TaleSpring

#9 in iPad Books… it’s “The Day I Became A Pirate” !!!!

TaleSpring — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:18:58 +0000

On the morning of it's 4th full day in the App Store, "The Day I Became A Pirate" has jumped into the Top 10 in the iPad Books category in the U.S. App Store. Congratulations Cary Snowden and Zach Clough!

To all those who don't have an iPad, but do have an iPhone, you can get this great book app on your iPhone, too! For iPad or iPhone, just click here:

"The Day I Became A Pirate" – for iOS (iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch)

It's been so fun seeing this finally come together after many months of hard work and dedication. The video tutorials of how they did certain tasks in TaleSpring, the movie trailers announcing the release, and now the skyrocket to success!

And they have at least 3 more books planned, too! So stay tuned for more from the Snowden & Clough team!

$0.99 Sale on all TaleSpring Books

TaleSpring — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 23:13:17 +0000

All TaleSpring books are now on sale for just $0.99! This is a great opportunity to buy lots of fun children's interactive ebooks that your kids will enjoy reading for hours. Here is a list of all the available books with links straight to the App Store. Please leave a rating or review in the App Store for each book you enjoy.

As a Child	My Daddy	Quest for Good Manners
Little Munch's First Day (Free)	Little Munch Meets the Farm Animals	Lucy has a Straw
It's Halloween	The Shortest Cactus Springs Tale Ever	Randy the Daydreaming Dog
Darla of the Deep	Little Frigglepants	Fuzzy Wuzzy and Other Tails
Little Penguin's First Swim	The Winters, A Snowman Family	I Could Fly Around My Ceiling
Baby Bear's Sled	My Adventure	Pete the Polar Bear
The Girl in the Spaceship	Buka'nin Renk Oyunu	Exploring the Bible 1
Exploring the Bible 2	Exploring the Bible 3	Exploring the Bible 4
Exploring the Bible 1 Catholic Edition	Exploring the Bible 2 Catholic Edition	Exploring the Bible 3 Catholic Edition
Exploring the Bible 4 Catholic Edition	Growing Up: Book 1 What is Adolescence?	Growing Up: Book 2 Why Do I Feel This Way?
See Rainbow Careers!	Destiny Discovers Purpose	Let's Learn Shapes
Let's Learn Colors

Tips on the Icons needed for publishing

TaleSpring — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 22:24:16 +0000

The question was asked about how to properly prepare the icons for your ebook app so it can be published. So here's some instructions and some tips!

Inside TaleSpring in the editing environment, choose Book on the top right, and then click Edit. On the properties screen that comes up, you'll see the list of icons that are needed along with the sizes and formats. The (?) images offer additional information.

As far as the actual image that goes in the icon, I highly recommend a zoomed-in view of one or two of the main characters rather than a shrunk down scene. This is an icon, a small representation of your app. Your designer/illustrator would have some great ideas for the icon as well.

All sizes should be the same image, just at different resolutions. The only exception would be the 512×512 where you can have more on it as long as it's not too different from the other icons. For example, if the app icon was of the main character's face, the 512×512 could be of the entire character, with part of a scene in the background, or something. Think of the 512 version as a zoomed out, wider look at the same scene the smaller icons were taken from, but not zoomed-out too much. If they're too different, Apple will reject the entire submission.

Here are some examples of nice icons:

Newsletter: Author Feature–Sandra Thoney

TaleSpring — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 20:05:46 +0000

It may be spring but the fun of winter never has to end when you can read and play Sandra Thoney's interactive book, The Winters: A Snowman Family, Storm and Windy's Busy Weekend. We're pleased to be introducing Sandra this week in our Author Feature.

Author Feature: Sandra Thoney

"Storm and Windy's Busy Weekend" is a delightful tale of two youngsters, Storm and Windy, who are brother and sister and just happen to be snowmen! The story begins when fall is over and Krystal, the snow fairy, waves her magic "snow wand" and fills the air with her snowflakes. When all the land is covered with snow, she calls out, "Snowman families, it is safe to come out now!" The Winters family, who have been tucked away sleeping during the warm weather seasons, awaken and emerge from the depths within. Once the family awakens, Storm and Windy have a "Busy Weekend" when Grandma and Grandpa Blizzard come for a visit. Storm and Windy's busy activities include: sleighing, snow cones, chilly chocolate, Grandma's cookies, going for a walk in the woods, blowing bubbles, and even building … a snowman of their own! The story is fully animated and interactive. There are 32 animated StoryBook pages, PLUS 4 game pages at the end of the ebook. Animations occur upon page load, as well as things for the child to tap on. Kids will have fun making: the puppy bark, snowmen walk, Grandma get cookies out of the snoven (snow oven), Grandpa slurp his summertime drink, Storm and Windy blow bubbles as well as sleigh down the hill! Kids will also have fun making it snow on several pages!! (of course) "Storm and Windy's Busy Weekend" is illustrated with REAL SNOWMEN created from the finest snow Mother Nature has to offer! Pages have an optional "audio narration" feature, which allows even the youngest of children to be able to enjoy the story without the need of an adult to read to them. "Storm and Windy's Busy Weekend,"(animation and narration from start to finish), will entertain your child for over a HALF AN HOUR. That's enough time to jump in the shower!! Children will also enjoy some fun little GAMES at the end of the ebook, such as, build Krystal the snow fairy and have Storm and Windy toss a ball back and forth. This story is also available in a physical 9×9 soft cover book. www.sthoneybooks.com

You can also see a demo video on youtube here. My favorite part is watching the snowman children waddle along in the snow. They don't have legs, you know. :)

More Like The Winters

Here are more books like The Winters that you may enjoy. Click on the icon to view in the App Store.

We hope you have a Happy Easter.

Sincerely,

The TaleSpring Family
TaleSpring

Video Preview: The Day I Became a Pirate

TaleSpring — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 16:36:18 +0000

One of our authors, Cary Snowden, has put together a preview for his book that will be coming out soon, The Day I Became a Pirate. He's doing some pretty cool things. Check this out.

Cary has created a website/blog to go along with his book. In his "Captain's Log" he has shared several blog posts that chronicle his successes and struggles as he and his illustrator (Zack Clough) have been putting together their book app. He has some great tips that may spark some ideas for you. We're very excited to see the finished product.

Newsletter: Featuring Jan and Todd Graveline

TaleSpring — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 21:45:04 +0000

This week we'll be looking at Jan and Todd Gravelines' book, Randy the Daydreaming Dog.

We're also excited about a new feature in the Talespring editor. It's a new animation calledHotSpot and you're going to love it. Look for more information below.

Author Feature: Jan and Todd Graveline

Randy the Daydreaming Dog is a whimsical tale of a curious dog who lets his imagination roam free while his best friend is at work. Driving a race car, noon tea with a yak, swinging through the jungle and dancing with a cupcake help Randy realize that time alone with your dreams can make for a very busy and fulfilling day.

Each new daydream is delightfully illustrated and chocked full of animated surprises that are sure to delight all ages. The optional audio narration feature adds to the fun.

Visit www.randythedaydreamingdog.com

This is a really fun book with great illustrations done by Todd Graveline. But don't take our word for it. Buy Randy the Daydreaming Dog in the App Store today.

New "HotSpot" Animation

Have you seen the new HotSpot animation? HotSpot allows you to move to a different page in the book when an object is touched. This means that you can now include a Table of Contents in your book. It also means that you can switch to another page if a specific graphic is chosen, perhaps like a "choose your own adventure" book. How about a question and the answer chosen takes the user to different results. I'm sure you will be able to think of lots of creative ways to use the HotSpot. Happy Creating!

More Like Randy

Here are some more books you may enjoy. Click on the icon to view in the App Store.

The Winters, A Snowman Family

The Girl in the Spaceship

Little Munch

I Could Fly Around My Ceiling

My Adventure

The Shortest Cactus Springs Tale Ever

Baby Bear's Sled

Fuzzy Wuzzy

We're excited to see some of the ways that you'll be using the HotSpot feature and we hope you'll support your fellow TaleSpring authors.

Sincerely,

The TaleSpring Family
TaleSpring

Newsletter: Featuring Author, Michelle Willis, M.Ed.

TaleSpring — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 21:41:24 +0000

This week we will be taking a look at some of the non-fiction books that have been published with TaleSpring. Michelle Willis, M.Ed., is our most prolific author with an amazing 12 books in the App Store. We're pleased to share what she's done with you.

Michelle Willis, M.Ed.

The first books Michelle published with us were a series of two books for preteens called Growing Up: Preparing for Adolescence. The books outline some of the physical, emotional, and social changes kids can expect as they approach adolescence. (Please Note: There are no sexual references in this material.) Each book has opportunities for interaction between a parent and child so they are wonderful resources for parents of preteens ages 9-12 or grades 4-6.

Next, Michelle published another two part series for preschool age children. Let's Learn Shapes andLet's Learn Colors help children master the shapes and colors through bright pictures, interactive lessons, and fun animations.

Recently, Michelle added another series of books entitled Exploring the Bible Adventure Series. There are four interactive books that help children better understand stories from Genesis in the Old Testament. In addition, Michelle has also published a Catholic Edition of the series which included references to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC).

Catholic Edition:

Click on any of the images to view the books in the App Store.

More Non-Fiction

Here are two more non-fiction books that have been created using TaleSpring. Check them out in the App Store.

See Rainbow Careers!

Destiny Discovers Purpose!

Thank you for being a part of TaleSpring.

Sincerely,

The TaleSpring Family
TaleSpring

Newsletter: Featuring Deanne Woolstenhulme

TaleSpring — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 22:37:55 +0000

Last week we started a weekly author feature to share the great books that have been published with TaleSpring. We want to recognize the authors and illustrators who have worked so hard making their books. We hope what you see will inspire you to tell your own stories and share your creative talents.

Author Feature: Deanne Woolstenhulme

This week we'd like to feature another one of our first authors. Deanne Woostenhulme, also known as Granny Deanny, created her book Darla of the Deep for her grandchildren. Here is the description for Deanne's book:

Fun for all ages!!! Darla of the Deep is the story of a young girl who loves her bath time adventures. Her imagination carries her to far off places as she soaks and scrubs in the tub. Kids will love trying to find all of the interactive pictures to tap on and embarking on a deep sea adventure to meet Darla the Mermaid.

This is a cute book that shows where your imagination can take you. Be sure to check it out in the App Store.

More Like Darla

Here are more books like Darla of the Deep that you may enjoy. Click on the icon to view in the App Store.

The Winters, A Snowman Family

The Girl in the Spaceship

Little Munch

I Could Fly Around My Ceiling

My Adventure

The Shortest Cactus Springs Tale Ever

It's Halloween

Pete the Polar Bear

Look for next week's email which will feature our non-fiction children's books.

Sincerely,

The TaleSpring Family
TaleSpring

Newsletter Featuring Author Melissa Smith

TaleSpring — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:25:32 +0000

Because of our wonderful authors we now have 31 books in the App Store with one more being reviewed by Apple which will be hitting the store in a few days. We want to highlight each of the authors who have worked so hard to bring their books to life. Each week we will be featuring one of our authors in a newsletter and we hope that you will enjoy seeing what others have been able to do using the TaleSpring editor.

Author Feature: Melissa Smith

One of our first authors was Melissa Smith. Her book, Little Frigglepants, which she both wrote and illustrated, is outta' this world (pun intended). Here is the book's description:

Little Frigglepants is bored. What should he do? When asking mom doesn't help, he turns to his brains. A brilliant plan is formed: A Rocket Ship! Will he be able to complete it before Baby comes along?

Hidden pictures, crazy sounds, a flying space monkey, speedy aliens are just the beginning of the Friggle fun! You can even have Frigglepants and Baby read you the story.

Come and meet Frigglepants at:
homemade-preschool.com/Little-Frigglepants.html
And he might even share some super, sneaky secrets about his book!

Check out this funny book at the App Store and share it with your friends.

More Like Frigglepants

Here are more books like Little Frigglepants that you may enjoy. Click on the icon to view in the App Store.

We look forward to sharing more books and authors with you in the coming weeks.

Sincerely,

The TaleSpring Family
TaleSpring

Digital Kid’s Author, Karen Robertson, Interview Tonight (1/7 7pm)

TaleSpring — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:09:41 +0000

UPDATE: Full interview can be found here…and Karen mentions TaleSpring!

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If you'd like to hear more about turning stories into book apps, I'm being interviewed by Publishing Insider's online radio Tuesday night, February 7, 7:00 p.m. USA Eastern time. Click here for details and the call in number.

Publishing Insiders is pack with insider scoop on everything publishing and is hosted by Penny Sansevieri (one of my favourite book marketing experts) and Paula Krapf.

If you have a burning question, please send it to me via the contact us form and I'll see if we can include it in the interview.

Finally, I've published another author interview on my blog so you can learn from the experiences of another writer who turned her story into a book app.

Nicola Furlong recently launched Saving Grape-Jelly Cheeks and you can read her story here.

Thanks and Treasure Reading!