For many years, Maggie Sullivan held within her valuable information to share with the world. As the mother of a son with a learning disability and as a special education teacher, Maggie realized that the world still has much to learn when it comes to special education.
Maggie describes her experience observing her son’s education as being “frustrated at his frustration”. Many adults in her son’s life weren’t sure how to support him in a learning environment. She quickly decided that the time had come to share her knowledge with those around her. And she knew the perfect way to do it: through a children’s book.
So, Maggie published Alex and His Amazing Abilities, the perfect conversation starter for children and adults of all ages as it will teach everyone valuable lessons about learning disabilities and special education.
Maggie was surprised by all of the positive responses this brought:
“It is important to share this message because so many people can relate to the ideas and concepts in the book. When I talk to people about the book, the most common response is ‘I wish this book was around when I was growing up!’ I feel the same way. I wish I had a book like this when I was teaching.”
However, Maggie did face some challenges along her publishing journey:
“My biggest challenge was that I had too much on the go and I chose to take a break. That was a great lesson for me though. The other challenge I had was trying to convince the editor to keep the length of the book. Traditionally, children’s books are no longer than 1,000 words. My books (The Story of Max & Alex and His Amazing Disabilities) are long books. My intention for these books is that they are teaching tools. A parent and/or teacher can read a part of the book, have critical conversations and then go back to another part of the book. The concepts in the book are relatable for children and adults so that they can build pathways to conversations.”
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Overall, Maggie discovered the importance of flexibility. Even though her publishing journey didn’t unfold exactly as she had planned, she learned that there is a time and place for everything:
“When it is meant to be completed, it will be completed.”
Maggie also experienced the incredible impact of sharing her publishing experience with the Publishing Mastermind community:
“There is something special that happens when you come together with a group of like-minded people who are focused on a goal.”
If you are an aspiring author, Maggie has some wisdom to share with you:
“Go for it. Don’t let someone kill your dreams. If someone does not like your writing/book – that is one person’s opinion. Don’t ever let one person’s opinion get into your head.”
Purchase your copy of Alex and His Amazing Abilities now.
Maggie Sullivan
Maggie Sullivan is committed to making it her mission to help awaken people to reach their highest potential. She was born and raised in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and attended Carleton University to complete her Bachelor and Master of Arts in Sociology. She then went on to receive her Bachelor of Education at Nipissing University in North Bay, Ontario, Canada and worked as an elementary teacher for over twenty years. Maggie took an early retirement to fulfill her true passion of sharing her purpose of helping others deepen their self-awareness and inner peace.