Meet Talien Barsamian of Orange County

Today we’d like to introduce you to Talien Barsamian

Hi Talien, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I’ve dreamt of making an impact with my writing for quite some time now. The dream started years ago when I started to journal about the lessons I had learned early on in my adult life. What started off as a journal turned into a self-helpish book that I still dream to get published some day.

One day as I was going back and forth between writing and daydreaming, I had this urge to write something fun and colorful, and with that, Beach Day was born. After a few unanswered queries to literary agents and about a year or so later, I decided it was time to self-publish. I needed an illustrator.

Soon after I decided to take an impromptu little trip, a staycay if you may, to San Diego, just an hour or so south of my home in Orange County. It was far enough for a change of pace but close enough for a quick weekend getaway.

Little did I know this spontaneous trip would turn into one of my favorite serendipitous stories yet. After having spent the day visiting with vendors at the local farmers market and grabbing a latte at a cute little cafe, it was time to get ready for dinner. I was definitely not too excited about dinner alone but decided to get out of my own head and be open to a night out on the town.

I chose a fun restaurant near the water and found a seat at the bar. I quickly made friends with a lovely couple that were in town for the night and leaving for a cruise the next morning. We spoke of our lives and of course, I mentioned my dream of self-publishing my children’s book. To my surprise, one of their siblings was a children’s book illustrator. I was elated. They offered to connect me when they returned from their trip.

In the meantime, I was also blessed with the accountability partner that I didn’t know I needed, my new hairstylist, Lauren Ashley Green at Tress in Newport Beach. Naturally, I updated her on my life and all of the happenings and she did the best thing I could’ve ever asked for, she gave me a deadline to get things started. I needed to make progress on my book before my next hair appointment.

I got in touch with the new friends I made in San Diego and of course, as promised, they put me in touch with their sibling. Although he was not able to assist me with the illustrations at the time, we had a wonderful conversation and he referred me to the sweetest woman in Paw Paw, Michigan who had extensive knowledge of the self-publishing space. Her wisdom and support helped me navigate the self-publishing world and also helped me find my amazing (and very patient) book designer from Barbados, Uzuri Designs.

Now, after about year of perfecting, Beach Day, the first book of the My Little Daycay collection, has come to life and is now available for nationwide distribution.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Beach Day was the first book I self-published so you could say I learned everything for the first time, many times. I learned that the colors you see on the screen digitally are not always translated the same when printed. I learned that you may have to do a full set of printing before realizing you actually need a different printshop. The first set of books I printed did not show up as planned and I had to find another printshop for the release of Beach Day. Fortunately, I found one that I now love and am very excited to continue to work with. Beach Day is the first book of the collection so it was very important that I found a printshop that I could rely on for years to come. Throughout it all, I learned to ask questions and lean on individuals that knew more about the space than I did. I appreciated every nugget of wisdom I was given. The biggest thing I learned was to continue to lean into not being expert and knowing that I was going to make mistakes along the way but to continue to push forward and not give up regardless.

We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
I’d say I fly by the seat of my faith pants. There are many times that I have taken risks in my career and personal life without a plan but relying solely on faith. Knowing that God’s plan was bigger than my fears. I hope to inspire people to continue to chase their dreams and not give up on the things that light up their heart.

Pricing:

• 13.99/book
• Happy to provide wholesale pricing to retailers.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mylittledaycay.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mylittledaycay