Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sharmilla Fassbender . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Sharmilla , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

Legacy – Wow! Such an inspirational word! When my sister and I embarked on this journey, we wanted to write stories around social and emotional development in children. In a world where connections happen on many levels and platforms, and are increasingly relevant, our hope is that these stories will encourage early introduction to shaping a childs’ understanding of empathy, compassion, and resilience, while fostering a deep connection between parents and their littles. On a personal level, I hope my legacy will be that of sweet memories of reading together and that my family will have something tangible of me that they can hold on to forever. On a universal level, I hope my books inspire and encourage parents to engage in read-alouds with their littles. I believe that the precious moments spent together in this way not only create lasting memories but also serve as a foundation for nurturing social and emotional intelligence.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Having grown up in Asia, pursuing higher education in Australia and now living in the USA, I have been blessed with a rich variety of experinces and cultural influences. I completed a Bachelors in Psychology then pursued my Masters in Counseling. I enjoy working with children and worked in the Applied Behaviour Analysis field with many children, both on the Austism spectrum and otherwise. My sister and co-author, Sharminey Selvanathan, has a Bachelor of Psychology and experience in the early childhood education field. As mothers and with our backgrounds, we knew we wanted to have social and emotional themes in our stories. Our children as inpiration, Books for Growing Minds was developed. In fact, our logo is a handrawn product by 2 of our inspirators! “Making Friends Together” is the first book in a planned series of books addressing different social situations young children could find themselves in. It is a story about 5 friends rallying together to make someone new feel welcome. Told in rhyme form, subsequent books will feature all 6 characters as well. Some of these themes include sharing, trusting your own abilities and winning/losing, to name a few.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

We had always envisioned our stories in board book format. However, after talking to different publishers over weeks, we were told that board books were a volatile market post Covid, and they wanted to print it in softcover/ hardcover instead. Deciding to go the self publishing route was easy, however Print on Demand platforms that independent authors use like Ingram Spark and Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing also did not have board book formats. Most disappointing was the realization that all libraries and corporate stores only purchase books from these platforms. We kept to our vision and persevered. Choosing to outsource printing and sell our books directly from our website, we network and engage over social media as well as in person marketing. We’ve done book readings at schools, book fairs and daycares! We also have our books being sold at independent bookstores. Additionally, a few weeks ago, ‘Making Friends Together’ was awarded the Golden Wizard Book Prize! Needeless to say we are really grateful and excited about that achievement. As with any adventure, learning has been a great part of our journey. As such, we’re exploring making our book available in other formats to expand our reach. Slowly but surely, we are determined to grow our name and find our place on bookshelves everywhere!

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Simply put, being creative brings me peace. I enjoy painting and crafting in addition to writing and anytime I engage in a creative pursuit, I feel a sense of joy and zen. Being a Stay at Home mother can feel very overwhelming at times and taking some creative time helps with getting centered.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://bfgminds.my.canva.site/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/bfgminds
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bfgminds