Binkies and Briefcases

About a year ago I wrote a manuscript for a children’s book.

My friend Mary Joy and her family had recently been in a very tragic car accident. They lost her husband/their father, Will,  and she and her two young sons were all in critical condition, separated in different hospitals-all going through difficult medical procedures completely alone.

It was one of the saddest things I have ever watched a friend experience and my heart was indescribably heavy for her.

My children were too young to understand, but they wanted to know why I was so upset.

What do you tell a child to help them know that we can get through times like this?

I had no human answer, so I started to write. 

I believe my writing is a spiritual gift, so I said a prayer that God would give me a story that could help me explain it to them in a way that was similar to the way Jesus would have.

He gave me a parable.

Parables are short stories that are a type of analogy. Jesus used them often.

I wrote the Cookie Jar Parable in about 15 minutes.

I sent it to a few Christian publishers and then, to be completely honest, I forgot about it.

I have sent queries before and received rejection letters. I didn’t think this one would be much different.

But it was.

Because this time it isn’t just my story. This is a story written in prayer and out of love for a family in suffering. 

This story is important.

Then, a few weeks later, in mid-December, tragedy struck the entire country when Sandy Hook Elementary was attacked. 

Three days later I was contacted by Tate Publishing.

They thought my story was important too.

I had several personal phone calls with the founder of the company and, in an uncharacteristic move for a business man, he generously waived over 80% of the fee that authors are normally required to contribute in accordance with their business model.

I got a very warm, genuine feeling that this was the right place for my story to be. We talked about how The Cookie Jar Parable might be able to help children who are grieving, whether that grief is for a family member, a tragedy in the news, or a pet. Grief is an emotion we can’t avoid, but we don’t talk about it with our children very often. The Cookie Jar Parable can help with that.  The story is easy to relate to and not at all scary and I think it also translates well to other faiths. The illustrations are colorful and fun.  

This is the description on the back of the book:

Elliot’s grandpa is in Heaven now, and Elliot is sad. He is a little nervous to visit Grandma’s house since Grandpa won’t be there anymore. Will she be upset? Is she lonely?

During their visit Grandma shares a special story with Elliot. Her story is about a jar full of cookies that have been created to be part of a great celebration. Through “The Cookie Jar Parable” Grandma is able to help Elliot understand that it is all right to be scared of death and loss, but on the other side there is a wonderful celebration waiting for us.

So, for the past 11 months, I have been working with Tate Publishing on developing my original one-page Microsoft Word document into an entire book. 

Everyone at Tate was very friendly and they have been honest and delivered on every promise that was made initially. 

I loved seeing my words come to life in the illustrations. (I requested the main character be the same age as my son, the grandma be reminiscent of Paula Deen and that there be a lemon beagle that looks a little like our dog, Lucy, even though there is no dog mentioned in the text. It was so fun to see how the artist, Dindo Contento, worked with my requests!) 

I think this one is my favorite.

The book officially went on sale through Tate’s website yesterday, but won’t be “officially released” and available on Amazon or through bookstores until early 2014.   

If you are interested, you can buy an early edition here. The paperback version retails for $8.99 and is 6″x7.” It’s a small book, which I think is a good size for children’s little hands. 

Every copy purchased also comes with a code for a free audio download, which I think is one of the coolest parts. We are still working with the actors to complete the audio version. So if you do purchase the book, please be patient. Your download will be available in about 8 more weeks.

Thank you so much to everyone who supported me throughout this process.  It has been a lot of work and there is still more work to be done, but I am so grateful to have reached the point that I can finally share this story with all of you!