"Us" is me -- Connie Chastain Ward. I am a writer, editor, graphic designer and video producer/editor.  MY EXPERIENCE Graphic Design -- I have been doing graphic design since high school, first desiging and creating flyers, brochures and posters for church and school. For various employers, I have created flyers for such special events such as child-safety-seat inspection day and a senior fitness event. In the days before desktop publishing, I edited and produced a monthly newsletter for a senior support agency where I worked, using a typewriter (IBM Correcting Selectric) and a table-top offset printin press..

In conjunction with graphic design, my desktop publishing experience goes back to the 1980s, when I used an early version of Page Stream on my Amiga 1000. I learned DTP producing flyers and brochures for political campaigns and various causes (frequently at no charge) and planning and preliminary design of the tabloid newsweekly, The Florida Sun, prior to its launch.

My graphic design experience includes transitioning to the digital/internet field, including web page components. Although I am not primarily an illustrator, my experience includes pencil/ink and digitally created artwork.

Writing & Editing-- I was a staff writer for a local tabloid news weekly, The Florida Sun. I also wrote, edited published my first novel, Southern Man. My second, Storm Surge, was published by Desert Breeze Publishing, April 2011. As a staff writer for The Florida Sun I produced two original articles per issue, and selected and edited news service stories and articles. In addition, I have five years experience in online and local critque groups.

Business writing experience dates to the late 1970s, to my first product, a manual for intake secretaries of a multi-county social service agency in the Midwest, and includes composition of business and political correspondance and grant applications.

Video production and post production -- My experience dates to the 1980s, when my sister and I partnered in a wedding video company and produced computer graphics and animations for broadcast video production companies in west Florida and south Alabama. Clients for the latter included various advertising agencies, the Naval Aviation Museum at Pensacola NAS, Ingall's Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and Mobile, Alabama's "Clean and Green" campaign.

In the 1990s, I shot and edited numerous political videos, mostly campaign commercials, for my employer, a United States Congressman, including several half-hour television programs for broadcast on a local-access TV station.

For typesetting -- Print books: QuarkXpress, Serif's Page Plus, Open Office. Usually output as a pdf files. Electronic books: Open Office, Netscape Composer, Note Tab Lite.

For graphic design -- Adobe PhotoDeluxe, Ultimate Paint, Serif Draw, Microsoft GIF Animator

For video editing -- Microsoft MovieMaker, Serif's Movie Plus, Audacity sound editor.

Word Slinger Boutique markets our products and services to independent publishers and authors primarily of genre fiction, particularly romance fiction, although we welcome any and all who wish to use our services. As promoters of romance fiction, we understand and approve of explorations of the sexual nature of romance relationships. However, we will not knowingly promote pornography, erotica, same-sex or multiple partner romance, or portrayals of pre-marital or extra-marital sex as acceptable and positive, or stories that encourage rape, incest, or bestiality, or portray reward, profit or benefit from illegal, immoral behavior.

NOTE-- Some of the products depicted on this site are fictitious and represent no actual publication, author or publisher. They are used for illustration of our experience and software capabilities only.

Word Slinger Boutique and Connie Chastain Ward make no warranties for the products and services offered on this site. We accept no legal liabilities for the use of our products except for those specifically required by applicable law. We reserve the right to alter or amend or discontinue our products, services and information at any time. Links to or mention of third party websites or businesses do not necessarily constitute endorsements or recommendations regarding those sites. We welcome links to this site that are appropriate in design and content. We accept no responsibility for the content of third party sites displaying links to Word Slinger Boutique or any loss or damage arising from the use of links to our site.