Ellen Fischer’s children’s book is a real hoot

After being inspired by watching birds in her backyard, Ellen Fischer has spread her writing wings as a book author.

The Port Washington native living in Grafton recently self-published a children’s book, “Fur and Feathers,” conveying a message of celebrating people’s differences while uniting through similarities.

How she would tell her story came from her daily birdwatching routine.

Fischer and her husband Mike attract a flurry of feathered friends with nearly 10 bird feeders and a heated birdbath. The variety of visitors includes indigo buntings, eastern bluebirds, Baltimore orioles, rose-breasted grosbeaks, sharp shinned hawks and even a northern harrier, a two-foot hawk that flies close to the ground.

At night, the Fischers hear owls — and Mr. Owl is the book’s narrator.

He observes birds and squirrels preparing for winter and wonders why they are not helping one another like the human neighbors despite their different skin tones.

Fischer based the anecdotes on her own friendly neighborhood, where people pitch in with yard work, snow shoveling and other tasks for people going through health challenges.

Mr. Owl asks, “Why can’t the birds and the squirrels help each other out?”

He calls a neighborhood meeting. The birds and squirrels sit apart, but he quickly points out their similarities. Both eat seeds, have nests and drink water.

Despite being different, the two species find they are much the same. They agree to help each other prepare for winter.

“It’s a message of leading with kindness and compassion,” Fischer said, remembering a sign she once saw in a doctor’s office that read, “You will never regret being kind.”

She hopes children and anyone who reads the book apply the theme to a world she said has gotten “weird.”

“This is one way to get that message out. Diversity is good. We need to get back to a place where it’s OK to be different,” she said.

“Aside from some black and white issues, most of our world is great. Different is just different, but it’s similarities that bond us together.”

Fischer completed the book in one sitting, using a keyboard attached to a tablet.

“I handed it to my husband, ‘I just wrote a children’s book,’” she said.

Mike was thrilled but not surprised, knowing his wife enjoyed writing. He is Fischer’s biggest supporter and cheerleader, earning the book’s dedication.

Her writing process entails starting working from an early jumbled draft.

“I let the words come out and go back and edit and edit and edit,” she said.

It was a stressful process at times.

“Faith in myself” was something Fischer had to overcome.

“You’re a little nervous about it. How’s the message going to be received?”

Fischer went back to make sure the theme had a clearly understood message and the story was engaging.

She contacted publishing houses but said they focused more on sales and requested thousands of dollars. She went through Kindle Direct Publishing to self-publish.

After the 31-page book was completed, Tiegs called Fischer to tell her the paperbacks are ready. Fischer was soon holding her first book, making a dream come true.

“This is so surreal. That’s my name on the cover,” she said.

“I just keep staring at it. It just hasn’t hit me.”

The books went on sale on Amazon this month. She has sold more than 30 so far. A coworker wrote a kind review.

“Everyone has been incredibly supportive and excited for me,” Fischer said.

Fischer contacted local elementary schools about putting the book in their libraries and would love to come and do a reading.

She said didn’t write the book to get rich or famous. She wants to get across a message.

“The message is as humans we have to do better,” she said.

Fischer is just getting started. She hopes sales from her first book will help cover the costs of a second, and a third is also in the works. Future themes include kindness, compassion and bullying.

“It’s phenomenal that she’s actually finished her goal and is continuing it,” Mike said.

Fischer reads as much as she writes. She and a friend started a book club during the pandemic and are their 45th book of various genres, both reading fiction and nonfiction.

They switch off choosing books.  Fischer’s first pick was “Where the Crawdads Sing.”