THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY: There’s A Spider In My Bathtub by April Eckert

When I started this new blog post series, I did it with the idea of sharing the WHY I created my stories, but then I thought…why not share OTHER authors STORY BEHIND “THEIR” STORY? I put the call out and soon I had tons of authors who wanted to share their backstories with my readers. This week my friend and children’s book author, April Eckert, is sharing the WHY she wrote her newly released book, THERE’S A SPIDER IN MY BATHTUB . Take it away, April…

THERE IS A SPIDER IN MY BATHTUB by April Eckert

The best memories of my childhood are intertwined with nature. I spent hours outside playing with my siblings or even on my own, simply loving the freedom that I had to run and jump and feel the breeze in my hair. I loved to scavenge for ingredients to add to my nature soup or mud pies. A little rain water, different shaped leaves from the trees in my yard, small pieces of bark that had fallen to the ground, and perhaps even some multi-colored flower petals would all add up to the best “food” a child of nature ever concocted. I made friends with the worms and the slugs, the fireflies, and the little roly polies. Toads and salamanders were kept for a short time in a bowl and always released so that they could continue on their way. Hours and hours of time flew by because I was having so much fun.

When I started school, I wasn’t used to being inside for so long. I yearned to be outdoors and couldn’t wait to play outside during recess. It took me a while to acclimate to the school climate, but I did. As time went on, I realized that I loved reading and writing stories. I could immerse myself in books and envision movies playing in my head while I read. 

Over the years I had many ideas for books to write, but nothing really “stuck.” I would have an idea and jot down some lines, but slowly the words would slip away along with my inspiration. Then one day, I saw a spider in my bathtub and the words just flew out of my head and onto the paper. I took a few days break and when I came back, even more words came until the story was finished! Luckily, I found a great group of indie authors that shared their experiences of publishing their stories. I soaked their advice up like a sponge. I also found my illustrator, Catherine Knorr in this group. Her talents extend far beyond her amazing drawings and we have become an incredible team focused on creating the best picture books for children.

Writing children’s books that center around the theme of nature is the perfect combination of my two greatest creative passions. Now I get to spend hours creating stories about endearing little characters while promoting time spent outside. 

My debut book, There’s a Spider in My Bathtub was written to help children (and some parents) learn to be less anxious around these misunderstood members of nature. A rhyming picture book with marvelous illustrations, this book will make even those who are most timid around spiders grow a little love for these cute crawlies. Follow along as little spider embarks on an amazing adventure after being rinsed down the drain…and right into your heart. 

Here’s the book blurb:

“Has there ever been a spider in your bathtub? What did you do? What do you think would happen to it if you rinsed it down the drain?

Come along with an adorable little spider as he travels to a land of dinosaurs, flies head first into a meteor shower, and accidentally falls into a battle with a dragon!”

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As a child who loved the outdoors, April Eckert could usually be found playing with cute crawlies and creating a nature-inspired culinary dish in her spare time. Although nature was her favorite place, the one part of it that she was never comfortable with, was spiders. 

As an adult, April has earned her Master’s degree in Education. She has been a teacher for more than 10 years and continues her love for nature. April is happiest playing outside amongst the trees, with her daughter.

Although spiders still aren’t her favorite of the cute crawlies, she has learned that her childhood fear was based on not understanding these eight-legged creatures. She hopes that her books help children find their love for all things nature and their parents to be able to reconnect to the carefree feeling that being outside used to bring.

Want to Connect?

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Hug-A-Bug-Tales-113644060392304

Email: [email protected] 

Website: http://aprileckert.com 

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Donna L

Hybrid award winning author; aspiring sketch artist; and 4th Degree Senior Certified Taekwondo Instructor. Host of BOOK NOOK REVIEWS. Member of SCBWI. Mom to fabulous son and adventurer delving into the tricky world of indie-publishing.

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