Chasing the lights

Chasing the lights is an adventure-filled glow in the dark book about two siblings that lose sight of their parents at night. The result is a journey to find their mum and dad again. During this adventure the two children come across some amazing luminous sights, such as sea sparkle and glowing fungi. As a kid I loved playing outside. I enjoyed venturing into forests, onto beaches or going camping. Pretty much anything in the natural world appealed to me. Since moving from the Netherlands to Australia, I have an even stronger connection with nature and a passion for the hidden macro world. I want to inspire other children to get in touch with their adventurous spirit, as I see technology disconnecting us from nature. I believe that stories that we read as a kid impact who we become as an adult. By creating a quest driven book, I hope to capture the imagination of young readers. The book is recommended for children aged between 6-9 years old, or even older kids who love Tasmania. This glow in the dark book will send the reader on a journey with the two main characters. Readers will find themselves immersed in a world filled with bioluminescence and anything else that glows at night in Tasmania.

Unique

This is the first book published in Tasmania with glow in the dark illustrations on every page. Many children have glow in the dark stickers of stars or constellations, but an entirely filled glow in the dark children’s book is quite unique in Australia. I hope that this book will inspire children to go out and explore our beautiful surroundings with their families. By showing some of the amazing, natural, bioluminescent phenomena in Tasmania, I hope children will become just as passionate as I am about seeing the sites in this wonderful State.

Goals

My dreams for this book are:

• Create a variety of young explorers. There is still so much to discover in Tasmania and the rest of the world. Children can become the next big adventurer and on their travels find fossils, hidden caves, mountain tops or whatever their heart desires.
• Encourage kids’ imaginations. By sending young readers on a quest with the main characters, it is my hope that the children will see the magic of our surroundings.
• Show children the beauty of our natural environment and be more ecologically responsible. In comparison to many parts of the world, Tasmania is rich in natural sights, some of them millions of years old. Many places on this island are untouched and wildly different from anything else in the world. I hope children will treasure this and look after these natural places.

Where next?

I believe that together we can realise these dreams and invoke the imagination in children’s lives. My goal is for this book to reach as many children as possible. The first thousand books have now been printed, but I would love to be able to reach and inspire all Australian children and hopefully even kids from overseas. And this is where you come in. To be able to fund a full Australia-wide launch of the book, I require $9,000. This money will go towards paying for the following cost associated with book publishing:

• Pre-marketing - $1,000.   Creating a database of parents and schools to attend after the launch, development of a content marketing strategy and plan, setting up a book-specific website with information and selling options.
• Launch - $6,000.   Organising interviews, developing media releases and media packs, developing online and print advertisements. Arrange a minimum offset print run of 1,000 hardcover glow in the dark books + stickers.
• Leveraging – $2,000.   To promote the book Australia wide, it is necessary to talk to a large group of people. Getting the word out about this new book includes book signings, meet the author events, interviews, book readings etc.

The creator

Hi, my name is Geraldina Dijkstra, nice to meet you! After growing up in the Netherlands, I moved to Australia almost 10 years ago. I expected to be backpacking for a few months before heading back home. But after a few months here, I didn’t want to leave. I love bushwalking, kayaking and photography. I’ve always been drawn to creative hobbies and projects. After working in a variety of jobs, I decided to study Graphic Design in Tasmania. This is where the seed was planted to create this glow in the dark children’s book. I began by writing the story, then designing the illustrations and finishing with creating the layout of the book. The first version of the book was completely hand-painted with glow in the dark paint. After several years and lots of help, all the moving parts came together to have the book published.

Pick your reward

I have created a range of exclusive rewards for my backers. Depending on your location, you can choose local Hobart CBD pick-up, Australia-wide express delivery or Worldwide delivery. To spruce up the book, select one of the rewards with a personal touch. You can either get your/your (grand) child's name added to the book in glow in the dark paint. Or you can get a personal message written in the book. When scrolling down to the reward section, select the reward that you love the most (click on the little arrow on the side to see all rewards). If you want more than one copy of the book, that's absolutely possible. Just select the reward that you wish to purchase and simply change the amount of money you want to donate by doubling or tripling the number. All done, it's that easy! Just let me know in the comments underneath how many copies you've ordered! (or send me a message)

Help me to achieve my goal

If you love this glow-in-the-dark book project, then jump straight in and find the reward that is right for you. This is your chance to obtain your very own copy of this early limited release book. Once the project goal has been achieved, I will start sending out the books immediately. It would mean a lot to me and the success of the project if you could share this campaign with your friends and family on Facebook or Instagram. Your support is highly appreciated. I'm looking forward to sharing this story with as many people as possible and I'm very excited for you to be part of this journey. Love, Geraldina