We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kim Ann. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kim below.

Alright, Kim thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

Though I write under the pen name Kim Ann, my business name is Lucky Four Press, LLC. My husband was the one that came up with it. My husband and I have two children which means our family size is “Four” and we feel “Lucky” to have each other. The word “Press” came from the fact that I was writing books, as in a printing press.

Kim, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I have always had a love of reading, writing, and creating. I jokingly say I wrote my first book at age nine when I made a book of poetry out of construction paper and yarn, and it was displayed in the school library.

But, who pushed me to pursue a career in writing, was my son, Aidan. Aidan was a 25-week preemie that weighed one pound, eleven ounces at birth, and spent 143 days in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Miller’s Children’s Hospital in Long Beach, CA. I couldn’t hold him for weeks, but I could read to him. So that’s what I did. Every day I sat there and read to him, instilling the same love of books I have and Aidan still has today.

After years of reading books to my children and seeing the types of books they liked and didn’t like, I started to get some fun ideas. That’s when I decided to become an author and then a publisher. I write and publish the fun, imaginative, colorful books Aidan and other children can enjoy. Whether someone reads to them or they read by themselves, I encourage children to find books they can love.

How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.

I sell my books and products on several platforms including my own website. I also have them listed online at Amazon, Etsy, Walmart and Barnes and Noble.

I would prefer my sales go through my own website, so I could see who is purchasing my product, make larger profits and potentially retarget them. The reality is that most shoppers are on these larger platforms like Amazon, etc., looking for items like mine. This makes it necessary to be available on those sites, too.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

There are a few books that have helped me get to where I am today and that will hopefully help me get even further. In no certain order: How to Self-Publish a Children’s Book by Eevi Jones, Self-Publishing with Amazon Ads by Bryan Cohen, The One Thing by Gary Keller, and Power Author by Ben Wolf. Many of these authors also have videos available on YouTube.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.authorkimann.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/authorkimann
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorkimann
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/authorkimann/
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/KimAnnWriter1