Author Deb Hockenberry shares her experience writing her book, Where Can We Have The Party?
Book Synopsis:
Giraffe wants to have a birthday party for his friend, Chimpanzee. But where can he have the party? Join Giraffe and his friends in his search to find the perfect place for the party! This cute story is perfect for toddlers with whimsical illustrations your little one can enjoy. The story focuses on the message that kids can work together to find solutions. It's okay to not know the answer right away. Keep thinking, and you can always find the answer.
Author Deb Hockenberry shares her experience writing her book, Where Can We Have The Party?
"'Where Can We Have The Party' is loosely based on a personal experience. When I was a child, I found out that it was a friend's birthday. I decided to have a party for her. We had the party in her yard. We ate those little packets of stick pretzels and drank Kool-Aid," Hockenberry told us.
Hockenberry has been working on this book for many years, waiting until the time was right for her to make her writing dreams come true. The original story, Where Can We Have the Party, was originally written in the 1950s. It finally made its way into the bookstores in 2017.
Inspiration comes to authors in various ways. Hockenberry explained that her inspiration was to create a fun and entertaining story for littles to enjoy story time. While she was not very focused on a moral while writing the story, she quickly realized the story was perfect for showing the importance of problem-solving for our littles as they are at the toddler age when problem-solving skills develop quickly.
"I have to say that the most important people who inspired and were my cheerleaders [were] my parents, brother, and sisters," said Hockenberry. "I don't know what I'd do without my family. Also, my fellow church members are big supporters."
"I have to add that I think the desire to write runs in the family. My sister and brother write, my father was a lay minister, so he wrote quite a bit, and my great-uncle wrote a book."
Deb Hockenberry has always wanted to write stories for children. She has taken multiple courses from The Institute of Children’s Literature. She has also been published several times in various children’s online magazines.
Her debut picture book ‘Where Can We Have the Party?’ has been very well received by the public.
Deb also takes care of internet things for her church. She also volunteers in the same church's Food Pantry whenever she can.