Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
EP. 118 Ashley Franklin on The Little Mermaid, motherhood and early schooling
7 Plays1 year ago
Ashley Franklin is a professional chaser—of ideas, dreams, and, most often, her kids. She is the author of Not Quite Snow White and a contributor to Once Upon an Eid, a collection of brilliant Muslim voices and stories. Ashley lives in Arkansas with her husband, Michael, and her children, Bilal and Mikhail. You can visit her online at www.ashleyfranklinwrites.com
On the podcast, Ashley talks about raising boys and being a momma, the gifted and talented program, book deals (including The Little Mermaid), and some of her most personal writing struggles.
Website: https://ashleyfranklinwrites.com/
Instagram: ashleyfranklinwrites
Twitter: twitter.com/charcarr1
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ashleyfranklinwrites
Recommended
Transcript
00:00:01
Speaker
Hey, what's up, everyone?
Introduction & Season Announcement
00:00:02
Speaker
Welcome to It's Personal, a podcast about creators and their stories.
00:00:26
Speaker
All right, welcome back to another episode of It's Personal. This is the second season. This is the fifth season. I am super excited for my guest today. I'm going to allow you to introduce yourself and feel free to talk about how your day's been going as well.
Meet Ashley Franklin, Children's Author
00:00:46
Speaker
Well, thank you so much. Hello, everyone. My name is Ashley Franklin. I am a children's book author, primarily known for picture books. My latest picture book, you might've heard of it. It's a little something called The Little Mermaid, Make a Splash. Yes, yes, yes. And my day, it is definitely a Monday. I will say that it's Monday and so hard on me right now, y'all, but I'm trying to pull through. Ashley, I'm sending all the positive vibes your way. And I love your energy.
00:01:16
Speaker
I appreciate you so much. My computer just turned back on. I want to let you know that my computer just now turned back on.
00:01:26
Speaker
Ashley, where are you located right now? I'm in Arkansas. I'm in Bentonville, Arkansas. Love the weather. And has Arkansas always been a place you call home? It is not. Before living in Arkansas, I was in Louisiana, but it kept trying to flood on us. And it's just not. It's just so much you can take it, honestly, as a human.
00:01:47
Speaker
It starts to wear on your soul just a lot. So that's how I ended up in Arkansas. But I am originally from Salisbury, Maryland, the eastern shore. Okay. Okay.
Motherhood in Arkansas
00:01:59
Speaker
And I noticed one of the things that you pride yourself on is being a mama. So I want to talk a little bit about that.
00:02:06
Speaker
What has that been like for you in Arkansas? Talk about the kids. What are some of the things you love about being a mom? I love that every day is different. That works for me. I know it's totally chaotic, but I feel like I thrive in chaos and motherhood is nothing but that. I love my sons every step of the way and I never know what to expect from them on any given day.
00:02:34
Speaker
Like right now they are 11 and eight. And these are some very interesting ages. Like my 11 year old is taller than me. And so that's an interesting dynamic to be in. I mean, I'm not but so tall anyway, but still, it was the benchmark and I didn't think he was gonna pass it so soon. But they bring me so much joy. It's phenomenal.
00:02:59
Speaker
What are they? I'm a third grade teacher, so eight. I love eight to nine-year-old kids. Like, I mean, I don't get them as much as you guys have them. Like, I mean, I get them for a long portion of the day. So, like, I understand that, but I love that age group. They're, like, slowly into pop culture. Their interests, they, like, when they're interested in something, they're really interested, really invested in something.
00:03:23
Speaker
And they're starting to really generate personalities and relationships and friendships and stuff. What are your kids, what are they into right now? What are some things they're into?
Kids' Fascination with Trains
00:03:35
Speaker
My 11-year-old is into trains. He lives, breathes trains to the point that even on the weekends, we'll just be riding around trying to spot trains. He has his little journal where he keeps track of the trains that he sees.
00:03:51
Speaker
It's fun. It's something that I never thought that I myself would be interested in, but because he is, it's something that I've had to learn about, you know, to support him. My eight year old has a whole nother story. He's not interested in one thing. He's interested in all of the things. Like his thing is facts. Like you go to the library and he'll like pick out an encyclopedia of random things, you know?
00:04:18
Speaker
Yeah, like he gets fact books and he'll just go around be like, did you know, so that's fun having around the house.
00:04:27
Speaker
I get it. And it's so interesting because a lot of my kids in class are such huge like nonfiction readers. Like they're now into like the nonfiction graphic novels, which I think is an amazing idea in itself. So they're doing the same thing. Like it's reading time. And like, I mean, I don't ask them to be quiet during reading, but that naturally that's kind of what they do. But they will run up to me when I'm like talking to other students or even adults, they want to share facts. Like they just love facts.
00:04:58
Speaker
I love that. But for you, what were some of your things you were interested in when you were growing up?
Disney & Childhood Representation
00:05:03
Speaker
Disney. I loved Disney. Beauty and the Beast was my all time favorite movie. Yes, hands down for obvious reasons. She had an amazing library.
00:05:13
Speaker
I was a book nerd, so that clearly Belle had to be my princess of choice because it lined up. Aside from that, I was really into Barbies and I want to credit my mom. My mom was very much about making me feel represented and feeling seen. I went to one of those gifted and talented schools or programs or whatever when I was younger.
00:05:41
Speaker
And so I was usually either the only minority there or one of the only minorities there, and so my mom made sure to buy me toys and things that look like me so she only bought me brown Barbies, you know black Barbies, whatever she could find so.
00:05:58
Speaker
I felt more included, less isolated. And that was back in the day. And that's where I'm so curious because I've had friends in gifted and talented programs and I'm from Canada. So like when I think, when you were in the gifted and talented program, was that in Louisiana? That was when I was in Maryland. Maryland, okay. So I'm wondering, what did that demographic look like in regards to like your classroom, classroom sizes, teachers,
00:06:27
Speaker
I actually had one African-American teacher. I think it was in the third grade. Her name was Mrs. Burks. And she's actually the only black teacher that I had in elementary school. So she really stands out in my mind. As far as the classroom goes, I want to say it was a typical classroom size, around 20, a little bit over 20 or so of us.
00:06:51
Speaker
As far as the kids that were in it, like I said, I could usually count on it being me. But I was always excited when I saw, you know, someone else like, hey, you know, like, wow, they look like me too. Just the feeling of not being othered when you're already othered when you're in a program like that, you know.
00:07:12
Speaker
And that's such an interesting point because like for me, I had, like growing up in Canada and Nova Scotia where there's like, we have a large, we have large black communities, but we're very, very small in number.
00:07:25
Speaker
when it comes to the population. So in school, I was luckily with people from my community, like all the time, right? So there's groups of us. I mean, it was very segregated. Like we very much like segregated ourselves on purpose because that's where we felt most comfortable for reasons you already know. But it's always interesting hearing stories where like you are
00:07:49
Speaker
taken and put into other systems because I'm assuming they saw something in you as well. I think that's really cool. What did you feel you got out of the program? Do you remember the program? I do. That's good. I think it's a good thing.
00:08:07
Speaker
I want to say good things about it.
Gifted Program Pressures
00:08:10
Speaker
I really do. But honestly, it was good and bad. It made me feel like it pushed me. So it gave me that drive that really helps me into adulthood. Persistence, the feeling that I can do anything because
00:08:26
Speaker
That's what I've missed out to believe. Like you're in this program, you're one of the best. You can do anything you put your mind to. So that part stayed with me, but also the tremendous amount of stress of trying to always produce and perform at a top level. So that's why I kind of have mixed emotions about it. Cause the good was kind of bad at the same time. Like they were really intertwined. So.
00:08:52
Speaker
And then I also noticed that you really pride yourself on your religion and that's something that you really try to shine through in regards to, you know, who you are as a person, your family. Can you talk a little bit about that and why that's important to you?
00:09:08
Speaker
Most important to me because my husband and I are the first Muslims in our families.
Cultural Representation in Writing
00:09:14
Speaker
And so I particularly wanted to be someone who could provide representation for my own sons that I felt like was missing as
00:09:25
Speaker
You know, there aren't, but so many books that have black children at the forefront in a positive manner. And then black Muslim boys on top of that, that is severely lacking. And again, from that attitude of, you know, I can make a difference. I can do anything. So I've kind of just been trying to channel that and provide and produce what I really want to see. So they feel seen.
00:09:53
Speaker
you know, basically doing what my mom did for me for them. I love that. And what do your kids think of you being a writer or seeing your books like in their schools?
Fame Through Her Children's Eyes
00:10:03
Speaker
Oh my goodness. We go back and forth about that all the time. They're like, mom, you're famous. I'm like, I'm not famous. And then like it totally discredited me when I was like, okay, I got to drop you guys off a little bit early for school. Cause I have to go to the news station. You're like, I thought you weren't famous. It was like,
00:10:22
Speaker
I was like, okay, I'm well-known right now. And they Googled me. I felt so violated. My own kids Googled me. We're like, if you're not famous, how come we can Google you? It's like, I happen to be popular in some areas right now. They're like, that's the fancy way to say you're famous. I'm like, oh my goodness. So I'm just not going to win that argument. And I think that's something that I have to accept.
00:10:47
Speaker
Let them love you. Let them love you. Let them tell the world that you are famous. You know, like they get out of, you know, get out of, you know, trouble pass or something. It's like, you didn't do your homework. Your homework's late. But did you know my mom is an author? Like, wait a minute. That is something that is nice to have in your back pocket, though. Like, do you need an author visit? Do you need someone to read to you?
00:11:17
Speaker
Oh, that is so fun. So what has your writing journey looked like? I know that you, again, pride yourself in writing stories that are, you know, representation for you and your kids, et cetera. What has your writing journey looked
Writing Journey Challenges
00:11:30
Speaker
like? It has, it's had its ups and downs in every way possible from having an agent to leaving an agent, to losing my confidence after not, you know, selling a book as soon as I thought I would sell another book.
00:11:45
Speaker
Not being sure if I was doing good by representation, you know, like I said, first generation Muslims and just trying to feel like, okay, am I going to write from the perspective of who I was before I reverted to Islam? Do I write from the perspective of, okay, now this is my major religion and I want to, you know, uplift and showcase that.
00:12:06
Speaker
but I don't want to give off vibes that I'm ashamed of who I was before, or I'm trying to hide it. Like, those are things that I struggled with. And of course, you know, your personal life really can affect your creativity, you know?
00:12:23
Speaker
Yeah, you get it. Totally, totally. Yeah. Yeah. And do you feel like I think, you know, going through those ups and downs and battles and I know this maybe this might be obvious, but I guess I'm curious of like what that process was taking a step back. OK, OK, OK. They absolutely involve taking a step back because it's just like, you know, some people say they have to wait for the inspiration.
00:12:51
Speaker
to be creative. Well, I couldn't wait on something if I wasn't able to receive it in the mental state that I was in, you know, so I had to be accepting and loving of who I am all parts of my life, you know, and not try to compartmentalize who I am.
00:13:09
Speaker
You know, I'm not made up of different pieces. I made up of all of the different components, you know, I'm not fractionalized. And so that's something that I had to realize and just take pride in. Like I feel a newfound sense of worth and empowerment that I can represent the different areas of my life and not having to pick and choose.
00:13:34
Speaker
because I didn't pick and choose who I was. These are my genuine experiences. I love that. I love that. And I think it's so important to hear you say that because sometimes I know like I'm very much on my, the very beginning journey of my writing career. And you know, you always get the,
00:13:53
Speaker
I often now get the like, oh, I want to write a book or I wish I could write a book. And I mean, I am all for it. I am all for it. I understand, like, sure, please. Like, I would I would love for you to write a book. But I think people forget about mental load that it takes to create something, especially the stuff that you do and other author authors that look like us do when it's about kids, it's about
00:14:20
Speaker
the books that we haven't had, et cetera. Like that is not something that we just randomly wake up today. We don't take it lightly. Exactly. Exactly. Right. So I think there's different levels to it. And when it comes from a place like yours, it's not easy. Like it's not a book that we just randomly, you know, just wake up one day and write. Like it takes a lot of mental load and here's all the stuff to create something. So I think I love hearing that
00:14:49
Speaker
you were able to do that because I think more people need to hear it and authors need to hear it as well. Tell me about books and there's obviously one that's most recently out. And you also messaged me and said you had a little, you know, a little trip somewhere as well. I mean, I don't know how much you can share, but I'm here for you. We could take you to your coin drop if we have to.
00:15:18
Speaker
Yeah, I can share a little bit of it.
Success of 'Not Quite Snow White'
00:15:20
Speaker
As far as the books go, I'll pretty much go in order. The first book was Not Quite Snow White. And to be perfectly honest, I tried to put everything I had into that book because I'm like, I've been given this opportunity. Like I didn't, it wasn't a two book deal for the contract. Like it was just, you know, I sold this one book. So I was like, I don't know what's going to happen after this. You know what I'm saying? And so I tried to put, I put my foot in that thing as they say.
00:15:49
Speaker
And that book is my heart. I wrote that book. Thank you. I wrote that book for little me. You know, like I said, I was usually the only one and in various situations along my schooling. And it was just the feeling of being out of place. I felt like that could resonate.
00:16:11
Speaker
with all children, you know, because everyone has that experience where you feel like you're just not quite right for a particular situation. And I felt like that was a universal message. And, you know, I felt like what better way to do that than a princess stories? I mean, princess stories, their princesses are everywhere. Let's be realistic, you know? And they have some staying power. And I felt like making Snow White was a good move because again, that's not, when we think of that princess, we don't think of
00:16:39
Speaker
A black or an African American individual encompassing that role and I felt like that would probably be the most prominent way to get the point across that you can be anything and do anything you want to do because you have just enough all the right stuff within you.
00:16:57
Speaker
that's what matters the most. I love that book so I read that book every year and I'm not just saying that I read that book absolutely every year and you know what an interesting thing is it's not I think it's the title is beautiful the illustrations are beautiful and it's because you wrote it like we I tend to be and this has taken time just because I haven't been teaching for a long time like 10 years or so but
00:17:19
Speaker
Over time, I've noticed that like you really need to pay attention to the author so like when your picture comes up, and we can really dissect who you are as a person, and then connected to the book like I think it's can be so powerful. And I think the writing is beautiful but on top of that, like you as a person and talking to you now I know you're a beautiful person, but also knowing
00:17:39
Speaker
having the kids be able to like look at you and understand you through your bio and then make that connection through the book like it's just it's amazing it really is amazing so i appreciate you saying that and i didn't i think i knew it was your first book but now if it really validates so many things what i was thinking about hearing you talk about it so thank you
00:18:02
Speaker
Of course, and you know, Tamika was very popular after that book, so we had the follow up, Better Together Cinderella,
Themes in 'Better Together Cinderella'
00:18:10
Speaker
and that book was more so about family, like we, Tamika got to be the star of the book, the star of the play, but I didn't want to let her get too big of a head, so to speak, you know, so
00:18:23
Speaker
We had to introduce some new characters, and that's where the twins came in. And honestly, I thought of the Rugrats, because I remember that movie for when I was younger. Remember? Remember, Bill Pickles got introduced on the scene, and Tommy and his friends were like, what is the situation with this? I like Rugrats. I get it. I get it. So those were the vibes I was going for. I don't even think I've told anybody.
00:18:54
Speaker
Those are the vibes I was going for with Better Together Cinderella. Just trying to adjust to a new family structure and still knowing that you have your place in the family and it's not diminished or you're not less than because someone else is there. There's room for everyone to shine in your family.
00:19:14
Speaker
That's what I mean. Like these books are not easy. Like they come from a place of often, unfortunately, like they come from a place of trauma, right? Like we are writing these books from places, dark places. That was my trauma. What trauma inspired each of your picture books? I think that's a good question. Oh my goodness. But I did. I had stepfather.
00:19:40
Speaker
And you know that was I didn't have to make some adjustments, because I wouldn't you know I have steps siblings and you know just a blended family, they don't have the best representation.
00:19:53
Speaker
You know, in the media, you know, you have like the evil stepsisters and all that. And that's another reason why we did not. Yeah, it's another reason why we didn't go that route for this book, which is like, can we just can I just get along? And also, it was very important to me for the Tamika books to have a two parent family back.
00:20:14
Speaker
That was a must for me, because often in these fairy tales and things, one parent is missing and dead. And it's usually the mama. And I can't do mamas like that.
00:20:27
Speaker
We're trying to avoid killing off family members for the picture books like see, can we not do that. That's one of the things I also think a lot about when I'm reading a lot of like why a middle grade now. Sometimes, I don't know. This is what I feel sometimes I don't.
00:20:46
Speaker
think the books need to be as complicated as there's a lot there's not a lot but i think there's a handful of books out there that have you know the single the mom's not there the dad's not there etc but i don't think we see enough of what you just said to parents a lot of i don't see a lot of that so i i 100%
00:21:06
Speaker
I agree with you. And what about the next? The next book that is out is Disney's The Little Mermaid, Make a Splash.
Black Ariel in 'The Little Mermaid'
00:21:16
Speaker
And that came out this month. And it has been amazing, to say the least. Paul Kellum did an amazing job on the artwork. It is just knock you over with a feathered gorgeous. I was floored when I initially saw them.
00:21:40
Speaker
I didn't get any sneak peeks or anything like that, but it's just amazing to see so many little girls who are connecting with this story in a different way. You know, because Ariel is black in this story, that hasn't taken away from the original. I think instead it has expanded. And I think that's what a lot of people are missing. Like no one has replaced the Caucasian red haired
00:22:02
Speaker
And I saw them when everybody else saw them, so.
00:22:10
Speaker
little mermaid. She's still there. She will always, quote unquote, be canon, because that's how they were, you know, she was first introduced. But now the story, it has evolved. And if you aren't evolving, you will get left in the past. So there's really nothing wrong with the direction that the story has taken. I'm trying to make sure I don't give away anything from the plot. That's why I started talking for me perfectly honest there. I just start watching my words.
00:22:39
Speaker
I saw you nodding and slowly coming out of it.
00:22:45
Speaker
Honey, I ain't trying to have nobody from Disney emailing me like, girl, now you know. So I'm not trying to have that. I don't need that kind of stress in my life at all. So you also, when we, I first messaged you, you also, did you take a little, uh, you know, yeah, a little, I don't know, I don't know what I can share.
Disney Event & Halle Bailey
00:23:06
Speaker
I took a little journey. I got invited out to a screening of the little mermaid.
00:23:13
Speaker
And we stayed at the London in West Hollywood. So that was phenomenal. It was basically a product launch. So we got a sneak peek at a lot of the merchandise that Disney is going to be dropping that hasn't dropped yet, like some of the toys, advanced products and more things.
00:23:36
Speaker
or in the worst, that will be dropping soon. There are a lot of influencers there, you know, and they've been dropping some of their videos where you do get that sneak peek of some of the things. And it was a very, it was a magical experience. You know, I hate to say that because, you know, Disney magical, it seems so cliche, but it was just seeing the kids dressed up. They had cotton candy there and it was like by a black owned business. They were making like little character shapes and everything.
00:24:06
Speaker
I was like, how cute is everything? The food was themed and it was just, it was amazing. And to end it with the screen of the movie. And I got a chance to meet Hallie herself. Like, come on. Yeah. Yeah. And I didn't pass out. I didn't fall out. I was very proud of myself. Like, I kept my composure. Like, they came and got me and were like, we have a special guest that wants to meet you. I'm like, you better shut up.
00:24:37
Speaker
Don't play with me. She is just, she's a gorgeous spirit just in an album. She was so kind and it was a moment that will definitely stay with me.
00:24:50
Speaker
She asked me about the book and just, she talked, she talked about the book. I'm like, she's talking about the book and the words that I wrote. I was like, this is amazing. It's like, when you start your author journey, you really never know where it's going to take you because I promise you, I didn't see it leading me towards Disney and movie premieres and meeting celebrities. Didn't know that was going to happen.
00:25:16
Speaker
And I don't know what the future will hold, but you know, I'm here for it. I'm here for the journey. I love that ending because we literally just talked about your writing journey. Whoever's listening out there, you heard Ashley speak about how it was very hard losing an agent.
00:25:34
Speaker
not wanting to write, not having ideas to write. And then to be able to produce writing that you genuinely care about, and then to be rewarded for that through all these other things. I think that is so telling to who you are as a person and really staying true to who you are. I genuinely believe that about people. If you can, who you are, I think people will really take on who you are because you are sharing those important things about you.
00:26:04
Speaker
I think it's so cool. I think it's so, so cool. It's cool. It's very, it's a very humbling experience because I do put a piece of myself in every thing that I write. And so, you know, whether it reaches one reader or a thousand, like it touches my heart in a major way, regardless. And
00:26:27
Speaker
back to the topic of books that I have coming out.
Joy in 'The Masjid Kamal Loves'
00:26:31
Speaker
My next book is so near and dear to me. It comes out June 20th.
00:26:36
Speaker
called the Masjid Kamal loves and this one this one was for my boys. So it's about how joyous a little black boy feels when he goes to the Masjid and he's mischievous while he's there you know he's getting water everywhere he's bumping into people just regular kid activity but he still feels the love and just radiating just
00:27:02
Speaker
welcoming souls from the community while he is there and just my kids are in this book like I mean that literally the illustrator put my kids into this book yes and um it was dear to me because
00:27:20
Speaker
Like I said, I want it. I'm all about joy. I think that's so important to life. I know there will always be hardships and times when we're not feeling it. We all experienced those things, but I feel like if you can grab on to just even the smallest amount of joy, I feel like that is the most precious thing. And so I tried to write joyous books and to me,
00:27:46
Speaker
Just imagine Kamala of just radiates joy. Like there's so many smiles, you know, and I built it off of like a fun, like this is the house that Jack built. So that is the structure that the book has. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, that sound. It gives me goosebumps honestly. And what else makes this special to me is that
00:28:13
Speaker
I wrote this manuscript, most of it, the first version of it. When I was on a plane at the start of the pandemic, before we knew how pandemic-y it was going to get, I was on my first author trip to Scholastic. I was doing a promo trailer for Not Quite Snow White. And little did I know that this book would turn into
00:28:35
Speaker
What it is, you know it sold at auction and I was just in tears like this is the Muslim boy joy that I wanted to express.
00:28:47
Speaker
and to have it recognized and just embraced. It's gorgeous. I'll send you the PDF and this is over. And just, I don't know, can you see that? I can see that. Look at that. It's stunning. It's stunning. Now your boys are going to be famous. How are they? Now they are going to be the ones saying they're famous.
00:29:13
Speaker
How about that the tables, kind of turning a little bit is actually I'm so excited for you. Your story and your, you know, your work brings me joy, and I appreciate you so much.
Upcoming Book: Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur
00:29:29
Speaker
I forgot to mention that I have a moon girl and devil dinosaur picture book coming out in August.
00:29:37
Speaker
If you watch the show, the hair episode. Did you see that one? Yeah. Yeah. That's the picture book that I wrote. So yeah.
00:29:52
Speaker
Well, okay. So I know I'm running long. I'm sorry. So what was amazing about writing for that was, you know, it was kind of right after I had just finished up The Little Mermaid and I got another email. That's how Little Mermaid happened. I got an email and went to my spam. I was clearing out my spam. It was like opportunity from this. Yeah. Yeah, man. Yeah.
00:30:18
Speaker
opportunity from Disney I'm like yeah opportunity from Disney so I'm about to delete the thing you know and I look something said you know like look like where it's from for real it's like oh this ends at Disney.com wait a minute like this this was legitimate and so yeah that's why I almost missed out on the little mermaid because it was bad that would have been bad that would have been really bad so check your spam everyone always check
00:30:45
Speaker
Yeah, I got another email and I just thought it was like more follow up, you know, and it was like, um, Hey, um, but another opportunity for you. Are you interested in writing for moon girl and devil dinosaur? And I was like, yeah. And so that gave me opportunity to work on something for Disney and Marvel.
00:31:05
Speaker
at the same time, because I had to work with two different editors for that. So that was the first, that was definitely an experience. And I did get some cool points with my kids for that, because they sent us the whole first season, like a summer or two ago while it was still in development. And that was the coolest thing ever. Yeah, so it was like, we'd be watching an episode and it would be like stick figures, because it wasn't finished on that part.
00:31:35
Speaker
Wow. That is so cool though. It was really cool. It was cool. That is such a cool experience. Especially for the kids, I'm just like envisioning them seeing the actual version.
00:31:49
Speaker
I mean, obviously they're going to say like, I've already seen this. Like that's what they were still excited about it. Yeah. So for them, they were like, I want to see what everything looks like now that it's finished. And I was like, let's go. You know, I love that. I love that. Well, I'm just this, I'm blown. Your journey has been so cool. I mean, this, I think this in itself, listening to you talk about your writing journey in the beginning to where you are now and how happy you are. I feel so blessed. Like it's nothing but.
00:32:19
Speaker
It's nothing but I just feel so blessed for this opportunity to be able to produce something that brings others joy. Like it comes off the page and I don't take that for granted at all. Ashley, where can people find you online? I am Ashley Franklin-Rights on Instagram. On Twitter, I'm at different Ashley and my website is AshleyFranklinRights.com.
00:32:45
Speaker
Thank you. This was so much fun. Thank you for having me. I mean, this was lovely. I mean, I usually I mean, again, I always tell people like selfishly.