A learning curve from kitchen table to publishing deal

ANY event which necessitated Avril Webster taking her nine-year-old son Stephen away from home posed major difficulties.

Stephen’s intellectual development is way short of his years and when out of his own environment he became uneasy and difficult to manage.

Avril said: “If we went out to the supermarket with our two other children Michael, aged six, and Rachel, four, Stephen could become very unsettled as he did not know what was going on.”

Avril, who lives with her computer engineer husband Robert in Annacotty, Co Limerick, then struck on an idea — an idea which has become a huge publishing success with her series of Off We Go books.

Sitting at her kitchen table just over a year ago, Avril devised a simple story book designed to help Stephen grasp a visit to a supermarket.

With just 12 illustrations she set out a sequence of situations when shopping.

The kitchen table story book helped reduce stress for Stephen and the rest of the family when in the supermarket.

And it was clear to Avril it had made a huge difference to her son.

British publishers Speechmark learned of the concept and commissioned Avril to do a series of six Off We Go books titled Going to the Supermarket, Going to the Dentist, Going to the Doctor, Going to the Hairdresser, Going to the Restaurant and Going Swimming.

The series was launched in Britain last June with huge success and the Irish launch takes place in O’Mahony’s bookshop in Limerick on October 1.

Speechmark has now signed a deal with Avril for a further series of six Off We Go books which will be published in 2008.

Recalling her unexpected venture into publishing, Avril, a native of Templederry in Nenagh said: “I tried to get a book which might help Stephen cope with new situations and prepare him for a routine such as going shopping with me. But there was none.”

She discussed her idea with Jeanne Dipanaar, who is Stephen’s therapist at St Vincent’s special school in Lisnagry.

Avril then decided to sit down at her kitchen table and design a shopping situation guide book for Stephen with the help of her husband, who did the computer graphics.

She said: “It was important to keep it simple with a few characters and not have it cluttered with different situations. I finished a paste up and it worked very well. I used just 12 settings and kept the concept simple.”

When out with Stephen doing the shopping she kept referring him to his little book as they completed the supermarket routine.

“The illustrations managed to keep him aware of what was happening and made him content with his new setting,” she said.

Avril then decided on anther kitchen table book, Going Swimming, using the same concept.

By then she had got to know David Ryley, an 18-year-old artist from Castleconnell, who had worked with special needs children.

For the Going Swimming book David did 12 colourful illustrations with the same mix of characters used in the initial book.

Avril said: “Each book has the same look and feel and uses the same multi- ethnic ‘family’ of characters, some of whom have a disability, which promotes familiarity and learning.”

Avril said the Off We Go series has a wide appeal.

“They are particularly useful for pre-school children and children for whom English is a second language. The Off We Go books have proved extremely helpful for preparing Stephen, who has a moderate to severe intellectual disability, for the activities covered in these stories.”

The second series of books due out next year will include Going to the Cinema, a birthday party, to buy shoes and on a plane.