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The Port Moody Public Library White Pines Local Author collection highlights local authors, poets, and illustrators in our community. Every month, we will interview and feature one of the authors from the collection on the Library website. Bé Blackler is this month's Author of the Month.
Author: Bé Blackler
"Start your day with a smile!" is Bé Blackler's morning mantra. Bé is a casual mountain snowshoe racer, busy mother of three beautiful children, and wife to a loving husband. She enjoys spending time with her family, reading, staying active, and trying to acquire a green thumb for the sake of her garden.
Her Books:
Hearts are for Showing Love
A feel-good children’s book about how the different parts of our body can be used in positive and kind ways. Borrow Hearts Are for Showing Love from the Library.
Naida the Aspiring Writer (Snow Mountain Elementary Book #1)
Naida is an aspiring writer working on stories of her own. She attends Snow Mountain Elementary School. The school is having their annual writing contest and the person who wins first place will get their writing in the town’s local newspaper. Will Naida enter or will her nerves and lack of confidence get the best of her? Borrow Naida the Aspiring Writer from the library.
Cool facts about the books
The images in Hearts Are for Showing Love are of Bé, her husband, and her three kids. Both books include illustrations by Bé's seven-year-old daughter.
Her Writing Process:
What is Bé’s inspiration for writing her own books?
Her biggest inspiration is her family. While she enjoyed writing when she was a teenager, it wasn't until Bé was older and had kids that she decided she wanted to write her own books. She was inspired by personal life experiences and the way she spoke to and taught her children. Lines from Hearts Are for Showing Love, such as "hands are for sharing", were taken directly from conversations between her and her children.
What was Bé's favourite part about writing these books?
"Days when there were so many thoughts that I didn’t want to stop writing. There just weren't enough hours in the day to get all the ideas down."
Bé also enjoyed sharing what she had written with her family, and seeing their reactions.
Was there anything Bé didn't enjoy about the writing process?
The occasional writer's block, but she found that if she switched her focus from writing to illustrating, or went out into nature, she could usually get back on track quickly.
Did Bé struggle to get into the mind of a seven-year-old when she was writing Naida the Aspiring Writer?
Bé often consulted her daughter to help her get into the mind of a seven-year-old. She would ask her daughter to read over things to make sure the writing fit for the age group.
"She's very helpful. She liked it and she wanted to be involved."
You can see more of this involvement in the illustrations. In Naida the Aspiring Writer, Bé's daughter drew the music notes, cake, watermelon, and Easter basket.
What is Bé working on now?
Bé is busily writing the second Snow Mountain Elementary book: Getting to Know Olivia. In this book, we learn more about Naida's writing rival, Olivia. "Readers will be surprised that they really like and can relate to Olivia."
Getting to Know Olivia will be released in the fall of 2019.
Her Advice:
If Bé could tell her younger self anything, what would it be?
"Just write. Keep doing it. It's the only way I'm going to improve on my craft and get better at what I'm doing."
Bé also stressed the importance of enjoying the writing and not focusing too much on what everyone else's response is going to be – however hard that may be.
What advice does Bé have for other new authors?
"Keep at it! Don't worry too much about how it's going to be received. Make sure you're happy with your final result."
About the White Pines Local Author Collection
The Port Moody Public Library created the White Pines Local Author Collection to highlight and support local authors, poets, and illustrators from our community. We launched the collection in May 2019 with 12 inaugural authors. Learn more about this collection and how you can become a White Pines Local Author.
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