I Wrote a Children's Book! One Good Turtle is Available Now!
Two years ago I embarked upon a project in collaboration with my sister and father. Armed only with the physical manifestation of my Dad’s ideas, a simple abstract sketch of a turtle paired with the words One Good Turtle, we set to work turning imagination into reality.
We initially brainstormed the idea of writing a children’s book during a car ride back from Paso Robles. That night I wrote the initial draft of the story. The theme was bullying, and the protagonist a turtle, my favorite animal. After 50+ story revisions, numerous setbacks, and countless hours, I am excited to announce that today we successfully launched our children’s book, titled One Good Turtle, of which I’m the author.
One Good Turtle follows the story of Turtle. Turtle is shy and inquisitive, and Alligator is fierce and menacing. Alligator bullies Turtle, along with the rest of the school animals. I’ll leave the story description there as to not ruin the plot, but the tale of One Good Turtle is one of abandonment, courage, forgiveness, and much more.
I wrote One Good Turtle because I felt a desire to educate kids and adults alike about the issue of bullying. The book is written for kids ages 4-7+, and it is around that age when bullying really becomes an issue for kids. The advice usually given to deal with bullies consists of either: Ignore them, tell an adult, or fight violence with violence. I’ve always felt that these options aren’t the proper course of action, and failed to address the root cause of bullying. One Good Turtle addresses the various facets of bullying through an easily read story founded upon an underlying message of self-esteem and hope.
I would like to thank my sister and my father for helping turn this idea into reality. HUGE shout out to Stephanie Fliss, the illustrator of the book, who took our story and raw imagination and painted a world out of it which blows me away. Lastly, I would like to thank our publisher Mascot Books for their guidance and leadership throughout the process.
To learn more about One Good Turtle, please visit the website which also contains fun resources for kids and a section for you to share your own experiences regarding bullying, if you'd like. You can buy One Good Turtle through Amazon, the One Good Turtle store, or at your local bookstore.
Together let's make a difference.
Stefan Burns