Home grown children's author Trudi Franke

I was just thinking back to when I first had the thought to write a story. My oldest son was stumped by an issue at pre-school. It was a personal issue which teetered dangerously on becoming a self-esteem issue and I knew if I didn't find the right way to deal with it - on a sensitive but positive level - it could well become one of those issues that could impact negatively in the future. A growth point versus a stumbling block.

I believe, to be effective as a parent is to be "tuned in" to who your child is. Communication is a way we tune in. There are two levels of communication we use as parents. The kind of general communication like "go and brush your teeth" which deals more with the physical well being of a child and then the more intimate level of communication, which touches on their emotional needs. It deals with the mushy stuff, like feelings or the complex issues of faith, self belief and self esteem.

It's easy to communicate on a general level but not always easy on a personal level. Our lives are busy. Taking time to communicate on a more intimate level means making a real effort.

It comes with the responsibility of not inflating an issue but rather nudging your child towards finding a positive means to understand it.

Effective parenting is not always about delivering a solution - my son's would call that a lecture - but rather encouraging a child to find a solution for themselves. Children love positives and so helping them to find positive solutions is a way of teaching them about coping positively with all life issues.

So I wrote these stories to develop my children as individuals. These simple little stories became as a way of introducing an issue, then revealing a solution without me speaking about it directly. It gave my children the opportunity to "discover" a solution for themselves and by doing that helped them work through it and move on. Call it shrewd parenting but it worked.

I also wrote these stories for the future. For those tumultuous teenage years. By developing a more personal and communicative relationship we were able to develop something even more important - TRUST. In the teenage years, trust becomes, by far, the BIGGEST issue. Having a strong, trusting relationship with your young adult, as they try out the world means you both stand on more solid ground. I'm there now, my first child is at that point and I can honestly say all the hard work has been worth it. Happy reading, happy nudging and happy parenting.

Trudi