Alright, a lot has happened. Where to even begin?
Let's start with the good news, I found an editor! Using a website called Reedsy, I connected with an editor with impressive resume who's worked on several notable books INCLUDING (but not limited to) The Hunger Games Series. To my luck, she has a love of children's books and agreed to work with on Taio & Regit. To protect her identity, I will call her Rebecca.
As of right now we are in the revision stages of the Taio & Regit. If you want to see what the first draft looked like, you can read it in my previous blog post here at https://www.alexanderggrigg.com/post/taio-regit-a-children-s-book-about-mental-health.
Now, the first round of editing will focus more on the big-picture details. We want to have all story elements in place before we get into finer details like word choice, grammar, etc. So far my editor loves the story which is always a good sign. She noted the book's strongest points were the characters, the universal theme, and the language. She loved how Taio was a relatable character and enjoyed how the language of the book broached a tough topic in a way kids could understand. All in all, the book has had a good start.
Then she dived into the critiques, including one notable critique that I'm glad she caught. She pointed that in the second half of the book I put Taio in a situation where I made it seem like it was his responsibility to cure his dad's depression. Now obviously this wasn't my intention, but I do find it funny how even after reading the first draft a hundred times, it took a fresh pair of eyes to notice this.
Now I'm not saying I don't want kids to not understand their parent's mental illness. I think it's very noble when people try to understand these kinds of topics to see what they can do to help, but the way I wrote it first made it seem like
a. Taio had something to do with his dad's mental illness, and
b. Taio could do something to stop it.
Mental illness of any kind is complex and infuriating. The last thing I want my readers to think (especially my kid readers) is that they have to find the cure-all for their loved one's illness. The point of my book is to teach kids that it isn't their fault if their parent/ loved one struggles with a mental illness. Furthermore, I want them to learn that if they do have a parent/loved one who struggles, there is hope and resources available to assist them. So, with my editors notes in hand, I'm almost finished with the second revision of Taio & Regit. Down the line maybe I will share exactly what my editor's notes were so you could get an idea about how she worked. Until then, I've got some revising to so. See you next time!