This past summer, SC CTSI KL2 scholar Melissa Bent, MD made her debut as a children’s book author with the picture book, “ABCs of Women in Medicine: Inspiring Future Healthcare Heroes.” Her aim is to introduce young children, primarily between the ages of four and seven, to different specialties in medicine. In her book, each letter emphasizes a different, diverse woman physician. The book would work to fill a gap Bent discovered while reading to her own three-year-old daughter.

“As a mother looking for picture books about science, they weren’t necessarily showing girls—those that looked like my daughter,” Bent said. “Empowering books focused on girls in STEM are becoming more available, but it’s still not quite there yet.”

Beyond her own role as a woman in medicine—working as an Assistant Professor of Clinical Orthopedics at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California—her inspiration came from her experiences at her daughter’s scholastic events.

“I volunteered as a judge at my daughter’s science fair, and I was the only woman and one of two judges of color,” Bent said. “Looking at the statistics, only 38 percent of active physicians are female, even though there’s more women going into medical school. Black women such as myself make up 2.8% of all doctors and Latina women are 2.4%. So, I thought that this was an area [where I could] inspire young girls, especially those of different backgrounds that may not be necessarily represented.”

Deciding to try her own hand at publishing, Bent experimented with her work and branched out to various sources when seeking guidance.

“I really wanted to just get the book out there and see how it did, and that’s mainly why I went the self-publishing route,” she added. “I listened to podcasts and seminars about self-publishing, and I also joined the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). They were a great resource for the draft period; I went to them with my manuscript and got critical feedback on it, and then also learned of other resources and processes.”

Being new to the field, Bent’s journey was one of new experiences and lots of learning.

“It’s like with anything, you just have to put pen to paper,” Bent said. “I had to learn about the book writing process, in terms of coming together with something, and to get help in areas that I don’t know about, [including from] my partner—in terms of illustrations—and also from a developmental editor. Really, I think the big thing with any book is marketing, so it’s been a journey of learning ways to market, and it’s been fun.”

Despite using relatively advanced terminology, Bent sees potential for the book to reach a wide variety of ages.

“One of my beta readers is a fourth-grade teacher, and she said that the language was very ‘robust’ in terms of the medical wording and jargon,” she said. “But my daughter was able to read the first page. ‘A is for allergy;’ she knew the words. And she’s three years old, so although this book [is marketed for ages] four to seven, certainly other kids—even younger kids—can read it. That’s the beauty of picture books; a lot of it is about the illustrations, even more so than the words.”

Bent hopes that her book will help make an impact in STEM literature for young children, helping to inspire future generations of women in medicine.

“When I was young, I didn’t have these resources,” she said. “I would have appreciated more exposure, as somebody who’s a first-generation female immigrant. Hopefully this book will help a growing body of children’s literature—especially for those from underrepresented backgrounds—inspire more kids and their families.”

Bent found this experience to be a creative outlet outside of her clinical, research, and administrative roles. As for the future, she has ideas for additional books focused on highlighting other girls and women from underrepresented minorities in medicine. For example, she would like to explore different ways of storytelling and integrate her specialty, Orthopedics.