About me.
Hi. I'm Jess, a wife, a mother of three, and a primary school teacher.
I live just out of Cambridge, and have always lived in the mighty Waikato, New Zealand.
I'm at my happiest when I am creating - felt art, painting or even making cakes. My new and exciting passion is to write and illustrate children's books.
I'm driven to inspire the next generation. The goal of writing and illustrating a picture book was on my bucket list, and after self teaching myself how to draw digitally, and entering illustration awards for illustration experience, I felt I was ready. It was just a case of finding a great story!
In August 2021, Emma Twigg had just won her gold medal. While I was feeding my young baby in the middle of the night, I had the idea of creating a book about Emma's incredible story. Her courage, bravery and resilience in the face of failing to meet her goals really spoke to me as both a teacher and parent. I was lucky to have a friendship with Emma after we studied together at Waikato University in 2005 - 2007, so we talked about a book and the rest is history.
This publication is what I hope is the start of an exciting journey in writing and illustrating, so I can leave a legacy to my children of which I can surely be proud.
Please enjoy my portfolio, and feel free to get in touch with any questions.
Photo taken by the talented Katie Hurlow
Jessica Lawry is a NZSA member.
