Daisy Nanni

Who are you and what do you do?

My name is Daisy Nanni, and I write and illustrate children's books. I started with an ambitious dream to publish my first book at 16 years old, and here I am today with my first book published and my second one on the way at almost 17 years old. So far, I have published George's Morning Routine. George's Morning Routine takes children through the importance of routine through the life of George the giraffe.

What did it take/how did you get started?

It took lots of work and learning. I was well-equipped with formatting skills, so I did all my own formatting. I also had to learn the ways of self-publishing and learned how to purchase an ISBN for my book and file a copyright so no one can steal my work. So, after choosing which publisher I was going to use based on their quality, I finally chose the one that would be putting my book into the world. Publishing a book is not cheap; that's why I had money saved from my past jobs for this occasion.

What does the future look like for you and your business?

I expect to continue working on my children's picture book series, Twiddlebury Twig. I want to continue it to a series of 10 books or more.

What drives / motivates you on a daily basis?

My drive is Jesus, my imagination, and to make a difference in children's lives. I've felt called by Jesus to make children's books since I was little. I'm glad I am living out my calling, all thanks to Jesus. My imagination allows me to come up with stories that will capture the attention of my readers. Without my imagination, I would never be able to fathom that I would someday be a published book author. One of the best things that comes with publishing a children's book is seeing the impact it has on all the young readers who hold it. It makes me feel more motivated to keep creating, knowing that they are waiting for more.

What advice would you give someone interested in doing what you do?

I highly recommend finding a mentor to help you through this prosess. It helps so much more to have someone guiding you through the publishing process. Also, double- triple check your work. If your work is going out into the world, you will want it to be the best it can be.

What has been the hardest part of your business journey?

The hardest part of starting my business is getting it out there. A pitfall of self-publishing is that you mainly have to do all your advertising and networking. When traditional publishing, at least your book is guaranteed to go into bookstores and be advertised on the publisher's social. But when self-publishing it's up to you to get your book out there and into the world. I am trying to get my book out to more people through the use of Instagram and Facebook.

How have you managed burnout thus far?

If I get burnt out, I simply take a break. When working with art, such as my illustrations, it's important to take a break if you can't give it your 100%. Because like i said before, if you are realising your work into the world, make sure it's your best work. The funny thing about that is that your best will be constantly improving, that's why my second book may look more polished than my first, and that's ok. So when I'm feeling burnt out, I take a break and think, why am I doing this? What started my passion for this? Usually, after that, I find more motivation.

What are a few resources that you'd recommend?

I recommend Book Baby Publishing, even if you don't want to publish with them; they give very helpful advice, and they helped me despite my cluelessness. You can visit the podcast I was on called Formittable Fellowship on Spotify. I go over more of my publishing journey there as well, which you might find helpful.