The process to publishing can be long and tedious, but it is all worth it once you have that final product. When I first started on this journey, I did not know what to expect, I thought to myself “This will be a piece a cake.” My manuscript was completed and I was ready to share my work with the world, but I had no clue what that actually entailed. I was lucky enough to have a specialist assigned to me that provided some much needed assistance along the way. I was so excited about the transcript because the words conveyed a strong message, and I was able to make rhymed with one another.
I think the most frustrating part of the publishing process was making the last edits and developing the proper layout for the book. A story that started out as a simple dialogue to my son’s picture was now being critiqued in every way possible, and I found that part to be challenging. Of course you want your writing to make sense and you want others to like it, but I feel many forget that writing is also an art form. There were some words I had to change and ideas I needed to shift, in order to make the story work, and that is exactly what I did. The layout of the book was very important to me because again I wanted it to make sense for all readers, and I heavily depended on my experience with my students as well as experience with reading numerous bedtime stories.
So, once the illustrations were completed and the manuscript was done, I sent everything over to be merged to create the book “The Boy Who Dreamt of Fire Trucks”. Of course in my mind, I thought this was it, but that wasn’t the case at all. I received my first copy of the book and I was so excited until I came across a minor error. Luckily, this was something I noticed before confirming the mass printing. In this moment, I felt anxious and unsure because what I envisioned was not my reality and that scared me a little. Sharing a story with my son is one thing, but sharing our story with the world was another. The stakes were high and I wanted everything to be as perfect as it could be, but I also had to be realistic, and tell myself “nothing is perfect” and this story was created from a special circumstance, so I have to step out on faith and believe in myself. After working with a professional team to make the necessary edits, I sent the last manuscript over to be printed and I was very satisfied with the final copy.
Creating an idea and making it a reality was truly a dream come true. The publishing process can be nerve wrecking but it was totally worth it, and I look forward to doing it over and over it again.
Alvita is a lover of writing, a teacher, and most
importantly, a mom. Writing has always provided a creative outlet for which she
finds sensible solutions. Having a son with developmental delays was very challenging
for her. However, she used books and original stories to help him overcome the
obstacles he faced at an early age. Alvita believes that the imagination is
truly a key that unlocks the doors to an endless journey.
Alvita Mack
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The Boy Who Dreamt Fire Trucks
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