Lulu Junior Author of the Month - Rachel Eskue
Our May Author of the Month is Rachel Eskue, and she is here to share her comic book The Cupcake Mystery in Paris with us. Rachel chose Paris as the setting of her book because of the city’s beauty and romance, but if you thought those things made the City of Lights immune to dessert thievery, well... think again!
We meet our sweet-toothed thief outside of the cupcake shop she will later rob, envious of everyone leaving with a treat. So later that night, after some trial-and-error, she uses a trap door on the roof to descend into the shop. She escapes with a bag filled to the brim with cupcakes no sooner than she arrives.
When the unsuspecting shop owner returns to the scene of the crime in the morning, we know something she doesn’t, and the mystery of who stole the cupcakes is set in motion.
Rachel Eskue says the idea for this story came from a combination of her imagination and the books she has read, and the exciting twists and turns of this comic prove that those inspirations served her well. But the most important piece of advice for her fellow writers, she says? Enjoy the process.
After all, there's only one way to get your ideas on paper, and that is to write them down, and how can you do that if you don't enjoy it?
In fact, Rachel told us that letting the story unfold as she wrote it was the most exciting part of creating this comic book.
Speaking of the story unfolding, we left our shop owner in the wake of the cupcake heist, and now we find her enlisting a friend to follow the thief’s footprints and recover the stolen sweets.
Fortunately, it appears the thief did not get very far because our shop owner and her friend find her eating the stolen cupcakes right outside of the crime scene. Let’s just say things did not end very well for the thief when the cops were called. She was arrested, and the cupcakes were returned to their rightful owner. The shop owner celebrated the recovery of her cupcakes… with what else? The cupcakes!
Rachel's comic book teaches an important lesson about what happens when you take something that isn’t yours. Sure, you might not be stealing cupcakes in Paris, but no matter how small the act of selfishness, the truth will always come out in the end. Those cupcakes may have been delicious, but we're certain the thief would agree that it wasn’t worth it in the end.
We're not lying when we say, "honesty is always the best policy."
The Cupcake Mystery in Paris has a great lesson for everyone, but the comic book has personal significance for Rachel as well. She dedicated the book to her mom, who gave her the comic book kit for Christmas, as a birthday gift. She says her mom likes books, so what better gift than a book written and illustrated by her own daughter! Rachel not only writes and illustrates thoughtful books, but she is also a thoughtful person.
We are so grateful that Rachel Eskue shared her comic book with us, and hopefully, it won't be long until we get to read another story from her.
Thank you, Rachel!
Read the Full Interview:
The kit was a Christmas present from my mom.
I always liked drawing, but I typed my first story when I was 8. When a story comes into my mind I enjoy typing or writing it out in my free time. I also enjoy illustrating my stories.
I read lots of books that inspire me, but also from dreams and my imagination I get ideas.
The reason I chose Paris for the seeing of this story is because for the past few years, I’ve wanted to go to Paris since it is so pretty and romantic there. My plan is to go to Paris when I graduate high school.
It makes me excited thinking about what will happen next in the story. I enjoyed drawing the characters and the setting as well.
It was super exciting to see it in my mailbox. It was especially that it came on my mom’s birthday.
I dedicated this book to my mom, because it was her birthday. My mom likes books, and I knew she would love this story.
That it was fun mystery, with an interesting twist and teamwork.
I would just say: Enjoy writing!
I’m not really sure! Maybe it will be a sequel to this book, or be about something else. Right now I like to write about a kid my age, in modern times, living in a city, going to school, and making friends.
