The Story of My Latest Picture Book

"Tracey and the Ukulele: Bringing the Forest to Life"

Inspiration Behind the Story

I adopted my tuxedo cat, Tracey a couple of years ago. It took a while for her to come out of her shell, but she is fun and playful and enjoys spending her days staring out the window and talking with the birds and squirrels. Her playful and curious nature was the inspiration behind my main character. But there was one more special burst of inspiration.

This new book is dedicated to two little girls who requested a story about Tracey. They had seen photos of Tracey on social media when their mom, my friend, showed them. And they had been young test readers for some of my picture books before publishing them. When I got this request for a story about Tracey, I knew I could make a ukulele picture book about Tracey. I just had to get creative.

Initial Concept

I had the initial concept for this story last year after publishing one of my picture books. (That’s always the first thing I do when I complete a book: start another one!) I didn’t quite know what direction I wanted to go in though. I knew I wanted the story to begin in black and white. And I wanted it to become colorful. But that’s all I had. I didn’t have a plot yet, I didn’t have dialogue, and I didn’t know if all my characters would be forest animals or little humans.

Development of the Story

I love to brainstorm. When the request for a cat story came in, I knew I could work it into my black-and-white forest idea while incorporating a ukulele. The cat added to my forest setting fit into my whimsical illustrations that have developed over the last year and a half or so of creating picture books. There’s something special about forest animals for me. They spark so much imagination and curiosity.

Starting the story in black and white symbolizes the transformative power of music.  I felt this was a powerful way to kick off my story.

Writing Process

Once I came up with my story and everything I wanted to include, I originally wrote it as a rhyming poem. But I kept running into walls and then realized the rhymes were holding me back from telling the story how I wanted to. I rewrote everything into a narrative and felt such a burst of freedom! I came up with a new draft and just let it sit for a while, celebrating that my story was free to become something greater.

I had a few breakthroughs as I continued to edit my story. First, the more I read it out loud, the more I knew what to remove. I had some redundant phrasing to cut out and simplified some words for the young readers I wrote the book for.  

Creating Illustrations

I tweaked my watercolor sketch style for this book. Instead of using my traditional watercolor paints like I have with previous picture books, I used intense watercolor pencils this time. After creating my sketch in pencil first, I went over it with black ink pen and then added the watercolor pencil. I dipped my paintbrush in water, ran it over each illustration, and watched this world come to life. Most illustrators work digitally now, but I like the feel of creating my work on paper first. I still bring it into my digital editing programs and make some additions or adjustments. I like the freedom digital programs give me to change or enhance certain areas, but it can be hard to start there without having something on paper first.

Importance of Music Education

Music has always been a passion of mine, but it wasn’t always an easy journey. As a child, I felt scared to learn to play music. It seemed too difficult for me, and I thought reading music was a challenge I couldn’t overcome.

It wasn’t until my late 30s, during the COVID-19 pandemic, that I learned to play the guitar and ukulele. So many doors opened, and I began having new experiences after I learned to play music. I met new friends, and I started writing songs. After starting a local ukulele group with a friend which meets each month to play songs together and “jam”, I started a ukulele ministry group at my church. I enjoyed growing my skills and teaching others how to play, bringing them into this exciting, accessible world of music and creativity.

This personal experience fuels my mission to inspire kids to learn about the ukulele and to foster a love for music through my books. I don’t want music to be scary for kids. I want them to see it as a fun opportunity where anything is possible! This is why I love writing ukulele-themed picture books.

Visual Journey

The illustrations in "Tracey and the Ukulele: Bringing the Forest to Life" play a crucial role in bringing the story to life. From the initial black and white illustrations to the vibrant, colorful final images, each illustration captures the joy of Tracey’s journey.

Here are some images from the book that showcase this transformation:

Tracey’s forest is all black and white at the beginning. She dreams of having a colorful home someday.

She finds a ukulele and begins to play music by strumming the strings.

Her world becomes more colorful as she plays music.

The forest is a place where everyone comes together through the joy of music.

Flexible Options for Teaching

This story includes many themes and teachers can pick one to focus on (or a few). Central themes include:

• Transformation and Renewal

• Imagination and Wonder

• The Joy of Discovery

• Color Identification

• Community and Sharing Music

• Nature and Harmony

• Individuality and Self-Acceptance

Final Thoughts

Creating "Tracey and the Ukulele: Bringing the Forest to Life" has been a passion project. I love that kids and adults can enjoy this imaginative story. Supplemental material is included at the end of the book. You can find discussion questions, fun facts about the ukulele, and play a ukulele song I wrote about the story. The chords and lyrics are shown. And the story wouldn’t be complete without a section about the real-life Tracey the Cat. You can read about her real adventures on her bio page and see a photo.

If you’re interested in more updates and behind-the-scenes content, follow me on Facebook or YouTube, or visit my website CreatedBySusan.com. And don’t forget to check out "Tracey and the Ukulele: Bringing the Forest to Life" to experience this journey for yourself. You can find the eBook and paperback on Amazon, and a hardcover is coming soon.

I hope this story encourages you to pursue your creative passions and explore the joy of music. Whether you’re a parent, teacher, or someone who loves children’s books, I invite you to share your thoughts and experiences with music or picture books about music and leave a comment below. I look forward to connecting with you.