The process I went through to create a book about trees in the Bible

Years ago, an author shared with me that he had created his popular children’s book week-by-week. Every Sunday, he distributed a chapter to the children in his church congregation and received instant feedback from his little readers.

I thought this to be an ingenious idea and adopted it as my own.

I wanted to create an activity book that showcased the trees that are in the Bible. But I wanted it to be unique with a playful flair. Thus, I created Trees of the Book where the trees “came to life” and told the Bible story from their own viewpoint.

Originally, I picked seven trees thinking that it may be a good study for every day of the week.

But I wanted more than just a story. I researched each tree and put together facts about their bark, leaves, trunk, fruit, etc. I then added fun activities such as a word search, colouring page, maze, and so on.

I wanted to add illustrations of each tree, their leaf, and their corresponding Bible story, but I am not an artist. I knew a woman, Esther, from church, who had been drawing and painting since she was a young child. She planned to attend Fleming College of the Arts in Haliburton and we both thought this would be an excellent way for her to grow her portfolio. Esther created beautiful watercolour artwork (including the cover) for the activity book.

Trees of the Book — Learning from God’s Creation

In 2013, byDesign Media published my 8.5 x 11 inch 26-page activity book and I called it, Trees of the Book — Learning from God’s Creation.

It received a few 4–5 star reviews but saw limited sales.

In 2020, I wanted to make the book more accessible to libraries, schools, and as an e-book so I took out the activities and illustrations, and reduced the book size to 6 x 9 inches.

I also realized that readers wouldn’t google “trees of the book” but rather “trees of the Bible” so I changed the title to Trees of the Bible — 7 Bible stories told from the viewpoint of a tree.

I then created a new cover myself using one of the illustrations that Esther originally made and self-published through CreateSpace on Amazon.

Trees of the Bible — 7 Bible Stories Told From the Viewpoint of a Tree

In 2021, I once again updated the book. I added 10 more trees, 10 more project suggestions, and line drawings of each tree. I also added 6–16 more words and characters to the “Glossary” and “People of the Bible” sections.

I changed the title to Trees in the Bible — Learn About Trees While Exploring God’s Word. This new subtitle explained exactly what the reader can expect in the book. It also is better suited for all future books in the series, Exploring God’s Word.

I hired a graphic artist to redesign the cover. She also created covers for other books I plan to write in the series, so they all have a consistent look.

Trees in the Bible — Learn About Trees While Exploring God’s Word

Although it took many years, and a few revisions along the way, I’m quite happy with the final product.

I look forward to writing other books in the series, including Animals in the Bible, Weather in the Bible, Music in the Bible and more!

(First featured on Medium platform November 29, 2021)