Parisian Phoenix Publishing

I love kids. If I had more patience, I would be a teacher or a foster parent or I’d have a huge family. I’ve worked with kids in the past– as a Girl Scout Group Leader (which is multiple age levels in the same troop in an inner city/urban environment), a 4-H interest group leader, and running an afterschool program for pre-teen girls teaching them computer programming.

I prefer kids to most adults. They are honest, energetic and they just let loose. They are in that beautiful place where they haven’t been influenced by societal norms or expectations and this gives them a purity we all lose eventually.

On Thursday, I had the privilege to visit the Arts Academy Elementary Charter School in Allentown to speak about my career– and to donate some Echo City Capers Books to their school library.

I spoke with third grade and fifth grade, and the kids had good questions. I explained a little bit about how a book is made and what the publisher does.

More importantly I tried to impress upon them that they should never let any one silence their story or make them feel that their story is unimportant. That they are the only person in the world who has their story or their point of view, and whether they draw, write, perform or speak their story, they have an important story.

People can ask you to be polite. They can ask you to wait your turn. But it’s important not to be silenced by people around you.