Katie Hess and Alexis Dines have created a captivating children's book about the Indiana Dunes called “A Day At The Dunes.”
Hess, an eight-year teacher at Westchester Middle School in Duneland, and Dines, a marketing designer, share a deep connection to the area they call home.
Their book brings the beauty of the dunes to life for kids, offering a fun and educational way to explore this local treasure.
"I wrote the book, and Alexis illustrated it wonderfully," said Hess. "The inspiration came from a different children's book. My cousin sent me a book about Indiana University, where I went to school, and my wheels started turning. I thought I could write a children's book.”
Hess noted that the book about Indiana University was tailored to a particular audience, which led her to reflect on the Indiana Dunes. After extensively searching online, she discovered children's books focused on something other than the dunes. Motivated by this gap, she decided to take on the project herself.
"I'm going to write a book about the Indiana Dunes," said Hess. "The first draft only took me about two weeks to write. Then, during our meetings, Alexis and I had to adjust the layout, adding a few more pages and lines here and there. Overall, writing and feeling satisfied took me about two to three weeks. A bit of my inspiration came from my grandma, who the main character in the story is named after. Her name is Betty. What I hope kids take away from the book is an appreciation for the beauty of the dunes."
Dines and Hess grew up in Chesterton and were a grade apart in high school. Hess said they knew of each other but never talked or crossed paths, which she finds funny now.
“After high school, I became a graphic designer," said Dines. "Graphic designing led me to work as a marketing designer, but in the past few years, I've discovered a real passion for illustration. I even illustrated a book that wasn't published, which is how Katie and I connected. I've always loved children's books, even if they sound unusual. My family laughs because I'll go to Barnes & Noble to look through kids' books. I love how creative and colorful they are. It's been a way to combine my love for art and sharing it with others."
A special highlight for Hess is that her kids are featured in the book. Seeing them included makes the project even more meaningful to her.
"I wanted to do something for my kids," said Hess. "I have two little boys and a third baby on the way. It was a fun and not overly difficult project to take on. My kids have so many books, so adding to that collection was exciting, and I'm so glad I did it. Alexis even drew my boys into the book; my oldest is obsessed with it. He keeps saying, 'Look at me! I'm in the book! I'm famous!"
Business has been going well, and they recently started their own company. Due to the high costs of traditional publishing, they decided to self-publish their book, investing a significant amount of their own money to open an LLC for the project.
"We're in over five stores now," said Dines. "We're expanding every day, and we're about to sell out of our first round of books, which is exciting. We've done well in less than two months, and by the end of December, we'll have a full two months of sales. We've talked about how much support we've received from the community. The book resonates with anyone in the Northwest Indiana area, but it's also a great souvenir. With the Indiana Dunes becoming a popular tourist destination, we hope people will take the book home as a special moment to share with their kids."
Aside from writing books, Hess enjoys baking sourdough, spending time with her kids, and having a creative outlet as a teacher. She's also into interior design and organizing homes.
"Overall, the feedback from the book has been positive," said Hess. The other day, Alexis texted me to say the record store has sold out again and needs more books as it's the third time they've sold out."
Future opportunities include a story time and book signing at a store in Valparaiso next year, and potential book signings are being discussed. They also planned to write another book together and hoped to sell out 'A Day at the Dunes' before Christmas and reorder more copies.
"We've connected with local schools, and I know a few teachers have bought the book, read it to their classes, and shared it with other second-grade teachers, " said Dines. "That's helped drum up excitement."
Please visit here for more information about their exciting children's book, 'A Day at the Dunes,' and click here to purchase it