Pitch in to make picture books for young children  

CHENNAI : Did you know that an average child, between ages three and five, can read up to 300 books? But, the access to a wide variety of picture books for children is bleak in India. “If you explore the shelves of every bookstore in the country, you will be able to find less than 100 books for children. It's a struggle to reach the 300 mark,” says Amrutash Misra, core member/promoter, MsMoochie Books. For instance, in the picture book section of a typical bookstore, one can find several versions of mythology, religion and folk tales, the rest are books, adaptations from TV shows, and few books by independent Indian publishers.

In an attempt to provide access to more books for children, MsMoochie Books, a young Indian children’s publishing house has flagged a campaign to raise funds to create 10 world-class children’s book set/series, in a span of six months. “About five years ago, as part of our library work with the Book Lover’s Program for Schools (BLPS), we were hunting for a picture book under the theme ‘sibling love’ but couldn't find one. So, we decided to make it ourselves and that’s how MsMoochie Books and the world of Ramu and Ramya was born,” shares Amrutash.

Ramu’s Ride and Ramya’s Snack Box, two of their books, made it to Amazon.in’s recommended bookshelf for children. “While the reviews for the books have been great, what we realised is that the market for children’s book in India is limited. It takes a minimum of two to four years to recover the money spent on making a book and we (children’s book publishers) are able to make only three to four books a year,” he explains.

The publishing house is seeking help to make the process quicker and double the number of books that are being published in a year to aid in children’s growth. “Our aim is to raise `20 lakh by the end of August. This money will be used to create, print, pack and ship the books,” he shares.Here’s where it gets interesting. Patrons can choose to pre-buy the books or pay the publisher to include a character based on you, your child, or someone you know.

“There are already five books in the pipeline which are ready to be edited, proofread, illustrated and printed. We are just waiting for the funds,” he says.Independent publishers from other countries have successfully crowdfunded for books in the past. But, this is a new step in Indian book publishing. “If we are successful in our campaign, this will be the biggest book crowdfunding in the country,” he says. For details, visit: Kahanipuram.com or call 8122074401

Money for the trust
The money will be transferred to The Kahanipuram Trust, a registered non-profit. They will be collecting money for MsMoochie and giving it to them when the campaign ends.