Birthdays on hold. Swim classes canceled. Schools closed.
Like so many others around the world, life seemingly changed overnight. Schools, playgrounds, shops all closed while the news brought an endless stream of scary stories, unproven theories, and a constantly evolving set of rules.
The questions came from our 3 year old: “Why can’t we see our friends?” “Why can’t I go to the store?” “Why does mom wear a mask?”
The answer was always the same: The Buggies.
Washing hands for the umpteenth time, we would talk about what The Buggies were doing. They must be having a great time in our absence! As March lockdown stretched into May, a story began to take shape.
Unfortunately, it seems The Buggies will be in our lives awhile longer.
With encouragement from friends, we’ve decided to share The Buggies with the world. They’ve been a helpful way for our family to talk about uncertain events and look forward to a brighter future.
Colophon: How it’s made
“We didn’t set out to make to make a book, but by Spring all the pieces were there.”
The Buggies began as quick iPad sketches with Paper in between naps and endless video calls.
As the drawings came together, a story began to emerge detailing their arrival, difficulty of staying home, and how to help life return to normal.
Once a first draft was laid out in Pages, we sent family and friends an early PDF for feedback.
Everyone’s first question: “when can I get a copy?”
As summer came, cases again began to rise – it seems The Buggies still hadn’t gotten the message.
Going to print meant retouching images using Photoshop for iPad and laying out the story using an InDesign book plug-in.
Working directly from the cloud made it easy to shuttle edits from iPad and see the latest changes on the Mac.
Finally, the first copy arrived from Blurb, ready to share with the world!
About the Author
Travis spent quarantine working from home, building couch forts, backyard camping, and sketching ideas for children’s books.
Originally from Texas and California, Travis currently lives and works in Switzerland with his wife, Tiffany and their young son, Wyatt.
After much practice, he can now bake a loaf of sourdough bread.