4RV Publishing has a "shop-lett"

The 4RV Shop-lett with all books so far, including Walking Through Walls

          Thanks to the efforts of 4RV's Marketing Director Jodi Brungardt, we have an area as part of The Market at Quail Springs in Oklahoma City. It's not large, but it definitely showcases some of the books from 4RV.

The 4RV Shop-lett

         The Market at Quail Springs is located at  2501 W Memorial Rd, Oklahoma City, OK 73134, which is just north of Memorial and on the east side of May. The Facebook link is https://www.facebook.com/TheMarketatQuailSprings.

         The rent for the area is shared by the authors who have books available and on display at the 4RV shop-lett. If more authors, enough that they could and would cover the rent, maybe we could add another aisle-cap and double the number of books.

Another view of the 4RV Shop-lett

The aisle past the shop-lett

Rave review for Joan's Elder Care Guide

     Midwest Book  Review for May 2017,  carried the following review by Shawn Simon for Joan's Elder Care Guide:

Five Stars on a scale of 1-5

Joan's Elder Care Guide: Empowering You and Your Elder to Survive, by Joan Y Edwards, is a comprehensive handbook for those who are taking care of or may need to take care of an elderly person. So often when one becomes a caregiver to a parent or other relative, they are not at all prepared for the job at hand. Being unprepared can cause stress to the caregiver and to the person being cared for.

With Joan's handbook, this stress, frustration, and exhaustion can be relieved. There is advice about how to handle emotions that are sure to arise and for making sure to provide social outlets for your elder, and so much more. From first deciding the best location for your loved one to the end of life discussions, this book has it all. The book even provides checklists to use and a whole host of resources!

Of essential importance, is making sure your own needs are met. We often forget to care for ourselves when we are caring for a loved one. However, we are no good to them, if we are not good to ourselves. What is sometimes difficult to think about are the financial issues to consider after your loved one has passed. Joan's book discusses how to best handle wills, trusts, estates, and more. There is even a section on grieving our loved one.

I especially love the anecdotal stories she shares about her time caring for her feisty, witty elderly mother. Her experiences are what prompted her to write this book. She realized how much she needed to consider before deciding to provide full-time care for her mother. There did not seem to be a comprehensive guide to help her, so she decided to write her own. This is a book everyone should have if they may ever need to care for an elderly person. Joan Y Edwards has thought of everything.

Shawn Simon, Reviewer

http://stepmomshawn.com

     Joan's Elder Care Guide can be bought through any brick and mortar bookstore, 4RV Bookstore, or other online sources.

Finding Children's Story Ideas

Sitting at the computer with a blank word document in front of you may be intimidating for a writer. You just finished one manuscript, or you’ve hired out to ghostwrite a story, or whatever the reason is, you need to begin writing a children’s story.

Hmmm. What should it be about? You think and think. You gaze out the window. You draw a blank.

Alexander Steele wrote a short article in the October 2010 issue of the Writer, “Where can you find the seeds of a good story?” It was interesting to read that Herman Melville, author of Moby-Dick, had his own whaling adventures which he used to create a wonderful, everlasting story. Steele advices, “Probably the most fertile place to look for ideas is right inside the backyard of your own life.”

You might be thinking you don’t have close contact with children, so you don’t have any experiences do draw on. Or, you may be so busy living your life and raising your children that you don’t have time to stop and see all the amazing story opportunities that are right in your own backyard. Well, even if these scenarios fit, you can take steps to rectify the situation.

Finding Story Ideas if You Don’t Have Close Contact with Children

1. Turn on the TV. Yes, this is an excellent source for story ideas, as well as watching children’s behavior. While it may be in the confines of a scripted show, the writers of these shows try to keep it as real as possible. Take note of the situations, the attitudes of the actors, the scenes, and everything else. Even children’s cartoons have engaging storylines. It may be just the spark you need.

2. Go to a playground with notebook in hand. Watch the children play and listen to them talk. If you’re a professional writer (ghostwriter), or you’re already published, consider asking your local age appropriate school if you could sit in the lunchroom during lunch periods. A useful way to get a positive answer would be to first ask if you could give an author or writing presentation to the students. The principal would need to be sure you are a legitimate writer. Please note though, I don’t know if there is any legal aspects a school would need to consider.

Note: If you do go to a playground, be sure to inform parents/guardians of what you're doing. It'd be a good idea to bring a copy of one of your published books with you, so they feel comfortable that you are indeed a writer. It's a crazy world, always take precautions, and keep the safety of our children at the forefront.

3.  Read newly published children’s books, and reread ones you enjoyed as a child, then reinvent a story. This is a tip I took advantage of with my own children’s fantasy chapter book. I read an old Chinese tale and reinvented it for a children’s book. I was recently reminded of this story idea source by multi-published children’s writer Margot Finke, during a teleclass she presented.

Finke advised to study books you like; pay attention to why they work, then “craft an entirely new story.” She explained that, “quirky and fresh” wins publishing contracts today.

Finding Story Ideas if You Do Have Close Contact with Children

1. Study the children you do have contact with, whether your own children, your grandchildren, or other relatives. Children are an amazing source of inspiration and ideas. They have an innate ability to make you feel: just looking at a picture of children may make you smile; hearing a baby laugh can actually make you laugh.

Watch the children, notice their mannerisms, body language, movements, attitudes and emotions, speech, and their interactions with other children and adults. You’ll not only get story ideas, you’ll also get dialogue and ‘showing’ descriptions.

2. If you have regular contact with children, you really shouldn’t need any other steps, but if the age of your new story differ from the ages of the children you see, use the steps noted above for writers who don’t have contact with children.

Karen Cioffi is an award-winning author, ghost-writer, and online platform instructor with WOW! Women on Writing. For must-know writing and marketing tips, get free access to The Writing World.

You can connect with Karen at:
http://facebook.com/writingforchildrenwithkarecioffi