Elroy the Iguana by Rebekah Murray

Rebekah Murray

Quito, Ecuador

Rebekah is a New Zealander living in Ecuador. She teachers English as a Second Language. She has a BSc in Zoology and Physiology and has a love of nature.

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About the author

Rebekah has always enjoyed expressing herself through words and has always had an active imagination. She was born in New Zealand but has travelled a lot and had lived in United States, Australia, and Argentina before finally settling in Ecuador.

Rebekah believes in learning through adventure and experience. For example, instead of learning Spanish through the normal study classes, she choose to travel through Argentina and volunteer in Patagonia to immerse herself in the language and culture.

She has a BSc in Zoology and Physiology and has previously worked in animal non-profit organisations in both New Zealand and Australia. Her jobs have been based around fundraising, education, training staff members and animals, animal care, and customer service. Once completely settled in Ecuador, she hopes to be able to volunteer her time in research, rescue, rehabilitation, and education of the wildlife in Ecuador. She also hopes to contribute to the advancement of Ecuador in environmental studies, and ecotourism.

Rebekah's first love is wildlife conservation. Her second love is providing equal education whilst entertaining to all which includes environmental education and languages. She is a tutor for English in Ecuador and has written and translated many short stories for her students to study.

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Success! Elroy the Iguana has already sold 103 pre-orders , was pitched to 37 publishers , and will be published by Chacana Editorial .

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Elroy the Iguana

Spanish and English Galapagos Adventure

Elroy the Iguana wants a girlfriend. He seeks the help of other Galapagos species but finds an outcome that he didn't expect.

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	Children Fiction Spanish and English Educational
	1,000 words
	75% complete
	8 publishers interested
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Synopsis

My book is about Elroy, a land iguana who lives on the Galapagos Islands. He desperately wants a girlfriend and seeks help in the other animals on the islands for "attraction" advice. He eventually gets downcast in his quest and finds by being himself, a gorgeous female iguana comes up to him. Moral of the story: Be Yourself.

My inspiration of the moral may have to do with my blonde, blue- eyed presence in Ecuador that often attracts the males here. They try all sorts of games and "macho" acts to try and get my attention which isn't very attractive.

It is written both in Spanish and English because I teach ESL and have discovered the value of putting both languages side by side to explain the differences and similarities in a fun and visual way.

Outline

*Each paragraph is written in both English and Spanish.

First Section: Introduces Elroy the Land Iguana

Second Section: Elroy tries to imitate the Blue Footed Boobies with their famous dance.

Third Section: Elroy sees the flamingos and tries to copy them as they march up and down the beach.

Fourth Section: Elroy sees the old Galapagos tortoises and tries to imitate their movements.

Fifth Section: Elroy tries to copy the large sea lions and fails miserably.

Sixth Section: Elroy admits defeat but as he is sat alone. But the girl of his dreams comes to talk to him and tells him that he is perfect just the way he is.

Audience

The target audience would be 12-14 year olds or for those who are learning English or Spanish depending on what level reading they are at in their second language.

There are 400,000,000 people that speak Spanish as their mother tongue. There are 22 countries with Spanish as the official language. As English is the official international language, these people want their children to learn English.

For English speakers, Spanish is counted as one of the easiest languages to learn and also one of the most profitable for future business.

Galapagos Islands are also a highly sought after destination spot with the truly unique ecosystem and the history of Darwin's adventures on the islands. Therefore for those who love animals but don't particularly wish to learn another language, this book is also for them.

Promotion

1. Social Media- Promotion through social media avenues such as Instagram and Facebook for preorders and orders. This will include updates on illustrations, tidbits and also advertising on relevant Facebook pages.

2. Personal Touch- From a previous job in Ecuador I know a lot of the directors and principals at the Quito schools. I will be contacting them and hoping to participate in school fairs and book fairs.

Competition

Elroy the Iguana is similar to books that are about animals that focus on being true to yourself or not trying to be anyone else such as Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae and The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen. However Elroy the Iguana is set in an iconic location with educational references to the other animals that live there. Also my book is bilingual and designed to entertain as well as educate.

There are a few bilingual children's books but in my research, I was only able to find translations of well known stories such as The Princess and the Pea or Cinderella. Elroy the Iguana is an original story.

8 publishers interested

	Anaphora Literary Press 250 copies • Partial manuscript. Anaphora Literary Press was started in 2009 and publishes fiction, short stories, creative and non-fiction books. Anaphora has exhibited its titles at SIBA, ALA, SAMLA, and many other international conventions. Services include book trailers, press releases, merchandise design, book review (free in pdf/epub) submissions, proofreading, formatting, design, LCCN/ISBN assignment, international distribution, art creation, ebook (Kindle, EBSCO, ProQuest)/ softcover/ hardcover editions, and dozens of other components included in the basic package. Hybrid publisher Children Fiction, Literary Fiction, Mind & Body, Mystery, Thriller, Horror & Suspense, Romantic Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, YA Fiction, Biography & Memoir, Business & Money, Career & Success, Cookbooks, Food & Wine, Health, Fitness & Dieting, History, Journalism, Personal Growth & Self-Improvement, Politics & Social Sciences, Religion & Spirituality, Science, Society & Culture, Sports & Outdoors, Technology & the Future, Travel Worldwide
	i2i Publishing 250 copies • Completed manuscript. i2i Publishing was founded by Lionel Ross and asks for a small financial contribution towards costs. Hybrid publisher Children Fiction, Literary Fiction, Mind & Body, Mystery, Thriller, Horror & Suspense, Romantic Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, YA Fiction, Biography & Memoir, Health, Fitness & Dieting, History, Journalism, Politics & Social Sciences, Society & Culture Worldwide
	Mascot Books Mascot Books is a full-service hybrid publisher dedicated to helping authors at all stages of their publishing journey create a high-quality printed or digital book that matches their vision. With comprehensive editorial, design, marketing, production, and distribution services, our authors have the support of an experienced publishing team while still retaining one of the highest royalty percentages in the business. Hybrid publisher All categories
	Authors Unite 250 copies • Partial manuscript. Authors Unite helps you become a profitable author and make an impact. We take care of printing and distribution through major online retailers, developmental editing, and proofreading with unlimited revisions. We take care of the entire process for you from book cover design all the way to set up your backend so all your book royalties go straight to your bank account. We can also help with ghostwriting if you prefer not to have to figure out all the steps on how to write a book yourself. With our book marketing services, you don’t need to worry about figuring out all the steps on how to market a book or how to become a bestselling author. We’ve helped hundreds of authors become bestselling authors on Amazon, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal. We take care of the entire book launch process for you to help you sell thousands of copies of your book and become a bestselling author. View case studies here: https://authorsunite.com Service publisher Children Fiction, Christian Fiction, Comics & Graphic Novels, Commercial Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Historical Fiction, LGBT Fiction, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Horror & Suspense, Mind & Body, Mythology & Folk Tales, Romantic Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Women's Fiction, YA Fiction, Biography & Memoir, Business & Money, Career & Success, Children Non-Fiction, Christian Non-Fiction, Communication Skills, Corporate Culture, Crafts & Hobbies, Creativity, Current Affairs, Economics, Education, Entrepreneurship & Small Business, Health, Fitness & Dieting, History, Humor & Entertainment, Journalism, LGBT Non-Fiction, Management & Leadership, Marketing & Sales, Mindfulness & Happiness, Money & Investment, Motivation & Inspiration, Nature & Environment, Parenting, Personal Growth & Self-Improvement, Philosophy, Politics & Social Sciences, Popular Science, Productivity & Time Management, Psychology, Reference, Religion & Spirituality, Science, Sex & Relationships, Society & Culture, Sports & Outdoors, Technology & the Future, Travel, YA Non-Fiction, Science Fiction & Humour Worldwide
	Bookmobile 100 copies • Partial manuscript. Bookmobile provides book printing, graphic design, and other resources to support book publishers in an ever-changing environment. Superior quality, excellent customer service, flexibility, and timely turnarounds have attracted nearly 1,000 satisfied clients to Bookmobile, including trade houses, university presses, independent publishers, museums, galleries, artists, and more. In addition, we manage eBook conversions and produce galleys, and regularly provide short-run reprints of 750 copies or fewer for major publishers such as Graywolf Press. Service publisher Children Fiction, Literary Fiction, Mind & Body, Mystery, Thriller, Horror & Suspense, Romantic Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, YA Fiction, Biography & Memoir, Business & Money, Career & Success, Cookbooks, Food & Wine, Health, Fitness & Dieting, History, Journalism, Personal Growth & Self-Improvement, Politics & Social Sciences, Religion & Spirituality, Science, Society & Culture, Sports & Outdoors, Technology & the Future, Travel Worldwide
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Off the coast of Ecuador on the Galapagos Islands lives Elroy the Iguana. Elroy has plenty of food, water and the perfect spot to sunbathe but he wasn’t happy. What Elroy wanted most in the world was a girl friend.

Cerca de la costa de Ecuador, en las islas Galápagos vive Elroy, la iguana. Elroy tiene suficiente comida y agua y el lugar perfecto para solear. Sin embargo, no estaba contento. Lo que más quería en el mundo era una novia.

One day he saw the elegant blue footed boobies dancing with their feet flashing brilliant blue all around. “Surely that would attract a female.” Elroy thought to himself.But as hard as he tried, his feet wouldn’t do the dances of the blue footed boobies or perhaps it was because they weren’t blue at all.

Un día vio los piqueros de patas azules elegantes bailando con sus patas azules brillando por todos lados. “Seguramente eso atraería a una chica.” Elroy pensaba adentro de sí. Pero por más que lo intentaba, sus patas no podrían hacer los bailes de los piqueros de patas azules o tal vez era porque sus patas no eran nada azules.

Update #2 - Getting there! Jan. 9, 2018

I hope you all had happy holidays! The process of finding a publisher has been very slow especially since I require a truly international one …
Update #1 - TWO Pre-Orders! Oct. 17, 2017

This is just to say a very big thank you for being one of my very first supporters!
This book is hopefully going to be a …

Kalina Gyurova
on Oct. 18, 2017, 10:19 p.m.

reply

Good luck, kiwi! :)

Karin Kelleher
on Oct. 19, 2017, 3:19 a.m.

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Good job Pog I am so proud of you. Let me know if you need anything. Love Karin, Katelyn, Dylan Kelleher

Lyn Leigh
on Oct. 19, 2017, 8:11 p.m.

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Hi Rebekah, Exciting can't wait to receive my copy of Elroy the Iguana. Wish you all the best with future books and a voice to help our world. Thanks for sharing Lyn and Graeme Leigh xx

Michelle Dobson
on Oct. 20, 2017, 7:50 p.m.

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Exciting times for you. Hope it goes really well.

Mary MacAdams
on Oct. 21, 2017, 1:59 p.m.

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Way to go Rebekah! So proud of this achievement!

Dale Seekford
on Oct. 25, 2017, 10:36 a.m.

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I pray for the Lord to bless you

John Good
on Oct. 26, 2017, 9:44 a.m.

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Hi, our Grand Kids should enjoy.

Charles Bunger
on Oct. 26, 2017, 12:10 p.m.

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Hi Rebekah, your dad forwarded the info on your new book......we wish you the best. We have enjoyed having Marsha Kiser in Texas this year, she spent a couple of nights in our home while she helped out in the Houston field for about a month, take care and come and see us any time, love, Chuck & Teresa

Julia van Velden
on Oct. 27, 2017, 1:51 a.m.

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Awesome work Bekah! Keep it up!

Lauren Frost
on Oct. 27, 2017, 4:50 a.m.

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Hi Rebekah, looks like you're having a lot of fun over there. Congrats on a cool book, will be great for our kids. Lauren Frost

Lauren Roberts
on Oct. 30, 2017, 8:34 a.m.

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looking forward to the read ;)

Donnee Murray
on Nov. 3, 2017, 12:08 a.m.

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Better late than never huh!

Tessa Sherwen
on Nov. 6, 2017, 1:50 a.m.

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You are awesome!

Lauren Pearson
on Nov. 6, 2017, 10:09 a.m.

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Hey Bekah! Our fingers and toes are crossed! Hope it goes well. xx

Sophie Palmer
on Nov. 6, 2017, 8:56 p.m.

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Looking forward to reading it to Deegan :)
Thanks Rebekah

Gail Kloosterman
on Nov. 10, 2017, 2:11 a.m.

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For many years I have desired to fully grasp the complexities of the iguana community. This seems like the next logical step in that process. Perhaps some of my questions will be answered as I interface with this bilingual representation of the relationships that we readily observe in nature.

Kelly Chapman
on Nov. 15, 2017, 9:06 p.m.

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<3

Linda Murray
on Nov. 16, 2017, 12:34 a.m.

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Whoop Whoop! Sooooooo proud of you Bekah.

Geoff Murray
on Nov. 16, 2017, 1:15 a.m.

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Way to go kiddo! J K Rowling watch out! BTW, the other Elroy suggested you do an audio in Spanish and English so that the student is able to get the pronunciation spot on.

Merise Seko
on Nov. 16, 2017, 4:16 a.m.

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All done Rebekah xx wishing you success over there xx Minnie

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Rebekah Murray

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Elroy the Iguana

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Outline

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