My kids love making up stories. Sometimes these end up becoming little skits that they act out in the living room and sometimes they end up becoming illustrated books that I have to carefully staple together to avoid ruining any of their artwork. It’s part of being a kid that you like to make stuff up. A lot of kids don’t take it any further, but that’s not the case for Emma T. Capps who, at just 14 years old, is already an award-winning author, artist and cartoonist.
Emma has been featured in publications like Stone Soup and Creative Kids, but the work that really got my attention was her weekly web comic called The Chapel Chronicles. It features Chapel Smith, an 11-year-old girl who faces the trials of her daily life with a bit of frustration and a lot of humor. These include convincing her parents to buy a puppy, battling the sitter at board games and trying to survive her daily chores.
In one of my favorite installments, Chapel has a full-on battle trying to cover a cookie in plastic wrap. It’s a fun story and one to which any kid (or adult) can readily relate. And that’s what makes Chapel a joy to read. She’s got her quirks, like a pet hedgehog named Rupert and a fixation with all things Lady GaGa, but at heart she’s a typical girl. Her experiences are not that far off from what real girls experience every day.
I recently had the privilege of speaking with Emma on an episode of The GeekMoms Podcast and was really impressed with just how focused she is on what she wants to accomplish. She’s only just completed eighth grade and has been looking at Oxford to continue her education. She plans to keep up with new episodes of The Chapel Chronicles for as long as it brings her joy and provides her with the chance to learn and grow as an artist. Her story serves as a reminder to kids and adults of just how far you can go with determination and a passion for your work.
You can catch new episodes of The Chapel Chronicles every Friday and Emma encourages everyone to leave her comments. She responds to every single one, without exception, giving your kids a chance to interact with her and understand the inspiration for each new storyline.
The web comic is free or you can purchase the comic as a printed magazine, along with cards buttons and jewelry with images of Chapel in her many guises. Although it’s geared toward tweens, even older kids and adults will get a kick out of seeing what kind of trouble Chapel gets into next.
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