#1 It Started With a Workshop
Three weeks ago I accidentally became an aspiring children’s author.
Let me start from the beginning. You see, at the beginning of 2026 I set out with great dreams and aspirations for the new year. “This,” I claimed boldly, “is the year I become an author.” [Picture a superhero pose, cape flapping in the breeze]. I was inspired, full of grit, and determined to write the next best seller… for about the next two weeks. But then I quickly realized:
I have no experience,
no real resources or support,
and pretty much no flipping clue what I’m doing.
[Me frantically Googling: Free or cheap writing classes near me]
Like a beacon of hope shining bright, my city library was offering a Writer in Residence workshop series. I had no inkling as to what something like this would entail. Did I mention I’ve spent the last 20 years of my life working in corporate project management and process improvement? Not exactly a skillset that resides on the same side of the brain as the creatives.
Anyhow, last month I decided to attend the first session: How To Write A Query Letter. I was miles away from this step in the process, but it was free information and it felt like I was at least taking a step in some direction. Any direction.
Little did I know, the workshop was for children’s authors.
The workshop was hosted by Debi Novotny, a local children’s author who is small in stature, but large in charisma and character. Not to mention a wealth of information for somebody who is starting out and doesn’t know anything about anything in the writing world. →ME←.
At the time I didn’t fancy myself a children’s author. After all, I’m a “serious” writer. And serious writers write big long chapter books with no pictures for adults… right?
Now is a good time to acknowledge that you don’t know me yet. But that right there, is sarcasm sprinkled in with a big dose of humility.
I returned to writing my adult fiction, but I wasn’t getting anywhere. Mostly I felt stuck, uninterested, and like a little kid trying to stay in the pool for adult swim. Ever since that first workshop, I wondered if wandering into Debi’s class was by chance or by fate. Because the truth is I DO have a children’s story I want to tell. It’s a story that I’ve been thinking about for NINE years. But I never had the time, headspace, courage to commit.
What if I try and see if I can make anything of this idea that’s been glowing like an ember in the back of my mind all these years? What if I AM, in fact, an aspiring children’s author?
It escalated quickly into an If You Give A Mouse A Cookie situation…
If you go to a free writing workshop, you’ll want to meet 1:1 with the author…
And if you meet with the author, she will tell you to join a local author/illustrator mingle…
And if you go to meet friendly author/illustrators, they’ll tell you the Tucson Book Festival is happening in !SIX DAYS! and you should go…
And if you’re go to the Tucson Book Festival, you’ll have to pick sessions to attend…
And if you go to the sessions, you will need a business card to share…
And if you make a business card, you will need to include a website [even though you’re a brand new writer and have nothing to showcase yet]…
And if you build a website, you will need to share a picture…
And if you need to share a picture, you will want a fun outfit to wear...
And if you’re going to do all of this, you should share your experience for others to learn from and inevitably watch you fail or succeed!
Now you’re all caught up. And that’s how I became an accidental aspiring Children’s author 3 weeks ago.
And you know what? I’m feeling alive and happy and excited about something for the first time in a long time. Oh, and now I’m driving to Tucson this weekend.
Yesterday, I attended a local SCBWI Mingle.
I didn’t even know the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators existed a few weeks ago. Now I’m rubbing elbows with real life writers and artists. I texted my best friend after that mingle/meetup:
“I’m absolutely buzzing. Everyone was so nice and supportive. I really feel like this is my path!” ← My direct text quote.
“That’s a glimmer,” she said. “You have to look for the glimmers in life.”
I like that.
Consider this my message in a bottle.
A record of real feelings and lessons learned. The journey of someone who accidentally wandered into a children’s writing workshop and now dreams of becoming a published author… someday.
If you’d like to follow along as I figure out how children’s book are actually made, you’re warmly invited to join me, friend!
Welcome to Natalie’s Storytime Corner:
→ one human trying to learn the craft of picture books from scratch
→ small victories that feel like parades
→ doubts that arrive uninvited, but stay for tea
→ an unreasonable attachment to talking animals (I blame Beatrix Potter, Maurice Sendak, and the whole Berenstain family to name a few)
→ existential spirals about whether any of this will work
→ moments of stubborn optimism
→ failures, detours, and the occasional SPLAT, BONK, or KERFLUFFLE