Editor and writer Lauri Hornik went in search of a psychological well being guide that didn’t exist. One thing that was relatable, freed from the same old jargon, and will assist younger individuals with a lot of questions safely navigate their psychological well being. One thing that might present them “the place to begin.”

When Lauri couldn’t discover a guide fairly like this, she teamed up with Psychological Well being America and artist Gemma Correll to create “The place to Begin: A Survival Information to Anxiousness, Despair, and Different Psychological Well being Challenges.” Since its launch in 2023, hundreds of copies have been offered, and it was just lately featured alongside Lauri in Folks journal.

With an esteemed profession as an editor, Lauri just lately shaped her personal imprint, Rocky Pond Books, at Penguin Random Home, the place she focuses on publishing genuine and hopeful psychological well being tales for teenagers and youths.

To have fun the paperback launch of “The place to Begin,” we sat down with Lauri to be taught extra about her profession and the way the guide got here to life.

Psychological Well being America: Might you describe your background in publishing and discuss concerning the position of an editor within the creation of a guide?

Lauri Hornik: I began as an editorial assistant proper out of school at a kids’s guide writer, and I’ve apprenticed my manner up – which is how editors do it, actually. They begin as an assistant, and so they observe their supervisors, after which regularly give you their very own approach. I believe each editor has a unique course of, however primarily what an editor does is locate tasks to publish, develop these tasks with the authors, and if it is a image guide, then with the illustrator too. Additionally, to be the advocate for the guide in-house, to gross sales, to advertising and marketing, after which type of the clearinghouse for all the info shifting ahead.

For locating tasks to publish, there are one million alternative ways to do it. “The place to Begin” was a guide that I very a lot wished existed when my daughter was in center faculty and past. So I began fascinated about, okay, who could be scripting this guide? The place’s the most effective content material? And I used to be so admiring of Psychological Well being America, and after I was digging by way of the web site, all the info that I actually want I had discovered on the time was there. In order that appeared like a pure match. I used to be thrilled after I obtained the possibility to collaborate with you on it.

Psychological Well being America: You lately launched an imprint at Penguin Random Home with a deal with psychological well being tales. What was your inspiration?

Lauri Hornik: The inspiration was completely wanting to place out extra content material for teenagers and youths primarily about psychological sickness and the psychological sickness expertise – and wanting these books to be very genuine. I needed them to be informational and in addition present consolation to individuals going by way of troublesome emotional issues.

I felt many of the books printed for youngsters have been about youngsters observing psychological sickness in others slightly than being within the standpoint of somebody struggling. The norm was typically about dwelling with a guardian who was depressed, for instance. So I needed my books to supply far more firsthand expertise.

Even with image books, which I do numerous, I goal to introduce coping methods for teenagers aged 4 to seven. Definitely, youngsters that age are contending with anxiousness and grief. I’ve printed quite a few books about these subjects for younger youngsters as a result of they assist make sense of those difficulties, and adults of their lives can use the guide to assist steer them.

Psychological Well being America: And also you named the imprint Rocky Pond. What does that title imply to you?

Lauri Hornik: Rocky Pond was my childhood swimming gap after I lived in Hollis, New Hampshire. It is the place we went in the summertime. It was a pond with a raft. So the emblem could be very a lot a drawing of Rocky Pond and the raft that we’d swim out to. Once I was making an attempt to think about what to name this imprint, I spotted that piece of my childhood and my teenage years was actually consultant of coming of age, of turning into extra courageous.

For one factor, the rumor was that there have been snapping turtles underneath the raft. So if we have been going to swim to that raft, it was a really courageous factor. What if the snapping turtle obtained ya? So, it was about pushing by way of discomfort. And exploration—and positively childhood.

Psychological Well being America: There are various books with psychological well being themes that do not have glad endings. However you are in search of tales which might be comforting and finally strike a theme of hope. Why is that this particularly vital to you?

Lauri Hornik: Sure, that’s completely a aim. One factor that led me to that was what my daughter, as a younger teenager, was selecting to learn. She was studying grownup books that weren’t geared toward serving to a teen make sense of an expertise. They supplied a really genuine expertise, however the steerage and the light contact wasn’t there. So I might love for the books I publish to supply some steerage and hope to readers who’re simply originally of making an attempt to determine what is going on on of their heads and learn how to transfer ahead by way of wrestle.

Dwelling with psychological sickness is one thing so many individuals do, and it is one thing to take care of, however not one thing that’s solely adverse. There’s loads of richness that comes from pushing by way of an expertise like that as effectively.

Psychological Well being America: What was the method like collaborating with Psychological Well being America on writing “The place to Begin”? How did you determine what sources you needed to incorporate?

Lauri Hornik: Properly, there instantly was a call to not be very heavy on jargon, to be very, very clear and use plain language as a result of the guide is supposed to be the introduction, step one. For those who really feel like one thing is off, in case you’re fighting one thing and you do not fairly know what, if you do not know learn how to speak about it. This guide is about what is likely to be happening and learn how to speak about it and who to speak about it with. So, simply making that language actually accessible and clear.

An grownup nonfiction guide about psychological well being may cite research, may go into the science, you understand – so not that stuff. That is for an additional guide. And I believe all of us agreed that was the best way to go. And that is very a lot the language on the Psychological Well being America web site, so we have been completely taking the tone, the content material that was already there.

Psychological Well being America: This guide was written for teenagers and younger adults, however many older individuals discover a lot to narrate to in it. Can the viewers be even broader than you meant?

Lauri Hornik: I completely agree that it interprets to a wider viewers than what it is marketed for. When the individuals at Penguin have been determining learn how to greatest place the guide, there was numerous dialogue about whether or not or to not embrace the phrase “teen” within the subtitle, and it was MHA who felt that “teen” shouldn’t be included as a result of numerous the first viewers for this guide could be twentysomethings. It’s positively broader than simply teenagers.

However the preliminary inspiration was that it will be for even 12-year-olds, youngsters after they’re first beginning to expertise signs—that always begins in center faculty. I needed the guide to work for center faculty and past.

Psychological Well being America: You’ve printed many several types of books, a few of them image books, and “The place to Begin” options paintings by Gemma Correll, a longtime associate of MHA. Beautiful, humorous, relatable illustrations. They actually carry an additional bit of sunshine to the guide. Are you able to speak about that collaboration and share your ideas on together with illustrations in younger grownup books?

Lauri Hornik: Gemma’s cartoons have been one of many first methods I discovered Psychological Well being America and one of many first items in making an attempt to determine what this guide must be. I completely needed paintings that will be one other expression of the expertise of psychological sickness that’s accessible, that feels good, that appears like, “Oh, this particular person will get me,” and “Sure, that’s me.” Gemma is the grasp of that, so it was a thrill to have her be part of the challenge. And I believe paintings of that kind in a guide generally is a shorthand of expression and a manner for a reader to really feel a fast connection to the guide.

Psychological Well being America: Hundreds of copies of “The place to Begin” have been offered thus far, many straight from the Psychological Well being America retailer. What do you suppose is resonating a lot with readers?

Lauri Hornik: It was a guide that was actually wanted and that did not exist but. Folks hear about it and see that is the content material they have been needing. They have been making an attempt to seize it from varied spots, and now it’s all on this good, compact, fairly guide. It additionally has worksheets, that are very useful too. I believe it is a guide that when the one who wants it hears about it, then it is an apparent alternative.

“The place to Begin: A Survival Information to Anxiousness, Despair, and Different Psychological Well being Challenges” is obtainable to order at Psychological Well being America’s retailer and wherever books are offered.