A former clinical counsellor in Nanaimo is following a new pursuit in retirement – writing about magical creatures.
In children’s author Teresa Waterland’s first book, The Magical Adventures of Quizzle and Pinky Palm, the aim was to modernize fairy tales.
“When I was a kid, my parents read to me all the time,” said the author. “And fairy tales started in the 1700s … this offers a more modern world view because we’ve grown a lot since the 1700s.”
The self-published episodic chapter book was written for readers of all ages, although Waterland said she wrote it specifically with early readers in mind. The book follows two main characters as they grow through 11 stories that build on each other: Quizzle, a “feisty fairy,” and Pinky Palm – an empathetic ‘everyanimal’ capable of putting himself into the “hearts, paws and talons” of other creatures to help them look into their hearts and “discover what really matters.”
“My whole life has been focused on my awareness journey. I was part of starting up the [walk-in crisis counselling clinic] here in Nanaimo … My background as a counsellor has made me who I am, basically,” Waterland said, adding that she’s garnered a unique world view while working with thousands of people through the walkin clinic and other forms of therapy. “The book isn’t just one-level of awareness, it has layers for adults and children. And it really is about love.”
As a means to spread the love, the author has been dropping off copies of The Magical Adventures of Quizzle and Pinky Palm into ‘little neighbourhood libraries’ around Nanaimo to make them more available. She encourages any residents with free neighbourhood libraries on their block to submit the address through the contact page at www.teresawaterland.com so she can make a delivery.
Copies can also be purchased online through the publishing services provider, http://books.friesenpress.com, as well as at www.teresawaterland.com.
Waterland said readers can also look forward to a second book in the near future.
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