Forget the Publisher

Hi,

I hope that you enjoyed the Holidays and you have recovered and are ready to get back to work. Several people have asked me why I didn’t bother to even look at getting a publisher for my book and my response was “what do I need them for”?

All I have heard is horror stories about unknown writers trying to get a publisher and I at first thought that finding a Publisher would help me get my book out on the market. Wrong.

With the help of the Internet you don’t need one and if they come after you then you can decide if you want to have a joint venture with them or not. A joint venture is really what it is. They don’t just hand you a check, take your book and make you famous, you are still going to do all the work. That includes the marketing, books signings and supply chain.

Children’s books are a brutal market (so I wrote one) and unless you are already famous like Madonna then you have to have the vision to do it on your own.

Over the next few weeks we are going to talk about building a vision and then taking the steps to reach it. It will be somewhat painful and it doesn’t have to cost a fortune either. I put The Fire Station Buddies together, published my first book and got the marketing contracts I wanted for less than $4,000.

Stay tuned and let me know if you would like some help.
www.firestationbuddies.com

Thanks,
Karen

Yahoo it is Sunday!

That means we are all headed up to the slopes to do some major boarding.

The sun is out and we have all our gear packed and it is time to sail through the air, glide through the snow and have an awsome day.

Have fun and stay safe.
Flash

It's Saturday

Hi Buddies,

I hope that you had a nice Christmas but it is time to get back to work. That's right it is Saturday and so we need to wash the trucks.

Only two of them are dirty since we had some snow this week and it is really cold outside so I don't think we are going to wash them outside today.

We put the chains on the SCAT truck and Rescue 2 last week, so we are ready to go out on calls in the snow now. Engine 2 is nice and warm in his bay and will not see a lot of activity now since it is winter and Engine 2 doesn't have 4 wheel drive.

www.firestationbuddies.com

Have a nice Saturday and get your chores done.

Love,
Tundra

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.
Love Inferno

Don't eat to many cookies.
Love, Chinook

Let's go play in the snow.
Love, Flash

Are you going to Grandma's house today?
Love, Tundra

What did you get for Christmas?
Love, Scout

I'm going to sleep in all day!
Love,Hydra

Swift Water Rescue

Hi,

My name is Inferno and I am the head Fire Buddy,

Today we are going to discuss the Swift Water Rescue due to the water main break in Bethesda, MD.

These guys did a great job and used all their training and experience to rescue the people that were trapped in the rushing water. They had on their wet suits, helmets and life jackets. They went out in their boats and you could see that they were tied to the bank and that the shore crew was working with them.

Even though it was a water main break, the flow was very large and moving very quickly and you could not walk in it. When in an incident like this you should check out your surroundings and see if it is safe to leave your car or not. Always remember to do what the responders request, they have been trained and the know the quickest way out of danger.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5heCh49kilrODnqGRS3Iovw8E20nAD958L4CG1

The Fire Station Buddies are working on their Operations & Safety Manual and in it you will learn more about Swift Water Rescue.

Stay Safe,
Inferno
http://www.firestationbuddies.com/

The road painfully traveled.

I never realized when I started all this that it would lead me down a road of adventure.

I have been making the Fire Buddies for over 17 years and they are all over the country now. They were just a little pillow buddy for the kids at the scene to snuggle. Working at a volunteer fire department in a small town made fund raising a constant struggle. One day I just thought - I can sell the Buddies, give them a life and raise money. No problem - should be simple, I'm an engineer , I can figure this out. I don't need any help! I was an idiot!! I should have just ran myself over with the fire truck and moved on.

My first goal was to write a children's book about who the Buddies are and what they do. As I wrote the first book "The Legend" all the other 9 books fell into place. The writing was the easy part but I can't even draw a straight line much less a picture. I went out on the internet and found an illistrater. I got several quotes and decided on Simon who lives in London. He and I have done the first book by email. He is a great illistrater and you can find him at www.simongoodway.com.

I worked on the layout and the story for almost 6 months and it is now finally done. The next challenge was getting it printed. Again, I know that it is impossible to get a publisher and help, so I turned again to the internet. I found several printers and their quotes ranges from $2 to $10 for my 24 page kids book. The book is now at the printers, I have a web page and I have also put together a marketing plan for 2009. I have figured out how to put a business together, market it and make it a success. Please feel free to visit www.firestationbuddies.com to see how I did it.

If you have any questions about getting your ideas off the ground. Just reply to this blog.

Thanks,
Karen