"The Journey of Co-Creating and Birthing A Children's Book: Lessons in Representation, Grief, and Being the Bridge" with Rachel Baldi

The UpLevel Podcast

This week, on the final episode of the UpLevel Podcast’s Publishing Series, our special guest is our very own Rachel Baldi, co-founder of UpLevel Productions. We discussed her inspiring journey from converting to Islam to becoming a children's book co-writer. Rachel shared how she found solace in Islam's teachings of kindness, equality, peace, and compassion. She also gave us a sneak peek into, “Lil’ Amina and the Adventure of Grief,” the newest book in the emotional wellness children’s book series The Adventures of Lil’ Sass.

Listen in to this important conversation filled with insights from an inspiring co-writer who has used her personal experiences to create impactful content for both children and adults alike.
If you, too, believe in the power of storytelling as a means for social change or have insights on representing diverse cultures in literature, tune in now!

In this Episode:

• Learn about her journey from a London upbringing to becoming an influential figure in coaching and leadership development.
• Discover how kindness, equality, peace, and compassion led Rachel toward embracing Islam.
• Understand the motivations behind creating this emotional wellness book series for children and adults.
• Explore how representation, grief education/support, and bridging differing perspectives influenced Rachel's decision to write.
• Gain insights into how understanding your purpose can serve as motivation during challenging times.
• Experience the delight of transforming imagined characters into tangible realities through illustrations.
• Get a glimpse into hurdles like making late-stage edits or accurately representing faith without offending.
• Learn from Rachel’s experience handling sensitive topics such as religion in children's literature.
• Fostering understanding between cultures and religions through literature

About Rachel:
Rachel is on a mission to empower and inspire those around her to lead their lives with conscious presence, authenticity, and responsibility. As the co-founder of UpLevel Productions and an Interfaith Advocate, Rachel brings her knowledge and expertise in coaching, leadership development, project management, workshop design, and facilitation to act as a conscious bridge between people of different cultures and religions to build healthy relationships. As a member of CTI’s Faculty and Graydin’s coaching team, Rachel has expanded her experience over the past decade through consultative sales, client relationship management, and program delivery with Leaders and Educators inside world-leading organizations. Rachel is a Certified End-of-Life and Grief Coach who is passionate about educating and providing essential safe space for people to acknowledge, express, and process their grief. A mother of 6 beautiful children and a Muslim woman of Islam Faith, Rachel is authentic, passionate, supportive, empowering, and, is here to UpLevel all and everyone she comes into contact with.

Website: https://www.rachelbaldi.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rachel.baldi.754

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rachelbaldi1/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-baldi/

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