[stylist] Braille

[Anita Ogletree]

Donna,
If you ever contact him again please find out how I can get a 
copy of that book.  Also ask him if he wouldn't mind giving me 
some suggestions about getting my own company set up.

Anita

> ----- Original Message -----
>From: "Donna Hill" <penatwork at epix.net
>To: "'Writer's Division Mailing List'" <stylist at nfbnet.org
>Date sent: Sun, 10 Feb 2013 14:02:59 -0500
>Subject: Re: [stylist] Braille

>Anita,
>There are two people I know who are doing this in different ways.  
One is a
>blind man named Davey Hulse, who lives in Oregon and has a 
company called
>Braille Plus.  I know him from the Blind Stitchers list and 
interviewed him
>about his book The Touch of Yarn, which is a knitting how-to book 
based
>solely on verbal descriptions.  I knew he did books, so I 
contacted him
>several years ago to get an idea how much it would cost to have 
my novel
>made into a reproduceable hard copy Braille book.  He said 
there's usually a
>bidding process between the companies that do it and that it 
would be
>between $5,000 and 10,000.  That's a bit out of my range so I 
dropped the
>idea for the time being.

>The other is a sighted TVI named Patricia Brown in New Jersey.  
Her company
>is Braille This, and she does smaller projects and writes about 
the
>importance of Braille literacy for online magazines and such.  I 
asked her
>about the book too, but she said it was beyond her capability.
>Donna

>-----Original Message-----
>From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of 
Anita
>Ogletree
>Sent: Saturday, February 09, 2013 8:06 PM
>To: Writer's Division Mailing List
>Subject: Re: [stylist] Braille

>Donna,
>I wish that I could start a business providing this service 
which, I am
>certain would mean that there would have to be more than one 
person willing
>to transcribe.  Especially since the books are chosen in the 
mannter that
>you mentioned.
>This would have to be a company that covers as many states as 
possible where
>there are blind people who could be hired either on a contractual 
basis or
>otherwise.  And this would be a souffce of income for those 
wishing to do
>this type of work.  It could be done from the individual's home 
office where
>there is an embosser, of course.  I don't know how that could be 
set up but
>I am willing to research this idea and see what I can find out.  
If anyone
>has any suggestions reginding this matter ow would like to hear 
from you.
>Perhaps as can tell me where to begin my researching.

>Anita

>> ----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Donna Hill" <penatwork at epix.net
>>To: "'Writer's Division Mailing List'" <stylist at nfbnet.org Date 
sent:
>>Sat, 9 Feb 2013 14:43:46 -0500
>>Subject: Re: [stylist] Braille

>>Anita,
>>Your experience speaks to a problem that we discussed last year
>on one of
>>the monthly conference calls.  It was with a guy who represents
>an
>>organization of publishers -- you can probably tell that I'm not
>good with
>>remembering names.  The point is though that getting college
>material in
>>accessible formats is far more difficult than getting them for k
>- 12.  He
>>explained two things.  First, the professors choose the books
>they will be
>>using, not the colleges.  In k - 12, textbooks are chosen on a
>district-wide
>>basis, meaning that any third-grader in that district will have
>the same
>>textbooks as any other third-grader in that district.  There is
>much more
>>uniformity and more copies of any one title are sold.  Colleges
>and
>>universities are all over the map.  Decisions about what books
>are being used
>>are also more or less left to the last minute in college, making
>it harder
>>to get books recorded or transcribed in time.

>>The other thing he mentioned is that the publishers have been
>working on a
>>master file type that will be used to make books.  From that file
>type, you
>>can easily make print, large print, e-books or Braille.  Whenever
>that
>>happens, it will go a long way to meeting the NFB goal of the
>same books at
>>the same time and the same price.
>>Donna

>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
>Anita
>>Ogletree
>>Sent: Saturday, February 09, 2013 5:18 AM
>>To: Writer's Division Mailing List; stylist at nfbnet.orgi
>>Subject: Re: [stylist] Braille

>>I can truly testify to almost everything that has been said
>regarding
>>braille.  I learned to read and write braille when I was in the
>first grade
>>-- used it all the way through the twelfth grade.  Fortunately I
>was blessed
>>to have a group of what was called resource teachers back then.
>>There were at least two women who brailled out my lessons using a
>perkins
>>brailler.  This meant I had abbl of my assignment at the same
>time as my
>>classmates.  They did not come into the classroom and sit with me
>as I
>>gather that may happen now, but I had to spend time in the
>classroom they
>>had set up.
>>When I began school I was first sent to the school for the blind
>in
>>Talladega, Alabama.  But after a few weeks had passed and my
>mother and I
>>cried every time they had to leave me there at the facility,
>someone told my
>>father about a regular elementary school where sighted children
>attended.
>>It wasn't long before I was going to that school.  So I got to
>stay home and
>>grow up with my sibblings instead of spending the week miles from
>my
>>parents.
>>There were only one or tw blind students sometimes in the whobbe
>school.
>>Some of the high school kids would often come to the classroom
>where the
>>resource teacher was for help with some things.  Funny thing is
>that I often
>>dream that I visit that classroom.
>>My education for those 12 years was, for the most part, very
>good.  Even
>>when I went to high school, I was provided with braille textbooks
>for all of
>>my classes.  By then they had hired an orientation & mobility
>instructor who
>>would come to my high school to help with anything they couldn't
>put into
>>braille.  He even found time to do some O&M with me.  I was the
>first blind
>>student to attend my high school.  The teachers were wonderful
>and I had to
>>keep up with my classmates.
>>The problems began for me once I had graduated and entered
>college.  No
>>braille textbooks, no recorder to record my classes so I could
>study,
>>readers put me to sleep and I went from being an A-B student to
>receiveing
>>'incompletes in each of my classes.
>>I passed at least one or two courses before I went to another
>school in
>>California.  Still no books in braille, but I did a little better
>there thn
>>I had at the school in Alabama, however, having to rely on a
>reader or
>>listening to books on cassette was very stressful resulting in my
>dropping
>>out of school before I could get into my Sophmore year.
>>Braille is my lifeline.  As much as I appreciate having the use
>of screen
>>readers, digital players, etc., if there was any way I could get
>everything
>>from utilities to applications would make my life so much easier.
>Having to
>>wait until someone can read mail drives me nuts! Many times
>people will
>>silently read over the mail before letting me know what it is.
>That's bad
>>but sometimes that's all I can get.
>>I can't really say whether or not I visualize what ow am reading
>because the
>>mental pictures I have are often different from what a sighted
>person
>>describes.  I have been afforded the opportunity to experience
>how printed
>>letters are.  I was introduced to the Optacon when it was out and
>I had
>>instruction in writing in print.  (There are times when I can
>sijn my name
>>pretty close to what sighted folk can read--then there are times
>when I know
>>that my writing is unrecognizable.) I want to teach braille but I
>do not
>>have a collefe degree.  I am
>>49 years old now and worry that I may not be able to handle
>taking all the
>>classes necessary for geffting a degree.  My personal opinion is
>that I
>>should automatically qualify as a braille teacher because I have
>spent most
>>of my life reading and writing braille.  Whatever it takes to
>make sure no
>>one takes braille away from me I am ready to do.  I love braille.
>I am
>>going to start a business in braille transcribing in the very
>near future.
>>That's the least I can do to save our most precious gift.

>>Anita

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