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A Pancake Mistake is a delicious story by Windsor, Ontario author, Stri. This book is stacked high with fun rhymes and energetic illustrations that everyone can enjoy reading. Also a good reminder that even in the messiest of situations, a good laugh together can always make everything better.
Enjoy my Q&A with Author, Stri.
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| Stri and his little Riv |
1. Okay let’s get the BIG question out of the way, what do you put on your pancakes?
Syrup of course. My son and I are BIG fans. Occasionally I'll use jam though.
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2. The bond between a father and a son is very precious, and I know you dedicated this book to your son, Riven. What was his reaction when you showed him the book?
My son was an integral part of the process, and I couldn't have done this without him. The book is dedicated to him, yes, but his consistent assistance was as always, invaluable. That said, he WAS extremely excited when I first told him what I was planning, and that I wanted him to help with ideas and sketches throughout development.
Even if this book isn't extremely successful, just seeing the smile on his face as he held a physical copy for the first time, definitely made it all worth it.
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3. Writing a book is not always a linear path. Did you encounter any obstacles in creating this book, if so, how did you navigate that?
There's always challenges when creating anything, but this book in particular, thankfully had very few.
Creatively, we didn't really see any obstacles we couldn't easily circumvent, except perhaps how/where to publish and advertise.
As a new author, I'm not really sure of the best ways to get the word out, so for me personally, it's still an on-going learning opportunity.
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4. I read that you consider yourself an “adversity survivor” so can you tell me a little more about how that term fueled your passion to write a children’s book?
There are plenty of reasons I could consider myself a survivor, but the truth is, the REAL survivor is my son Riven.
He was born in The Hospital for Sick Children, with a Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia, Hypoplasia, and dextrocardia. Basically, that means there was a hole in his diaphragm, which allowed his intestines to enter and crowd his chest cavity, thus causing severely depreciated lung tissue, whilst pushing his heart into the axilla region (armpit).
In the hospital, during our many, lengthy visits to soothe Riven when he was in pain, I would sing/read him nursery rhymes. Eventually I ran out though, so I turned to writing poetry. I would read my poems to him so often, that other ill children began to gather and listen in. Their parents soon joined as well, until one day a parent suggested I write for children in a professional fashion.
I suppose that was the first time I had even thought about it, much less considered it. As a single father, I had spent many years by my child's side, worried about his well-being and inevitable future health complications. So my priorities had to remain there, with my little Riven, until his health improved.
Despite his prognosis, he has not only surprised the medical professionals, but has exceeded ALL expectations and I honestly couldn't be more proud.
The love and mutual admiration my son and I have built and share, is a joy I hope every parent can experience one day. Thinking back, I truthfully cannot remember what it was like without him in my life, and for that, for HIM..I am eternally grateful.
Dedicating a series of rhyming, poetry based children's books to him, is just one small way I'm attempting to show my son just how much I adore him.
We have certainly struggled in numerous ways in addition to what I've said, but the bottom line is, together, we have successfully made it to today and because of this, I have found some time to pursue this poetic passion.
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5. Will there be other books on the horizon for you?
Actually yes. This is shaping up to be a series.
In fact, book two (titled: "Where'd you go? I don't know.."), is already written now and ready for purchase here!
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Check out all of Stri's links below!
💜Amazon: A Pancake Mistake
💜IG striPlay
💜Facebook We See Poetry
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