Mom’s bedtime stories turn into books
A mother’s made-up stories for her small daughter almost 20 years ago have now found a new audience after she decided to dig them out of the dust and publish them in children’s books.
Well-known local resident, Natliegh Strydom has just published four children’s books which are already on the shelves and more are following soon.
“I wrote my first story when my daughter Tori was six. She had just started reading and then it was the school holidays. I was so scared that she would forget how to read that I wrote her stories to read during the holiday,” Natleigh laughs. And she just continued writing. “I didn’t do anything with them. In 2012 I thought I would send them to a publisher. I received a lovely letter back, advising me to send them elsewhere. I packed them away and didn’t think about it again. I did write some for an extracurricular programme, but the rest gathered dust on my computer,” she said. It took bats, of all things, to motivate her to start writing again and seriously pursue publishing books.
Natliegh began rehabilitating bats a few years ago and during some of her educational activities, she was asked why she doesn’t write children’s books on bats to change the perception of these misunderstood animals.
“I thought, what a great idea! I could change the narrative and create awareness by doing something I love. And now I have four books on the shelves. I still can’t believe it!”
She is currently working on the finishing touches of her books with the stories she told her children when they were small. Natliegh, a qualified preschool teacher and principal of her own preschool in Hartbeespoort, designed the books herself and even created the illustrations. “With artificial intelligence,” she laughs. “And I made some expensive mistakes! One even had to be re-printed.”
Her new books of the stories she wrote for her daughter will be designed and illustrated by a professional designer. “I thought I would leave that part to the professionals. My website will also be up and running soon. I am so excited. I love children and I love writing for them. It is a dream come true.”