Hello dear Readers,

Today I watched a deer in the front garden eat all the red roses from my most beautifully blooming bush. At first I was upset, and then as I watched her, I thought to myself: what an enchanting creature who can nourish herself on roses!

My name is Coco Blignaut, but my nom de plume is Coco Mary. I have a little publishing studio & bookstore in my home in the foothills of Los Angeles, where I dream up stories to inspire and educate my young readers. I watch squirrels jump, hummingbirds nest, and hawks hunt – from my window as I work. Sometimes a crow is watching me.

My original stories usually come through me in a flash. Then I sit down and pour out what I received from the ethers. I wait a few days, and come back to edit with a fresh eye. Then I leave the story to simmer some more. Another edit follows, until I get that feeling in my belly that I am satisfied.

I photograph all the images for my stories, after which I collage them together. It is a layered process, which takes me a month if I work intensively on it, and only it. But more often than not, I juggle writing screenplays and plays, and acting on stage, with my current project, so it takes much longer. From beginning to finish a book can take a year or two – it is definitely a labor of love!

When I am not behind my computer, I like to have deep conversations with my husband, drive my mother around town (she loves its and always has witty remarks about everything), cook meals from scratch, love our little cat, Alice, and tell everybody in my family what to do. I am really good at that!

Other favorite pass-times: talking to trees, listening to tango music, baking cakes and reading in French.

But mostly I love children, because they are magical. And I love all things magical.

With Love,
Coco Mary