Claire Oliver

My Big-Business Lesson

Butting heads with a big-business mogul was the last thing this wife and mother since I was sixteen, (I'm now 77) expected to do while in night school learning how to print my story "Sam, The Hippo No One Wanted." I intended to give out my work as Christmas Presents to family, friends, etc.

Hello! Let me introduce myself. I'm Claire Oliver. I'm responsible for www.samslittlebooks.com, a self help and learning series for children, named after my original character "Sam." To learn more about my project and me I suggest you go to my website, and then back here. Of course I hope everyone buys my books, tells others about my project, this blog, and shares my acquired knowledge.

Shortly after I printed "Sam," John Smith a big-business mogul, (not his real name) saw a copy. He called me because his friend's son had an idea for children electronic-coloring book, he needed stories. John wanted to meet me to discuss this possibility. I don't know what I expected when we were to meet, but he definitely wasn't the movie stereo-type businessman. His wife was with him. They were very personable.

After our meeting, John faxed me a one-page contract that he said he wrote. I emphasized he said he wrote. (What John didn't know is that my parents were voracious readers. At an early age they taught me the value of printed words.) As a result I had already purchased from "Barnes and Nobel" a "How-to Book" on writing scripts with a section about business contracts. There was a contract almost exactly like his in this section.

(1) He offered me 8% net. I probably would have jumped to sign his contract because it sounded like I could rake in the dough with one exception. I knew John Smith had another business. At his discretion he could legally deduct his other business' expenses from my project. (It's in the "How-to Book.")

(2) He'd get 100% of the merchandising, enough said. He finalized his contract with . . .

(3) He tacked at the bottom he'd pay me $1,000 a year while his contract is valid. In short no matter how much money my project made throughout the year, I could end up with just $1,000. (It's in the "How-to book.")

What this experience taught me is that big-business is not just a group of people, as I once thought. It's a state of mind. And state of mind can be power, control, and manipulation.

My next two encounters were big-business want-to-be's who were not as discreet. The first said he would promote my books with an unlimited-expense account. The second wanted a 10-year contract. When I refused I never heard from either again.

So be forewarned don't sign anyone's contract without knowing what it actually means. I went to a lawyer and had him write a contract that John signed. If you can't afford a lawyer, I urge you to head to "Barnes and Nobel" or the nearest book store. "How-to Books" are invaluable. I've also been told "Contract for Dummies," is just as enlightening.

About Claire:

Claire Oliver is an only child. She grew up miles from anyone her age on a cattle ranch over the hill from Simi Valley, California, where President Reagan now rests. Her grandmother who lived nearby told Claire how sorry she was for her during her childhood because she always looked so lonely.

"Grandma, I never had a moment's loneliness," said Claire.

Her grandmother obviously didn't believe her, but it's true. Claire was far too busy writing stories. She hide them so no one knew what she was doing. The years pasted quickly, she married, moved to Kern County, had children, and in her spare time she wrote more stories. One day she heard about a hippopotamus living on a Bakersfield dairy. She took her son to see if what she heard was true; and it was true! Here she saw Sam, a two-thousand-pound hippo staring over the fence at a small group of milk cows, staring back at him. It was such an unusual sight, she thought that here must be a cute children's story if there ever was one. Researching the hippo's background, she wrote: "Sam, The Hippo No One Wanted," submitted it to several magazines, and children book publishers. She received a lot of rejection slips.

With Christmas looming giant-like she wanted something different to give for presents, she went to school to learn how to print. Along with a friend's artwork, she printed "Sam." What happened next was totally unexpected. A publisher saw "Sam." He wanted to print her stories and then take them to a up-and-coming toy fair at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas. Next a computer mogul saw "Sam." He wanted to combine a computer-coloring program with the printed material to also show at the Sands. The show was a huge success. Claire's stories have also appeared in an ecology fair in Los Angeles, at Universal Studio fair in Hollywood, and she had several autograph signings in various stores. "Mr. Beeker's Pond" sold almost 1,000 copies on QVC in a five minute spot.

"Suddenly I was on my own," Claire says. "The printer was severely injured in a terrible accident, and retired. The computer mogul didn't have the time to continue. (Here is a learning lesson. If I'd have signed his big-business contract my writings would have been tied up until his contract expired.) I wanted to keep going, but being a wife and a mother since I was sixteen certainly isn't the prerequisite to starting a business. I needed knowledge and took business class. (I'd never even heard of a Mission Statement.) I took writing classes, and I even commuting to Hollywood for two semesters. I sold adult fiction and articles, but my children stories is where I excel. "I never gave up trying because I knew 'if I gave up that's what I'd get."

At times, I was so discouraged I'd sit for hours, trying to think of a way to get past where I was. I knew I wanted to reach those who care for children to encourage them to take a little extra time with a child, seeing, reading, and discussing my stories. Children grow up so fast. I also wanted children who like to read to learn a little extra information to stimulate their mind; and children with learning problems to look at the pictures and want to read the story. Kindle wasn't even around when I printed "Sam," but Kindle gives me the opportunity to do the above. I can offer a lot of stories in different languages to people around the world."

Claire now has fifteen stories for sale in Kindle. All are self-help and learning for children: "How to Dial 9-1-1," for those who live in the U.S.A, and "How to Dial 9-9-9," international. "Reno The Rhino," "The Obstinate Bear," "I Have a Toothache," and of course "Sam, The Hippo No One Wanted" with many more to come. "Who Wears Glasses," "Dr. Diane," "Leah and The Traveling Carousal," and "I know a Boy Named Potato," to name a few. She writes some stories just for fun: "The Land of Lost Socks" and "Zoo Hospital." Soon more color will be added, and animation.

Claire says: "I can't think of anything more exciting than to see one of my characters especially "Sam" a hot air balloon in a Thanksgiving Day Parade."