Imogen Thirlwall

I'm an opera singer from New Zealand currently working in Germany. During the COVID-19 lockdown in April 2020, I was feeling very homesick for my family and channelled a lot of love into writing and illustrating a children's book, Butterfly & Snail Chase The Sun, for my sister's birthday.

This is now available as an ebook on the Amazon Kindle App. All 2020 revenue is donated to the non-profit organisation Shakti Community Council Incorporated. Following completion of this fundraising project, any future revenue from ebook sales will be donated to Shakti directly via their donation page. 

 To encourage further donations for this fundraiser project, bonus content, such as behind the scenes videos and a narrated version, is freely accessible on youtube. To remember your generous donation, I'm also offering artistic and musical donation gifts. 

Let's get behind Shakti, together.

Butterfly & Snail Chase The Sun is a story about two friends on an adventure to find their way home. Encountering curious obstacles, they discover lessons of compromise, moral support and kindness, and learn that there is no set path to navigate life's twists and turns.

A warm and inclusive bedtime story written in rhyme, the reading age is 6-8 years, although this story is thoroughly suitable for adventurous adults. Written without gender binary or reference to fixed family structures, and abstractly illustrated in boldly vibrant colours to inspire the imagination, Butterfly & Snail Chase The Sun through the forest to find their way home.

But home isn't always a safe place to be.

Experts describe that when societies are under stress, rates of domestic and sexual violence rise. Factors such as unemployment, financial stress, anxiety and social isolation in homes increases the risks associated with interpersonal violence.

Every organisation supporting survivors of domestic violence is providing an essential service. The purpose of this fundraiser is to encourage visibility of organisations providing culturally sensitive, barrier free services to marginalised communities, and to support efforts dedicated to ending violence against women. 

About Shakti Community Council Incorporated

Shakti Community Council Incorporated is a non-profit organisation working primarily within New Zealand and Australia. In their own words: led by ethnic people, for ethnic people, Shakti, which means strength, is dedicated to ending discrimination and violence against women of colour.

Shakti promotes and protects the human rights of women and children, serving migrants and refugees of Asian, African and Middle Eastern origin. Shakti works alongside thousands of families in New Zealand, from several ethnic groups including Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Malay, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Burmese, Korean, Indian, Fiji Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan, Iranian, Iraqi and African.

Services provided within New Zealand include: a 24-hour crisis call centre and domestic violence intervention service for women, culturally appropriate refuges, legal advocacy, integration services for immigrant families, and education programmes.

 For more information about Shakti Community Council Incorporated, please visit their website: https://shaktiinternational.org/

Donation gifts

The following gifts are available for personal use, in your home or your workplace, available from September 2020 on a first come, first served basis.

1. $30 NZD: Your choice of a digital print illustration from Butterfly & Snail Chase The Sun, from the selection of 10 prints available (unlimited).

2. $200 NZD: Sponsor the commission of an original digital print, featuring your favourite colour and nature theme of choice (limited to the first 5 donations of $200+).

3. $500 NZD: Sponsor an operatic thank you telegram from the Thüringer Wald (limited to the first 5 donations of $500+).

Donation gifts two and three will be available to you or your organisation for one week exclusively. After this time, the author reserves the option to use these for further fundraising purposes with reference to your sponsorship (unless you wish to remain anonymous). 

You will receive a receipt of your NZ tax-deductible donation. Donations made through this platform are secure and will be remitted directly into a ratified bank account of the charitable organisation. Note: for readers based in Europe, 1 NZD is c. 0.55 euro.

Author biography

Imogen Thirlwall is a New Zealand opera singer living and working in Germany. A long-distance hiker, when Imogen is not onstage singing a tune, you'll find her in the forest. As an author, Imogen writes the stories that she wishes she could share in person with her loved ones back home. As an illustrator, Imogen delivers a boldly vibrant abstract style to capture the imagination, inspired by the smallest moments of joy found in nature.

Butterfly & Snail Chase The Sun is written and illustrated by Imogen Thirlwall with typesetting by Sian Huygens. 

For further information: www.imogenthirlwall.com/author

Thanks so much for your support!

Imogen x