Paisley
“Deborah Weed has a heart as big as her talent and she’s masterfully woven them into Paisley’s Last Quill! Her story and illustrations shine with the power of love, self-worth and inspiration.”
Laura Duksta, Inspirational Speaker and Author, New York Times bestseller, I Love You More and I’ll Hug You More
Meet Paisley
Hi, my name is Deborah Weed and I’m the author and illustrator of the wildly imaginative children’s picture book, Paisley’s Last Quill. It helps parents teach their girls the power of self-worth in a FUN and VIBRANT way! Paisley is a wide-eyed, spunky porcupine who dreams of being an animal fashion designer. She enters the back biting animal fashion world, using her quills like pins ~ to pin up the swaggerific creations for a bully fashion Diva. She gives up almost all of her quills, losing her self-confidence along the way. Then, with a little help from her friends ~ Paisley learns the most important lesson of ALL ~ to believe in herself!
“Deborah Weed, is about to inspire us with Paisley’s Last Quill. This story of a young porcupine’s dream to be a fashion designer is squashed at every turn by a fashion bully. The eye popping color and detail of each illustration is a delight to behold. Two ‘GUTSY GALS’ on a mission, both Deborah and her character Paisley, are all about self-worth!”
Deborah Hutchison, Founder Gutsy Gals Inspire Me!, Entrepreneur, Filmmaker, Speaker, Author
JOIN PAISLEY’S QUILL POWER MOVEMENT!
Paisley is starting a MOVEMENT to encourage girls to believe in themselves! Get EXCEPTIONAL tools and MEANINGFUL activities to help you boost your child’s self-worth in a FUN and CREATIVE way!
Why I Wrote This Book!
When I was a little girl, I got bullied for being too sweet. In an effort to be liked, I started giving away my personal power by trying to be nicer to the person that was bullying me. There was no one there to tell me that the antidote to bullying was to believe in myself. Rather than celebrate my individuality ~ my creativity, kindness, playfulness and courage ~ I did my best to conform to others. YES! I admit it, I became a people pleaser!
My way of coping with “being sweet” was “I’ll show them!” So, I went on to scale the peaks in the marketing and entertainment world. Whether it be as the Director of Marketing of Fame International, working on a 26 million dollar pavilion for KIA Motors, with Disney and Universal consultants ~ or being the Director of Development for Citibank, FL, 19 branches ~ and creating a producing a multitude of interactive productions for people of all ages ~ or becoming an award-winning artist in South Beach ~ I excelled. That is . . . until a health challenge redirected my life’s purpose. When it appeared that I had nothing left, I had to dig deep . . . just like Paisley, the character in my book!
During this time of being on the sidelines, I contemplated how a story was able to give me hope! It’s A Wonderful Life, The Wizard of Oz, Wicked, and so many similar stories, took me on a journey ~ from losing it all, to finding oneself! As if being called from above, I set out on a pilgrimage to develop something that has meaning and the potential to inspire as many people as possible!
I knew that my story needed to be about giving away one’s power ~ until it appears that everything is lost ~ then learning to believe in oneself! They say write what you know, and I know what hopeless feels like. When considering the main protagonist, I needed a character who used something very obvious to protect themselves. A porcupine came to mind. They use their quills to keep predators away. Then, I needed the reason that a porcupine would willingly give away her quills. Porcupines look like little pin cushions, RIGHT? So, why not put her in the backdrop of the animal fashion world, dreaming of being a fashion designer. Her struggle is that she is a porcupine pleaser, willing to give away part of herself in exchange for being appreciated and loved. Yet, instead of this scenario, Paisley is seen as worthless. When she’s down to her very last quill, Paisley needs to use her pain to triumph. Okay, you caught me. This is an autobiography. Only the names and faces have changed!
I have the gift to be able to envision an entire story as a movie/musical. Yet, to produce what was in my head would cost millions! So, how could I get someone to see what I was seeing? A picture book came to mind! It seemed simple, yet it took a few years to learn how to write a children’s book ~ get a golden ticket by my publisher Clear Fork Publishing ~ learn how to illustrate the book ~ and then introduce it to the world! This just goes to prove how much this story is part of my very essence. . .
I’ve done so much research to substantiate the fact that although 75% of all young girls have low self-esteem, believing in oneself is the antidote to bullying. My dream is to make Paisley the Ambassador of QUILL POWER! She will enCOURAGE girls from 3 - 103 to celebrate their self-worth and individuality! Even though she couldn’t be there for me when I was a little girl ~ it’s my greatest hope that Paisley can be there for the next generation of girls! This can be through an animated feature film, a TV series, a full scale musical like The Lion King, and merchandising!
Should you share in this vision, I’d love to talk to you!
HAVE A PAISLEY TEA!
Here’s your opportunity to make self-worth FUN! Hold a Paisley Tea for your #girlsatheart from ages 3 - 103. This FUN, inter-generational event starts with storytelling. There will be a Q & A to discover what they learned from Paisley’s journey. Then, your kids will be invited to create their own personal POWER QUILL! It symbolizes their inner strength and creative solutions. While the little ones are busy creating, it’s time for the parents and grandparents to have a wisdom sharing exchange! You’ll be able to share stories about the times in your lives that you gave your power away ~ and how you learned to believe in yourselves.
“Deborah Weed, is about to inspire us with Paisley’s Last Quill. This story of a young porcupine’s dream to be a fashion designer is squashed at every turn by a fashion bully. The eye popping color and detail of each illustration is a delight to behold. Two ‘GUTSY GALS’ on a mission, both Deborah and her character Paisley, are all about self-worth!”
~ Deborah Hutchison, Founder Gutsy Gals Inspire Me!, Entrepreneur, Filmmaker, Speaker, Author
