Ylleya Fields, children’s author, entrepreneur, and mom of four noticed a cultural need in literature around the time her oldest daughter, who was two at the time, gained a love for books.
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Fields looked around and realized that though there were some really great picture books on shelves for children, very few were illustrated with contemporary African American characters.
The 37-year-old South American native decided to become a part of the solution and began writing a series of relatable stories for parents and little ones, centered around a spunky little African American girl , named Princess Cupcake Jones.
BlackEnterprise.com caught up with Ylleya Fields to talk how she created the Princess Cupcake Jones character, what books influenced her as a child and how to get started as an author.
BlackEnterprise: Tell me a little about yourself, and what you do for a living?
Fields: I’m 37, a mom of four, and a children’s book author. I also work for my parents as their “office manager”, which allows me not only to work at home, but gives me quality time with my children, as well as free time to brainstorm ideas for Princess Cupcake Jones.‬
When did you first realize the cultural gap within children’s literature?
I first noticed it when my oldest daughter was two. She was/is a voracious reader. Back then, circa 2006, there just weren’t a lot of books with contemporary African American lead characters. I don’t think she noticed, she loved picture books no matter who was on it. But I noticed. I wanted her to see herself in at least one of the books we read and there just weren’t really any.‬
‪When you were a child, where did you turn for a sense of identity and was your culture present within books you read?
This is a very interesting question. Let me start by saying I was born in South America. Therefore I didn’t really have access to books and television the way others would until I moved to the United States at the age of 6 or
7. My early years were spent reading whatever books my Mom and Grandma managed to have sent from the States and one very overused Sesame Street VHS tape. Once I got to the US I don’t remember reading any books that had anyone like me in it. In fact, I read books with characters that looked nothing like me, ie the Sweet Valley High series ‬or Taffy Sinclair. Let’s just say I definitely had my share of identity issues as a child. Which is why my children not having them was so important to me. ‬‪Continue reading on the next page…
What elements did you pull from your children to create Cupcake Jones and why?
There really isn’t any part of Princess Cupcake Jones that isn’t one of my daughters. She’s cute, sassy, spunky, determined, mischievous and learning to navigate through situations just like they are. It was important that when they read the books they envisioned themselves. And I could only do that if I created a character that was every inch of them.  ‬
‪From an entrepreneur perspective what steps did you take to start your business?
Becoming an entrepreneur has been extremely challenging, but after parenting, the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done. I didn’t go into this with a business plan so to speak. But I did have a goal..which was to write a story based on my daughters, then turn said story into a book that they would be proud of. Because I had never done this before I relied heavily (and still do) on others who have and are experts in the book writing, marketing, illustrating, distribution world. That obviously took hours of research to find people that saw my vision and wanted it to succeed as much or more than I did. I used picture books that my daughters read and loved as my guide. Those books helped me know the quality and characteristics of books I wanted to make. And probably the most important step that I took was to hire a great lawyer. I had no clue about copyrights and trademarks, which are all extremely important in this business. Legal representation makes sure that I know my rights and I explore the best options for Princess Cupcake Jones.‬
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For those wishing to become a published author, about how much capital would they need to get started and how do they go about looking for a publisher?
In today’s world you don’t have to have a traditional publisher in order to turn your manuscript into a book. There are so many self publishing options that are amazing. I decided to create my own publishing company with the sole purpose of publishing my own manuscripts. That way I have complete control over every single project I put out. I can’t really say how much capital you need because there are a lot of factors that go into cost. For example, if you want a hardcover or soft cover, how much your illustrator charges, if you’re hiring a publicist, etc. It could range from $500 to $50,000+ depending on your preferences.  ‬