The Rural Voice, 2000-10, Page 14ORGANIC FARMERS
The Canadian Organic
Seed Alliance
Can offer you for your fall planting.
Oilradish Seed
Rye Seed
5 w
Triticale Seed v►
Winter Wheat Seed NN
Spelt Seed
All Seeds grown organically
guaranteed purity and
germination.
Seed contracts available
for organic producers.
For more information
call COSA
(519) 395-3126
or (519) 364-1525
"Our experience
assures lower cost
water wells"
100 YEARS' EXPERIENCE
Member of Canadian
and Ontario
Water Well Associations
• Farm
• Industrial
• Suburban
• Municipal
Licensed
by the Ministry
of the Environment
DAVIDSON
WELL DRILLING LTD.
WINGHAM
Serving Ontario Since 1900
519-357-1960 WINGHAM
519-664-1424 WATERLOO
10 THE RURAL VOICE
Robert Mercer
Taking farm life to the printed page
How often have you said to
yourself "I think I should write a
book about that" and never got
around to doing it? WeII, I went to a
farm where some of those farm
stories are making it to the
bookshelves.
Jackie Ward
has done it. The
characters, the
Grovehill Gang.
may sound like
Life with a bunch
of thugs on the
wrong side of the
tracks, but this
gang makes
tracks all over
the farm.
These lovable
creatures not
only live on the
land, they now
live in the pages
of two self -published children's
books written and illustrated by
Jacqueline Ward of Qualicum Beach,
Vancouver Island.
Jackie has turned a bunch of farm
animals and pets into storybook
heroes with their real action antics
and a little make believe. The animals
are all real, the stories real of both
what did happen and also what
shouldn't have happened.
Jackie won't put the folks at
Ontario Agri -Food Education out of
business but she is helping bridge that
gap between consumers and the farm.
There is no easy money in self -
publishing, but Jackie Ward has gone
from concept to completion with help
from the family, hard work, three
rejection slips and a whole lot of
down-to-earth determination.
Just like farming, Jackie says,
"we'll do it 'til the money runs out."
Hopefully the money will last and
increase as there is a whole series of
books planned to immortalize this
gang of critters that are more family
than farmyard.
Jackie says in retrospect that it has
been easier to write the stories even
though they have been edited and
changed numerous times, than it was
to either do the illustrations or the
ongoing marketing.
This is the first effort at self -
publishing for Jackie and her copy
cost runs about $2 each for the 24 to
32 page books. The press run has
been 4,500. She has found that the
industry standard has bookstores
taking 40 per cent of the cover price
which is $7.95. To increase the
distribution beyond her own local
area, she has employed a book
distributor in Victoria and personally
signed a deal with the lower mainland
BC area for distribution in
Coles/Smiths book stores.
The books aim at the Grade 2-3
level and carry the approach of good
and gentle care of animals as well as
trying to immortalize her animal
friends that have such short lives.
Twenty years in the school system
has taught Jackie how to deal with
children. As an entrepreneur, the
marketing has been more of a
learning experience. She has a
website www.thegrovehillgang.com
that pictures the dogs, cattle, pigs and
horses. It gives details on the books,
the background and ordering. She is
also exploring the potential to cross-
link the website with a local
woodcarver to sell the carved
likeness of the Grovehill Gang right
alongside the books. To date the book
titles are The Naughty Seven and
Jake's Lunch with Cattle Drive due
in spring 2001.0
Robert Mercer was editor of the
Broadwater Market Letter and a farm
commentator in Ontario for 25 years.
C
RIME
STOPPERS
1.800.222 -TIPS