Warm thanks, Marva, for allowing space
for me to crow about all the remarkable women in my non-fiction
e-book for girls, Girls Succeed: Stories Behind the Careers of
Successful Women.
Hello Readers. Thank you for stopping
by. I’m excited to visit with you today. Please leave comments to
enter a random drawing for prizes after the tour is completed. More
information about that later.
Inspiring and empowering
girls to achieve success in their dream careers.
I interviewed fifteen fabulous women
about their careers and the path they followed in order to be the
best of the best in their chosen fields. I was stirred to write a
book for girls after working four summers at Camp Newaygo, a girls
residence camp in Michigan. I met the most amazing young women who
were counselors and energetic campers who kept life interesting! I
marveled at the potential for the futures of these smart,
enthusiastic girls. Faced with so many possibilities for careers, I
wondered what choices they would make.
Unlike my era of high school graduates
when girls were limited to career choices of teacher, nurse, and
secretary, today’s girls face so many more possibilities of
vocations in science, business, athletics, and more. How could they
decide? This e-book gives them information on careers, but the
stories also inspire and empower them to pursue their dreams and make
them come true.
Each chapter begins with an
inspirational quote which I hope will touch the reader’s heart and
use it as a reminder to keep her focused on her dream. As I wrote the
book, I kept Eleanor Roosevelt’s quote in mind, “The
future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”
Learning about
each woman and who or what influenced her journey to achieving her
goal was a privilege. Many of their stories are similar. A doctor, a
teacher, and medical scientist were influenced by mentors. A social
worker and children’s author suffered childhood illnesses, and a
horticulturalist and horsewoman followed their childhood passion
turning it into a career.
I could go on and
on about these wonderful women, but instead I have chosen to stop and
share only one of the stories about children’s author and
illustrator Jane Stroschin. Jane is an appropriate choice for Marvas
blog because Marva has authored several fun books for middle grade
kids. Jane’s latest project, an outstanding mural of six panels
depicting symbols of Michigan, is on the Girls Succeed blog at
http://GirlsSucceed.blogspot.com . After finishing this post, please
hop over there and take a look at her outstanding talent with paint.
EXCERPT FROM THE BOOK
“To
succeed you have to believe in something
with
such a passion that it becomes a reality.”
--
Anita Roddick, entrepreneur, business executive
JANE
STROSCHIN
CHILDREN’S
BOOK AUTHOR AND ILLUSTRATOR
Practice,
Practice, Practice
Eight-year-old
Jane clutched the new drawing pad, pencils, and paints to her
chest. She treasured the precious tools. The little girl filled the
paper pads with her drawings and paintings. Jane Stroschin was
enthusiastic about creating art pieces from the time she was just a
girl. She grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with her twin sister and
an older sister.
It was her love of
drawing which helped Jane recover from an accident. One day she and
her friends were outdoors playing football. Jane was tackled, but
could not get up. Her legs were broken. She had to endure surgeries
to repair her legs. Doctors told her she would not walk. But
through determination and hard work, Jane proved the doctors wrong.
She learned to walk again.
During this time
of recovery from the accident, Jane worked on her drawing skills and
practiced and polished her artwork.
Jane loved
sketching so much she continued even after her legs healed. She
created cartoons for her junior and senior high newspapers. In high
school, her art teacher asked her to join the “grown-ups”
painting class in her home town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The artists
in the class were impressed with her composition. She graduated from
the University of Wisconsin with a degree in art education. She
continued to paint and draw and to learn from respected masters of
art in classes and workshops.
After graduation
Jane married Mike Stroschin and they moved to Fremont, Michigan,
where she and Mike raised their two children, Laura and Brian.
Because there were no jobs for art teachers, Jane accepted a job as
the children’s librarian at the local library. It was here that
she fell in love with picture books. She appreciated the combination
of art with the story.
She read lots of
books so she could be sure to select interesting ones for the
library’s weekly story time. Two of her favorites to read out loud
were Tikki Tikki Tembo by Arlene Mosel and Blair Lent and
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by
Judith Voirst and Ray Cruz. She wanted the kids to have fun with the
stories and to return each week for more.
One summer
afternoon Jane and her young children, Laura and Brian, sat on a
grassy hill watching the puffy clouds move and change as they crossed
the blue sky. The kids told their mom what the clouds looked like…a
dinosaur, a kitty, and more. These cloud pictures gave Jane an idea
for her first picture book, The Cloudy Day.
Another idea for a
book, Emma Lou and the Reindeer Flu, popped into her head when
Jane was on the road traveling to a school where she would be
teaching kids to write stories and draw pictures. It began to snow.
“The snow was
beautiful. It made me want to write a Christmas story,” she said.
As Jane continued
on her journey, the story of Emma Lou took shape in her mind. She
pictured Santa stopping at Emma Lou’s farm on Christmas Eve because
all the reindeer were sick with the flu. She had to get the words on
paper, so she stopped at a restaurant, sat down at the table, and
began writing the story on the back of the placemat.
“Would you like
a menu?” asked the waitress as she placed a glass of water on the
table. She couldn’t put it on the placemat after all.
Jane looked up
from her writing. “Um, oh no. I’ll just have the
special—whatever it is,” she said and returned to her writing.
The words for the
story were streaming onto the placemat. Jane didn’t even notice
the waitress had brought her food. Finally the waitress stopped by
the table and asked if something was wrong with the meal. Jane kept
writing and took a bite of the food. “It’s fine,” she said.
When she finished
the story, Jane went to the pay phone in the restaurant to call her
twin sister. (This was before cell phones were available.) She read
the story over the phone to her surprised sister. There was silence
on the other end.
“Well, what do
you think?” she asked. Still silence. She began to worry. Jane
thought her sister must not like the story and was trying to figure
out how to tell her it was a rotten idea.
At last Jane heard
her sister sniffle and then reply. “I’m crying. I love it.”
This children’s
author eventually founded her own publishing company which allows her
to write and illustrate books, as well as oversee their layout,
format, sales, and shipping. She also works to publicize the books.
Not only is Jane a
wonderful story teller and excellent artist, she is also an
accomplished art teacher. Children and adults attend her drawing and
painting workshops. She travels around the country teaching children
to write stories and draw pictures to go with their stories.
Her latest
gigantic art project is as tall as a one story building and as wide
as two cars parked bumper to bumper. She was commissioned by the City
of Fremont, Michigan, to create a mural entitled Celebrate Our
Symbols. The colorful painting depicts scenes found in nature and the
wildlife in Michigan such as deer, birds, fish and more.
“If you want to
be an artist, then study art history and the masters’ techniques.
If you want to be a writer, then read the great writers. Develop
your style from studying them,” Jane advises. “Be persistent, be
passionate, and look for encouragement from your family and friends.”
Jane laughs when
she says, “No one can put a pair of ice skates on their feet and
then skate. They fall and they get up. They practice, practice,
practice. That is what you have to do to be your best.”
HIGHLIGHTS OF
HER CAREER
Bachelor’s
Degree in Art, University of Wisconsin
Published
children’s books
Painting displayed
in White House as a gift from the American Poultry Association to
President William Clinton
Portrait of
President Ronald Reagan displayed in the Reagan Library in California
FOR MORE
INFORMATION
Jane suggests
studying drawings by renowned artists. For line drawings look up the
children’s books by
Check out art
books that include paintings by famous artists.
Visit art museums
and galleries.
Get out your
drawing pad and pencil and draw!
BOOK LINKS: If you would like to
download a sample of the e-book which includes the Table of Contents
listing all the careers in the book, please go to
Contest Information Janet will
be drawing winners from visitors who leave comments during the tour.
The prizes for you or a girl in your life are a $10 Amazon gift
certificate, a copy of the Girls Succeed e-book in your choice of
format, a “Succeed” beaded bracelet kit, and inspirational note
pads. (See the Girls Succeed and J Q Rose blogs for photos and blog
tour information.). Winners announced on her blogs on Sunday,
November 18 at 9 pm EST. Good luck!
Connect with J.Q. Rose online at
BIO: After writing feature
articles in magazines, newspapers, and online magazines for over
fifteen years, J.Q. Rose entered the world of fiction writing with
her first published novella, Sunshine Boulevard, released by
Muse It Up Publishing in 2011. With Girls Succeed, she returns to her first love, writing about real people. Blogging, photography, Pegs and Jokers board games, and travel are the things that keep her out of trouble. Spending winters in Florida with her husband allows Janet the opportunity to enjoy the life of a snowbird. Summer finds her camping and hunting toads, frogs, and salamanders with her four grandsons and granddaughter.
