Tips about and stories of~Off-grid Living:Tell us what interests you!

[Farmfresh]

This thread has gained more pertinence to me lately and I have enjoyed your feedback on this.

If you were to read a book about all this, how important are pics to you? Lots of pics or just a few, enough to show a glimpse? Back story to the whole adventure or just the adventure? Details of family or just details of living the actual life day to day?

Would you like it to be in the form of a journey from here to there, what was learned along the way, how we live now? Factual or conversational?

I would like to take a journey. I like books with the personal touch that are still quite factual. If you needed to teach a lesson how about using some sidebars? Pics would be a plus, but if the story is good it wouldn't take many for me. I have a vivid imagination!

 

[Beekissed]

Our problem is that we have many pics but are afraid they will take up too much space in the book. But feel the book would really benefit from them....you know, a pic is worth a thousand words.

Should the pics be inserted where they are pertinent in the story or should they have their own section? If they are how-to pics that show each step, should they be throughout the book as we come to how we learned that particular skill or should those have all their own section so as to be easily referenced? Or could one get around that by having a how-to index?

 

[Farmfresh]

Hmm. I'll think on that one.

 

[Farmfresh]

Maybe you could do it like a book with the story on one half and then flip it over and the HOW TO is on the other half. Just an odd passing thought.

 

[dragonlaurel]

Sometimes a pic or illustration can help make things clear . Other times it adds to the mood of the story. A few here and there is probably fine.

Your story could help teach people they can get by without all the tech toys. Many off grid stories start by assuming you want help picking out your fancy electric power making system. If you aren't bothering with that stuff - for whatever reason. The selection dwindles fast.

Put family stuff where it will help perspective but your experiences and especially, your way of looking at things are what will make the story special. You are a great writer. Trust yourself and do it.

Pics with the related info really help visually oriented people learn how to stuff.

 

[old fashioned]

Oh my gosh, where do I begin??? I've always thought I was born in the wrong time, since I've always wanted to live like the pioneers, but have usually only had fleeting visits. A city girl born & raised (very on grid) with my heart in the backwoods country (very OFF grid).
My only adult "off-grid" experiences have been when the power goes out, and occaisional camping trips. Although as a child I had extended family members that lived in houses that only had 110V and outhouse and I would sometimes visit.
I've cooked on our woodstove and once had to bake a pizza in one. Just as I was putting the pizza into the oven our power went out, so I stirred up the coals in the woodstove, put in a castiron dutch oven upside down over the coals and pushed more coals around it, then put the pizza on top, closed the door and several minutes later-chowtime! Not to mention when we've "roasted" hot dogs on skewers with the door open.
When camping, I prefer to cook on an open fire, but where we go we can't have fires of any kind (too much fire danger and NO resources to put it out) and then I cook on propane camp stove. Don't have a camp oven yet, but working on it.
I've done dishes and laundry in the river (sorry fishies, but it's gotta be done). Though I would hate to have to do this on a regular basis.
I have done laundry (someone else's) with a wringer washer-got a wrung out finger to prove it hurt like a bugger too. Too make matters worse, I forgot in the excitement/pain how to pop open the rollers for release and ended up reversing to get my finger out. Hey, I was only about 10 or 12.

A couple of years ago there was a program on tv and I can't remember the name of it, a reality type show of 3 different city families being "dumped" into pioneer life with very little money. One had a pre existing cabin, one had to build from scratch and the other one I think had somewhere in between (started but not finished). I believe each were given a milk cow, some chickens, pig and horse. Their challenge was to see if they could adjust without modern conveniences, live a pioneer live and do enough to survive thru a Montana winter even though they only lived this way thru 3(?) months of summer. I think they only went to a prop country store that would have been available in pioneer times, once to buy staple type supplies.
This post makes me think of this and "what if" I were in their shoes. I would want a book that would explain everything with detail step by step instructions with pics of each step that was presented in a conversational story. Kinda like if we were on the phone and you had to talk me thru it. A factual, detailed how to reference book written in conversational manner and plenty of pics. Does this make sense?
"to feed the cow, give about one armful of hay with a coffee can (39oz) full of grain twice a day. If you give more they bloat(details on pg 347 under "problems with animals"), give less they starve and no milk for you."
then of course on pg 347 under "problems with animals" in the bloat in cows section reads-bloat is caused from.......looks like.......these are possible treatments......if not treated within this time...this can happen. (I have no idea if any of that is true or not, just using for example)

I would want to be able to walk out of the city right into a pioneer farm life and be able to do it based on the information in the book.
But I think this would take several volumes and probably NOT what you had in mind.
Let's just say-if you wrote it, Bee, I'd want to read it no matter the content. Especially the section about water bath canning. I want to know what all you do in a water bath. Raw/cold pack? Hot pack? I was only taught about fruits and certain veggies, all hot pack. Never did corn, potatoes, squash, dry/soup beans, mushrooms, meat-to name a few. Though this info may not be suitable for general public since most use pressure canning methods. I wouldn't want you to get flack about it.

Book is a great idea however ya wanna do it!

 

[pioneergirl]

Sounds to me like you need to do a series, like the Foxfire books.....that way it can be broken down into smaller, more manageable parts, and you can include stories, instruction, and pictures without having a book the size of War and Peace!

When I get home, I'll have to look for the book my dad gave me.....it was written based on a diary of a young boy fron the 1800's and his adventure (for 1 year) with his family and their homestead. Sketches, tools, info on trees used, etc. Very fun and informative!

I can't wait to see what you come up with...between all of your knowledge and experience, plus all the awsome ideas from folks on here, it should make for a great read!!!

 

[Beekissed]

Thank you so very much! You guys really confirmed that how I want to do it is going to fly. I've read all the other books and I own the Foxfire series, but they all had something lacking.

My book won't be a comprehensive one, especially about animals as Dad did a few but didn't really get into them....we wished he had. We had a milk cow for a short while, two different sets of pigs, all kinds of poultry and a horse once. Eventually he did away with all of them except the occasional cat..... I really loved the horse, one of the pigs, and the cow...she was sweet until you wanted to milk her~then it was a real rodeo!

But, I will tell all we learned coming from a regular house and moving very quickly into a two room log cabin right before winter.....no wood cut up, no fridge, no well, very little food stores and all the other details. We had to learn much and quickly, made many mistakes, were very uncomfortable many times~cold and wet mostly.

Old Fashioned, I was planning to write it just how you said....like a conversation one would have with an interested person. With pics to show some of the story, more pics to show a process with captions to explain and with interesting little humorous or even sad parts about the journey.

Like how to fix your hair without electricity.....do you believe I used to tape my hair in place before I went to bed each night? My sister used to roll her hair up on 3 enormous pink rollers right on top of her head!

I laugh even now when I think about how we adapted and what we had to do to make it back then....I could probably never do that now!

 

[old fashioned]

My question is "how do you fix your hair WITH electricity?" except of course when you stick your finger in the light socket.... I haven't used a blow dryer, curling iron, hot rollers, etc in YEARS. Well, I take that back, I have used them but not for their intended purpose. Like when I gave one hen a bath in the house during our cold snap about a month ago, (get this) hubby used the blow dryer while I held her-it was his idea too. See why I think he'd make a great SS'er/farmer? okay so nevermind the electric blow dryer, but you get the idea.

 

[FarmerDenise]

My question is "how do you fix your hair WITH electricity?" except of course when you stick your finger in the light socket.... I haven't used a blow dryer, curling iron, hot rollers, etc in YEARS. Well, I take that back, I have used them but not for their intended purpose. Like when I gave one hen a bath in the house during our cold snap about a month ago, (get this) hubby used the blow dryer while I held her-it was his idea too. See why I think he'd make a great SS'er/farmer? okay so nevermind the electric blow dryer, but you get the idea.

You mean blow dryers weren't meant to be used that way? I keep mine in my toolbox