Author Eric Anderson knew what he was looking for and knew he wasn't likely to find it any time soon. The new father was searching through a local bookstore and was disappointed by the lack of books that portrayed a realistic father and daughter relationship. Anderson realized that if he wanted to read such a story to his daughter, he was going to have to write it himself. So he did.
"The humorous books tend to depict fathers as bumbling figures and the sentimental books tend to mythologize the role of the father. I neither felt bumbling nor God-like, so I set out to write a book that showed that a father can be both a friend and role model to his daughter, and one that appealed to both young children and the parents who will be reading and re-reading it," said Anderson, a busy writer and director who lives in River Forest, Illinois with his wife and daughter.
Anderson recalls the day he had the idea for Alena & the Favorite Thing. "One day, I was carrying Alena back from a visit to the bookstore. I was holding her close, and she smiled at me and it brought tears to my eyes. I remember feeling 'that smile is the greatest thing I've ever seen.'"
"Guru seemed like a natural choice"
Anderson wrote the story in the week following the trip to the bookstore. With the story completed, he turned to Guru.com to complete the next phase - illustrations. Guru.com provides the platform for employers and freelance professionals to connect internationally. By taking his search to Guru.com, Anderson was connected with a talented pool of illustrators ready to translate his text to illustrations. Anderson had used Guru.com in the past as part of his freelance writing and graphic design business.
"Guru seemed like a natural choice, but I wasn't expecting the phenomenal talent pool that applied for the project. I probably had more than 40 pros submit bids, and at least 20 of the artists who submitted sketches were phenomenal," Anderson said.
"Jakub Kuzma's standout illustrations enhance the touching plot"
Jakub Kuzma specializes in creating illustrations for children's books, having illustrated more than 150 science fiction and children's books during his career. For Alena & the Favorite Thing, the 32 pages of illustrations plus the cover illustration took him just over two months to complete. Kuzma said that it was the strength of the writing that made character creations and illustration so simple. "This is a very rich tale - I had no problems with ideas for each illustration. I could see it all from the start - after just one read. I've illustrated a lot of books, but there are only some which I love. This story is one of them."
The illustrations in Alena & the Favorite Thing caught the attention of children and parents alike. A bookpleasures.com review commented,
"The touching plot is enhanced by Jakub Kuzma's standout illustrations. The characters are unusually expressive; subtle nuances like raised eyebrows and sly sidelong glances are captured expertly on the page and give remarkable depth to the story. The drawings use light, movement, and shadows brilliantly, and there's so much going on in each picture (from Poppa's mismatched socks to the antics of the family cat) that a young reader will be compelled to reach for this colorful book again and again."
"I ultimately chose Jakub because his sketches got the look and tone of the book exactly right on the first try," Anderson said. Kuzma introduced near characters, such as a teddy bear and several minor characters based upon his experience working with children's books. "His art is simply perfect for what I wanted to achieve in Alena & the Favorite Thing."
The Future for Alena
Even though Alena found the favorite thing, readers can expect Anderson and Kuzma to team up together in the future as the Alena story develops. Anderson is currently selling the book through his site, and it is also available at Lulu, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon. Early reviews include raves from parents and children, and despite it being a book about fathers and daughters, Alena & the Favorite Thing has proven equally accessible to young boys.
While Alena and the Favorite Thing addresses a void in the children's book market, Anderson is intent to prove to skeptical publishers that there is a lucrative market for such books.
"I was told by at least one publisher that there isn't a 'large enough platform' for the book. I find it hard to believe that there aren't enough fathers who read to their daughters, wives who will buy this for their husbands and grandparents who will give this to their sons who are expectant fathers to make Alena & the Favorite Thing a success," Anderson said.
"This particular niche market is just now beginning to come into its own. This story's sentiment and humor lead us to believe that Alena & the Favorite Thing deserves a place on every book shelf," said Anderson's agent Muriel Nellis, "That's why we're working to find a publishing home for Alena, Poppa, Boo Bear, Clark the Cat, and even the monsters in the basement."
"Guru.com is my window to the world job market"
Guru.com helps entrepreneurial minds like Anderson's connect with exceptional freelancers such as Jakub Kuzma every day. "Guru opened up the possibility of a professional relationship that would never have existed otherwise. There's nowhere else that you can have access to a worldwide talent pool like this. Honestly, Alena & the Favorite Thing only exists because I had access to Guru.com and found Jakub through it," Anderson said.
Kuzma agreed with Anderson's assessment. "Guru.com is my window to the world job market. In my profession, I can live in my country and work everywhere. Guru.com is the perfect tool to realize this goal." |