I’ve always used storytelling to make sense of the world. It’s how I process the big things and explain the hard things, both in my work and at home. Over the years, that instinct followed me into motherhood. Raising a child with autism and a baby with hearing loss meant I spent many days searching for simple, steady explanations that would help them understand themselves and help their siblings understand them too. A lot of the resources I needed just weren’t there, so I started writing the stories I wished we had.
My First Book Launches Soon: My Busy Builder Brain
The first story I’m bringing out of our home and into the world is
My Busy Builder Brain, inspired by my son who has autism and the way his mind fills up with ideas, projects, and plans that feel far more interesting than whatever adults are asking at the moment. The idea came the day he overheard my husband and me talking about autism and asked what it was, and I figured if he was ready for the question, I needed to be ready with a story. It’s a gentle story meant to help kids understand how different brains work, especially when autism shapes the way a child experiences the world. It’s friendly and playful, and it gives families an easy, steady way to talk about these differences.
I have other books in the works as well, all rooted in the real moments that come with parenting kids who see, hear, and experience the world differently. Each story starts with a question, a worry, a burst of pride, or one of those moments when I think, “I wish there were a book for this.”
Why I Write These Stories
I write these books because I want kids to feel understood instead of confused, ashamed, or overwhelmed. And I want parents to have gentle language for the moments that feel big or emotional or too complex for a quick Google search. When my kids were going through hard things, I often found myself looking for resources that did not exist or were too clinical to feel comforting. Writing these stories became my way of filling those gaps and giving other families the support I spent so long trying to find.
As a communication strategist, I spend my days turning complicated ideas into something clear and human. Writing for kids feels like the same work, just with more colour, more honesty, and a lot more heart and fun. Every story begins with real life, whether it is a meltdown that needs decoding, a sibling argument that reveals something important, or a bedtime question that stays in my mind long after the kids are asleep.
