Fancy Lanier-Duncan’s First Picture Book Helps Kids Build Forts and Name Their Feelings
In September 2024, singer and songwriter Fancy Lanier-Duncan dreamed her son Syre wanted to write down how to build a fort. That dream became “The Super-Special-Spectacular Fort!,” her self-published picture book illustrated by Leeya Rose Jackson, releasing Nov. 18. Readers follow Sage, a Black child with no stated gender, who meets a bee, ants, a fox and a creek that each share calming tools such as breathing and tapping. The lessons form four roots: grow, create, find your way and remember. Those roots also inspired Reading Roots, a Minnesota State Arts Board-funded literacy series pairing guest author readings with hands-on activities at local creative spaces.
Fancy Lanier-Duncan has spent years telling stories through music. Her newest one started while she was asleep.
In September 2024, the singer and songwriter dreamed about her son, Syre, wanting to build a fort. That dream became “The Super-Special-Spectacular Fort!,” her first published book, illustrated by Leeya Rose Jackson. The self-published picture book for ages 4 to 8 comes out Nov. 18.
“In that dream, he wanted to build a fort. But the focus wasn’t actually on building the fort,” Lanier-Duncan said. “Our focus was actually on his desire to want to write down how to actually build one.”
She said the dream fit Syre, who loves Legos, magnet tiles and Minecraft and likes to plan before he builds. “He’ll mock it up. He’ll write it down,” she said.
When she woke up, she felt a strong urge to write. She spent about 18 hours that first day studying beloved children’s books such as “The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” “Where the Wild Things Are” and “The Snowy Day” to learn what made them last. She kept writing for the next two or three days.
“Publishing a book is extremely different than mixing, mastering and putting your music up on Apple Music and Spotify,” she said. “It’s a completely different process, and it was one that I really leaned into. I had a lot of joy learning how to do.”
Many in the community know Lanier-Duncan from the stage. She also runs a Juneteenth festival and for nearly five years operated the Legacy Building, a creative space. She said that work brought her closer to her own creativity and made her less afraid to express herself in new ways.
“I think sometimes as creatives we feel like we are only supposed to express ourselves the one way that we discovered first,” she said.
Writing was not new to her. As a child she wrote many short stories, including one at age 12 or 13 told through the diary of an enslaved girl who secretly learned to read and write.
The book’s main character began as a boy named Max. As Lanier-Duncan thought about her own childhood and her motherhood (she became a mother at 17 and had Syre at 35), the story grew into one about naming feelings.
“For kids, a lot of the time it just is a big ball of energy, and they don’t have words for it,” she said. “They just know they feel something.”
She renamed the character Sage, a name that means wisdom, because Sage gathers wisdom throughout the story. Sage is a Black child with no stated gender, a choice Lanier-Duncan said was intentional.
“I wanted all children to be able to connect to Sage,” she said. “Sometimes they may think that things are only built for girls or things are only built for boys, and that it’s not built for just people.”
The title came from Cap’n Turbot, a “Paw Patrol” character known for alliteration. Syre was 4 and a fan of the show at the time. Lanier-Duncan said she wanted a name with a ring to it, and “super-special-spectacular” rolled right out.
The story takes place inside Sage’s dream. Sage heads into the backyard and picks the perfect spot, a clothesline stretched between a pole and an old oak tree. When the wind whips the sheet loose and nothing works, Sage meets a bee, ants, a fox and a creek. Each offers a social-emotional learning tool, such as breathing, tapping and imagining with closed eyes.
“Bit by bit. Take it slow. Time and love help things grow,” the bee tells Sage. The ants offer a tapping rhythm: “Tap your legs, tap, tap, tap. Calm will come just like that.” The fox says, “Close your eyes, let your mind play. The fix you need will come your way.”
Finally, the oak tree reminds Sage that it grew from a tiny acorn. Those lessons form four roots at the heart of the book: grow, create, find your way and remember.
Lanier-Duncan said she wrestled with imposter syndrome along the way. Her goal was never a bestseller list, she said, but simply to see if she could. She traced that spirit to her first time singing on stage at age 5, at her mother’s childhood church in Wisconsin. The song was “I Believe.”
“I’m not leaning into perfection,” she said. “It’s just ‘do it.’ And if you miss something, then I’m gonna know for the next time.”
The book’s four roots also inspired Reading Roots, a literacy series for children ages 4 to 8 and their adults, funded through a Creative Individuals grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. Each gathering pairs a guest author’s reading with a hands-on activity at a local creative space.
The series began in October at Moon Palace Books with “Watch Me Grow” and planting, then moved to Black Garnet Books for tapping and movement. On Nov. 7, Monica Rojas will read “Nana and Abuela” at Mud Luck Studios, followed by clay work.
For the final gathering, Lanier-Duncan will read her own book alongside Chef Michelle Cunningham, who will lead a lesson on how food helps people remember and the ancestral power it carries, especially for Black families.
The final Reading Roots gathering is Nov. 21 at the Coliseum Building near Lake Street and Hiawatha Avenue in Minneapolis. Registration is required at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdXGZ8tSXl9NIxvTJMGKzb4kVeQmjGKmwA2g_HvEAJRTUgjmA/viewform.
For more information on Fancy Lanier-Duncan, visit https://fancythecreator.com/.
Jasmine McBride welcomes reader responses at jmcbride@spokesman-recorder.com.