This August we’re excited to introduce Alfred, one of our in-house book illustrators who brings stories to life through his creative illustrations.
Get to know more about Alfred and the important role he plays in making each book unique.
What led you to become an illustrator, and how did your journey begin in the world of book illustration?
My journey as an illustrator began with a deep love for drawing and storytelling. Fascinated by how images bring stories to life, I was also inspired by watching anime, movies, and cartoons, and reading comics and manga, which led me to create my own art.
Adding an extra sprinkle of sweetness to your February with Tellwell’s book giveaways!
Packed with great stories and exciting adventures, let our literary fest be your go-to adventure this month.
Your next favourite transformational read!
Jose and Lourdes Amoloria’s book, One of the Most Expensive, Iconic and Kinetic Maps of Australia in the World, will make you rethink how adversity, grief, and loss can cause so much pain, and yet these life challenges can facilitate creativity, and be transformed into gifts and blessings for a meaningful and productive existence.
Dream without fear. When dreams are nourished with faith and actions, dreams bloom into realities.
Jose, a self-taught artist, had no formal training in art, no scholastic qualifications and had very challenging life experiences as an international sailor, chef, watchmaker and stone mason. How can one be multi-skilled and pass international standards without proper educational training?
Get inspired by faith and determination that changed the course of life, and be entertained by the unconventional ways Jose educated and equipped himself with skills to achieve dreams and goals. The one-of-a-kind masterpieces in this book and Jose’s life are testimonials that creativity can really transform lives. Miracles do happen, and anyone can manifest miracles if they sincerely believe in themselves and in the intervention of the unseen power of the Supreme Creator.
Carleen Dehaney takes us to a fun adventure with her book, Toothbrush Animal Hunt!
Embark on a delightful adventure with Toothbrush Animal Hunt, the perfect children’s book to encourage daily toothbrushing habits in a playful and enjoyable way.
From a clapping sea lion at the beach to a cheeky squirrel in the forest, children will be fascinated as they learn about toothbrushing through the actions and antics of these charming creatures. And don’t forget to spot the toothbrushes hidden throughout the pages, making this hunt, a delightful game of discovery.
Say goodbye to toothbrushing struggles and let the adventure begin!
Welcome to our Meet the Team series, where we showcase talented team members that make Tellwell exceptional. This January, let’s learn about Abby, our in-house illustrator.
Learn more about her and her artistic journey, exploring the details of the drawings and stories in her amazing illustrations that make our projects come alive.
Let’s kick off 2024 with some incredible literary success stories!
We’re shining the spotlight on our remarkable Tellwell authors who are rocking the literary scene. Whether it’s top-notch book reviews, exciting book events, public recognition, or book awards, our authors are out there creating more inspiring stories with every win!
Publicity
We are absolutely thrilled to share that Joseph Camel has graced the grand billboards of the iconic NYC Times Square, featuring his book Little Joe in The Big City.
Joseph’s book takes kids to an adventure to New York City, learning about the history of different landmarks. It gives kids an idea of what NYC is about, and how you can meet some really great people and new friends along the way.
As the holiday season fills the air with joy, we’re excited to share these journeys of inspiring authors and their success stories. Come along on an enchanting ride through our December highlights, where each story sparkles brightly with the magic of success and perseverance.
With a festive spirit, we raise a toast to the incredible accomplishments of our authors this December!
Awards
Tellwell author Keith Hamilton has recently received the Silver Literary Titan Award for his book, Desperation Island.
An incredible review from IndieReader was given to Monique Britten for her book, The Day Before Tomorrow.
A challenging and emotional read in terms of subject matter, Monique Britten’s THE DAY BEFORE TOMORROW is not for the faint of heart—a beautiful narrative that addresses real-world hopes and fears unflinchingly, albeit with a potentially divisive ending.
IndieReader Book Review
A page-turner you don’t want to miss. Get your copy of The Day Before Tomorrow by Monique Britten here!
Exploring the world of The Adventures of Easton the Rescue Pet: An interview with author Elizabeth Retter
Just put pencil to paper and go for it.
Elizabeth Retter
Join us in an insightful conversation with Elizabeth Retter, a recently retired teacher of twenty-five years, whose love for children’s books and dedication to animal rescue shine through her debut series, The Adventures of Easton the Rescue Pet. Discover the inspiration behind Easton’s character and how Elizabeth aims to impact young readers’ perceptions of rescue animals and adoption. Gain insights into the adoption process, challenges, and rewards from an advocate for rescue pets. Elizabeth also shares valuable tips on finding reputable rescue organizations and her childhood inspirations, and provides encouraging advice for prospective children’s authors.
Don’t miss this engaging interview with a passionate storyteller and advocate for both literature and furry friends.
Can you tell us about the inspiration behind The Adventures of Easton the Rescue Pet? What motivated you to write a children’s book centred on a rescue pet?
As a recently retired teacher of twenty-five years, I have always had a great love for children’s books. Easton has proven to be quite a character who gets himself into a lot of silly situations that I believe children and pet owners can relate to. I also wanted to raise awareness of the importance and need of rescuing animals of all kinds.
Let Tellwell take you to another world this September as we bring something even more magical than the changing seasons: an abundance of captivating stories waiting for you!
We’ve got extraordinary tales that will transport you to far-off realms, introduce you to unforgettable characters and their adventures, and ignite your imagination like never before.
Prepare to dive into our September book giveaway, where the treasures of captivating stories await!
A wonderful poetic journey
A must-read poetry masterpiece in Alysha Potente’s Heart Expressions.
Creative expression is one way of communicating across your thoughts and emotions. It is about conveying what it is that your heart and mind want to others in an artistic way. Included in this book are 80 poems that analytically showcase this, along with beautiful imagery to each poem and three extra chapters at the end of the book that are all based on English poetry, a bit about it’s history, the different styles and how you too can analytically write. It’s more than just a book of the author’s poems.
Enjoy a fun-filled and heartwarming adventure that embraces differences with Crystal Beach’s book, One Polar Bear.
One Polar Bear is a delightful rhyming book filled with lovable animals from the Canadian Arctic. Polar Bear is home sick and alone. Many animal friends drop by to cheer Polar Bear up. This counting story celebrates individuals with a variety of abilities and disabilities, and the text helps teach the numbers one to ten. Canada is a country made up of many peoples and cultures. This book reflects this diversity by featuring the word “welcome” in different languages amongst its pages. One Polar Bear is a wonderful bedtime story and a beautiful way to educate and celebrate the differences in our world. If you can be anything, be inclusive.
Feel the love in every page, where love meets the written word, with Marina Quindiagan’s poetry book, My Thoughts are Coloured Purple.
This is a book of poems on love. Love is a universal language. Love yourself, love your neighbours, love your parents, love your siblings—even love your enemies. Most of the poems are on romantic love. When you are in love, you get an awesome feeling. You walk on the clouds. However, love can be unrequited, unanswered and can bring an awful feeling. Love is in the movies, in songs, and in music. Love is in this book of poems, ever so strong and powerful. It’s there for you to enjoy.
Come along on a wonderful journey with Summerton Thompson Connor’s children’s book, The Adventures of Captain Jimmy Jams.
A bedtime storybook for parents to read to their children, depicting the excitement for possible adventures in dreams and the sensation of letting thoughts wander as you drift off to sleep. Meant to invoke soft imagery and imaginative thoughts of adventure and fun, it’s a relaxing read for pleasant sleep.
Look no further than this magical tale by Ailan McAndrew, Royal Souls.
The year: 963 AD. Prince O’Manus and Princess Sadreen are murdered at their wedding by the evil self-ordained Queen Sorcha. The souls of the royal couple, wrapped in magical protection, are cast from their bodies. The Prince’s search, to reunite with his bride, begins, and Queen Sorcha goes on a thousand-year killing spree trying to destroy either soul and enslave the magical world. Beth, unaware of the prophecy, has been alone for fifteen years, training to become the most powerful witch alive in the 21st century, and now her life is about to explode into a battle of survival and trial by fire. Then she meets Karse, the son of a Scottish clan chief, and her Lysa bloodline curse ignites. Beth fights to control her desires for Karse as an unknown world unfolds and threatens to devour her very soul as she goes from a carefree witch to the key of victory. The soul of Prince O’Manus, hidden in unsuspecting Rhynan Doon, must get from the West Coast of British Columbia to Rainsford Island in the Boston Harbor, where Princess Sadreen’s soul awaits, before Queen Sorcha slaughters the magical world to prevent the reunion. Nine days. Win or lose. The clock starts on August 29 at 3 a.m. The ‘Day of Dust’, 9-6 3 a.m.
Embrace the past one page at a time with Leonida Teohari’s memoir, Mama Dida.
Leo Teohari was born in Constanta, Romania. Leo holds both a law degree and a degree in international economics. Leo defected from Communist Romania in 1980, and settled with his family in Toronto, Canada, where he became a businessman. Today he writes about his experiences and runs an international food trade business. In 2004 he published his first book, Hawala, based on a true story about a government cover-up and diversion related to the Romanian revolution in 1989.
Every flip of the page is a delightful treat for all our book lovers!
This month, may our book giveaways be an invitation to take you to new adventures, explore new authors, and expand your literary horizons.
And look no further for your next favourite read! Tellwell offers you a pack of fun-filled books for free.
Looking for a must-read non-fiction?
Let us take you to a transformational journey with Tania Kiaizadeh’s book The Joy of Spirit.
“Re-examine all you have been told. Dismiss what insults your soul.” – Walt Whitman Tania
Kiaizadeh’s debut book, The Joy of Spirit: Spiritual Living to Discover Wonderful You, is a prescriptive non-fiction. These celestial teachings are carefully crafted to share the wisdom of the spiritual world, the importance of joy and how to reconnect to one’s divine self. Spiritual guides want nothing more than to connect to each and every soul on earth. They only need an invitation.
If you are up to an adventurous read, check out Andrew S. M. Berger’s book The Demons Rising
A heart blackened by time, now reserved for hatred and despair. Vengeance—achievable through reaching the afterlife and gaining ultimate power—is the only way to satisfy an unquenchable thirst for justice. But, when a resurgence of hope blurs the line between retribution and madness, the blackened heart seeks to preserve what beauty is left within its grasp. Neeksus had hopes of life, until death seemed the only path. A voice beckons him to commit a final atrocious act: he must take the lives of as many individuals as possible, as well as his own. Once in the underworld, all will be made clear. A boy named Gabriel suits the requirements for Neeksus to attain his goal, residing in an earlier time and among space separate from the Milky Way. This boy holds a single hope: a girl dear to him, belonging to a fate worse than death. Neeksus can save her, but only if the boy kills and collects countless souls. Many will die, who will be sacrificed in Neeksus’s quest for revenge…
Take your passion in sports to new whole new level!
Be inspired, motivated, and empowered with every page. Signed by Coach Tim Burris brings us a book that shares football knowledge and inspiration!
It’s time to get serious and start preparing to take your football talents to the next level. But understanding the multiple recruiting pathways and signing to a postsecondary football program can be challenging. Don’t worry, though . . . Coach Burris of IRONWILL Football will help guide you through the recruiting process. Signed is a guide for Canadian football players in Grades 9 to 12 who aspire to play post-secondary football. Coach Burris gives you the football recruiting blueprint so you can make informed recruiting decisions for your future. With a dedicated chapter for parents, Signed breaks down everything you need to begin your journey toward the U Sports, NCAA, Junior football, CEGEP, and Junior college.
Intelligent Digital Ecosystems by Janak Alford will challenge your mind as she shares knowledge and fascinating information on technology.
The way you are using technology today is wrong. It is hurting your mental and physical health while damaging the environment and the economy. It is limiting your potential. But there is a better way. Drawing inspiration from the human microbiome, entrepreneur and tech executive Janak Alford illustrates a compelling new world of human and technological potential. Using simple language and rich visuals, Alford offers a blueprint for how to rebuild your digital life from the ground up. By replacing your operating systems, apps, and personal devices with intelligent ecosystems, he shows how you can use this template to grow your personal agency and become a powerhouse in the digital domain. Intelligent Digital Ecosystems is an inquiry into a universe where technology becomes a symbiotic partner capable of expanding human intelligence in new and powerful ways. Navigating the many numerous opportunities and pitfalls ahead, this generation-spanning exploration challenges our understanding of intelligence, culture, and creativity while providing a conceptual glimpse into the humans we might become tomorrow.
A fun, playful read with a good lesson all in one! Here’s a perfect tale for your kids: Kim MacLean’s Playtime Clothes.
The young boy’s room is an undeniable mess. Did he actually clean his room, as he is telling his mom? Or do his clothes come to life and play?! They are, after all, playtime clothes. Is he learning a lesson to tell the truth and be accountable, as we all do in life? Or is it a world of make believe? It is for you to enjoy while you decide.
Your book adventure continues this May, as we bring you bookish delights full of information and fun-filled stories.
Discover your next favourite read in our May book giveaways!
Ready for another adventure?
Let us take your imagination to another world! Come along on another exciting journey with this book: One Polar Bear by Crystal Beach.
One Polar Bear is a delightful rhyming book filled with lovable animals from the Canadian Arctic. Polar Bear is home sick and alone. His many animal friends drop by to cheer him up. This counting story celebrates individuals with a variety of abilities and disabilities, and the text helps teach the numbers one to ten. Canada is a country made up of many peoples and cultures. This book reflects this diversity by featuring the word “welcome” in different languages amongst its pages. One Polar Bear is a wonderful bedtime story and a beautiful way to educate and celebrate the differences in our world. If you can be anything, be inclusive.
Fuel your aspirations, and take your sports passion to new heights!
Delve into chapters in a book that is more than just a guide—it’s a source of inspiration and motivation. Be inspired, informed, and empowered as you turn every page of Signed by Tim Burris.
It’s time to get serious and start preparing to take your football talents to the next level. But understanding the multiple recruiting pathways and signing to a postsecondary football program can be challenging. Don’t worry, though . . . Coach Burris of IRONWILL Football will help guide you through the recruiting process. Signed is a guide for Canadian football players in Grades 9 to 12 who aspire to play post-secondary football. Coach Burris gives you the football recruiting blueprint so you can make informed recruiting decisions for your future. With a dedicated chapter for parents, Signed breaks down everything you need to begin your journey toward the U Sports, NCAA, Junior football, CEGEP, and Junior college.
Paul Hart shares advice for career transitions and talks about the magic of writing for kids
I let the books write themselves. Whatever I feel at that moment in time, I write.
Paul Hart
This month we are featuring Paul Hart. Our interview delves into the fascinating journey of a man whose career has taken him from the high-stakes world of a Nashville bounty hunter to the enchanting realm of children’s literature. With eight years of experience in the thrilling bounty-hunting industry, Hart has now embraced a new passion as a children’s book author. As he embarks on this creative transition, we have the opportunity to gain insights from his unique perspective, seek his advice for readers considering a drastic career change, and discover the values he hopes to instil in the children who experience his stories.
His newest book, Shirley the Perky Turkey, recently launched through Tellwell publishing and reached #18 on the Children’s Animal Stories Kindle chart on Amazon.com.
You’ve had a versatile career with 8 years as a Nashville bounty hunter, and now you are making the transition into children’s book author. Do you have any advice for readers who might be thinking about a drastic career change?
At the risk of sounding cliché, my advice would be to go for it. Sometimes, our life interests change with the passing years. In my case, I wrote poetry and a children’s book when I was a teenager, long before the bounty hunting opportunity popped up in my life. Now that chapter is closed. I’m revisiting an old friend: children’s literature.
I have such a passion for all the different styles and designs of the craft of writing. Believe it or not, it wasn’t that challenging to transition. Firstly, it’s been ten years between publications of the two books. Secondly—and this may sound strange—but I let the books write themselves. Whatever I feel at that moment in time, I write.
What inspired you to write children’s books?
What has inspired me to revisit children’s books is that I see a path we are headed down and I don’t like it. Some literature that is being put in the school libraries is completely and utterly disgusting. In my own small way, I would like to combat this by being an author that offers good, wholesome stories with a positive message.
Who is your favourite children’s book author and why?
That is a tough question. I would have to say Aesop. His stories have stood the test of time and always contained a life lesson. Some of our favourite stories we’ve read as a kid were actually first created by Aesop: “The Lion and the Mouse,” “The Tortoise and the Hare,” and many others.
What was your favourite part of the children’s book creation process?
The very end. After the dust settles and the book is created, that’s when the magic happens. I’ll show you what I mean. Attached is a photo recently taken of my friend’s great-niece reading Shirley The Perky Turkey with her father. That’s my absolute favourite part.
Do you have anything else you’d like to share?
Whether you are a reader or a writer, you’re helping keep the craft of writing alive. If by chance you pick up a copy of Shirley The Perky Turkey, I hope it brings you joy.
