The Koolura Series: How a YA Series is Born and Evolve

When my oldest daughter was in sixth grade, I began writing the Koolura series. I was a reading specialist in Glendale, California working in a year-round school. During my off-time, I wrote. 

Channie hated to read. As a reading specialist, this was tantamount to revolution. Instead of arguing, I asked, “If I wrote a book with cool characters and a girl with psychic powers, would you read it?” With a nod, Koolura was born. 

After two years of writing The Legend of Koolura, I searched for a publisher and found Adventure Books. Two years after its publication, the company folded leaving Koolura orphaned.

I hunted for a new publisher and found Solstice Publishing. Koolura had a home there for eight years. The book did well, so I wrote two other novels for the fledgling series—Koolura and the Mystery at Camp Saddleback and Koolura and the Mayans. In 2020, Solstice discontinued publishing YA books. 

This time, with a push from friends, I decided to self-publish the Koolura series and start with The Legend of Koolura. But first I had to change the cover and obtain a new ISBN. 

Why a new cover? Parents and teachers complained that the cover glorified smoking and was banned from the LAUSD. In reality, the opposite was true, but the cover spoke louder than my denials. Consequently, I hired April Klein to illustrate an inspiring cover that would send the true message of Koolura.

 

My wife and I visited my youngest daughter twice a year while she attended UC Santa Barbara. On one visit, we set off for the Santa Ynez Mountains. She had discovered Lake Cachuma and wanted us to experience its beauty. 

During our wanderings we came upon Camp Whittier, and I got an idea. What if Koolura spent a summer at this camp, and to add tension to the plot, she mysteriously loses her powers while her camp group is threatened by an inscrutable interloper? 

Koolura and the Mystery at Camp Saddleback was accepted for publication by Solstice as Book 2 in the Koolura Series.

I was inspired to write book 3, Koolura and the Mayans during a visit to Oaxaca, Mexico for Cousin Adam’s wedding. While there, I visited Monte Alban, a pre-Columbian archeological site six miles west of Oaxaca City. While wandering around, I was surprised to see pyramids. I then thought, what if Koolura and her friend came here and found a device that transported them back to the time of the Mayans? That’s all I needed. I thought of a unique time travel scenario, aliens from a distant star, and alien conquest that would destroy history as we know it. Could Koolura defeat these people and save history?

I’ve learned some of the mysteries of self-publication and managed to find my way through the labyrinth of details and roadblocks to publish the series in digital format for Kindle consumption, and as a trade paperback. The Kindle is a piece of cake compared to the complexities of a print book. Fortunately, April served as a resource and I managed to achieve my goals of Amazon self-publication, after pulling out all of my virtual hair.

If you decide to self-publish, make sure you have a talented illustrator to create your cover and either know how to format a print book to Amazon’s specifications or hire someone to do it for you. 

Oh, and just for the record, Channie finally read all three Koolura books, albeit she was in her 20s. Mission accomplished!