January 15, 2025 • 9 mins
Tri-state children's author Marie Kriedman talks with us about her books which help children understand difficult topics. Her latest book is "Mr. Blue Sky."
Click here to see Marie's book catalog
Click here to see Marie's book catalog
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Back on I heard since a public affairs program produced
just for this iHeartRadio station in Cincinnati. I'm Sandy Collins.
My next guest is a local author, Marie Creedman. She
has a new book coming out this spring called Mister
Blue Sky, and it's a children's book. You'll want to
hear more about that coming up. But right now, let's
meet Marie Creedman.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Thank you, it's nice to chat with you today.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Tell me how you became a children's author, and a
little bit of your story about going to school and such.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Sure.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
Well, I actually was writing stories in college, and to
be very fair, they were not published, and they should
not have been.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
I was young.
Speaker 3 (00:40):
I needed to develop my skill and find my voice.
That I worked with traditional publishing houses and I tried
to fight an agent, and I thought New York was
the way to go, and it's extremely difficult to break into.
And so I realized I needed to step back, get
life experience, and I needed to slow down and let
things happen naturally. I have a journalism degree, so I
(01:02):
was working for a newspaper as a copy editor. I
took a break and I met my husband. We got married,
had our family, and then we had a life changing
event in twenty twenty. We were welcoming Arthur child and
I lost her in the second trimester. My obstetrician said,
(01:23):
you know, I want you to go to the yard.
I want you to get good care. And while I
was there, I asked them, do you have any resources
so I can explain this to my kids at home.
They were far and they were six at the time,
so they're very young. And they gave me a memorial stone,
and they gave me some pamphlets about men and their grief.
(01:44):
It was all very good stuff. There was nothing really
tailored to the child, and that surprised me because miscarriages
are so common. I thought that local hospitals would be
well prepared for the emotional side of a loss, and
I didn't get the resources that I felt I needed.
So one night I just I had all these thoughts
(02:07):
racing in my head and I could not sleep, and
I knew I would never be able to sleep if
I didn't get them out, and so I just started writing.
And what became of it was a two book series.
The first book is called Saying Goodbye to Olivia. It's
about miscarriages in general. I wrote the book from the
child's perspective of how things have changed and mom and
(02:29):
dad are acting differently and they're crying and they're sad,
and what does that mean for me? What does that
mean for my family? And the second book was specific
to our loss. Our daughter had trice in the eighteen
which is an extra chromosome and for her it was fatal.
Her name is Olivia. It really reinvigorated my passion for
(02:53):
helping children and families who maybe want a fun book
to read or they need help with a big life change.
I enjoy talking about my daughter because she had an impact.
That was one of my goals is that her death
would have a positive influence in the world. And I
am her outlet, so it was my privilege to write
(03:13):
a book and share her story. And it is also
very emotional. Today I think is a good day. I
don't think I'm going to cry during our interview, but
it really does come and go. We always have a
very difficult time around her birthday, for instance, but we
also use that as an opportunity to reflect on her.
We always make sure that we make a donation in
(03:35):
her honor so that there is good in the world.
On her special day, and our family in particular, we
also have cupcakes and we each take a turn blowing
out a candle and making a wish on her behalf.
Speaker 2 (03:48):
So the loss was.
Speaker 3 (03:50):
An opportunity to find new family traditions and remember that
just because we've lost someone doesn't mean they're gone from
our lives.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
That's amazing. Help for your boys, how did they handle
the loss of their sister.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
It was really difficult for them because they had always
wanted a sibling, and they made it very clear that
an only baby acceptable was a girl baby.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
So the pressure was on.
Speaker 3 (04:19):
And it was very hard for me personally to tell
them because I knew I was going to break their
hearts and I knew I was taking their sister away
from them. And as a parent, of course, I never
intentionally wanted to do anything to upset my child. I
think it's extremely abstract for children, and that's one of
the things I did with the book, is I gave
concrete ways that children would be able to do something
(04:43):
to honor the sibling that they lost. It could be
writing a letter, planting a flower, it could be drawing
a picture. My son at the time was four years
old and he wanted to play a game, which was fine.
So we played a game and we talked about her
why we did it, and I said, well, instead of
just playing a game, why don't we also go to
the store and we'll pick out a game and we'll
(05:05):
donate it to the children's hospital, so everyone gets a turn.
So I wanted them to have some ways that they
could feel empowered, because it is a scary change in
your family when your parents are upset and you know
that there's nothing you can do to make it better.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Today, I'm fucking with Marie Creedman. She is an author
from the tri State who has written a new book
that we're going to talk about now. She's a children's
author and this new book was inspired by the song
from Elo, one of my favorite rock bands of the seventies,
called Mister Blue Sky. You had to and so tell
(05:48):
us about Mister Blue Sky, which is coming up this spring,
and how you became inspired by that song, and tell
me about the book.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
Well, the book is actually a sequel.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
Mister Blue Sky is a follow up to a book
that I published last year and that was called Little
Brother to the Sun. The reason I selected Mister Blazes
Guy as a bit of a nod to my husband
because it's one of his favorite songs, and also because
the song is about sadness and mister Blaze Sky can
(06:19):
come back again. And so for children, I wanted to
emphasize that a rainy day, while not necessarily fun, is
okay because the sun comes out again and your sad
feelings can go away. And I also emphasized in the
book that when you are feeling blue, that's the time
to find your trusted person. You can talk to a friend,
(06:40):
you can talk to an adult, but you need to
always remember that the sun will come out again. And
so I also wanted to continue the tradition of adding
some scientific information. So because sun and rain make rainbows,
so there's going to be a lot of rainbow facts,
a lot of color in the book.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
It's going to be great.
Speaker 1 (06:59):
To what a is this book targeted.
Speaker 3 (07:02):
Mister Blue Sky is written in a very unique way.
When you read it as a preschool age group, you
learn about sharing, you learn about how to handle feelings,
and then when you read it again around eight or nine,
you can learn more about handling your emotions properly and
coping skills, and you can learn about science facts. So
(07:24):
I've written the book specifically to grow with the child
as the age because, as as many people know, when
a child loves the book, you're reading it five, six,
seven times a day. So I wanted the book to
grow with the children as they age, probably twelve and younger.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
Mister Bluesky's coming out in April, and we can get
it through your website.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Is that right?
Speaker 3 (07:45):
That's right, It'll be on books by Marie dot Com.
I'm hoping the book is done in April or May.
My illustrator is working hard right now. I've been working
with Chili Doggress and Peter Bronson for many years now,
and I'm so grateful that my husband actually found him
me to the publisher, and so it's kind of been
a family affair of sorts.
Speaker 2 (08:04):
It's the best way to do it.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
So you can pick up Mister Bluesky at books Buy
Marie dot Com. My guest today Marie Criedman, the Tri
States author and freelance editor and writer. Good luck with
mister blues Guy.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Thank you. I really appreciate your time today.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
That's all the time we have for today. Thanks for
tuning in. If you missed any of the show, just
go to the iHeartRadio app and look under podcasts search
for Sandy Collins and iHeart Cincy.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
The Public Affairs.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Show will come right up. If you've got any suggestions
for the show. You've got a guest, you've got an event,
you've got some organization that's doing awesome things. I would
love to hear about it. Shoot me an email. It's
Iheartsincy with an I at iHeartMedia dot com. That's Iheartsincy
at iHeartMedia dot com. Till next week. I'm Sandy Collins.
Thanks for listening.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
iHeart Cincy is a production of iHeartMedia Cincinnati
Back on I heard since a public affairs program produced
just for this iHeartRadio station in Cincinnati. I'm Sandy Collins.
My next guest is a local author, Marie Creedman. She
has a new book coming out this spring called Mister
Blue Sky, and it's a children's book. You'll want to
hear more about that coming up. But right now, let's
meet Marie Creedman.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Thank you, it's nice to chat with you today.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Tell me how you became a children's author, and a
little bit of your story about going to school and such.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Sure.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
Well, I actually was writing stories in college, and to
be very fair, they were not published, and they should
not have been.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
I was young.
Speaker 3 (00:40):
I needed to develop my skill and find my voice.
That I worked with traditional publishing houses and I tried
to fight an agent, and I thought New York was
the way to go, and it's extremely difficult to break into.
And so I realized I needed to step back, get
life experience, and I needed to slow down and let
things happen naturally. I have a journalism degree, so I
(01:02):
was working for a newspaper as a copy editor. I
took a break and I met my husband. We got married,
had our family, and then we had a life changing
event in twenty twenty. We were welcoming Arthur child and
I lost her in the second trimester. My obstetrician said,
(01:23):
you know, I want you to go to the yard.
I want you to get good care. And while I
was there, I asked them, do you have any resources
so I can explain this to my kids at home.
They were far and they were six at the time,
so they're very young. And they gave me a memorial stone,
and they gave me some pamphlets about men and their grief.
(01:44):
It was all very good stuff. There was nothing really
tailored to the child, and that surprised me because miscarriages
are so common. I thought that local hospitals would be
well prepared for the emotional side of a loss, and
I didn't get the resources that I felt I needed.
So one night I just I had all these thoughts
(02:07):
racing in my head and I could not sleep, and
I knew I would never be able to sleep if
I didn't get them out, and so I just started writing.
And what became of it was a two book series.
The first book is called Saying Goodbye to Olivia. It's
about miscarriages in general. I wrote the book from the
child's perspective of how things have changed and mom and
(02:29):
dad are acting differently and they're crying and they're sad,
and what does that mean for me? What does that
mean for my family? And the second book was specific
to our loss. Our daughter had trice in the eighteen
which is an extra chromosome and for her it was fatal.
Her name is Olivia. It really reinvigorated my passion for
(02:53):
helping children and families who maybe want a fun book
to read or they need help with a big life change.
I enjoy talking about my daughter because she had an impact.
That was one of my goals is that her death
would have a positive influence in the world. And I
am her outlet, so it was my privilege to write
(03:13):
a book and share her story. And it is also
very emotional. Today I think is a good day. I
don't think I'm going to cry during our interview, but
it really does come and go. We always have a
very difficult time around her birthday, for instance, but we
also use that as an opportunity to reflect on her.
We always make sure that we make a donation in
(03:35):
her honor so that there is good in the world.
On her special day, and our family in particular, we
also have cupcakes and we each take a turn blowing
out a candle and making a wish on her behalf.
Speaker 2 (03:48):
So the loss was.
Speaker 3 (03:50):
An opportunity to find new family traditions and remember that
just because we've lost someone doesn't mean they're gone from
our lives.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
That's amazing. Help for your boys, how did they handle
the loss of their sister.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
It was really difficult for them because they had always
wanted a sibling, and they made it very clear that
an only baby acceptable was a girl baby.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
So the pressure was on.
Speaker 3 (04:19):
And it was very hard for me personally to tell
them because I knew I was going to break their
hearts and I knew I was taking their sister away
from them. And as a parent, of course, I never
intentionally wanted to do anything to upset my child. I
think it's extremely abstract for children, and that's one of
the things I did with the book, is I gave
concrete ways that children would be able to do something
(04:43):
to honor the sibling that they lost. It could be
writing a letter, planting a flower, it could be drawing
a picture. My son at the time was four years
old and he wanted to play a game, which was fine.
So we played a game and we talked about her
why we did it, and I said, well, instead of
just playing a game, why don't we also go to
the store and we'll pick out a game and we'll
(05:05):
donate it to the children's hospital, so everyone gets a turn.
So I wanted them to have some ways that they
could feel empowered, because it is a scary change in
your family when your parents are upset and you know
that there's nothing you can do to make it better.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Today, I'm fucking with Marie Creedman. She is an author
from the tri State who has written a new book
that we're going to talk about now. She's a children's
author and this new book was inspired by the song
from Elo, one of my favorite rock bands of the seventies,
called Mister Blue Sky. You had to and so tell
(05:48):
us about Mister Blue Sky, which is coming up this spring,
and how you became inspired by that song, and tell
me about the book.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
Well, the book is actually a sequel.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
Mister Blue Sky is a follow up to a book
that I published last year and that was called Little
Brother to the Sun. The reason I selected Mister Blazes
Guy as a bit of a nod to my husband
because it's one of his favorite songs, and also because
the song is about sadness and mister Blaze Sky can
(06:19):
come back again. And so for children, I wanted to
emphasize that a rainy day, while not necessarily fun, is
okay because the sun comes out again and your sad
feelings can go away. And I also emphasized in the
book that when you are feeling blue, that's the time
to find your trusted person. You can talk to a friend,
(06:40):
you can talk to an adult, but you need to
always remember that the sun will come out again. And
so I also wanted to continue the tradition of adding
some scientific information. So because sun and rain make rainbows,
so there's going to be a lot of rainbow facts,
a lot of color in the book.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
It's going to be great.
Speaker 1 (06:59):
To what a is this book targeted.
Speaker 3 (07:02):
Mister Blue Sky is written in a very unique way.
When you read it as a preschool age group, you
learn about sharing, you learn about how to handle feelings,
and then when you read it again around eight or nine,
you can learn more about handling your emotions properly and
coping skills, and you can learn about science facts. So
(07:24):
I've written the book specifically to grow with the child
as the age because, as as many people know, when
a child loves the book, you're reading it five, six,
seven times a day. So I wanted the book to
grow with the children as they age, probably twelve and younger.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
Mister Bluesky's coming out in April, and we can get
it through your website.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Is that right?
Speaker 3 (07:45):
That's right, It'll be on books by Marie dot Com.
I'm hoping the book is done in April or May.
My illustrator is working hard right now. I've been working
with Chili Doggress and Peter Bronson for many years now,
and I'm so grateful that my husband actually found him
me to the publisher, and so it's kind of been
a family affair of sorts.
Speaker 2 (08:04):
It's the best way to do it.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
So you can pick up Mister Bluesky at books Buy
Marie dot Com. My guest today Marie Criedman, the Tri
States author and freelance editor and writer. Good luck with
mister blues Guy.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Thank you. I really appreciate your time today.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
That's all the time we have for today. Thanks for
tuning in. If you missed any of the show, just
go to the iHeartRadio app and look under podcasts search
for Sandy Collins and iHeart Cincy.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
The Public Affairs.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Show will come right up. If you've got any suggestions
for the show. You've got a guest, you've got an event,
you've got some organization that's doing awesome things. I would
love to hear about it. Shoot me an email. It's
Iheartsincy with an I at iHeartMedia dot com. That's Iheartsincy
at iHeartMedia dot com. Till next week. I'm Sandy Collins.
Thanks for listening.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
iHeart Cincy is a production of iHeartMedia Cincinnati
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