The Story of
I Love You More
The Story Behind I Love You More
What began as an unexpected answer to a prayer became a message that would travel into hearts, homes, classrooms, hospitals, libraries, and communities around the world.
An Answered Prayer
I Love You More wasn’t something I planned to write.
At the time, I was managing and bartending at The Clevelander on South Beach in Miami. I had a Sociology degree from the University of Maryland, but honestly, no great idea what I was going to do with my life. My MOM jokes, I moved to South Beach and practiced being social.
I never dreamed of becoming an author. A P- (pass minus) from Mrs. Erickson in the 2nd grade had created a traumatic disconnect between me and my writing ability.
Though there I was, one night, away with friends at the opening of a nightclub, I found myself unexpectedly praying for my sister, who was pregnant with her second child and going through a difficult time in her marriage.
My prayer was simple:
“Dear God, please watch over my sister. She could really use some help, and I’m not there.”
I remember thinking immediately afterward:
“This is strange. I don’t really pray like this anymore.”
And just as clearly as I had the thought, I heard a voice answer me:
“Your sister is fine. Pray for your nephew.”
“This is even stranger,” I thought. “Not only do I not pray like this, but something just answered me.”
As I began praying for my nephew, the entire idea for I Love You More poured through me.
Call it inner wisdom. Divine guidance. Grace. Inspiration.
Whatever it was, it was clear to me that I was meant to bring this book and its message into the world.
I pulled out a piece of hotel stationary and began writing the idea down.
The original version of I Love You More poured through very specifically for my nephew.
One of the beautiful things I’ve learned is that God/Source/Life doesn’t always hand us the complete picture all at once. We’re invited to co-create with the idea… and with each other.
My mom said:
“Not every picture book needs to rhyme… but I think this one should.”
And my sister had the idea to make it a flip book.
Together, what began as a simple prayer and inspiration became something far greater than any of us could have created alone.
A Message Bigger Than Me
At the time, “I Love You More” wasn’t even a phrase we used in my family. This was almost thirty years ago, long before it became part of everyday culture.
I had no idea I was about to write a book centered around a phrase millions of people around the world would one day say to each other daily.
What I did know was this:
I wanted my nephew to know that despite the chaos around him, he was deeply loved.
What I didn’t yet realize was that in many ways, I was also writing the message my own inner child needed to hear.
My dad struggled with alcoholism for many years, and parts of my childhood felt scary and unpredictable at times.
The message inside I Love You More became healing for me too.
Becoming “The Bald Chick”
That same year, just before turning thirty, I made another life-changing decision.
After hiding behind wigs for nearly two decades due to Alopecia, I decided to stop wearing them. Completely.
A decision that seemingly came out of nowhere.
Though, somehow, embodying the message of I Love You More gave me the courage to finally embrace myself fully. Inside the book’s message I found self-love.
I called my friends and said:
“Throw me a party. I’m not going to wear wigs anymore.”
We had the choice of going to a nightclub called LIFE or one called CHAOS.
Both felt oddly appropriate!
We chose LIFE. And that night became known as my:
“Coming Out Party as The Bald Chick.”
I didn’t realize how connected the decision was to the book, until years later when I began traveling to schools around the country sharing the freedom, healing, and joy that comes from being yourself. Michael Singer expressed it best in his book, The Untethered Soul — as LIBERATION.
It turns out I set both myself
and my wigs free.
Today, I consider it an honor
and a gift to stand as a
visible reminder that
truth, authenticity,
and love are beautiful.
The Day Before the World Changed
After sending the book to a handful of publishers and agents, and receiving back an equal number of NOs, we opted to self-publish. Two words I’d never even heard together.
Though myself, and illustrator Karen Keesler, calling our selves “Hippie and The Bald Chick” with ten thousand dollars borrowed from my mother’s credit cards signed a contract to print 3000 copies overseas. Karen was a friend from my South Beach days who said, “I might not be a famous artist, but I know what love looks like to a five year old.” She drew the pictures with a bag of pastel chalks she had purchased at a yard sale for fifty cents!
On September 10, 2001, we packed the original illustrations of I Love You More into a FedEx envelope and sent them off to be scanned.
The next morning, the world changed forever.
Standing in the aftermath and fear of 9/11, we had to decide if we should go through with the printing. At that time it was hard to know what the world would look like in three weeks or three months. Though we realized, now more than ever the world would need our book and it’s message of love. I made a promise to myself:
To be part of the solution.
To help dissolve hatred, fear, and separation through the power of love.
Oddly—or “Goddly enough,” as I sometimes say—the time 9:11 had already held deep significance in my life for several years leading up to that moment.
On the morning of September 11th at 9AM, I was on a call with my coach Cathy Silva when both my sister and her husband were letting us know something was going on and we needed to get off the phone.
I heard my coach turn to her husband and say, words I will never forget:
“There’s nothing more important than this book right now.”
At the time, we had no idea our illustrations were literally flying through the air on their way to Hong Kong for printing while terror was unfolding in the skies above New York and our country.
That’s a lot to make sense of.
But one thing has become very clear to me:
Love is what helps us heal.
Love is what dissolves fear.
Love is the Answer.
And here we are, almost 25 years later, and we still need this message
now more than ever.
Love Always Wins
What began as a self-published book created with $10,000 borrowed on my mom’s credit cards has now reached millions of hearts around the world.
The book has been translated into multiple languages and continues to find its way into homes, classrooms, NICUs, hospitals, and communities in ways I never could have imagined.
Years later, while driving on Route 3 in Massachusetts, I had another moment of deep clarity about the book.
Tears started pouring down my face and I had to pull over on the side of the highway.
The same inner voice that first gifted me I Love You More said clearly:
“The book is really a message between Creator and child.
But the relationship most people would relate to or understand is mother and child.”
WOW.
So if that perspective speaks to you, I invite you to read the book that way too.
Whether you call it God, Life, Source, Love, or the Universe...
I believe, as the book so beautifully shares, we are limitlessly loved.
And we have the opportunity to love life back the same way.
Something else I discovered along the way:
Love Always Wins.
It’s the L A W.
The Story Continues…
Over the years, people have often said:
“You need to write the whole story!”
They may be right! I Love You More has become much more than a book.
It’s a journey of healing, courage, creativity, spirituality, self-love, community, and discovering what becomes possible when we tune into limitless love.
There are still so many stories left to share.
For now, I’ll be sharing pieces of that journey through blog posts, social media, conversations, and Laura’s Love Letter along the way. And of course, the story continues as we embark on The I Love You More Tour: Celebrating 25 Years of Limitless Love! We hope YOU will join US -- Find out more about the tour here.
So if you’d like to follow along…find me on social and/or sign up for our Love Letter below.
Bring the Message Home
Whether through a signed copy, a school visit, or donating books to families and NICUs in need, thank you for helping share the message of love.