‘Achoo the Bee’: Abbeville native to take part in ‘Meet the Author’ event on Saturday

Deana Meaux, an Abbeville native and longtime resident of Zachary, is scheduled to visit her hometown on Saturday.
It’s a visit that is creating plenty of buzz.
Meaux will be at Mula’s Pharmacy at 10 a.m. on Saturday to share her new book, “I just want to be me, Says Achoo the Bee.” For more information, visit www.achoothebee.com.
For Meaux, who attended Mt. Carmel and Vermilion Catholic before graduating from Abbeville High in 1985, it will be an exciting trip.
“I feel so lucky that folks in my hometown are anxious to see me and hear about my book,” Meaux said.
Vermilion Parish Clerk of Court Diane Meaux Broussard helped set up the “Meet the Author” event.
“I was totally not expecting this at all,” Meaux said. “When Diane reached out to me saying that we ‘have’ to have an author signing, I was like ‘OK, you really want to do that???,’ ha ha. She’s been my biggest cheerleader in Abbeville and I’m happy to call her my friend. I’d also like to thank Mula Pharmacy for graciously hosting this event. I’ve known the Mula family my entire life.”
Meaux, who is the daughter of Richard and Sherri Meaux, grew up with a love of reading, something she then shared with her own children.
“I’ve always loved reading,” Meaux said, “especially reading stories to my children when they were young.”
“Achoo” is a result.
“I’ve always had a few stories swimming inside my head,” Meaux explained. “Now that my children are grown and out of the house, I’ve gained time to actually put pen to paper to develop content for the story that’s the loudest - and that’s the story of Achoo The Bee.”
Achoo, the book’s main character, is a spunky honeybee with a problem - she can’t stop sneezing every time she gets near a flower, blowing away all the pollen that her friends have collected from the fields during the day. One morning, before the other bees are awake, Achoo races to the meadow to practice not sneezing around the flowers. She’s suddenly startled by a loud, buzzing noise and realizes that Clarence, a mean old hornet, is heading toward the hive to destroy it and everyone inside! With a little encouragement from a shy honeybee named Bit, Achoo uses the one thing that makes her different to try to save the hive from Clarence. But can she save the Queen and her family?
Meaux said she feels Achoo will inspire children to learn to embrace the things that make them unique. Meaux called on her own life to help in the creation on Achoo. There’s even a bit of a resemblance, Meaux added with a laugh.
“I totally see Achoo in myself because she doesn’t look or act like the other honeybees,” Meaux said. “I grew up with naturally curly hair when having long, straight hair was cool. Achoo turns what makes her unique and different into her own superpower, ultimately saving her family of bees from destruction.”
Hundreds of families have already been able to enjoy the message. Since announcing the book in January, Meaux has sold more than 400 copies. It’s a result of Meaux’s hard work and persistence.
“The 2020 pandemic allowed me to actually work on finishing my story,” Meaux said. “I had to find an illustrator, editor and website developer to bring my story to life. Because I didn’t have the daily commute to Baton Rouge from Zachary every day for two months, I gained almost two hours a day to devote my time to the book.”
Meaux made the decision to self-publish the book.
“It is totally funded and self guided by me,” Meaux said, “so the process to make sure the content, illustrations, website and printing was absolutely perfect before announcing to the world was two years. Plus there is copyrighting, social media account set ups, domain and email address and software purchases to consider.
“I am very lucky to have a husband, John Murray, who supports me 100% on this self funded project.”
When Meaux opened the book and saw the hard cover for the first time, the moment made all the effort worth the while.
“It was pure joie!,” Meaux exclaimed. “If I didn’t sell one book, I was totally fine with that because this was my lifelong dream that came true.”
Meaux looks forward to sharing that dream, as well as the book’s message, with people from her hometown on Saturday.
“The journey Achoo has taken me on has been amazing,” Meaux said. “I’ve had such great feedback from moms and dads about the message of the book and have made awesome connections in the literary world. If possible, I’d like to use the attention the book brings to not focus on me, but to focus on the message of love, acceptance and kindness, and that God created all of us just fine.”