30 Before 30: Item 13

I've been toying with the idea of writing a children's book for a long time. My mom has been writing children's stories since I was very young and I've always admired her creativity and efforts. Inspired by her, I added Write a Children's Book as Item 13 to my list.

Last December, my idea for the book hit me one day while driving and singing Christmas carols. I had just taken photos of my pug, Barley, for our Christmas card and while thinking about him in his Christmas outfit, a small amount of idea trickled into my head.

I've told the outline of the story a number of times to family members and even made an arrangement with my cousin to have him illustrate the book, but haven't taken the time to sit down and write it. Additionally, there is one element of the story that I just couldn't get nailed down in my mind. I knew how I wanted it to end but was struggling to tie all of the elements together in a cohesive way.

However, I can now FINALLY say that I have written it! It is definitely in a draft form and will take quite a bit of editing to finalize but the main story is complete! I've worked through the element I was struggling with and I've figured out just the right storyline and ending.

I won't share my book publicly yet. I have big plans to have my cousin illustrate it and then share it with close friends and family as 2011 Christmas gifts (lucky them). I do feel that in its current form I can cross Item 13: Write a Children's Book off my list. To give you an idea of what it is about, I'll share the image that inspired the whole thing.....