Metro Roundup: Books ‘meant to be’ for local children’s author

Rachel Atherton believes if you’re meant for something, things will fall into place.

She knows this from her own experience. She went from having an idea for a children’s book to publishing four books in just two years.

Although her background was not in writing, it was with children. Atherton, who has lived in Chelsea since December, has over a decade of experience in early childhood education and cognitive and behavioral therapy. When she and her husband Casey were living in Nashville, she worked as a director for a private early-learning center.

“It’s been my passion throughout life working with kids, specifically from infancy to age 6,” she said. “I’ve always had that creative gene, and these fun little stories and a lot of them are based on the kids from my classroom.”

In March 2020, Atherton sat down and wrote out the concept for her first book. She shared it with her dad, who told her that she was onto something. However, Atherton said her confidence level wasn’t high enough at that point and she wondered if anyone else would like it.

After rewriting it a few times and deciding to make it a rhyming book, she presented the finished project to her husband in August 2020 and then shared it with a few other people. Their positive reactions helped lift her confidence.

She found an illustrator based in Ireland, saying she “really lucked out with him and couldn’t have found anyone better.” He had the book’s illustrations completed a month after their Zoom call.

“Seeing the illustration paired with the words that I wrote, it came to life and was so much more tangible,” Atherton said.

Her father helped her with the editing process and crafted a digital layout of the book to send to a publisher. She received good news the next day.

“My dad called me and said, ‘Do you want a publishing deal?’ and I started crying,” she said. “I wrote three more books and got them all illustrated and ended up publishing them very quickly after they signed me to the deal.”

All of her books are based on animals, and, coincidentally, ones from Africa. The first was “Ostriches Can’t Fly,” followed by “Hip Hip Hooray: A Hippo Parade,” then “Momma Meerkat.”

In November 2021, she released a Christmas book titled “Very Merry Penguin,” which Atherton said is loosely based on her husband, who loves penguins.

“It happened quicker than I expected,” she said. “When I look back on it now, it feels like a short amount of time to get four books on shelves.”

Her overall mission is to put books in the hands of children to promote imaginative thinking and creativity. The importance of early literacy is something she said is close to her heart.

“I want every book to spark a light into the readers and for them to feel inspired and empowered,” she said. “It’s never too early to read to your kids, and it helps promote confidence, memory retention and improves reading performance.”

Atherton said she already has multiple ideas for future books, but she will be taking a writing break for a bit after welcoming her first child at the end of May.

“I can take the time I need to be with him and be a mom first and will pick back up with writing as I start to get back in the swing of things. My books are sitting in the nursery, and I can’t wait to read them to him,” she said.

For more information on Atherton’s books, visit rabookclub.com.