Meet Cazzy Zahursky | Author and Illustrator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cazzy Zahursky and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cazzy, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
Authoring children’s books has not only provided me with an opportunity to express myself creatively, but also to nurture young minds when they are most impressionable, as they learn to cope with life’s emotional challenges. Hopefully the stories I write and illustrate will inspire children to pursue reading as an enjoyable activity that teaches them more about themselves, about others, and about the world around them.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Art comes from the heart. Art is emotion. Art is communication. Though art is subjective and certain pieces resonate more with some than others, one can always tell when it’s ignited by passion. When I am writing and/or drawing, it always has a therapeutic effect on me. Through my writing, I hope to move people emotionally and deeply at a raw and human level that anyone can sense, whether they relate to the story or not. I am a feeler and love to emote, myself. I hope to touch the hearts of children and parents alike.

My art is fueled by my passion for storytelling through various art forms. I have always been right-brain dominant. As a child, I was passionate about drawing, doodling, crafting… creating! In my younger years, I did a lot of creative writing, journalism in school and was a yearbook editor. In college, I decided to exercise the other half of my brain and pursued a degree in biotechnology. My first job was in a lab doing applied science, but I soon found myself returning to the arts, this time the performing arts, employing my skills in films, commercials and on stage for nearly two decades. I have always been a storyteller at heart. Anyone who knows me well, knows I can and will talk their ear off in animated storytelling form, just to paint the whole picture. Close friends and family members have probably heard the following words come out of my mouth, a time or two “I want to write a kids book about…(insert various story ideas). I began to dabble with programs like photoshop, and after several years of self-instruction, developed some expertise, which led to several hired jobs. With the birth of my first daughter, I took a break from acting to be a full-time mother.
Over the years, I started to revisit my love for children’s books with my oldest daughter. There were days we would read 20 books in a day. I began to recognize everyday events in my older daughter’s life as worthy of being the focus of children’s books that would teach valuable life lessons. I began writing personalized books for my daughter and her friends as gifts. Upon the birth of my second daughter, the growing relationship between my two daughters was a very fertile area for the development of new lessons and stories, allowing opportunities to develop new plot lines. It was then that an idea for a book that I felt strongly about came to mind. Once the ball got rolling, it didn’t stop. Two years of witnessing the evolution of little girls’ subculture at birthday parties, which primarily consisted of unicorns, princesses, tea parties, and sweet treats, I was able to create a magical fantasy world that they could relate to, at the same time, teaching them the lesson of respecting others. In those two years, after a lot of story development, sleepless nights, passion, editing, drawing, re-editing, trial and error, endless research, and more re-editing, I finally published my first children’s book, Escape to Fairy Kingdom. Shortly after, I wrote and illustrated my second children’s picture book, Barnabee Believes (in Himself), which revolves around a timid drone, named Barnabee, who discovers self-confidence and courage, after setting his sights on pursing his dreams. It’s the perfect story for children, teaching them the importance of believing in yourself, following your dreams, friendship, and kindness. It’s filled with amusing bee puns, so young readers will laugh and learn from this entertaining story. I am currently finishing up the illustrations to my third book, which will be published soon. I also have a fourth story, which I am prepping to begin the illustrations on, as well as a number of story ideas on the back burner.

The road to publishing was not always a smooth one. Initially preparing a children’s book to be published was a daunting task. The creative process of developing a story was challenging, fulfilling—even addictive. The process is like coming up with an imaginative story idea and then piecing the hundreds of puzzle pieces together to fit within the parameters of a beginning, middle and end. Then there was the obstacle of having to learn all the technicalities of book writing, formatting, industry standards, dimensions, etc. My biggest obstacle is finding the time to do all of this while raising two very young children. When I started writing my first book, my youngest was still just an infant. All my inspiration seemed to surface serendipitously, in the wee hours of the morning, which was probably best anyway, since that’s the only free time, (or lack thereof), I really had. Many times, I have felt like every time I took a step forward, I had to take two steps back. There has been a lot of trial and error involved. Now that I’m onto my third book, the process seems to be getting a bit easier.

I believe everyone is an artist in some form, at some level. I have heard a number of people mention business ideas and/or a desire to create somehow or another. My biggest advice is to just start. Will it be hard? Yes, but if you love it, you’ll love the process too. Don’t hold yourself back. There are already enough naysayers in the world. Don’t be one of them. Once you find your artistic passion, just let it flow.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
As a mother of two girls, any kind of social life these days revolves around my family. If a friend of mine were to come visit me, the itinerary for the week would likely include several hikes, a number of beach visits, a trip to Disneyland, a trip to Descanso Gardens, the zoo, Universal studios, Black Dog yoga classes and a few Sugar Fish sushi dinners.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I feel fortunate to have a strong support system consisting of my friends and family. There are a select few that I can count on to be my beta readers, asking them for their feedback and opinion. Perhaps more often than they would like, but these select few are always there for me with open arms and warm smiles on their faces. A special shout out to my parents, my mentor Evan Bauer, my husband, my tribe mamas, Ruth, and Maria. I am extremely grateful for my editor, Sam Cabbage, who has a keen eye for children’s literature. Her ability to work with authors and make them think outside the box and break down their story from an entirely new perspective is extraordinary. This moral support has stoked my ambition and willingness to work really hard toward the successful publication of my books.

Website: www.circletimebooks.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/cazzycreates

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CircleTimeBooks