‘Jane Escapes To The Jungle Of Individuality’ is an extraordinary book, set to have a profound impact on young readers, and we couldn't be more grateful for the chance to immerse ourselves in its pages ahead of its release!
Join us as we uncover our insightful conversation with the talented author, where she reveals the motivation behind her book and discusses a powerful idea that will help kids tackle anxiety and bullying.
Hey Jen! As you know, we're huge fans of your inspiring book, ‘Jane Escapes To The Jungle Of Individuality’, here at TGW.
To start, could you share a bit about yourself with our readers and what motivated you to delve into the world of children's literature?
I was originally born in Philadelphia, PA, and moved to Florida with my mom who was a single parent when I was in Elementary school. Around that time, I began writing poems, lyrics, and short stories in my notebook. Even as a kid, I had a highly creative brain, and I had a lot of my own childhood challenges that inspired me to write whenever I was feeling down. After mentoring children, and learning about the staggering statistics in mental health issues due to bullying on social media and other issues at school on the bus and in the classroom, I wanted to write a children’s book that truly helped inspire young readers and make a positive impact and that’s where I got the idea to delve into writing children’s literature. After talking to some of my friends who have children about the idea, I felt even more confident that more heartfelt stories like this were needed. I wanted to fill that gap and develop a story that mattered. If I could at least help one kid feel more confident about themselves, then I’ve already made an unforgettable impact.
We can attest to the fact your contribution has greatly enriched the realm of children's literature! As a children's book author, what aspect of the creative process do you enjoy the most? And what's your favourite thing about being able to create stories for kids?
This is a tough one because there are so many parts of the creative process that I’ve loved. I would say I love writing the storylines, planning out the illustration visuals, imagining the scenes in my head, and then translating that into a creative vision for the overall look and feel of the characters in partnership with my illustrator! My favorite thing about being able to create stories for kids is that I get to bring magical adventures and happiness to their lives through developing stories that are fun, relatable and authentic.
'Jane Escapes To The Jungle Of Individuality' is certainly a magical, relatable read that will help many children! On that note, what was it that inspired you to write a book centered on the theme of individuality?
I was inspired to write about a topic that wasn’t really talked about directly in previous children’s books that I had read. I feel like now more than ever, it was a theme that was needed throughout the school districts, and thought it may bring some comfort to children who do feel a little differently.
We agree, and appreciate your efforts in filling that gap! We're also curious to know what you were like at Jane's age. Can you share a little bit about your own childhood and how it may have influenced her creation?
At Jane’s age, I was a child who always loved to count the people ahead of me in English class and read my paragraph in advance so I made sure I could pronounce everything. I guess even then, I wanted to be good at everything, or feel confident about what I was doing — whether it was singing, sports, drama club, or writing a paper. I struggled a lot with bullying myself, and have heard so many stories from others who have as well, so I think that Jane is highly relatable, and that we’ve all experienced similar instances that Jane goes through at one point of our lives.
100% You've really nailed it with creating a character that children can easily relate to and connect with through her experiences. We also absolutely love all the characters that Jane encounters in her jungle of individuality! Can you share a bit about your creative process and whether you played around with more characters before finalising the ones we see in the book?
I immediately knew that I wanted Jane to be in this jungle world where everyone was different and where there was zero judgement or pressure to be anything but herself because they all love and embrace their own individuality. The characters sort of just came to me, and I thought to myself, what types of animals are super strong and interesting where they could also show some an other emotional side to them and help Jane see that even though they were all physically strong, they still had struggles? That’s how I thought that a tiger, an ape, and a cheetah were the right fit for this. They’re strong, intelligent, fast, and yet they also had unique visible traits that made them different in the book.
Another of our favourite elements in your book is the "waterfall of strength" concept. It's such a powerful tool for children to visualise and utilise. How did you come up with this idea? We'd love to know more about the inspiration behind it.
The Waterfall of Strength concept was inspired by the idea of the jungle animals using a meditative and mindful approach to guide Jane by encouraging her to take a swim in this “Waterfall of Strength” where all her worries could be relieved. You then see Jane taking a pause and counting to three. The intention behind this moment was to get Jane to relax and calm her anxiety down in a way that could also encourage her to be strong and metaphorically “take a leap of confidence and strength” when she dives into the water and has to wake back up in the real world on the bus where she just experienced a fight or flight reaction from getting bullied.
It is such a wonderful approach. We can only hope that your book finds its way to all those who would greatly benefit from this magical tool.
Before we go, we're eager to know when your book will be available for purchase and what the future holds for you as an author. Can you give us any insights into your upcoming projects or plans?
My book will be available for purchase in July! I am planning to write a second adventure for Jane this year, and potentially a third to follow. I can’t say much about the topics, but I am so excited to introduce new characters and themes that are educational, inspiring, heartwarming, and relevant to so many young readers today! This is just the first chapter, I believe there are many more to come. You can visit my website at www.jennestorauthor.com for more information and book updates.
You heard it here folks! Make sure to save the date in your calendars for July because that's when this amazing author's book will be released for everyone to enjoy.
We had a blast writing this blog post and we're thrilled to share the exciting news about potential sequels for Jane's adventures. Don't forget to click on the link below to follow the author on Instagram.