For most families, a puppy chasing a moth at baseball practice might be just another funny moment. For Katie Ellis, it was the beginning of a book.
Ellis, generation training administrative assistant at Holcomb, recently published Puppy Goes to Practice, a children’s story coloring book inspired by her family’s beloved dog, Opie. Written and hand-illustrated by Ellis, the book follows Puppy as he tags along to baseball practice and enthusiastically finds ways to help the team. And, as anyone who knows Opie might expect, he doesn’t exactly follow the traditional definition of “help.”
The idea came to Ellis this spring while Opie was doing what Opie does best—being Opie.
“We frequently take him to our daughter’s practices because the kids love him,” Ellis said. “He was chasing a moth in the grass this last spring during baseball practice, and my oldest daughter said, ‘Opie is so funny, he could be a book.’”
Lightbulb moment
Ellis, who enjoys keeping creativity in her life, decided to turn the idea into a homemade book for her two daughters, ages 7 and 4, and son, 1. She had no grand publishing plan. It was simply a fun surprise for her kids.
“I started this as a silly homemade book to surprise my daughters with,” she said.
But after her kids started showing it to friends and family, the reaction was consistent: You should publish this. So Ellis did.
From a homemade project to a published book
The book took Ellis about three to four weeks to write and illustrate. Because Puppy Goes to Practice is a black-and-white coloring book rather than a full-color children’s book, the project was a little more manageable, but she still had to find time wherever she could. That meant lunch breaks at work, evenings after the kids went to bed, and even squeezing in a little creativity while making dinner.
“I have three kids, so I usually worked on it while I was making dinner, on my lunch breaks at work, or after the kids were all in bed,” Ellis said.
The low-pressure nature of the project helped make it enjoyable.
“It was always meant to be just for fun for my kids, so there was no pressure to get it done,” she said.
The result is a playful story that gives young readers a chance to follow Puppy’s adventures while coloring the illustrations themselves. Along the way, Puppy learns about teamwork, kindness, and helping out . . . even if his methods are occasionally a little unconventional.
The book is geared toward children ages 3–8 and combines two things Ellis knows well: kids and Opie.
Meet the real puppy
Opie has been part of Ellis’ family since before she had children. Her husband surprised her with him, and the unique-looking, big-personality dog has been along for nearly every major chapter of their lives. Before Ellis began working at Sunflower, Opie even went to work with her almost every day. Puppy Goes to Work may be the next book idea floating around the Ellis household.
At home, Opie has been there through the birth of all three children, a house fire in 2019 when the family feared they might lose him, and countless other family milestones. He has also developed some rather unusual job responsibilities. When Ellis’ husband travels for work, Opie has a special bedtime routine with the girls. When Ellis tells him to “put the girls to bed,” he races them upstairs and sits on their rug, barking until they give him hugs and settle down.
“He truly is just my best friend,” Ellis said. “I don’t know a single person who has encountered him and not loved him instantly.”
That personality shines through in Puppy Goes to Practice, where the fictionalized version of Opie is just as eager to be part of the action.
The beginning of the Opie universe?
If Ellis’ daughters get their way, Puppy Goes to Practice won’t be Opie’s only adventure. They already have requests for books featuring the family’s two other dogs, two cats, and hamster. And, naturally, there are plenty of ideas for Opie himself.
“If you ask my daughters, there will be a whole series about Opie,” Ellis said with a laugh. For now, though, future books may have to wait. In addition to working at Sunflower and raising three children, Ellis is also a college student.
Still, Puppy Goes to Practice is a pretty impressive result for a project that started with a puppy, a baseball field, a moth, and a daughter's offhand comment. And perhaps that is the best part of Opie’s first literary adventure: it began as it was meant to as a “just for fun” project.
Puppy Goes to Practice is available on Amazon.