About the Author
Tin-An Chen
"I believe good books
lead to good days ahead."
At a Glance
📚 Teacher & Librarian
🖊️ Author & Illustrator of children's books
🎓 Bachelor of Education, OISE at the University of Toronto
🌍 Honours Sociology, Arts & Business, University of Waterloo
🏆 CHIRP Magazine's Summer Pick
📍 Ontario, Canada
Stories should make children feel seen.
Ordinary moments, told humorously and truthfully, make the biggest impact.
Hello! I'm Tin-An.
I've spent over two decades in classrooms and libraries, watching children discover the magic of stories — and noticing which ones made their faces light up, their shoulders relax, or their hands shoot up with excitement to share a connection.
My books are built on a simple belief: optimism is a skill.
Children who learn to embrace new beginnings, laugh at themselves,
and see the world with curiosity, kindness and hope,
grow into joyful, resilient people who change it for the better.
Reducing school anxiety
New beginnings are both scary and exciting. Books that normalize these feelings give children a safe way to rehearse courage.
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Celebrating belonging
Every child deserves to see their own story reflected back at them.
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Life lessons, lightly held
The best lessons are embedded in stories of self discovery.
What I write — and why
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Cultivating optimism
Optimism isn't pretending everything is fine — it's believing that hard things are worth trying anyway.