The Making of the Children's Book, "But Mama!"
The Making of the Children's Book, "But Mama!"
The journey according to author Emily Rivers and illustrator Savannah Anderson
Synopsis
Henry is a young African elephant who wants to grow up to be as big and strong as his older sister Lucy. Impatient with how slow he’s growing, Henry’s Mama teaches him important life lessons about being kind, gentle, and respectful.
The Journey According to Emily Rivers
Writing and publishing But Mama! has been an incredible experience that would not have been possible without my childhood friend, Savannah Anderson. Not only did she complete the illustrations, but she also edited the book and continues to work hard to promote it!
But Mama! was a high school project I worked on for about a month during an elective term called “Mini-Term” at my high school, the Science and Math Institute (SAMI). During that class, we studied various children’s books, broke them down into their most basic components, and had the opportunity to write, illustrate, and bind our own books.
Growing up as the middle child, I heard, “But mom,” many times from my siblings—especially from my younger brother. Initially, I was thinking of creating a funny story highlighting a superhero called Butt-Mom and using a kind of humor that would be amusing for younger kids, as my mom would say things like, “Do I look like a butt to you?” or “I’m not a ‘but mom!’” and we would think it was funny when we were young. Instead, I took it in a different direction to study my favorite animal and build in social-emotional learning to ensure there would be a good lesson within the book.
African elephants have always been my favorite animal. As I learned about them, I learned that they are a keystone species. I discovered that elephants do so much for other animals and the environment just by being there! For example, they help prevent wildfires from spreading when they dig for water, trample the brush, and graze. Digging also gives many other species access to water that they wouldn’t normally have. Learning more about elephants during this course showed me that they could teach us so much about empathy, caring for others, and how little actions can add up. That is why Henry and Lucy are shown digging up water and carrying others (specifically birds). Plus, elephants have been known to rescue other animals, which is something Lucy is seen doing early on in the book. While this is a fictional book, a lot of research went into this story!
At the end of the course, we went to local elementary schools or daycares to present our books to our target audiences, get their feedback, and then submit the final project. When I was reading to the kids, they adored the story. One group spent the rest of the day walking around and imitating elephants. The kids also reminded each other to, “Be like Henry.” When my teachers heard that feedback, they told me that maybe I should consider publishing it. At the time, I didn’t know how to go about publishing and I didn’t have much time to research the different publishing paths. I took this comment more as praise and put it on the back burner.
A few years passed, and I cannot remember exactly what re-sparked my interest in publishing But Mama! while in college. I was minoring in creative writing, so perhaps it was a class or my writing group that I was in that reminded me of my high school teacher’s comment regarding publishing my children’s book. I was able to look into a few different publishing pathways—vanity, self, and traditional. All I knew was that I wanted to retain most of my rights, royalties, and content and that I wanted my friend to do the illustrations. That led to the ultimate decision to go with the self-publishing route. I used Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform. It was very user-friendly, and after a short while, Savannah and I published this book in 2020! Savannah was (and still is) an incredible support throughout the entire process! Without her, no one would know Henry’s story!
I sincerely hope you and your kiddos enjoy Henry’s story and learn that growth is more than physical!
The Journey According to Savannah Anderson
a.k.a. S.N. Anderson
Emily Rivers and I have been friends for a long time. Since we were young, we both loved writing stories. I remember she wrote, illustrated, and read a short story to our class in grade school. I applauded her bravery in sharing her work in front of our class.
While I was attending college, Emily asked me if I would like to illustrate her children’s book. I was honored that she approached me and I eagerly accepted the task. She showed me the story and the illustrations she had originally done (which are adorable and shown below). Although adapting the characters with my art style, I tried to capture the soul of her original artwork.
I had originally sketched the characters as Asian elephants, but then I realized I should clarify if her characters were Asian elephants or African elephants. Emily said they were African elephants, and I realized I needed to do some research, making changes to their physical appearances.
I hadn’t realized how different African elephants are from Asian elephants. For example, African elephants have tusks and ears shaped like the African continent. Asian elephants have small ears, their tusks don’t always show, and they are smaller than African elephants. I hadn’t realized the differences between the two until I had to pay close attention and capture those details.
I started with a few sketches with pencil and paper to gather the feel of her characters Henry, Lucy, and Mama. Then I shared the sketches with her for approval and made adjustments upon her request. Next, I scanned and digitally colored the pictures and added backgrounds. Once they were finished, I sent them to Emily and she compiled them into the Kindle Kids’ Book Creator through Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). The children’s book was copyrighted and later published on Amazon on June 29th, 2020. I also created a book trailer (shown below), hoping it would interest readers. I loved putting it together!
I enjoyed helping Emily Rivers bring her story to life. It was such a fun experience, and it has been rewarding to see how much love this book has gotten over the years!
Before and After Illustrations
Book Trailer
Where to Buy and Leave Reviews
If you’ve purchased the book in the past or recently made a purchase or plan to, thank you! It means so much to us! We hope you love the story as much as we do!
But Mama! makes a great gift for kids. It can also be a gift for baby showers, Mother’s Day, or holidays! You can purchase the Kindle and paperback on Amazon. Hardcover copies are available only on the Barnes & Noble website and are unfortunately not provided in stores. Please leave a review on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Goodreads to spread the word about Henry’s story.