Help! I Can’t Break the Doors Down

I’m back from my four day weekend. I really cannot say it was much of a vacation. I spent most my time dealing with my teething baby or painting my kitchen. Of course, my hubby did most the work in our kitchen since our teething baby never slept unless mommy was holding her.

Our son was luckily enough to escape the craziness of our house over the weekend. He went camping with a bunch of friends at Lake Powell. From what my son tells me . . . they were blasted by a sand monster in the middle of the day and late into the night. However, the boys faired well against the creepy crawlers of the night, the blood sucking flyers, and water creatures. The five year old was not so lucky. She spent most of her time in the back office with her four legged furry brother and sister . . . Taz and Speedbump.

So after the weekend ended, I thought it was time to start promoting my book. I have been pounding on doors left and right, but not one door has opened. I’ve contacted my local school district to update them on my new school visit programs. I sent out media kits on Babysitting SugarPaw to most of our locally owned bookstores. I have even looked into booth spaces for upcoming events, but no one seems interested in having an author share the love of reading and writing. What’s up with that?

I have concluded I must be doing something wrong. I do live in a small town compared to my old home back in Los Angeles. But one would think a small town would be more open when a local is looking to promote and join in community events. However, it does not seem to be that way where I live. I had more success back in Los Angeles with my marketing than I do here in Southern Utah. It seems you need to know someone who knows someone who knows someone who can help you out.

The thing is . . . I need to get moving on marketing my picture book, Babysitting SugarPaw. I want to meet with children, share my love of writing and the World of Ink. I want to get kids excited about reading. I want to help parents who have small children afraid of babysitters. There is so much I want to do, but just can’t seem to get going.

It’s funny how as writers we spend so much time worrying about getting our books published that when it is time to market them we are so unprepared for failure. I have been successful with social marketing and online marketing, but in person marketing seems to be my locked door. I am not going to give up. If it comes down to it . . . I will get out the ax and chop the dang door down!

The Comeback of 2D Animation: Why We’re Craving Realness Again

There’s something happening in animation right now that’s worth paying attention to—not because it’s simply nostalgic, but because it’s deeply human. As someone who works in the mental health and creative storytelling space, I can’t help but see these conversations about art, AI, and hand-drawn storytelling as part of a bigger theme: our collective hunger for authenticity. We live in a time where AI-generated content is everywhere—convenient, efficient, and often soulless. It’s not surprising that artists and audiences alike are looking back toward something that feels more tactile, more imperfect, more human. That brings us to 2D animation, an art form that has shaped generations and now, it seems, might just be making a comeback. Here’s what Language of the Soul podcast host, Dominick Domingo, had to say on this trend: There’s been a lot of industry talk lately speculating about 2D/traditional ANIMATION making a comeback. Recent articles confirm that although Disney has not greenlit...

We're All Souls: The Spiritual Thread of Mental Health with Carolyn Coleridge

By Virginia Grenier I’ve long believed that healing is more than just symptom reduction. It’s not just about coping skills or cognitive restructuring—it’s about uncovering the deeper threads that shape who we are and how we move through the world. That belief is exactly why this latest episode of Language of the Soul resonated so deeply with me. Our guest, Carolyn Coleridge, is a psychotherapist, intuitive, and healer who has spent over 30 years at the intersection of traditional therapy and spiritual insight. In our conversation, Carolyn shared something that’s stuck with me since we recorded: “We’re all souls. That’s my premise.” It sounds simple, but when you really sit with it, that one sentence flips the entire clinical model on its head. What if instead of viewing our clients—or ourselves—as broken minds to be fixed, we saw each of us as whole souls navigating a very human experience? That’s the lens Carolyn brings into her work and into this conversation. And honestl...

Five Tips for a More Marketable Children’s Picture Book Manuscript by Mayra Calvani

The world of children’s picture book publishing is extremely competitive. If you’re an aspiring children’s author, you need to make sure your manuscript is in excellent shape and has all the elements editors and agents look for before you begin the submission process. Here are five tips to make your picture book manuscript more marketable: Start right with the problem. Many times beginner writers begin a picture book with back-story. It’s okay to have this back-story in the first draft, but be sure to get rid of it when you edit. Back-story is unnecessary 90% of the time and it only serves to slow down the beginning of a story, making it weaker. You want to grab the reader right from the start. So don’t be afraid to begin your story at the heart of the problem. It’s okay to set the stage with a sentence or two—but no more! Have a protagonist readers can relate to. Generally, children like to listen to stories about other children or animals with children’s characteristics. ...

VS Grenier ~ Award-Winning Author, Speaker & Podcaster

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