Plant City resident Victoria J. Saunders has self-published her first book, The Chonky Alphabet. The Chonky Alphabet is a delightful book for anyone who loves cats.
Saunders not only authored and self-published the book, but she also illustrated it. The Chonky Alphabet is based on playful language that people use online. Saunders said, “This book is for any age as long as the person is a cat lover.”
Saunders explained, “Back in 2020, when everything was shutting down, I was furloughed from my job as a CAT scan technician. I had always wanted to do art, but I always put that on the back burner.”
She then decided to start doing digital art. She took classes and joined a Facebook group called This Cat Is Chonky. At the time Saunders joined the group, they had 800,000 followers.
“Now, they have 915,000 in the group,” said Saunders.
“I did not want to be on social media, but I liked seeing the posts. I started drawing cats and realized there was a language people spoke on this Facebook group,” Saunders added.
She then decided to create an A-to-Z book with a word and charming drawing for each letter. So, for example, “G is for Grompy” and “O is for Obsessed.”
Saunders said, “It is like learning a language in 26 words.”
She added, “This is a fun, playful and whimsical alphabet book. Even if you are not a cat lover, you will enjoy it. It makes a good coffee table book and a good conversation starter.”
The book was released on June 1 and quickly became an Amazon best seller in the cat breed category. Saunders was quick to point out that she got help from others in her self-publishing journey.
She said, “I used IngramSpark for online self-publishing. I got help from other artists who had done the same thing.”
Saunders stated, “It is never too late to start something new. Just dive right in and you can be an author of a best-selling book too.”
Saunders will have a book signing on Saturday, August 6 from 2-4 p.m. at The Tipsy Bookworm, located at 115 S. Evers St. in downtown Plant City. You can buy the book there or at the websites of Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million.
You can follow The Chonky Collection on Facebook and Instagram @thechonkycollection.
