I Am a Storyteller! by J.Q. Rose #storytelling #writingstories #writing #readingoutloud

 

Fiction and Non-fiction Books by J. Q. Rose

Hello and welcome to the Focused on Story Blog!

I chose the title of this blog because I love stories!! Reading them. Writing them. Teaching how to write or tell them. Listening to them.

JQ presenting a life storytelling workshop

I broke into the writing business after we sold our flower shop and greenhouse operation in 1995. (uh-oh..that may be a spoiler if you're reading my memoir, Arranging a Dream!)

Pumpkins growing in our garden. 

I collected all of my courage to ask the regional newspaper editor, Rich Wheater if he would be interested in having some features on people and businesses in our local area. He asked me to submit an article, so I did. I wrote about a local farm family who raised pumpkins and sold the plump beauties displayed in long lines in their front yard. It was October, so it was a timely story. Rich accepted the story and many more that I penned about West Michigan. 

I learned a lot about writing for a newspaper and about writing crisp, to-the-point articles. I did not like it when Rich had to shorten the story to make way for advertisements! That's when I learned all the essentials, such as location, people or business names, time and dates for events, had to be at the beginning of the article. I always appreciated his editing the stories to improve the readability. 

When we decided to make our fifth-wheel camper our home full-time in 1998, I wrote about the RV industry for magazines and newspapers as we meandered across the country. I also wrote for e-zines, now known as online magazines, as a garden editor. The internet became my best friend for articles.

After a while, I tired of writing non-fiction stories and turned to creating fictional stories, a love of mine since I was in second grade. 

Your Words, Your Life Story

On this blog, I also encourage folks to write their fiction and non-fiction stories. I have many articles about helpful tools for writers.

Life Storytelling Evangelist! 

I am a storyteller, and I believe everyone has a story to tell. In fact, I am such a life storytelling evangelist, I created a journal from the life-storytelling workshops I have taught through the years. Your Words, Your Life Story: A Journal for Sharing Memories helps to guide readers through ways to spark memories and record their legacy for their families and friends, and/or publish them for the world to read their messages.

Listening to Stories

 Do you remember listening to your teacher read a story out loud to your class? Mrs. Beyer, my 8th grade, yes 8th-grade teacher, always read a story after lunch. Even at 13-14 years old, our class loved listening to the story. I had to read the heart-wrenching ending to Charlotte's Web because Mrs. Beyer was so emotional, she couldn't continue. Have you read Charlotte's Web? You'll understand.

When I taught third grade, I made a point to read to my kids after lunch every day. Every year, I read Charlotte's Web, and we all shared a teary moment. 

Diana Kathryn Plopa invited me to read a story out loud for her series of Indie Authors Read Aloud, so I am sharing the video with you. I hope you can take time for a break and enjoy listening to the beginning of Terror on Sunshine Boulevard. Some day I'll have to tell you the back story to this book!

The reading begins about 5 minutes into the video.

Click here to watch.

Do you love to listen to audiobooks? Do you love to read to kids? Please leave a comment below. I enjoy receiving feedback. Thank you.

Quick Tips on Vegetable Gardening
by J.Q. Rose

We celebrated the first day of spring on Sunday, March 20. Ready to plant your garden? Click here to download this quick read for 99 cents. Get started growing your veggies for 2022!

Wishing you a delightful spring season and a bounteous summer of gardening!

Podcast https://anchor.fm/diana-kathryn-plopa/episodes/Episode-Three-with-J-Q--Rose-and-Terror-On-Sunshine-Boulevard-e1etgkq

Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHrZvVix9sE&t=5s