Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Rebecca, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?
Instill in us the importance of volunteerism. My mom would tell us that if you have been given the means and the ability, it is your God-given duty to help others. Volunteering wasn’t something our family did for fanfare or praise. I watched my mom spend hours on fundraisers for the Friends of the Library to keep our small-town library afloat. If an uncontrollable situation forced someone out of their home, my dad’s pick-up truck was ready. At Christmastime, Mom would contact a social worker and request a family in need. One particular holiday stands out in my mind. When I was 12, I chose a pair of mittens for a little girl on our list. The mittens were white with a blue and green argyle star. We were only given first names, so all I knew was that the mittens were going to Patty. After winter break, a child sat next to me on the bus. I had never seen her before on our bus route. Almost immediately after she sat down, I noticed she was wearing the mittens. I asked the girl her name, and she said — you guessed it – Patty. I remember smiling at her and sharing my name. And that was it. A little sign from God not to quit loving others.
Even after my parents retired, they continued to volunteer. My mom cleans gravestones for the historical society, and my Dad volunteers as an AARP tax preparer for low-income seniors. Now with my kids, we incorporate community service as a part of who we are as a family. I was so proud of my teen daughter last year when she decided, on her own, to tutor elementary kids in math. Kids learn prosocial behavior by watching adults. If we want our kids to exhibit altruistic behaviors, we need to give them positive role models to emulate.
Rebecca, 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 was raised in West Point, a small town in the Tidewater region of Virginia. From the moment I submitted my first book, The Funny Cat, to the Young Author’s contest in second grade, I knew I wanted to be a writer. My love of writing led me to earn a BA in English and an MEd in English education. I spent several years as a high school teacher, during which I also developed a passion for mental health advocacy. I completed an MA in professional counseling and now work in school-based mental health and as a college adjunct psychology instructor.
I also teach yoga for the young and the young at heart and infuse yoga and breathwork in her counseling practice (and in writing!) wherever I can. I believe the most valuable use of my time is teaching youth how to love and care for each other and the world around them. My stories share this focus on positive relationships and a love of nature. I live in North Carolina, with her husband, two children, and two spoiled Siamese cats. I have published two picture books, When Daddy Shows Me the Sky and When Mama Grows with Me, and a YA novel, Whispering Through Water, which was included in the American Library Association January 2023 Booklist and the 2024 Hindi’s Libraries Overall Best YA Book.
Book Synopsis:
In When Daddy Shows Me the Sky, a father and daughter spend their evenings practicing yoga together under the night sky. Through spring, summer, fall, and winter, they learn the names of the constellations and model their yoga poses after the stars’ unique shapes.
Brought to life with bright and bold illustrations, this simple father-daughter story combines yoga and astronomy to help children see the wonder in the world around them-and within themselves.
Read along with your child to learn mindfulness, astronomy, and yoga together!
Includes a step-by-step guide to each yoga pose!
*****
In When Mama Grows with Me, a mama and her son create their own garden, starting with just a few small seeds and ending with a beautiful display of flowers. They observe how pollinators help the earth stay healthy, learn how to care for plants, and meet other critters that live in their garden, all while playfully shaping their bodies into yoga poses inspired by nature. Not only do Mama and her son learn valuable lessons about their garden, but along the way, they also learn to practice patience.
By pairing lessons with movement, Rebecca Wheeler helps young readers make connections between the natural world and their own emotional experiences. Learn the value of patience and practice some fun yoga poses in this beautifully illustrated children’s book.
Includes a step-by-step guide to each yoga pose!
*****
Whispering Through Water navigates family dynamics, young love, and female autonomy with a little 1990s nostalgia.
The coming-of-age story follows Gwyn Madison, the summer after her high school graduation, as she grapples with her fast-approaching future. She’ll have to face more than she bargained for with her Aunt Delia, the family matriarch, who holds the purse strings and the final word. In the meantime, Gwyn stumbles upon a tightly held family secret. Could a mysterious letter provide Gwyn the leverage she desires? Will it only bring more family division? Or, maybe, the past was never meant to stay buried after all.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
I began to draft my debut YA novel, WHISPERING THROUGH WATER, in 2008. The idea for the novel was sparked after listening to an author interview with Ann Fessler. I finished drafting the book in 2013. In the novel, the main character, Gwyn, investigates a family secret after intercepting a letter meant for her aunt. The circumstances of the book are based on historical events, which places Gwyn attending high school in the 1990s.
I submitted the novel for an editorial critique in 2013. After reading the manuscript, the editor responded: “no one wants to read about the 90’s”. So that was it. I shelved the book. Fast forward seven years, and the world was a very different place. Events in society and my family prompted me to pull out the manuscript again. I discovered I still believed in the story, maybe even more so than when I originally drafted it. I gave the manuscript a complete edit. During the novel’s seven-year hiatus, I met a publisher of a new North Carolina-based independent publishing company. In 2021 she requested to read my manuscript, and on January 4, 2023, my novel was available for purchase. By the time my novel was released, 1990s clothing trends had resurged, conversations about women’s autonomy and choice made headlines, and the advent of companies like Ancestry, uncovered long-lost family secrets. I’m thankful I didn’t give up on myself or my novel. The critique I received in 2013 did not mean my work had no value, rather it just wasn’t the right time.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
Art for Art’s sake. I attend a micro fiction group once a month. The challenge is to write one new piece every month. At the end of the year, I might have three to four pieces out of twelve that see the light of day. And that’s okay! Art is valuable whether it earns money or not. Most writers I know have volumes of manuscripts in computer folders, many of which they never intend to publish. Every poem, story, or sentence I write, I learn something new, both about the craft of writing and about myself. For me, the need to write is like the need to exercise. If I go a time without writing, I feel sluggish and off-kilter. Sure, I would love everything I write to be a best seller, but I also don’t want to pressure myself thinking that everything I write must be a best seller. When an artist is no longer motivated by the joy of the work, it becomes just that. . . work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.rebeccawwheeler.com
- Instagram: @rebeccawwheeler_author
- Facebook: RWW Writes
- Other: BlueSky @rwwauthor.bsky.social
Image Credits
Headshot: Amy Stern Photography, www.amystern.com
Picture book illustration by: Katherine Jordan