I Received a Signed Contract from 4RV Publishing for “Joan’s Elder Care Guide”

I am so excited. After 44 years of waiting for a book of mine to be published by a traditional publisher, 4RV Publishing and I have signed a contract for them to publish my “Joan’s Elder Care Guide.” Its scheduled release date is June, 2015. This is in 4 years, two months from now. They moved the publication date up to June, 2014. However, it will now be released in 2016. 

4RV Publishing is a high quality, small traditional publisher.  I love the books they publish. I like the trailers they put on the website to advertise the books. Vivian Zabel, President, said that they are expanding and hope to be able to move their books up so they are published sooner than the scheduled release date. I am honored that they believe in me and my writing. They have a blog: 4RV Reading, Writing, & Art News. It’s filled with information to help others become better readers, writers, designers, and illustrators.  All of the writers and illustrators who are published and are going to be published by RV Publishing are invited to contribute to it. I’ll be posting on it the third Wednesday of each month. You can click on the link above and subscribe by email

Here’s a little history on how all this came about: In October 2010, I participated in The Muse Writers Online Conference. Lea Schizas, facilitator and organizer of The Muse Writers Online Conference, asked different publishers and agents to join the conference. These publishers and agents accepted pitches through chat rooms. Lea Schizas read my pitch for my elder care guide and approved it as meeting the guidelines that 4RV Publishing had advertised at the conference. On October 11, 2010 I gave my pitch to Vivian Zabel in the chat room.  I had five minutes to convince her to take a look at my manuscript. I was very excited when she said, “It sounds promising. Send us the first three chapters and a synopsis. The guidelines are on our website.”

I sent the first three chapters and a synopsis as she asked that same evening of October 11, 2010.

I heard back in January, 2011 that they were tentatively interested, if I was willing to make a few changes.  I told them that I had revised the manuscript. Each time I revise my aim is to make it better and better. They asked me to send the whole manuscript.

In March, I received a contract by email. I danced on the ceilings, on the roof, and all through the house. I studied it for a few days, signed it in front of a notary public at the bank, and sent it back to 4RV Publishing. Today I received in my mailbox, my copy of the contract with a notarized signature of Vivian Zabel, President of 4RV Publishing. Hip Hip Hooray!

Here is part of the pitch I used. I updated the statistics from my site for this blog post.

“Joan’s Elder Care Guide: Day to Day Survival” is a resource for caregivers packed with practical day-to-day survival tips from my fourteen years of experience in caring for my elder Mother. In this guide, caregivers assess and meet their needs and those of the elder by using prayer, humor, hymns, devotionals, sample forms and charts, and other resources.

In 2000 the U.S. Census counted 35 million people 65 years of age and over in the United States. Now and for the next 20 years, middle-aged adults will need advice to care for parents and grandparents. My book will help these people find a less stressful way to meet their own needs and care for their elders, too.

Genre: Non-Fiction, Christian, Self-Help, in the Health and Aging section of bookstore.

Length of book:  200 pages double-spaced, black and white, no color needed. A cartoon for each chapter would heighten enjoyment. Devotional, Songs, and annotated bibliography at the end of each chapter

I am qualified to write this book because I took care of my elderly Mother for fourteen years – from the time she was 78, until she died at 92 years of age.

My Writing Credits

1. Growing with the Gospel for Liturgical Years A, B, and C published by Liturgical Publications, New Berlin, Wisconsin. I wrote the devotionals for Growing with the Gospel Grades K-1. I was consultant and editor for both K-1 and 2-3.

2. Flip Flap Floodle. I am author/illustrator of self-published picture book with BookSurge in 2004.ISBN-10: 1594572852 ISBN-13: 978-1594572852.

3.  My Never Give Up blog http://www.joanyedwards.com had 133 posts/8,053 visitors/591 comments from October 9, 2009/April 9, 2011.

I am honored that you are here.  Thank you. Subscribe by email or RSS.

Never Give Up!
Joan Y. Edwards
Copyright © 2011 Joan Y. Edwards and her licensors.

Contests over May 2011.