Hi everyone, nice to meet you
My name is Natalie and I'm a trained cake designer writing children's books.
Wait, what?
Yes, you read that right.
I was born in Germany and my first profession was that of a confectioner, making sweet treats for a living. At the age of 27, I decided to do some work and travel, and my first stop was Ireland.
The intention was to stay there for a few months and then go to the next country, but life sometimes has other plans.
And so my life started to change significantly.
By saying that you probably guessed it... I haven't left Ireland since then except for holidays.
After some time off, I started to work as a cake designer in Co. Wicklow and I loved it.
It is one of my passions to make beautiful cakes, but it left me feeling restless and as if I wasn't where I should be.
So, what does all that have to do with children's books? Well, I'll tell you.
Like I mentioned earlier, my life changed a lot.
One of the changes was what I believed in. Over time I went from being a non-believer to believing in God.
How all this happened is a story for another day, but it was the start of finding my purpose.
God showed me that there is more to life than fear and staying in my comfort zone only because I thought
I wasn't good enough to do anything else.
So I picked up new hobbies and revived old ones.
An old love of mine was painting, but I never got further than watching Bob Ross online.
Until something clicked in my mind and I just started to do it.
So I jumped right into different kinds of arts and crafts and felt more alive than ever.
I tried different things that seemed interesting to me, and now I know there is nothing I can't do,
or at least try out.
One day while watching a sermon about God having a purpose for everyone's life,
I felt that He wanted me to create a children's book.
Out of nowhere, I had a story in my mind that I hadn't thought about before.
Even though I loved writing when I was younger and I loved reading since being a kid, I never thought about writing a book. At least not to actually do it. A daydream has always been there; now I know it was God putting that desire in my heart even before I knew Him.
And that was it.
Since that day it was in my heart and in my mind to write and illustrate children's books.
Of course, being human it took me a while to get here. Self-doubt and feeling overwhelmed because I didn't know where to start were only a couple of reasons.
But also that it's God's timing and not mine. It took some time to prepare and equip me, but now I am comfortable sharing my stories with everyone who wants to hear them.
My books are here in this world to entertain, share values and bring comfort to small children and
grown-up children.
I'm married
I'm a 90's kid
I have moved about 19 times in my life
I'm a bird lady and put out seeds for the birds every morning
my favourite medium for painting is oil paint
Fun facts about me
Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them,
for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”
Matthew 19:14