Dear Readers,
It gives me great pleasure to introduce you to my dear friend and children’s author, Elizabeth M. Reinhart. Liz is the creative mind behind the children’s book “The Fox Who Chased the Sky”! It is a delightful tale about Little Fox who decides to embark on an adventure. This character’s desire for excitement lead me to my friendship with Liz. Liz’s brother, Matt, has been my long-time ballet instructor and when he announced that his sister achieved her dream of becoming a children’s author I immediately purchased a copy! Within less than a month I had fallen in love with this story and connected and befriended Liz. As what happens so often when creatives unite, ideas have been shared and more creativity has been sparked! The world that Liz and her illustrator, Alexandra, created through Little Fox has served as the source of my content creation for this month and I am so delighted for you to learn more about her story in this post. She graciously sat down with me speaking of her process and how Little Fox has opened her world to new possibilities! It was a conversation that enriched my creative mind and I am so pleased to share these moments with you.
Imagination is constantly flowing– One of the things I love about speaking with Liz is her openness to the sense of imagination! She told me through writing your creativity is on twenty-four seven and with that the mind is surrendered to a sense of freedom and joy. The opportunity to pretend allows your mind to be freed from what is happening in the present moment. Regardless of your creative path the ultimate result is that the “process makes you feel fulfilled in a childlike way.”
Opportunities to communicate and share life lessons with both children and adults– Liz explained that her goal is for Little Fox to be loveable and relatable through each of his adventures (the second book is out now!). Through each story Little Fox makes mistakes but also learns from them. In our discussion Liz made a beautiful point that sometimes we need reminders that it is ok to make mistakes. Little Fox is really no different than most of us. We all seek some form of adventure while simultaneously knowing that we have a place in the world where we belong.
Inviting others into the world of Little Fox to make it come to life– In the creation of children’s books the text and illustrations are equally important and must work in harmony. Liz found that choosing the right illustrator was a crucial factor in her creation process. When she connected with Alexandrea, her illustrator, the world of Little Fox took on a whole new life! Liz provided Alexandra some guidance but ultimately gave her creative freedom so as not to limit the process. Based in Poland, Alexandra took her inspirations from the amazing forests of her home. The beautiful aspect of this partnership is that Alexandra embodies the same values as Liz. As mentioned before, Liz created Little Fox to be relatable and Alexandra captured the same essence through her artwork. Reading this book, I feel transported back to my childhood home in Massachusetts as Liz expressed the similarities to her upbringing in West Virginia. I am so inspired and touched by the unity that has harmonized through Liz’s text and Alexandra’s art.
The moment of inspiration that sparked the creation of Little Fox – I asked Liz where her source of inspiration for Little Fox came from and she responded that it was a twenty-year wanting to write a children’s story and one day it clicked! On a Sunday morning Liz woke up at 4:30 AM and the complete story was in her mind. She rose from bed grabbing scrap paper and her dog and headed to the porch. Sitting down she started writing seamlessly and when she stopped before her was “The Fox Who Chased the Sky”. 80% of what was written that morning is what we see in this present book! Creativity and inspiration cannot be controlled and are released when the time is right. I expressed to Liz that I believe this moment in her creation process will help so many others in the world who are striving toward that precious moment of creative awakening.
I feel so blessed to have met Liz now at the beginning of her journey with Little Fox! As a fellow creative I am deeply intrigued by the thought process of others and always walk away so inspired. I want to extend a huge thank you to Liz for allowing me to tell her story! My heart warms at the vision of more and more children reading about the adventures of Little Fox as this delightful series has a coveted spot on their bookshelves. Creativity is contagious and all it takes is a spark!
Love Always,
Kristina Lucia xoxo
P.S. Liz and I created a special word search for you based on Little Fox’s adventure. Enjoy!
Contact Information for the Creators!
Elizabeth M. Reinhart
IG: @author_emreinhart
Aleksandra Bobrek (illustrator)
IG: @arzt.art