Celebrating the Release of a New Picture Book

I had hoped to have this book ready to go prior to Easter, but as the old adage says some of the best laid plans often go awry. That was certainly the case with this book. And I definitely learned the importance of having someone review the story both for the pictures and the text. One of my editors pointed out that one page had the wrong text to go with it. Thanks to computers, making that kind of change is relatively easy.

My big problem in publishing picture books is that I tend to be a perfectionist. I'm constantly tweaking either the text or the pictures. That means by the time I'm finally ready to upload the story to Amazon I have multiple copies in various stages. So I don't get them confused, right before I add that final version to Amazon, I delete the majority of them so that I'm not uploading the wrong edition.

After putting together four picture books I think I'm finally learning that everything will take longer than expected. So for my next book I'm going to plan waaay in advance. By doing that, I'll have less stress and enjoy the process and keep it fun to do.

Now let me tell you about the story. The idea came about when I was teaching Sunday school classes to middle graders.  Many of them, like Angie in this book, didn't see the need to memorize Bible verses. They thought it wasn't necessary because Bibles were readily available. 

Short of giving them prizes or candy for learning them I had to come up with other creative ideas. One of them was explaining how you need to know sports plays in advance, so you'd know what to do when you're trying to win a game. But the best reason for memorizing verses is they will be in your mind when you need encouragement or you’re going through a crisis.

This book, as well as my other books for childrean are available in eBook format for tablets and phones and paperback versions. This book also includes  bonus coloring pages and mazes. 

I have opted not to do a hardcover version at this time as it’s too costly for many readers. Hope you pick up a copy of this new book and check out my other books as well on Amazon. 

Here's the link to do that: 
https://www.amazon.com/stores/Christine-L.-Henderson/author/B09L2Y7XNP

Celebrating “International Read to Me Day” with a New Children's Book Release

I'm celebrating “International Read to Me Day” by releasing my newest picture book for children. This is the third picture book I've published. The previous two books were ones with a Christmas theme. I am an unabashedly Christmas spirited person. I not only love reading and writing books with a Christmas theme, but I enjoy watching Christmas movies as well. As a matter of fact, I just watched another Christmas movie this week.

But back to my newest book, the cover for this rhyming story features four different children. I chose this design to be in line with the title that Jesus’s love is for everyone. Prior to writing children's books and novels, I wrote for numerous magazines and book anthologies. I now enjoy bringing those types of stories to life with pictures.

The text of this book was inspired by the scripture verses found in Psalm 139 and numerous verses in the New Testament. I wrote this story as a way for parents, grandparents, and other caregivers to remind children that no matter where they are or what they do, Jesus is always with them, and he'll see them through. That's a good message for adults, too.

When I first saw one of my picture books in paperback, I was shocked to see how skinny the book was. Making picture books in a hardcover format definitely gives more depth to the book size. Since paperback books cost about 50% less then hardcover ones, I decided to give more value then what you would be receiving from most other picture books by adding a bonus. Besides having the full story text and images, I am also including several coloring pages. But you'll have to provide your own crayons!

The publication for this book was scheduled to be released earlier this month, but due to some issues with Amazon it's been delayed. I'm waiting for my second proof to verify that what I see on a computer screen is what you'll see when you hold the book in your hand. 

The eBook is available now at a discount of $2.99. At the beginning of April, the regular price will be $4.99. I hope you'll enjoy reading the book and sharing it with others. I've already got another book in the works, so you'll be hearing about that one soon.

Have a wonderful day and remember… Jesus loves me through and through. And guess what? He loves you too!