Influential Woman · Author
Naela Hurst
Book Author, Wings Of Adventure
Louisville, KY 40211
Her Story
About Naela
Naela Hurst is a children’s book author and has been writing and publishing books for 17 years through Dorrance Publishing Co. Her work blends personal experiences, with imaginative storytelling, creating meaningful and engaging stories for young readers. Throughout her career, she has built a strong foundation in children’s literature, developing a series that reflects both her childhood memories, and her creative vision. Her Magic Every Month series is deeply rooted in her own childhood experiences, inspired by activities she shared with her sister while growing up. The series began as a simple handwritten list of fairy names and their magical abilities, originally featuring just six fairies. Over time, she expanded the concept into twelve fairies, each representing a month of the year. This evolution reflects her creativity and her desire to create stories that celebrate imagination, seasonal wonder, and childhood joy. Her Native Adrenaline series represents another important aspect of her writing, inspired by her Native American heritage. With a small percentage of Native American ancestry in her family, she has taken a respectful, self-directed approach to learning about Native American history and culture to ensure authenticity and sensitivity in her storytelling. In addition to writing, Hurst has developed a passion for event planning, including organizing book signings, and fairy-themed gatherings, that connect her work with readers in creative ways. She also enjoys gardening and baking, with a particular fondness for Amish friendship bread, which reflects her appreciation for tradition and creativity in everyday life. In 2023, she was honored with the Best Visual Artist award from Leo Weekly, an achievement she earned through community voting over a set period of time. Looking ahead, her goal is to see her books read by students and teachers, in schools across the United States and available in bookstores nationwide, continuing her mission to inspire and engage young readers through storytelling.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Naela
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to the incredible support I've received from friends around the world. I have a friend from the country Belize who's been very supportive. She read my books to her preschool class, which is really cute, and she even takes some of my books to Belize with her, so some of my books are in that country. She's very supportive and it's cool to have that kind of support. When I won the Best Visual Artist award from Leo Weekly in 2023, people had to keep voting for me throughout a specific amount of time, and for them to keep voting and for me to actually win felt really good. One of my friends voting for me was even from Canada, so it wasn't just people from the U.S. Having support from everywhere, not just locally, has been really meaningful. I've also created, gift baskets for events like, Halloween, Easter, baby showers, and a backpack give-away at my church.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Write like you're only going to read the story, yourself.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would tell them to go for it, but understand that it's not always easy. I've been an author for 17 years, and I'm still not at the level where people think I am. When I tell people I've published books, they think I'm J.K. Rowling all of a sudden, and I'm just like, no, you have to actually work for it. Don't expect to be famous right off the bat. I assumed because there's the internet that my books would automatically be found online, and that's not the case. Younger me was just like, oh, they'll find it, it's online, but I've learned to move past that assumption. Just keep working hard so that your books can get out there, and be a little bit more well-known.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I recently saw an opportunity where a local Kroger was collecting children's books. Something I might look into. A challenge I face is, some family members wanting a discount (jokingly of course), or people who are all talk and no show; They have the idea of wanting to buy my books, but don't follow through.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me in both my work and personal life are, staying consistent, never letting one bad experience dictate my entire career goal, and doing the best I can to get what's need out there.
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