of over 4,000 students. Mrs. Naughtin who was the yearbook advisor advocated for me to be on the staff because she saw my talents in writing and photography. She told me that she would get me on the staff no matter what, and that has been one of my biggest accomplishments in high school.

When I went to University of California Los Angeles, I majored in English. I wanted to pursue journalism or use my talents in writing. Little did I know that I would become an unofficial children’s book author. While I was working a 9-5 corporate job, I saw some tutorials on publishing books online through Amazon Kindle Direct. It took me many months to brain storm, storyboard, and edit but I came up with two kid’s book concepts.

The first book I published on Amazon Kindle Direct was called Brave Bear and the Golden Honey Hive. It is about a bear cub who has to go through an adventure alone, only to find that he is very courageous. The book talks about friendship, leadership, and family. The reason this book was personal to me is that Papa Bear was a depiction of my late Father and the relationship that we had. I wanted kids to know that they are brave for going to school through such a tough time, for experiencing pressures of academics, and developing leadership and friendship skills. I also wanted to advocate for anti-bullying in schools through this book, which is something I am very passionate about.

When I initially launched my first book, I barely got any viewers. Months passed and I only had a few people purchase it online. But I didn’t give up and made my second book: Theo and the Three Treasures. This book is a problem solving, adventure book about a boy named Theo. Theo has to finish three tasks to reach the treasure that he is promised. At the end of the three tasks, Theo finds that the treasures are not material things but actually his own personal character traits that made him great. However, even with advertisements, my books did not sell like a national best selling book in the New York Times. But I love this quote by Helen Keller, “While they were saying it couldn’t be done, it was done”.

Failure to me is not about getting thousands of people to buy my books. Failure is not trying at all. I have tried and I have accomplished what I can with my books. Now, I want to take my books to the next level through a kid’s book publisher so I can get the books in stores nationwide. Who knew that a kid who loved to sit at the corner in libraries would someday became a children’s book author. The book worm actually became a beautiful butterfly who learned to spread its wings and fly.