Summertime Publishing
  • About Us
    • Meet the Team
    • Our Authors
    • Publish with Us
    • Contact Us
  • Services and Fees
    • Publishing Programmes
    • Selected Services
    • Terms and Conditions
  • Our Bookshelf
    • Summertime Direct
    • Summertime Shop
    • Springtime Shop
  • For Writers
    • Jo Parfitt, Mentor
    • author2author
    • Paddy Hartnett, Proofreader
    • Writing Retreats
    • Free Resources for Writers
    • From Pipedream to Proposal
    • e-Learning
  • Blog

Summertime
​News

Jo Parfitt talks to Valérie Besanceney about her book, B at Home

8/4/2014

Comments

 
B at Home
It was almost exactly two years ago that Valérie came to me to share her dream of writing a children’s story about moving, based on her own life and her ‘transitional object’, a very important teddy bear, called B. Today, B at Home: Emma Moves Again is published. I talk to Valérie about her publishing journey.
JP: Tell us about B at Home: Emma Moves Again. What is it about? Can you describe it in just a few sentences?
VB: It is a fictional “memoir” about the experiences of a ten-year-old girl and her teddy bear who have to move yet again. During the different stages of another relocation, Emma’s search for home takes root. As the chapters alternate between Emma’s and her bear’s point of view, Emma is emotionally torn whereas B serves as the wiser and more experienced voice of reason.

JP: Why did you write the book?
VB:  Like many aspiring writers, I have often been told to write what you know. This I know. As a child and young adult, having moved country (not counting cities) a total of 16 times, I always struggled with the concept of ‘home’ and the question ‘where do I belong?’. It’s only now, while growing more roots with my husband and two daughters, that I am slowly beginning to understand what ‘home’ and ‘belonging’ truly mean.

Partly, I needed to write this story for myself. But mostly, as a primary school teacher and as a mother, I feel almost a sense of responsibility to let children know that they are not alone in their own search for ‘home’; that it’s great to celebrate the advantages to moving, but that it’s also okay to acknowledge the challenges that come with it.

JP: Why do you think it needed to be written?
VB: It is absolutely wonderful there is such a growing list of resources about third culture kids (TCKs) available for parents and educators. Over the last ten years, I have become passionate about the subject of TCKs, but always felt a need for more resources for younger TCKs. I really wanted to contribute in a meaningful way. With B at Home, I hope to give younger TCKs a story they can identify with while they experience their own move. And I would like to encourage them to enjoy a passage in life that can be such a rewarding and enriching journey.

​JP: Who do you think will read B at Home? Who would you like to read the book?
VB: I would love for B at Home to be read by any children who move (whether it’s 50 or 5,000 miles away) and who are simply searching for ‘home’. Although targeted mostly at a younger third culture kid (TCK) audience, I also hope to reach out to parents and educators of TCKs. Their guiding roles can be so influential during the process of relocation, an experience which inevitably helps shape a child’s identity.

JP: What steps have you taken (or do you plan to take) to promote B at Home? Which methods do you think work best and can you give any examples?
VB: I am still very new to all of this, and I’m not sure which methods work best. I have created a website and a Facebook page. I don’t twitter and am not very actively involved in social media as a person, so I find it quite challenging to do so as an author. Having looked at other authors, I do feel social media is an extremely important vehicle to give your book publicity.

I have also contacted local book stores and will be sending review copies to educators and other professionals who interact with TCKs. I was recently part of a panel presenting to HR managers in Geneva about the subject of relocation and children.

At our school, I have been asked to present to parents and staff. And of course I will speak about the book to my students. Having said that, I feel much more comfortable speaking in front of a class of 8-year-olds than a room full of adults, so the adults will have to bear with me!

JP: How did you choose your publisher and publishing method? Why did you decide to take this route?
VB: As a graduate student, I read Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds by David C. Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken. I immediately felt an overwhelming sense of recognition as they described my experience better than I’d ever been able to myself.

Then almost three and half years ago, I had the chance to listen to Ruth Van Reken speak about her work. Her stories were even more powerful in person. A few months later, I finally picked up the courage to send her some of my writing and pitch my idea of a children’s book for TCKs to her. I was pleasantly surprised when she told me to keep writing and to get in touch with Jo Parfitt from Summertime Publishing.

Fast forward more than a year later, and I finally had the guts to actually send through my writing. Working with Jo and [editor] Jane Dean over the past two years has been a tremendous learning experience. I am so grateful that Ruth steered me into the right direction.

JP: What was your biggest challenge regarding the writing of B At Home? How did you overcome that?
VB: Trusting when to listen to your gut and when to let it go. There have been times in the writing and editing process when I was very happy to simply follow my heart. There have been other times when I simply had to trust others. And then the time came that I just had to ‘let it go’. If I hadn’t had a deadline imposed on me, I think I could have gone on forever ‘tweaking’ it.

JP: Now you have written this book, what has writing it done for you? (your family, your self-esteem, your business…)
VB: For myself, I needed to jump into the deep end and write about the experience of being a TCK. At first, I wasn’t very confident whether my story was even worth sharing, but through the amazing support of Ruth, Summertime Publishing, my family, my friends and even the occasional stranger, I learned that it was. If it will make one child feel better and more empowered throughout his or her own relocation experience then it has served its purpose. I also hope to set the example, for my daughters and my students, that you should always try to live your dreams.

JP: If you were to give advice to someone else who is thinking about writing a book of this nature, what would be your number one tip?
VB: Make sure to have your target audience read it. They will give you the best and most honest feedback.

​JP: Please can you add links here to your website, blog, Facebook page, Twitter account and any other social media you have in place.
VB:      valeriebesanceney.com, facebook.com/valeriebesanceney
Comments
    Picture
    All the latest news from the team at Summertime Publishing
    Subscribe

    As an Amazon Associate, we may earn a commission from qualifying purchases. This does not affect the price you pay or your consumer rights.

    Archives

    December 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    February 2024
    December 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    February 2023
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    May 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010
    January 2010
    December 2009
    November 2009
    October 2009
    September 2009
    July 2009
    May 2009
    April 2009
    September 2008
    May 2008

Summertime Publishing

Picture
Website by author2author | © Summertime Publishing 2025. All Rights Reserved
  • About Us
    • Meet the Team
    • Our Authors
    • Publish with Us
    • Contact Us
  • Services and Fees
    • Publishing Programmes
    • Selected Services
    • Terms and Conditions
  • Our Bookshelf
    • Summertime Direct
    • Summertime Shop
    • Springtime Shop
  • For Writers
    • Jo Parfitt, Mentor
    • author2author
    • Paddy Hartnett, Proofreader
    • Writing Retreats
    • Free Resources for Writers
    • From Pipedream to Proposal
    • e-Learning
  • Blog