 What is your bliss? For author Angela DeMuro, it is writing and illustrating children’s books. “Funny thing is, I didn’t plan them. They just happened. They’re my bliss!,” she said.
A longtime artist, DeMuro followed many earlier paths that led her to her current profession. A series of commissioned paintings actually helped guide her to her true path.
“I did a series of simplistic paintings for a nearby city that was not popularly accepted by city officials, but children loved them,” she explained. “The mayor thought they resembled children’s drawings ‘from a coloring book.’ He was disappointed, but I saw his comments as a compliment. For the first time, I didn’t care what anyone thought. I should create for a child’s eye.”
Just before the birth of her youngest son, DeMuro took a break from her work and began to listen to her intuition, which led her toward something she always enjoyed– working with children.
Shortly after he was born, her husband playfully nicknamed him “MU.” When he cooed and smiled at the little birds she had painted for his nursery, they became known as MU birds.
During her pregnancy, DeMuro had unknowingly “sketched out” her first book, I Already Knew I Loved You, on a napkin. Putting those words and the bird paintings together was a natural fit, which continued for her two newest books, Good Night My Little MU™ and Rosie the Rainbow MU™.
To further promote her ongoing children’s series, DeMuro constructed MU bird™ hand puppets and used them for book signings and readings at the Barnes & Noble, in the Arena Hub, in Wilkes-Barre. She hosted events at local libraries, reading events in the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area, and developed a children’s show for PBS. Recent budget cuts halted the project.
With additional MU stories in the works, DeMuro also plans to release a new and unique series, Kat Sinclaire the Pink-Haired Girl™.
Geared toward the 6-13 age group, it will kick off with Kat Sinclaire’s Guide to the Other Side, an explanation of terminology used throughout the series. The series will be written from Kat’s point of view, from her journals.
“Kat is a very gifted 11-year-old who lives in a very old house, with her three aunts,” DeMuro explained. “The series will not be written in standard chapter book form. Readers will meet her as she learns about her gifts and how to handle them. Kat’s story is a simple, eclectic look at the world past what we can see in this realm– at the world past the veil of what most accept as reality.”
DeMuro credits her talents to her parents and her ancestors, beginning with her great, great, great-grandmother, who was a “strega”, or wise woman, in Italy. In addition, her maternal grandfather was a post-World War II toymaker and her paternal grandfather was a muralist in the Philadelphia area.
“I have a strong connection to where I come from and a strong sense of who I am because of them,” she noted.
DeMuro even wears a pair of her grandmother’s vintage eye glasses at each book signing.
“It’s a way of keeping her with me,” she added.
DeMuro and her husband, Douglas Burak, reside in the Back Mountain area with their two youngest children. As they made plans for the first series, they decided to self-publish her books and use local vendors for design and printing work.
“We had connections with publishers and agents, but they wanted to completely control the process, so we decided to take a leap of faith and do it ourselves,” she said.
DeMuro has experienced much success with her Land of Mu Bird ™ series, and sales are now international. Mom blogs are also reviewing her books across the country.
In addition to dedicating herself to the two series, DeMuro will also release a book of her whimsical illustrations. The compilation, which will contain illustrations from both series, will be in full color and the prints will be suitable for framing. She anticipates its release in time for holiday gift giving.
“I finally stopped rowing my boat upstream and am going now with the current. I am excited to see where the current takes me,” she concluded, with a smile.
DeMuro’s books are available at Bella Madre, in West Pittston; Outrageous, in Wilkes-Barre; Paper Kite, in Kingston; and at www.barnesandnoble.com. Signed copies are available at www.angelademuro.com. For news and future release dates, “Like” her Land of MU Birds page on Facebook.
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