Our feature this week is written by Rosemary Sanford of Spirit-led Designs. Rosemary talks about the reasons for creating her children’s storybook app for iPad, and shares lessons learned along the way. While reading this post, it starts to make sense why the kids app market is growing so much. Maybe it is because there are so many incredible stories to tell about those “aha” moments when people first witness the potential of the iPad. When you see it in action, it’s hard not to turn around and challenge yourself to produce content that makes a difference.
When cousins, Diane and Rosemary reconnected through email after 25 years, they had no idea of the great adventures that awaited them.
Rosemary, who is co-owner of their company, Spirit-led Designs, says, “When I showed Diane a simple cat character illustration, the idea for creating a children’s book was born. My brother-in-law, a missionary in Thailand, thought our book would make a great storybook app, and after much consideration, the decision to tackle this seemingly impossible challenge was made.” I will have to admit that creating an iPad app and buying an iPad just so I could see the finished product, was never high up on my list of priorities.
I was rather computer illiterate, had never played with an iPod, and knew virtually nothing about apps or iPads. Even using the camera features on my cell phone was still pretty much a mystery to me.
Two of my very young grandsons, however, had already far surpassed me in their hi-tech computer and video game knowledge. A third young grandson, who has Down syndrome, enjoyed watching his older brother play video and computer games, but because he himself had difficulty maneuvering the mouse and joysticks, would often feel left out of their hi-tech world.
The day we handed him the iPad and watched his face light up as he ran his fingers across the screen, manually interacting with the various features of a game or book, was a real joy to behold. It made the creation of our Melody Kitty app and the purchase of an iPad (just so we could see our finished product) totally worthwhile.
Here are some of the things that were learned in the creation of our Melody Kitty app:
- Creating a game plan and doing extensive research is vital.
- Following through on ideas and staying focused is helpful to keep the project on track.
- Learn as much as you can about marketing, and practice writing press releases, before you actually need them.
- Making connections with other app people keeps it fun and interesting (Moms with Apps is a valuable network to learn from others).
- Expect your first release to be a practice run, and if at first you don’t succeed, do an update. Remind yourself that giving up is not an option!
- Encourage yourself by encouraging and helping other developers to promote their apps. (Again, Moms with Apps is a great place to meet app developers.)
- While it would be nice to make a little money, having a life journey that you enjoy is a higher goal.
Melody Kitty is an interactive children’s storybook app for the iPad, based on the children’s book, Miss Melody Kitty’s Daydream Adventures, by author, Diane Eason and illustrator, Rosemary Sanford.
