Joyful Vision

Happy New Year, 12 x 12 members! I am thrilled to be the Featured Author for January 2025. The 12 x 12 community has inspired and supported me over the last five years. I’ve learned much from putting together picture book dummies and studying mentor texts. I’ve heard how personal stories have inspired authors and enjoyed the many author/illustrator book chats.

Having worked for almost two decades in various capacities within publishing, this author knows well the highs and lows of publishing, from no reviews to starred reviews, and book lists to heartbreaking book delays. What gets me through tough times? Embracing small joys in all their forms:

• A walk with Lenny, my dog
• A new pen
• A warm cup of tea
• Playing a song I haven’t listened to in a while
• The aroma from Coriander Kitchen, my favourite takeout

Daily Joy

I know resolutions are hard to keep. Many of us begin each new year with high expectations. Perhaps you, too, have created those traditional lists of goals—the To Do/ Will Do/ Have to Do lists or vision boards packed with career or health goals and priorities. This will be fun, you tell yourself in … January.

However, when spring rolls around, the list or board has taken up residence in a bottom drawer or forgotten Canva folder.

These resolutions, lists, and boards can often be overwhelming. They create stress, especially when the steps to achieving those goals seem never-ending, impossible, or not quite as you envisioned.

They may begin to remind you of an unwieldy manuscript and become as frustrating as page turns that don’t work and sentences that clunk worse than an overloaded washing machine. You may even look back upon these lists and wonder why a goal was so important that you wrote it down, cut out a picture, or made a memo on a digital device.

This year, I encourage members to recognize and incorporate daily joy into their writing and/or illustrating routine. Joy can be found everywhere.

Nothing is Ordinary

The simple practice of recognizing daily joy can significantly enhance your creativity and perspective and let your mind rest when tackling creative blocks. Finding joy in the small moments of your day can open your mind to new ideas and inspiration, fueling your creative process.

Daily joy could include a new book, a chat with a friend, or a sunbeam. These simple happenings reflect only a few wonders unfolding within 24 hours.

Start

Document your joy with pictures, patterns, or phrases you love, using a medium that resonates. Embroidery is the perfect medium for me. I enjoy receiving new floss in delicious colors bundled into groups with names such as “Golden Hour,” “Wind in my Hair,” and “Midnight Rain.” So, I create an image using these embroidery flosses to help me remember each day.

Before you say, “Embroidery?” No way! Remember, this 2025 joy challenge can easily be adapted for any medium, from digital art software to physical media like paper, magazines, or colored pencils. Have you ever made a collage? Even a photo taken on your cellphone can be a starting point. The key is to explore the relationship between documenting small moments and creativity. And yes, I have friends who prefer to record a word rather than an image of the day. All you would need is a pencil and paper or your mobile device.

A few words

Suppose you have decided to document your joy with an image. In that case, I recommend jotting down a few words in a corresponding notebook or Word document. When I started my joy journaling, I often skipped this step because I knew why I created each image. However, as the months and years passed, I needed help remembering what each image corresponded to.

This practice will not only help you keep track of your pictures but also remember what they represent. Think of all the story ideas you will have created by year’s end. Some of these may even become 12 x 12 manuscripts!

You might be thinking: What if nothing, absolutely nothing, feels worth remembering on a particular day? The kind of day you wished you had stayed in bed, buried under blankets—I have a solution for that, too. Sometimes, I draw circles or spirals because, for me, they symbolize growth and change. They represent that our journeys—whether in writing or life—never truly end. There is always something new to write about, learn about, and find inspiration.

Joy

This is your year to share your words and illustrations with the world. You have many stories to share with young readers eager for your books.

So, what are you waiting for? Now is the time to live your day, plant a seed, and watch it grow. Like my heroine, Junko Tabei would say, “Begin.” Start today by finding joy, one item at a time, reaching for your dreams, and letting your creativity soar—Up, Up, Ever Up!

Happy 2025!