Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Hello and welcome to Storyteller in Depth, a podcast where we go behind the scenes to learn more about the school of communications, media arts and designs, people, places and things. I'm your host, Pat Quigley. In today's episode, we'll be speaking with Yvette Farkus. Without giving away too much, Yvette wrote a series of children's books that are secretly for adults. How cool is that? But before that, she wrote a book about Toronto's graffiti scene. What a transition. Yvette's going to get into everything shortly, including her experience in the two programs she graduated from at Centennial College. So be sure to stick around to hear about Yvette's journey and how storytelling has been a central theme in her life.
Thank you so much, Yvette, for being on the podcast today.
[00:00:49] Speaker B: Thank you so much, Pat. It's a pleasure to be here with you. I'm very excited and looking forward to this exchange with you today.
[00:00:57] Speaker A: Yeah, it should be a lot of fun. So kind of, to start off, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and provide listeners with an overview of your experience in the arts and how you think your passion for storytelling has been interwoven throughout your life?
[00:01:10] Speaker B: Absolutely.
So my background in the arts encompasses martial arts, the healing arts, and a great creative spirit. Since I was a very young child, I had always been interested in writing and reading. I had books everywhere. I used to climb trees and read in there for fun while looking down at everybody else playing on the playground when I was a kid. And I found stories were a beautiful vehicle to transmit universal truths, as well as the creative arts in all its aspects, whether it's physical arts, writing, singing, sculpture, performance. And this is something that I had grown up with and had the privilege of seeing and experiencing.
And I always found that people have such incredible creativity and the way they express that is so unique and interesting, and it tells their story in a different way. And I found that very inspiring. And so for myself as well, I come from a background of healing and martial arts originally, and within those modalities as well, there's so much creativity and storytelling that happens. Now, I know in a way you would say, well, how is storytelling associated with those two disciplines? But it's an incredible way of expressing yourself, of self growth, of really getting to know yourself and understanding how you approach challenges in life and stories. And storytelling is a big part of that as you learn and grow through that self reflection.
[00:02:54] Speaker A: So what kind of drew you into storytelling? Like, why did you want to become a storyteller?
[00:03:03] Speaker B: Yeah, so loved. Absolutely loved hearing people tell me stories. Whenever somebody was verbally telling a story or listening to audiobooks, I just close my eyes and imagine it. It's incredible. It's such a beautiful way of going into a whole new world. And what I really like and appreciate about stories and storytelling, it's a soft and gentle way of learning. It's not somebody telling you with a course or a professor in school. This is what you need to know. It gives you the option and the space to make your own decisions. So, for example, if you are going through a journey with a character in a book and they go through various challenges, you can imagine yourself in that position and also say, well, would I make the same choices or would I handle this differently? And if so, how?
And I find that's such a beautiful way of learning and also reflecting, because when you read or hear stories, you might come up against situations which you have never seen before in your own personal life, but it opens your mind to what other people have experienced and different ways of solving those challenges and also being inspired. I mean, how many of us have read something or heard a story where we thought, wow, that's incredible. I feel so motivated to make x, y and z changes in my own life now as a result, whether it's health based, spiritual based, parenting, technology, any topic, really. And stories are a beautiful way of inspiring and motivating and opening the mind to new possibilities. And I think that's such a beautiful way of growing and learning.
[00:04:56] Speaker A: For sure. Yeah. And I'm just thinking, like, you had this amazing opportunity to write and republish a book called Toronto Graffiti the Human behind the Wall, which included 520 pages of mixed interviews with artists and 1000 full color photos, maps, definitions, timelines and opinion pieces? You've since moved forward into a different direction, which we'll get into in a little bit. And I can't wait to talk about that with you a bit more. But can you take listeners back to why you created your graffiti book and then the process that took you to the transition of going into children's book writing?
[00:05:31] Speaker B: Yeah, it's very different, definitely. Going from graffiti, graffiti and interviewing graffiti artists to writing children's books.
It's quite the shift in many ways. So starting with the graffiti book, when I was growing up, I saw a lot of graffiti around me. I grew up in Flemingdon park in Toronto, and there was a lot of graffiti. And one of the things that I found really curious was, who are these incredible artists that are going out and painting these beautiful murals? And of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. So many people would argue that graffiti is terrible to look at, and sure, we could say that some of it is not very attractive. But there are lots of types of graffiti, which I think many people will find something beautiful and insightful about. It's so unapologetic, this art form. It is this raw expression of humanity, of what's going on for that artist in that moment, of what they're experiencing in their life.
And this completely intrigued me. I thought it was really an incredible thing to grow up with and see in the community.
The artists don't ask for anything from the public. They're paying for it with their own money. They're studying on their own.
They're not hurting anybody directly in the ways that is often portrayed in media, which I think many times is quite unfair, actually.
And it's really an expression of their truth in that moment. So, for me, I became very curious. I really wanted to get a glimpse of that world and understand the people behind this art form.
Fast forward many, many years.
I thought, wow, it would be so great to find a book where there were beautiful interviews with real life graffiti artists who were sharing, from their point of view, their stories, their challenges, their growth, their journey, whatever they wanted to share with the world. I went to pages, I went to Tower Records, I went to chapters Indigo, online, everywhere, and I could not find any book that was remotely similar to what I was looking for. Yes, there were lots of beautiful graffiti books with images and a few tidbits of stories, but not the depth that I really hungered for.
For me, storytelling is about getting to know a person, getting to feel their heart and a piece of their soul. And so that richness, that depth, is what I was craving.
It would have been so easy, Pat, to find that book and sit in the comfort of my living room and read it.
But, you know, that's not how that journey went.
So I remember going to many hip hop concerts and performances and looking around at the different artists, whether they were break dancers or b boys, djs, or actually writing on the wall, doing graffiti. And I was very curious, but I was also very shy. So for a long time, I didn't have the nerve to go up and talk to any of them.
Honestly, I was probably the last person on earth that you would think would do this kind of a book. It was a very scary proposition for me. I was a very reserved, shy person. So this was a huge leap of faith, going into the unknown.
And then one day, I thought, well, I have this really strange feeling that perhaps it's a karmic project. I feel like this book needs to happen, that with some collaboration, I'm meant to create a space for some of the artists to share their stories, so that there's a light that's shone on there and other people can learn a bit more about them and appreciate what they're doing in a whole new light. And also dispel many of the fallacies and untruths that are portrayed in media.
So that's where I started from. And I had one artist who opened the door to that world, and another, and another. And this took a long time, because there needed to be a strong degree of trust on both sides, rightfully so. They had no idea who I was. I was a complete outsider. I had no friends in the graffiti world at all. And here's this complete outsider coming in and asking about them, well, who are you? Why are you asking? Are you the police? What's your real motive? Why are you really doing this? I don't know about you. So there was a lot of uncertainty on their part, and I totally get it. I would have the same reaction in their shoes, I would imagine. And on my side, it also required a lot of trust, because this isn't the type of situation where you call up somebody, agree to have an interview and meet up in a cafe. This is really hard to find individuals and meeting up in places that are highly unusual at various hours of the day or the night. And it's a very different way of approaching getting to know somebody and storytelling. But what I found was that once we had that foundation and the artists could feel my genuine curiosity, my passion for their work, that trust evolved, and the stories they shared with me was simply incredible. I was blown away. I learned so much from every single artist I had the privilege of speaking with. They're amazing human beings you would never imagine. Sometimes the colleague sitting next to you in the desk is an incredible graffiti artist by night.
So it was a real growth experience and on many levels, incredibly difficult. There was massive resistance to this project in many ways.
At first from the artists, and then, of course, from many individuals that I requested to join the project, such as doctors, lawyers, the police, community members, because I wanted their opinion as well reflected in the book, to share. Well, how do they experience graffiti? What's their perspective? The purpose of the book is also to give holistic and insightful insight into this world as possible, as well as those who are impacted and affected by that and who live with graffiti. So this is what the process of the book entailed. And it took several years to compile it and edit it and get through it, but it was amazing. It was magical. And I'm so proud of the book, and I'm so grateful for the chance to have been a part of this and to be able to put this out. And the artists are just amazing human beings. Everyone has their challenges, ups and downs, and I think oftentimes they're portrayed in a very negative light. And this book gives this chance of an outsider to be a fly on the wall of their life and get to know them more and perhaps change their mind a little about graffiti and the people who are involved.
[00:13:21] Speaker A: Wow.
Do you ever think you'll do a follow up to this book? Do you think you're ever going to follow up with some of the people who you talked to before, or would you go down a different path and talk to brand new artists?
[00:13:34] Speaker B: I've had so many people ask me this question.
I've had it suggested even by the artists themselves, many of them saying, how about a ten or 20 or 25 year anniversary? And I don't know, to be honest, I think probably not. I would leave that for somebody else to step into that role and take it further. And I feel that this book was really a landmark and groundbreaking book on many levels, and I'm happy to leave it at that and let somebody else take it from there if they wish.
[00:14:10] Speaker A: Yeah, that's smart. Yeah. It would be cool to see someone else's perspective of it, too. Right? Like, you got to share what you got to see and interview the people that you got to interview, but seeing someone else who kind of went through that same process that you did in a different lens, in a different mindset, creates a different picture, creates a different story. Right. And it could be beautiful.
[00:14:35] Speaker B: Absolutely. And it's wonderful to see different perspectives. I think we learn so much from each other and have such incredible insights. As long as we're open to really hearing and receiving that insight, you don't have to agree with it, but you can certainly learn from that.
[00:14:55] Speaker A: For sure. Yeah. I can just imagine from everything that you've talked about with the graffiti book, there's such a process to how you created it. Right. And do you think there is any commonalities that you might have had between that and the next thing we're going to be talking about, which is the children's book series that you're creating or created?
[00:15:15] Speaker B: There are some commonalities, definitely. In terms of my personal process of writing, recording editing, meditating on the content and feeling my way through it, and also being very logical on how to set up files so that we can create the actual final end product with it.
Approaching the actual creating of the stories was radically different.
This, too, I feel, is a soul project. The children's books, which actually are secretly for adults, because I think adults need this information just as much, and perhaps even more so than the children, because they are so often very connected and they intuitively trust themselves and their inner guidance and know what feels right, what resonates for them, and what feels off. And I feel like sometimes as adults, we've forgotten that or we've come away from that a bit. So one of the magic pieces of these books is to reignite that intuitive knowing and to trust yourself again, and to learn how to have fun and navigate the world in a different way. Yes, it's important to use our minds and our logic, and it serves a very important purpose and role. But it's also amazing to couple that with our gut instincts, our intuitive guidance, our heart following your heart. I mean, how many people as children, get to hear when they're saying to their parents, you know, I really love art, I want to be a musician or a writer, and instead they hear, no, be practical, be a doctor, a lawyer, an engineer, an x, Y and Z. Imagine if your parents said, you know what, that's amazing. Let's support that and see where you go with it. At the same time, keep learning these other modalities and you can decide as you grow, what feels right. And oftentimes, when we follow our heart, things start to line up because we are in alignment with ourselves, with our higher selves. And things just start to flow more easily then you manifest more easily when you're in that beautiful space of creation and grounding and clarity.
So the children's books, they came from real life adventures with my nephews and myself and family.
During the pandemic. We spent a lot of time in my mom's cottage and cabin in the woods. And during that time, because there were such high levels of stress, which I'm sure many of us can relate to, I started to incorporate meditation and breath work and just being barefoot outside with them. I took them to the bee yard. We had family bees. We worked on learning about herbs and foraging. We learned how to regulate emotions from different perspectives. We did alternative healing methods. We did lots of physical play outside.
Being in direct contact with nature. Yes. Hugging trees. Yes. Lying in the thick moss and grass, watching the clouds, listening to the breeze, really finding new ways to calm the nervous system and to integrate that experience so that when you're faced with challenges, you bring back that memory of what it's like to be grounded and calm and relaxed and coming from that space.
My eldest nephew, Ethan, would often come with questions such as, you know, antivette, I'm being bullied at school, or, this person is really bothering me. How would you handle this? What do you suggest? What would you do in my situation?
Or he would say, well, we have to get up and do some public speaking, or, I'm feeling very alone. I don't have friends because of da da da. So we started to have very authentic conversations, which actually is very typical of our family in general. And his parents are very good at that, too. They're very real. They really hold space. They listen to the kids. But it's nice to be outside in nature and also have some experiences that provide you with more tools to support that.
And so the books were born out of these conversations, these very intimate and real conversations about being lonely, being afraid, feeling that if you spoke your truth, you would lose a friend or you would hurt somebody, or feeling left out or having a lot of anger and rage and not knowing how to discharge that in a way that doesn't cause chaos around you, how to receive love, how to create boundaries, how to effectively say no. So we went through a lot of different tools and techniques that today's top coaches and mentors use, really, to create a championship mindset. And those are the exact same tools that are found in the books, and they're hidden within the stories. So, as you read ethan's adventures, you, too, will gain insight into how to navigate some of the challenges of life and all the topics I just mentioned around safe self love and boundaries, loneliness. It's not just for children. All of us adults have those moments, too. And how amazing is it that you can read this book together with your child or children and learn together?
Something I did, which people seem to really love, is within the books. I have a large amount parceled out into the appropriate sections. Self reflective questions that you can ask each other.
How do you handle this situation? Mom, dad? This is how I feel about it. Let's have a conversation about it. So, it really helps readers reconnect with themselves and also with each other on a much deeper level and understand where their triggers are, where their anxieties are, what their strengths are, weaknesses are, and also sharing parts of themselves that don't normally come up in everyday conversation.
So I think it's a beautiful way to use stories to teach, to inspire, and they're based on real life situations from our family. So I think that addition, it just makes it more beautiful.
[00:21:34] Speaker A: And it's so important too, right? Like I have a young son now and we want to raise him in such a way that he's able to be emotionally aware and physically aware and knows what's going on in the world and a lot of media in some ways, and hopefully I don't interview any of these people in the future, can be a little bit towards the lighter side and the easier side of things where it's just let's learn our colors, let's learn about these kind of things. But the larger topics of going through understanding yourself and understanding your thought processes and why you want to do certain things and knowing your truth, right?
It's great for them, but also great for myself. So talking about how it's secretly for adults, I can imagine how good the books will be for me when I get to read them to them. But why do you think it's important for adults to pick up these lessons as well?
[00:22:36] Speaker B: Great question. I think, first of all, we're living in very difficult times. There's a lot of chaos, uncertainty. A lot has happened in the last three, four years, two, three years that has really shifted many patterns, paradigms, ways of doing things, ways of living in society. And many of us are coming up against a lot of new situations that feel scary, uncertain, that are causing stress. And just regular life without the last few years in the pandemic always has some opportunity for growth in the form of contrast, in the form of a challenge. But now it seems to be ten x that. And so reading these books is a really beautiful way of delving into some of those tools and techniques without spending ten years and a lot of money going to various coaching programs, for example, I still recommend them if you find somebody that you really resonate with, do their program. Self growth always is a beautiful thing to do for ourselves and for everyone else around us. Because when we're feeling great, wow, we light up the room, we elevate, we bring that level of consciousness, that high frequency that elevates everyone around us. So it's so important to be able to take care of ourselves.
You know when you're in an airplane and they say if there's an emergency and the oxygen mask comes down, put it on yourself first. You have to save yourself first. Yes, you really do. The instinct is to save our partner, our child, our loved one. But if you end up knocking out before anyone else, then you're not going to be very helpful.
So it's not selfish to ensure your self care. It's not selfish to take time for yourself and say, I need this to be my very best.
Not only is it not selfish, it's imperative to do that. We need to do that because when we do that, we bring the best of ourselves. We're able to offer from overflow, we're able to offer from a space that is much more compassionate, much more understanding, and has the strength to say no or yes in the given situation. And I think we really need that strength and fortitude, especially in these days. So having these types of techniques give us a greater ability to access that strength and fortitude and also clear techniques that you can practice, starting right now, right from the first book, that will go through various techniques to help you with something like overcoming the fear of public speaking, looking at your posture, using breath, thinking very specific and thinking in very specific ways to create certain emotional reactions that will then flood your system with hormones and chemicals that will relax you instead of stress. Chemicals and hormones. So there are beautiful, beautiful ways to incorporate the lessons of the books in everyday life. And I think right now, we need this more than ever.
[00:25:48] Speaker A: Oh, for sure. Yeah. And there's something to be said about being able to learn about it yourself so that you're able to kind of reiterate it and teach it. Right. Because although the books will explain the message very clearly or well to children and to adults, everybody learns differently. Everybody understands thing differently. And when you have a parent or someone who is trustworthy to the child, you're able to disseminate that information in a much easier and consumable way for that child. Right. So me being able to help my son learn more about public speaking, he can learn through my experience. He can learn through his own experience and through the book, where he might not fully comprehend everything. Getting it from somewhere else or something else.
[00:26:42] Speaker B: Yes, exactly. And there's nothing more powerful than direct personal experience.
So reading about it, hearing about it, is one thing which already plants the seeds in the mind and then seeing it from you, and then him practicing, too, I mean, it creates new neural pathways in the brain that then enable him to do it much more effectively in the moment when he has to. So it's fantastic. Yes. And being able to disseminate that in a safe space allows your son or others to actually receive it and take it in instead of feeling resistance and not being able to take it in. So that's very important. That point that you made. Yeah.
[00:27:29] Speaker A: Something that we have completely forgotten to talk about is the name of the book series. And I'm so sorry that we haven't done that yet. But can you explain a little bit about the name of the book series?
[00:27:41] Speaker B: Sure. So the series is called Ethan and the seven Chakras. So there are eight books in the series. The first one is the foundational text that introduces the chakras, especially if you have a reader who's never really heard about them or hasn't really explored them yet, and also meeting the main characters. And the next seven books, each one by one, go through each of the seven chakras, and you look at the world from the lens of that chakra.
So you learn about something like mindful eating from the perspective of the first chakra, which is about safety, which is about being grounded and rooted and feeling safe and getting your basic needs met, such as eating so you don't starve to death. When somebody's at the level of the root chakra, their main reason for eating is survival. It's not for pleasure, it's not for connecting, it's not for elevating your consciousness. It is SIMPLY for feeding your body, not starving, feeding your soul, feeding your body, not your soul, but the bodY. On the level of the heart chakra, for example. We're now eating for a different reason. We're eating because it connects us to our loved ones. It's a way to get closer to people. So food now becomes a vehicle of joyful expression and connection. Very different reason for eating. And so as you read through the different level of the chakras, you get to understand why you're doing things and from what level you're seeing the world. It's really beautiful, and there's no right or wrong way. So when we talk about the first chakra versus the 7th, one isn't better than the other. The way to look at this is each one is a certain way of looking at the world. And when you notice how you're looking at it, if it's in a balanced state, wonderful, wonderful. If it's in an imbalanced state, you'll see the symptoms of that and you can self correct and make a different choice. Yeah.
[00:29:47] Speaker A: Wow.
What's something that you didn't expect going into this process that's been a pleasant surprise to yourself?
[00:29:56] Speaker B: Something that really surprised me. A couple of things. One, I didn't think it would take so long. It's been a couple of years of putting the books together, and I'm glad in retrospect, I listened to my intuition on this because I had the stories completed. And then during my meditations, I kept getting these insights and transmissions that said, okay, Yvette, you need to add this one sentence. You need to go back and tweak that paragraph. You need to make these changes in order to increase the frequency of the books, in order to increase its ability to deliver and disseminate information in a way that's really helpful for a reader's highest good. So key words are used, beautiful expressions are used that help to activate a person's intuitive wisdom and inner guidance. So it took a lot of refining, and I'm glad I didn't rush through it and say, well, let's just get them out and publish them, because that's not what it's about. It's really about helping people activate their wisdom, connect with each other with love and compassion, and grow through self reflection.
And that took a lot of refining.
One of the other things that really surprised me in a pleasant way, I was hopeful for this, but you never know until you actually do it is I had several user testing groups of adults and children, and the feedback was amazing. I mean, it's incredible. They learned, they grew, they were inspired to make changes in their lives and lifestyles. Some of them came back and said, this needs to be mandatory reading in schools, put them in the libraries adults have requested books to send to their adult children. So it blew me away of the amazing feedback. And a lot of this was from people I don't know. So they had no reason to stroke my ego, so to speak.
And the children, especially kids, don't lie. If they don't like it, they'll tell you.
So that was really refreshing and beautiful to receive. They also had really good feedback on a few areas that needed a bit more clarifying that they weren't sure. And so that was so helpful as well. And I really appreciate everyone who's helped with that project.
[00:32:22] Speaker A: Yeah, I can imagine, too. And the books are illustrated, right? And do you want to talk a little bit about that?
[00:32:30] Speaker B: Yes, I'd love to. I'd love to. So I have a wonderful illustrator, Jenna Rothwell, and we first met, interestingly, in the Dominican Republic, and we had a meeting. We really connected instantly. She has an entire background of illustration, painting, graphic design, professional. She's a very, really heartfelt individual, very authentic and down to earth and instantly connected with the messaging of the books and the way they're written. And at the time, I had actually lost my original illustrator. So I was looking for somebody to work with again, but it needed to be someone who was going to bring their energy of joy to the book, because that's something that's really important to me. Everyone who touches this project should bring their heartfelt, soulful, positive energy and joy so that the readers also get to experience a bit of that. And Jana did that. Absolutely. We connected. We went through some different versions of what we can do, how to work together, and how the drawings should look, and they're amazing. She's brought so many wonderful ideas as well, and her drawings are filled with light and colors and really touch the soul. I mean, this is really the human element.
This book, from start to finish, is human made. There's no AI involved at all. Nothing against that. But this book has not been touched by that. It is completely created by human spirit, and I think that's a beautiful thing to add there.
Jana has also managed to integrate a lot of symbology and some of the hidden secrets that we discuss in the books. So when you're reading, you get to find and look for some of those symbols. So, for example, on the cover of the first book, we have three sacred symbols, the Vesica Pisces, the Fibonacci, or the golden ratio, and the infinity symbol. And they're subtle. Some of them are easier to find than others, but you're going to find symbols like this throughout the work that Jenna has created. And I think it's going to be beautiful for readers to hunt for them and look for them and see where they can find them and how that feels for them.
[00:35:05] Speaker A: That's awesome. It's fun to have little tidbits and little secrets like that strung throughout the book to continue wanting to make you come back for more. Not just the lessons sometimes, but also the illustrations. Right. And it's wonderful to have and be surrounded by people who care as much about a project as you do. So I'm so happy for you, and I can't wait to read the books at some point. So, yeah, that's amazing.
[00:35:34] Speaker B: Thank you for that feedback. Yeah.
[00:35:37] Speaker A: So you graduated from centennial in the early two thousand s, from two programs, what is now known as the Art and Design Fundamentals program and as what is now known as the Communications and Media fundamentals program. How would you say that these programs have helped provide some lessons you needed to move forward in your career? And have you found that they've helped you with your book creation now?
[00:35:59] Speaker B: Love this question.
I think the last time we spoke, I had mentioned that when I first applied to the program the initial program I applied for was the second one was the media, so it was the graphic design, the web design program, and you needed a portfolio to get into that program.
Needless to say, I failed badly.
It was not accepted into the program, and I was told that if I wanted to do that, then I would have to first take the arts fundamentals course or that program. And it was the best thing ever, Pat, because it was one of the most fun programs I had taken up until that point in my life. I had no idea it would be so much fun to basically be in a creative mode all day, every day in that way. Visual arts, painting, drawing, life drawing, some graphic design, lots of different elements of color, color theory, space theory, fonts, art history.
All of this created a deep appreciation for a different type of art, which I did not have a lot of experience with up until that point in my life. And that then also made me very curious about many more types and styles of art. It opened up a whole new world for me, and I'm so grateful for all the instructors there in that program, and also the next one, because they really helped me grow in terms of creativity and technique and tools. So it provided me with tools and techniques that I then took later on to use for my own personal projects, whether they're book writing, whether they were to build websites, whether they were to create videos.
Lots of different types of projects I've done over the years, and this was my wish. When I originally applied for the program was to have the tools to then create the products I wanted to share with the world, to elevate and uplift, and it was successful. I find the teachers and the programs really helped me get to that level where I had enough of a foundation that I could then continue learning on my own, any specific area that I was interested in.
The other thing that was really helpful was understanding some new ways of creating systems for setting up files, for setting up programs and processes to make work easier. So if I wanted to go back twelve versions prior, I could easily find that twelveth version prior without spending three days looking through 500 files. And this is also really important to understand how to logically set up files in a way that works for you, the way you think and learn, but to do it in a way that's super easy and flows. So that along with tools and techniques and the inspiration that I got from my fellow students and the teachers, I think was amazing. And it was definitely worthwhile. It was worth doing the extra year, and it was absolutely everything I envisioned. The second year as well. So I really enjoyed my time at Centennial College. I thought it was amazing and it was better than I expected.
[00:39:26] Speaker A: Yeah, I have the same kind of sentiments towards the college as well, that they did give me a lot of the tools that I get to use in my everyday job these days and sometimes in unlife, too. So it's so nice to hear from other people that they had kind of the same experience and got to get the same education, although different programs were able to get the same understanding for things. So it's really cool.
[00:39:53] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:39:54] Speaker A: So I'm very excited. I've probably been a little subdued, and I'm sorry about that. But I'm very excited about your book series and reading all the books at some point. So when can we expect the book series to come out?
[00:40:13] Speaker B: I appreciate your excitement. I'm very excited, too. I'm thrilled. I have so much joy to share this with people. So the first book is due to come out within about three, four weeks, and then every couple of weeks after the next book and the next book and the next book will come out until all eight books are launched. So they're going to be out very soon, and they'll be available on multiple platforms, like Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Apple, Nook, many different formats, and I'll have print books, I'll have ebooks, and eventually there'll also be audiobooks available.
[00:40:54] Speaker A: Wow. I was so excited there. I couldn't form the sentence in my brain properly for you, so I apologize for that. But it's so cool to kind of be able to read and get the books, kind of like you would a serialized television show where you get to get the one book, read it front cover to cover, understand it a little bit, and then in a couple of weeks you get the next one, and then a couple of weeks you get the next one.
So it's not like you're kind of cramming all that information in one. You get the time to process and ingest the information from the first book before you get to the next one.
[00:41:31] Speaker B: That's such a great point you make to ingest and digest and really get that information. And I would even recommend reading it multiple times, because each read you will get a different seed of wisdom. Something else will come into your subconscious and water that seed, and you'll be amazed at some of the ideas that spring in everyday life just from having read these books.
[00:41:58] Speaker A: Yeah, very cool. Like I said, I'm so excited. Where do you see this kind of heading in the future? Do you see it turning into a tv series. Do you see maybe more books? What's the future for this series?
[00:42:14] Speaker B: Definitely. I think there will be more books. I have a lot of ideas. I've already started writing for different sections pertaining to Ethan and the seven chakras and I think a tv series or even a cartoon series would be amazing. I think it would be such a beautiful way to continue sharing the story with yeah, yeah.
[00:42:37] Speaker A: Amazing. Yvette, thank you so much for coming on the podcast today. And I'm going to write a little note when the first book comes out so I can make sure I get it on time so that I can read it to my son. So thank you, thank you.
[00:42:49] Speaker B: Thank you so much. Bat. Such a pleasure and I'm glad it worked out and so happy that we can share this with people. Thank you.
[00:43:00] Speaker A: Truly. What an insightful conversation. Thank you so much.
[00:43:03] Speaker B: Yvette.
[00:43:04] Speaker A: Your story ideas and how the messages you're including in each book are not only for children but also secretly are for adults are such an interesting and cool idea. Like I said, I cannot wait to read my son these books. To find out all the details on Yvette's books, head over to singingsoulbooks.com. And like Yvette mentioned, you are welcome to reach out to her by sharing your thoughts. After reading all the info you need will be on the singing soul books site. Until next time, I'm your host, Pat Quigley, and this is storyteller in depth.
