Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris O’Brien.
Hi Chris, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Four years ago, I started Long Overdue with two focuses in mind: 1. Help people start and finish writing their “long overdue” books. 2. Provide a helpful community for recording life stories and/or family stories.
Call it fate or just some really good luck, but our very first children’s board book project was a combination of both. Minnesota-based first-time author Vicki Toups Sheaffer had her first grandson on the way and a story in mind.
As the birth of her first grandchild approached, Vicki knew she wanted to welcome the next generation into the world in a special way.
One clear Spring night, when the crescent moon shone brightly, she realized that Baby Sheaffer would be the fifth generation to be sung a treasured lullaby. So Vicki decided to preserve her family’s version of the sweet words in a board book. And thus began a beautiful collaboration between dear friends.
A talented artist, Kristie Kaiser Frudden, taught decades of students to discover their creative gifts through art. Kristie’s extraordinary ability to explore the potential of the written word and apply her unique imagination and vision to her illustrations has given life to a family tradition inspired by an almost 200-year-old poem. Oh, Mother How Funny has been updated for Jack, and is now available to you through Long Overdue Books.
Vicki and Kristie have now published two board books and we have helped bring 10+ books overall across the finish line. This includes a collaboration with Ice Cream Fine Storybooks and wonderful artist Kate Buss’s recent 3 books, who lives in St. Paul.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The hardest part has been starting this business on the side while working full-time. There’s been some very late nights and early mornings! Add to that the birth of my first son 14 months ago, and I’d say time (and sleep) is definitely the biggest struggle. But we’ve built an incredible team of people who love stories and love seeing those stories turn into professional-quality books.
And our message and encouragement to authors is about how you don’t have to push things off. You can get started right now. So I’ve tried to follow that advice with the business.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m a writer first. All the way back to 3rd grade was always coming up with stories and writing them in a spiral notebook. My own experience writing and publishing books is what led to Long Overdue. 1. Because the process is often difficult and confusing. And 2. That feeling of seeing the final book you’ve written is an incredible experience. I want to help as many people as possible reach that moment.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
My Charles Schulz/Peanuts style answer would be: Happiness is a Saturday farmers market with my family. But I was just thinking about this the other day in terms of what activity makes me happy. I think my Number 1 activity is I love to create. Writing has always been the main outlet for that but recently, I’ve gotten into cooking. Something about that process of going from an idea to working on the steps to seeing the final creation, never gets old to me! Especially when you share it with other people.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.longoverduebooks.com
- Instagram: @longoverduebooks
Image Credits
Book covers created by Annie Leue – Creative Director at Long Overdue
