Kimber the Magnificent here. The other day Mom and I came up with another brilliant idea in the guest author department: revisiting a heartfelt and often hilarious travel tome we recently reviewed. (Well, okay. It was mostly me. Mom helped a little.)

Today we’re chatting with the author of an interesting, insightful, and often very funny travel-ish book, Passports and Pacifiers—Traveling the World, One Tantrum at a Time. Her name is Kaitlyn Jain. Let’s tune in and see what she has to say. You won’t want to miss this, if I do bark so myself! (For our full review of Passports and Pacifiers, click here.)

I’m Kaitlyn Jain, author of Passports and Pacifiers—Traveling the World, One Tantrum at a Time. I’m also Mom to four young children and two crazy Boston Terriers. I spent fifteen years doing marketing and project management in corporate America but am currently taking a break to focus on writing and overseeing virtual schooling.

I grew up in the Midwest and lived in the same general area for my entire childhood but have since visited and lived all over the country and world. My first dog, Artie, had ten plus homes! (I think adding the four kids was more traumatic for him than the homes.) I’ve visited over twenty-five countries and nearly all fifty states, dragging my kids wherever I can. I love seeing and trying new things and aim to inspire compassion and love of travel in my kids.

My Writing Process

The inspiration for Passports and Pacifiers came during our trip to Scandinavia with the kids. We had some issues (my brother called it a ‘hot mess’ when I told him about it), yet we were having the time of our lives. We were together, we were seeing new things, and we were having fun. Plus, I got a fantastic deal to go. I thought, why don’t more people do this? Any issues we had were actually funny, and the trip was amazing.

For the actual writing, I used my travel journal as a base and supplemented with my very detailed itineraries which included must- and like-to-do options for each day. Combining those two things sketched out a great outline and layout for each chapter.

I wrote in the evenings and didn’t even share it with my husband until I had the first fifty pages written. Adding the creativity was the most fun part—my best lines and stories came to me when jogging or putting my little ones down for naps. I guess that’s when my mind is clear! I also belong to a fantastic writing group where members pushed my boundaries. Everything I wrote about friends or family was cleared by them before print.

Honest and Often Hilarious

Passports and Passports is the true story of two crazy parents traveling with four small children…on a budget. Starting with two bumbling parents taking their Never-Sleep infant to Italy and ending six years later with an adventure across Scandinavia. Readers are regaled with honest, often hilarious, accounts of their misadventures, like losing the only pacifier of the trip, missing ferries, and soothing tantrums across the globe.

The Jains find deals and save where they can. They stay cheap, shack up with in-laws, and visit generous family and friends. The goal is to inspire parents to travel with their kids, or at least introduce them to new cultures and experiences.

WIP

I’m working on a follow-up book but clearly travel is challenging in the current environment. We’re hoping to visit some National Parks this summer using the free pass for 4^th graders.

My friends and family have been extremely supportive. I love how excited my daughters get seeing my book for sale and sharing it with their classmates. Recognizing this own dream of mine is so great to share with my impressionable kids.

If you’re interested in learning more about me and Passports and Pacifiers:

Check out my website and blog at https://www.kaitlynjain.com and/or like my page on Facebook: Passports and Pacifiers.

I’m also on Instagram at Kaitlyn.Jain.