Author Baptiste Paul on Speaking from the Heart

Hello world!!

Welcome to my blog, Blissfully Bookish. Woot, woot!! It’s my last blog post before my summer break. I”ll continue working on my writing but I’ll take a break from blogging until September. My guest today is actually married to my agent, Miranda Paul!! Please welcome Baptiste Paul, here to chat about his new fictional picture book, Dear You, Dream Big! illustrated by Toni D. Chambers and published by Charlesbridge.

Please describe the journey to publication and inspiration for Dear You, Dream Big!

The publication journey for this book, Dear You, Dream Big feels to me like, I was having a long overdue conversation with the younger me.  I wish book like this was available to me when I was younger for many reasons.  When I was younger, there were people who believed that my life would amount to nothing. Although their words hurt, I kept on dreaming.

This an important message for Black and Brown children, can you share any time you felt silence or rejected?

To me, the important message here feels like a call to action, because although we, Black and Brown people have seen a small shift in opportunities and advancements the gap still remains too wide. And our faces still remains scarce in many areas of society.  At a young age,  I was called stupid and dumb by a teacher and that experienced crushed me.  Later on in life as a young Black professional, I witnessed promotion opportunities being give to people with less skills and experience than I had.

Do you have any words of wisdom for other authors who would like to write a concept book?

My advice is that you write the story that speaks to your heart. Those are the stories that can affect change for the better.

What is your writing process and does it vary depending on the project?

My process varies depending on what I’m working on. Sometimes it’s a character, a concept or an idea? I’m a big fan of outlines before drafting. I like jotting down thoughts as soon as they comes to mind. After I have the idea documented, I ask questions: who, what, why where, when, how—and I repeat the whole process a lot. I have conversations with myself very often as I write. There’s no shame in that.

Please paste a short and compelling excerpt from your book.

One of my favorite stanza in the book is:
So as you rise …
Stand tall
Stand proud
Extend a hand
Reach for the heavens
Anything and everything is possible.
Dear You, Dream Big!

Please share your favorite books from 2022-3 that inspired you.

One of the books published in 2023 that inspired me is Fungi Grow, written by Maria Gainferrari and illustrated by Diana Sudyka because one day, I see myself out in nature foraging mushrooms.

What is the best piece of advice you would give to other writers?

Apart for reading lots of books, try not to compare yourself to others.

And a bonus question just for kicks! What was your favorite book when you were a child?

My favorite books when I was a child were the Nancy Drew series. I liked to see if I was able to solve the mystery before finishing the book.

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BIO

Baptiste Paul is the Author of several books for children. Born and raised in the Caribbean Island of (Saint Lucia), Baptiste is a native Creole/Patois speaker and enjoys reading his books and sharing about his experiences with anyone who would listen. Baptiste holds Degrees in Environmental Studies and Political Science from Bucknell University. When he’s not writing or hiking, he up-cycles wood pallets into planters and wooden floors to name a few. More at baptistepaul.net