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Help with funding children’s grief book.

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In 2016, my one-year-old son lost his father to a fentanyl overdose. To some, this may be shocking, but in the U.S. alone, 2022 KFF Health Tracking data shares that 1 in 10 adults has had a family member die over a drug overdose, with Fentanyl contributing to more than two-thirds of those cases, leaving hundreds of thousands of parents and children alike to grieve and come to terms with their new reality.

Now, trying to raise a child as a solo parent experiencing a significant loss, I realized there was a limited number of children's books tackling the heavy topic that could help navigate challenging conversations and emotions my son was feeling: (confusion, abandonment, sadness) and written in a way that children would be able to access their grief and work through it.

I received my B.A. in creative writing and English Literature from UMASS Amherst UWW during that time. In August of 2021, I signed a contract with an independent publishing company to make my book and dream of a writing career a reality.

After paying this individual $6,2500.00 upfront, I then began my two-year journey of being ghosted, gaslit, meeting cancellations, and manipulation from them.

In July of 2023, after almost two years of excuses, this publisher said they were finally ready to move forward and create a storyboard to find my illustrator—none of which ever occurred. A week later, this publisher completely shut down their company without warning. Along with over forty other victims of this so-called publishing company, I am without refund and contact from said publisher. While legally pursuing my options, I am still determined to complete and publish this book. The message of this book will be crucial to so many children who have lost a parent or loved one, the same way it is essential to my son and me.

I have communicated with a few publishing agencies, namely, My Word Publishing, whom I would love to work with and can fully trust will produce and publish my book correctly, professionally, and ethically. Unfortunately, I do not have the funds to do so due to the lack of a refund from the previous publishing company.

I am here now, asking for your help to make this book a reality. Yes, the price is more than what I had initially signed on. Still, the work required to produce and publish my book correctly will require bringing in professionals to advise and guide me through the process. These include consultations, publishing service tasks and management, editing, illustrations, layout design, acquiring an ISBN, post-production work, and possibilities of add-ons for marketing and miscellaneous business expenses. Any support to offset the publishing costs would be greatly appreciated as I would still love to pursue my dream of publishing this children's book and be able to provide my son and many other grieving children with the book they need.

If I am to exceed my goal of $10,000.00, I am ready and willing to donate to organizations for domestic violence survivors, grieving children's groups, and substance abuse recovery.
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Donations 

  • Regina Lanouette
    • $25
    • 1 yr
  • Kimberly Feldman
    • $10
    • 1 yr
  • Rebecca Fernandez
    • $10
    • 1 yr
  • Naina Bhandari
    • $100
    • 1 yr
  • Tj Kourgelis
    • $100
    • 1 yr
Donate

Organizer

Kellie Kaminskas
Organizer
Hamden, CT

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