Amazon Blitz for Award-winning Book

Today, August 19, my colleague, Irene Watson, has gathered together leading authors and experts, to show you new ways to lift your life to breathtaking heights--including transformation, personal growth, and creating an inspiring life.

I’m working with her on this offer. If you purchase her award-winning book: The Sitting Swing: Finding Wisdom to Know the Difference today, you will be on your way to receive the many gifts entitled to you.

All you have to do is go to http://www.readerviews.com/RV-amazon/index.html and follow the link to purchase your copy of The Sitting Swing: Finding Wisdom to Know the Difference at Amazon.com. Then enter your Amazon transaction number in the space provided and you will be directed to where you can claim your gifts.

All proceeds from the sale of The Sitting Swing will be donated to Higher Power Foundation, Inc., a foundation created to give financial assistance for people to attend recovery-based spiritual and life training events.

So don't delay, go to http://www.readerviews.com/RV-amazon/index.html and claim your copy of The Sitting Swing today, August 19th.

Life After Death, Some of the Best Evidence

Author on psychic phenomena, Dr. Jan Vandersande, will be joining show host Yvonne Perry on Writers in the Sky Podcast August 22, 2008. Today we welcome Jan to our writing blog. He is discussing his book Life After Death: Some of the Best Evidence.

Yvonne: Tell me something about yourself and your writing background.
Jan: I am a physicist by training and have a Ph.D. degree. I have published over 80 scientific articles in scientific journals and conference proceedings. This is my first book.

Yvonne: What is the title of your book? Give us the basic story line so we’ll know what it’s about.
Jan: The title is Life After Death: Some of the Best Evidence. It describes the psychic phenomena my wife and I experienced over an eight year period. We were lucky to experience trance mediumship, direct voice, trumpets flying around the séance room and see ectoplasm. Using my own experiences I was able to critically read much of the literature on psychic phenomena and take some of the best evidence for survival from it. These cases are described in my book.

Yvonne: What inspired you to write this book?
Jan: As I just mentioned, my wife and I witnessed psychic phenomena, called physical phenomena, which are very rare to see, over an eight year period. These phenomena were the inspiration to write this book. These phenomena provided such good evidence for life after death that I wanted to tell the story about what we witnessed. Also, my experiences made it possible for me to critically read much of the psychic literature and take from it some of the best evidence for life after death.

Yvonne: Is this the first book you have written?
Jan: Yes, this is my first book.

Yvonne: How long did it take to write this book? Any interesting tidbits about your writing method or how the book developed?
Jan: It took me about three years to write it. I did a lot of reading of the psychic literature to take some of the best cases providing evidence for life after death.

Yvonne: How did you publish your book? Tell me about your publishing experience and what you learned from it.
Jan: I submitted the book to about ten publishers but all turned it down. Many publishers will not take direct submissions so you have to go through an agent. I tried about five agents that handle New Age books but they turned me down. I believe that the publishers and agents were afraid to touch a book about physical phenomena such as ectoplasm and materializations. As a result I decided to publish the book myself. I used Outskirts Press to publish the book and they have done a great job.

Yvonne: Where is your book available? Do you have a Web site or blog where we can learn more about you or your book?
Jan: The book is available on-line at: Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com. Towerbooks.com, etc. The website for the book is: www.outskirtspress.com/bestevidence.

Yvonne: As far as marketing, do you do more online publicity or print/radio/TV promotion? Tell me some ways you have promoted your book. Give examples and links to any sites you feel might help other authors.
Jan: I have been able to get two psychic websites to recommend the book as well as a critic who specializes in books on the paranormal. I did a radio interview and will give a lecture later this month. I sent out books to try to get reviews but that is not easy. My topic is controversial (materializations) and I think that not to many book reviewers want to touch it.

Yvonne: Have you hired a publicist to help promote this book? If so, what was your experience like?
Jan: No, I have not thought about a publicist yet. I am waiting to see how sales go by doing it myself.

Yvonne: Any other comment you would like to share?
Jan: Writing the book is half the battle. Then there is publishing and promoting it.

Yvonne: I agree! Marketing a book can be a full-time job. Thank you, Jan, for giving us the opportunity to get to know you and learn about your book. I wish you well in your journey as an author.

Summary of Life After Death, Some of the Best Evidence

The author, Jan W. Vandersande Ph.D., has described in considerable detail some of the best evidence that he is aware of for life after death. He has based this evidence on his own experiences which include sittings with trance mediums and channelers, and also sitting quite regularly over an eight-year period in a circle in which he witnessed physical phenomena such as trumpets flying around the séance room, direct voice, and ectoplasm. All his experiences are described in detail.

Additionally, three of his close friends witnessed full materializations numerous times and one of them, Professor Jack Allen, photographed ectoplasm coming from the medium as well as two full materializations. These four photographs are shown in the book.

His experiences have made it possible for him to critically read a lot of the existing literature on psychic phenomena. He has cited numerous cases, which he believes are genuine and are some of the best evidence for life after death. These cases come from channelers, trance mediums, direct voice and materialization sittings. Several materialization mediums are discussed in detail, and some photographs of ectoplasm and full materializations are shown and are compared to the ones taken by Professor Allen. Considerable emphasis is placed on materializations since they are the most impressive evidence for life after death.

The author also considers alternative explanations for these psychic phenomena such as fraud, telepathy and “super-ESP” but in all the cases he documents the survival of life after death hypothesis is the most likely explanation.

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Listening to Writers in the Sky Podcast on a computer is easy. Just click this link: http://yvonneperry.blogspot.com/ and go to my blog.On the right sidebar there is a list of archived shows. Click on the interview you would like to hear and it will open a post that has a link to the audio file.

Need an Editor?

And, let's start with an o-f-f-i-c-i-a-l  spelling lesson!

Need an editor? Writers in the Sky Creative Writing Service can help. www.writersinthesky.com

How to Escape an Abusive Relationship

How to Escape an Abusive Relationship
Author: Dottie Randazzo
ISBN-13: 978-0615184241
Publisher: Creative Dreaming
Book Length in Pages: 80
Price/Currency: $10.95 US
Paperback

I never cease to be amazed at how Dottie Randazzo can pack such a powerful punch in so few words. All of her books are short and to the point, and only have a few sentences in large print on each page, but she gets her message across in a way that impacts the reader to take action. How to Escape an Abusive Relationship spoke to me so profoundly that I felt goose bumps all over while reading it. Dottie's plan is to have a plan. I know it sounds simple, and it is simple for someone who is not in an abusive situation, but her plan is doable for anyone who IS in an abusive relationship. It may not be easy, but having a plan moves the victim one step at a time toward freedom without upsetting the abuser and making the situation worse. Dottie has been there and knows what it is like to have to sneak around to get a moment alone in order to make her next move toward getting out. She has captured the mind of the victim without ever seeing herself as a victim. In fact, she sees herself (and so do I) as a smart, funny, successful woman who somehow got herself into a very undesirable and unhealthy situation. I admire her for being brave enough to refuse staying a victim and taking undeserved punishment. And, I admire her for writing this book to help others. Dottie tells exactly how she escaped the mental and emotional abuse of her ex-husband. This empowering information will help you formulate your own plan to get out alive and with a means of providing for yourself after your prison bars open.

Don't stay any longer than you have to; get started on your road to freedom now! Anyone who is in an abusive situation should GET THIS BOOK!

Orchestra Leader Shares Writing Experience

Today we welcome Hugh Ballou to our writing blog. He is discussing his book Transforming Power: Stories from Transformational Leaders to Inspire and Encourage.

YVONNE: Tell me something about yourself and your writing background.
HUGH: I worked for over 40 years as conductor of choirs and orchestras and learned much about motivating people, setting and achieving goals, getting the most accomplished in short rehearsal times, making important decisions on my feet, and giving clear directions for people to know exactly what to do. I began to write in 2004 because I understood how a conductor transforms black dots on paper (musical notation) into sound and then into a wonderful musical statement. I transferred this skill set to conducting effective meetings. I then understood how powerful this could be with leaders anywhere, so I wanted to share this knowledge with as many others as possible, so I wrote my first book. I did not consider myself to be a “writer” but I did have something to say, so I began to write. That book, Moving Spirits, Building Lives: Church Musician as Transformational Leader is in its third printing!

YVONNE: What is the title of your book? Give us the basic story line so we’ll know what it’s about.
HUGH: My newest book is Transforming Power: Stories from Transformational Leaders to Inspire and Encourage. It is an anthology of stories by leaders who have lead or been a part of a transformation of and organization, in people’s lives or the transformation of an idea into reality. All of them are published authors with great stories. Each has a different perspective on leadership and is willing to share it with readers. The leadership concepts are universal and can be use by leaders in any kind of organization.

YVONNE: What inspired you to write this book?
HUGH: My first four books (three in print, one still underway) are strategies and “how to” tips. We all learn differently. Some need facts and next steps and some need a story and some relate to both. I wanted to touch leaders who are having challenges in implementing a vision (we all experience this) and give them a vision of how others have met the challenge.

YVONNE: Is this the first book you have written?
HUGH: I have three books in print (one in its third printing) and one almost out. Transforming Power is the fifth one I started, the fourth book; Leaders Transform is being finished and will be out in the fall. The topic I write about is Transformational Leadership. The titles are:
Moving Spirits, Building Lives: Church Musician as Transformational Leader
Moving Spirits, Building Lives: A Workbook for Transformational Leaders
Building High Performance Teams: Structures and Systems for Leading Teams and Empowering Transformation


YVONNE: How long did it take to write this book? Any interesting tidbits about your writing method or how the book developed?
HUGH: The book took 6 months to pull together and it took me a long time to write my short sections. It’s more difficult to write a short section than a longer book. I asked 25 people to contribute to the book and gave them my vision for how it would look. Only 2 people said no. They could not contribute because of timing. Others responded enthusiastically without any question of what was in it for them. They supported the idea and wanted to support the concept. All the authors have other publications, but this project stood out enough to get their attention.

YVONNE: How did you publish your book? Tell me about your publishing experience and what you learned from it. Please go into detail if you wish.
HUGH: My first books are self-published because I wanted to get material into the hands of leaders right away. I wanted to have a major publishing house take this project on to give it credibility and thorough distribution. I approached George Donegian at Discipleship Resources, a publishing entity of the United Methodist Church, to share the idea. He said he’d present the idea to his publishing committee if I could get commitments from authors. I did and he did. I began the project with his word and we signed the contract when I got the manuscript together. They did a find job of design, editing and publishing the book and we are now trying to let people know that it’s ready for reading. I learned that a great idea would get traction if you can present why it’s valid and why it’s good for the publisher. The major publishing label for the United Methodist Church rejected my first book, which is in its third printing saying that they felt pastors would not purchase a book written by a musician. Most of these books are in the hands of pastors. I learned that there is a way to get to your readers and to not give up my dream.

YVONNE: Did you work with an agent? If so, how did you find the agent? Was it beneficial to you?
HUGH: I did not need an agent for this book. I got to the right person who believed in me. Because he believed in me, I was determined not to let him down. So I made the collection the best I could – for them, for me and for readers.

YVONNE: Where is your book(s) available? Do you have a Web site or blog where we can learn more about you or your book?
HUGH: Go to http://www.transforming-power.com/
There is a click to order the book from Amazon. I have collected over $3,000 worth of free leadership resources from great leadership trainers, authors and consultants for those who purchase my book.

YVONNE: As far as marketing, do you do more online publicity or print/radio/TV promotion? Tell me some ways you have promoted your book. Give examples and links to any sites you feel might help other authors.
HUGH: Here’s some stuff on my book:We are in the fifth day of a 30-day viral campaign for Transforming Power.Here are two posts today on sites that get a lot of traffic:http://www.themarketingmindset.com/2008/08/how-does-an-orc.htmlhttp://www.evancarmichael.com/Book-Reviews/2820/Transforming-Power-by-Hugh-Ballou.htmlI have two radio interviews posted on our site http://www.transforming-power.com/ Endorsements are here http://www.transforming-power.com/quotes.htmHere’s the schedule for the blog tour:http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2008/06/transforming-power-virtual-tour-with.htmlhttp://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2008/06/what-can-conductor-teach-you-about.html

We have also promoted the book on live leadership teleseminars. The details are at http://www.leadershipteleseminar.com/

I have not yet planned TV, Radio and other marketing, but will be doing so with the publisher in the next two weeks.

YVONNE: Have you hired a publicist to help promote this book? If so, what was your experience like?
HUGH: No. I hired a viral marketing expert. Between what I know and the resources of the publisher, we passed on hiring a publicist.

YVONNE: Any other comments or things you would like for us to know?
HUGH: I am excited about this interview and would love to answer any questions from your readers. They can email me at hugh@hughballou.com

YVONNE: Thank you for giving us the opportunity to get to know you and learn about your book. I wish you well.

For more information about Hugh Ballou, visit www.hughballou.com. Book information is available at http://www.amazon.com/Transforming-Power-Transformational-Encouragement-Inspiration/dp/0881775312 For full tour details, visit http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2008/06/transforming-power-virtual-tour-with.html

A SPECIAL BONUS TO EACH PERSON WHO PURCHASES TRANSFORMING POWER TODAY – Hugh Ballou has compiled a list of great FREE bonus gifts for anyone who purchases Transforming Power today. To see a sample of the items that are being given away, visit http://www.transforming-power.com. Just buy a copy of Transforming Power, return to this page and click to submit your invoice number to receive the web page link to download all of these gifts for FREE.

Nikki Leigh – Author, Publicist and Tour Coordinator
www.nikkileigh.com – Book Promo 101: Learn the Basics of Book Promotion

Author Shares Book, Publishing Experience, and Marketing Tips

African-American Romance Author Deondriea Cantrice will be joining Yvonne Perry on Writers in the Sky Podcast to share the storyline of her book, her publishing experience, and some marketing tips.


Deondriea Cantrice is a student of the human condition, wielding the written craft to captivate the mind much like an artist wields a brush. The pages are a blank canvas on which to draw from a talent heralded by many and matched only by an imagination that rises to the task. Rhythm Can’t Keep Time is the first in a series of recent pursuits for Deondriea Cantrice, with work progressing quickly on the horizon. Deondriea aspires to entertain, educate, and inspire her readers with tales of true life.

Click here to listen to Part 1...


Synopisi of Rhythm Can't Keep Time, Sometime Love Just Ain't Enough

Rhythm is synonymous with time, but what happens when Rhythm Can't Keep Time? Sterling and Sheridyn were not looking for love when they discovered a distinct rhythm in each other. A Song, a dance, and a simple beat led them into a journey of Urban Love. Rhythm Can't Keep Time is not a sappy love story, but a tale of passion, purpose, and possibilities that will keep you entranced in Sterling and Sheridyn's dance. Although love is timeless, it waits for no one.

Click here to listen to Part 2...

For more information, testimonials, or excerpts, please log onto http://www.deondriea.com/.

Rhythm Can't Keep Time (ISBN 9781432722968) is available at http://www.amazon.com/, http://www.bn.com/, and http://www.tatteredcover.com/.

*************************************
Listening to Writers in the Sky Podcast on a computer is easy. Just click this link: http://yvonneperry.blogspot.com/ and go to my blog.On the right sidebar there is a list of archived shows. Click on the interview you would like to hear and it will open a post that has a link to the audio file.

The Writing Life: English as a Flexible Language

One of the beauties of the English language is its ability to absorb new words to reflect our changing culture. Here are definitions for some words officially recognized by the Merriam Webster and Oxford English dictionaries.

Baliwood or Bollywood – The film capital of India.

Blog – The words “Web log” shortened and condensed to mean an online journal.

Corporatization – When corporations, not the government, control economic reform.

Earjacking – A graphic way of saying eavesdropping.

Google – A play on the mathematical term “googol,” it’s the brand name of the most powerful online search engine.

Insourcing – Performing a service within a company, rather than sending the work out to a vendor or another company.

Locavore – A person who eats locally grown and harvested food.

Muggle – From the Harry Potter novels, meaning a person with no magical powers.

Webcast – Broadcasting an audio or visual program over the World Wide Web.

That’s just the new words. Then there are the words that have added new meanings.

As a naturalist, “spider” describes an 8-legged arachnid. As a writer who publishes online, “spider” is how Google ranks material published online.

In nature a “web” is what a spider weaves to catch insects for food. In the 21st Century, the “Web” is the abbreviation for the World Wide Web, linking users on the Internet.

I’ll save the topic of phrases for another article.

The words “muggle” and “locavore” came to my attention because of writers. JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series is credited with inventing “muggle.” My head spins when I think of the fact that it took less than ten years for her invented word to make it into the dictionary.

The word “locavore,” created by four women in San Francisco, also made it into the dictionary in less than ten years. Locavore became part of my vocabulary when I read Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable Miracle. I aspire to Kingsolver’s mastery of an eco-friendly lifestyle and her mastery of the written word.

If Thoreau or Darwin came back today, I wonder how long it would take them to translate from 19th to 21st Century spoken English. Could they have a conversation with Rowling and Kingsolver?

That’s one conversation I’d love to eavesdrop on – I mean earjack.



JJ Murphy has been eating wild foods since her farmer parents pulled weeds from the veggie garden and she ate the weeds. JJ continues to forage and write in Harriman, NY, posting recipes and resource information at http://www.WriterByNature.com.

How Do I Get Started Writing?

Whack a Few Writing Myths by Joyce Shafer

There’s all kinds of advice on how to write including:

You must write every day.
Write in the same designated spot at the same time every day.
Write for at least one hour every day.
Get up early several mornings or every morning to write.
You must have complete silence.
You must eat only blue M&Ms or no blue M&Ms, I forget which.

These bits of advice are not etched in stone I’m relieved to tell you. I choose to be intentional and passionate about writing, not monastic. I’ve written at all times of the day and night, and not every day (well, I do count emails which are excellent practice); on my sofa, at my desk, standing up on the subway; for five minutes and for ten hours at a stretch; with jackhammers and leaf-blowers making a racket outside my window (and a neighbor learning to play drums); and I don’t like losing sleep.

One problem with trying to follow a “One Way” rule is that, more than likely, it’s not the most appropriate way for you. If you don’t follow the rule(s), you get into self-judgment. Then you’re so busy thinking and feeling bad about yourself, you’re not taking the action that will create your desired outcome. If you’re committed to writing, nothing and no one will stop you.

If you don’t know how to get started, start anywhere. Seriously. For fiction, if you have the ending, start there. The beginning and middle will come to you. If you’re writing non-fiction, make a list of what you plan to cover. You can write about any item on your list when you feel inspired to do it, or any section or chapter you want to focus on.

Coaching questions:

If you haven’t started, what’s stopping you?
What might you do to take the first step?
What’s the next step after the first? And the next?
Would it be nice if you were a published writer or do you intend to become one no matter what?

Exercise: Write a page about anything, even if all you write is, “This is stupid. I don’t know what to write. If I knew what to write, I’d be writing.” This will ignite your ability to just get going.
Article partially excerpted from Write, Get Published, and Promote: An Easy e-Guide for New and Aspiring Writers by Joyce Shafer (author/freelance services for writers). Get a discount at http://www.freewebs.com/writegetpublishedandpromote

Rhythm Can't Keep Time, Sometimes Love Just Ain't Enough

Deondriea Cantrice will be joining Yvonne Perry on Writers in the Sky Podcast August 15th, 2008!

Deondriea Cantrice is a student of the human condition, wielding the written craft to captivate the mind much like an artist wields a brush. The pages are a blank canvas on which to draw from a talent heralded by many and matched only by an imagination that rises to the task. Rhythm Can’t Keep Time is the first in a series of recent pursuits for Deondriea Cantrice, with work progressing quickly on the horizon. Deondriea aspires to entertain, educate, and inspire her readers with tales of true life.

Synopisi of Rhythm Can't Keep Time, Sometime Love Just Ain't Enough

Rhythm is synonymous with time, but what happens when Rhythm Can't Keep Time? Sterling and Sheridyn were not looking for love when they discovered a distinct rhythm in each other. A Song, a dance, and a simple beat led them into a journey of Urban Love. Rhythm Can't Keep Time is not a sappy love story, but a tale of passion, purpose, and possibilities that will keep you entranced in Sterling and Sheridyn's dance. Although love is timeless, it waits for no one.

For more information, testimonials, or excerpts, please log onto http://www.deondriea.com/.

Rhythm Can't Keep Time (ISBN 9781432722968) is available at http://www.amazon.com/, http://www.bn.com/, and http://www.tatteredcover.com/.

*************************************
Listening to Writers in the Sky Podcast on a computer is easy. Just click this link: http://yvonneperry.blogspot.com/ and go to my blog.On the right sidebar there is a list of archived shows. Click on the interview you would like to hear and it will open a post that has a link to the audio file.

Three Flies Up - My Father, Baseball and Me

Three Flies Up – My Father, Baseball and Me
Author: Kelley Dupuis
ISBN: 978-1-4327-2155-8
Publisher: Outskirts Press, Inc.
Genre and Target Market: biography; father/son relationships; baseball
Publication Date: 2008
Book Length in Pages: 382
Reviewer: Sarah Moore

There certainly is no shortage of stories that have been told about the difficult dynamics of the father/son relationship. The struggle for independence and manhood, generational differences in career expectations and the battle for respect have been put on full display for centuries. Amidst the emotional issues, it is not unusual to find the sport of baseball as an essential element woven into the American father and son story. The autobiography Three Flies Up, the third book written by author Kelley Dupuis, certainly contains all of these expected components. But, this autobiography is far from the formulaic tale of familial strife and reconciliation.

We are introduced to Dupuis’ entire family throughout the course of the book, including a troubled younger sister who suffered an untimely death and a mother who maintained a positive outlook despite a difficult marriage. We also get to know the cast of characters who worked with Dupuis over the years, most memorable being those who managed to irritate the author in some capacity. Dupuis’ world travels as an employee with the State Department and contentious relationships with domestic bosses are detailed with humor. His career successes and setbacks certainly do provide a backdrop in Three Flies Up, and create the circumstances for family interactions. However, the heart of this autobiography comes from the relationship between the author and his father, Joseph Ellis Dupuis.

Dupuis explains his father’s selfish behavior in a way that makes the reader uncomfortable, if not downright angry. How is one supposed to react to a man who tells his son on his tenth birthday that he is one-sixth of his way to death or who bullied his kids as payback to some assumed wrong from his wife? Joseph Dupuis was a man who found derogatory comments to make about minority groups, focused on the negative aspects of every situation and resented any moment at which he was not receiving everyone’s full attention (even at his own wife’s funeral). But, Dupuis also creates compassion for the fragility of his father’s personality. He was a man who showed quiet moments of tenderness when singing to his son’s elderly cat or caring for his tomatoes every year in his small garden. He cried out to his son as he lay in a hospital bed and realized that dementia was overtaking him, “I used to be a man!” To imagine those words coming from my own (very complex) father made for a very painful moment of reading.

There are moments in Three Flies Up that are absolutely gut-wrenching. Anyone who has struggled with the ravaging effects of dementia, particularly with a parent, will undoubtedly relate to Kelley Dupuis’ writing. As the primary caregiver for the last year of his life, Dupuis fed, changed, and guided a father who was slipping deeper into a world of confusion and anger. He writes about his father’s return to a childlike dependence with tenderness and honesty. When the author writes about his need to escape to the kitchen just to cry and mourn the person his dad had become, you cannot help but find yourself connected to the author.

Despite a troubled relationship that at one point led to five years of estrangement, the author and his father had one interest that allowed them to speak a common language—baseball (particularly the San Diego Padres). When every other discussion had reached an impasse, the question, “What time is the game on?” could reunite the two for a common cause. Mr. Dupuis uses each baseball season and its victors as a way of marking the passage of time in this book. Interspersed with funerals, love affairs and family fights are recollections of batting statistics, lousy trades, and the annual fate of those “good boys” from the Padres. While two pages abruptly detailing the pitch count in the seventh inning of a Padres game may seem superfluous to some, anyone who finds a connection with sports and their life lessons will appreciate the perfect symbiosis.

Three Flies Up was my introduction to Kelley Dupuis’ writing and I will be making it a point to read his two previously published books. While I will never be a father or a son, I could understand the relationships detailed in this autobiography. Don’t we all have some point of remorse or resentment with our parents? How many of us embrace those elements that strengthen sometimes the shaky bonds with our family? Aren’t our close relationships often the most complicated ones? I encourage you to learn more about Kelley Dupuis and his father by reading Three Flies Up and then, if you can, join your own dad at the ballpark for a couple of beers and some cheering for the home team.

A Saving Hurricane

A Saving Hurricane
Purchase at http://www.booklocker.com/books/3527.html and on Amazon.com.

Synopsis. From one storm to another. It was the worst decision she ever made but it was for the best. Where do you go to hide from an abusive husband? Where can you disappear completely? Where can you go to save yourself and your children? You run straight into the nation’s worst disaster in history--Hurricane Katrina. Because refugees have no name, because misery loves company and because in the devastation there’s a chance to start over. In a broken New Orleans, one woman builds a new life, falls in love, but makes dangerous choices to survive.

Author Bio.Bernadette Sukley has been researching, writing and editing for over 20 years. Her work has appeared in Sports Illustrated for Women, Men's Health and Natural Health magazines. She's written and copy edited for the Danish-based expat publication, ABROAD. She currently lives in the shadow of Hawk Mountain.

Why Your Book Should be Evaluated Before Going to Market

By Yvonne Perry

Have you ever purchased a product that didn’t live up to its promise? You probably felt disappointed and wanted your money back. A book is a product, and I have read a few that left me feeling frustrated.

If you own a store, you want to sell quality products to satisfied customers. If you ask a store to sell your product, you would not ask them to sell something that is broken or missing parts. It is the same way with bookstores. They do not want their shelves filled with books that are of poor quality. While many POD (publish on demand) outlets produce a nice cover and quality binding, they probably won’t require you to hire an editor to improve your book. In fact, most don’t even offer editorial services. Many PODs will accept any manuscript from anyone. They don’t ask the author for a marketing plan because they know that the money they make on a book is not from book sales; it is from the fee they charge up front to publish your book. Most books sell less than 100 copies.

Having an unedited book is the mark of an amateur and may prevent your book from being accepted by a conventional publisher. Publishers want manuscripts that are ready to publish. They don’t have time or money to invest in your manuscript in order to bring it to a marketable level. Yes, marketable within the publishing company, not to readers or bookstores. When your book comes to the acquisitions editor of one of the major publishing houses, someone has to believe in your product enough to move it up the line to the person or committee that will be reviewing the book for its sales potential and overall quality. If an editor can’t “sell” your book to her boss, your book will not be chosen for publication. A manuscript that lacks literary quality has: numerous typos, grammatical, spelling, and other mechanical errors such as verb agreement, shifts in tense, inconsistent voice, and poor sentence structure. It may need more development of characters, better set up of plot, improved transitional paragraphs, or a more logical flow of information. Manuscripts like these are not likely to reach an editor’s publishing list.

Most mechanical errors are caused by the author's lack of knowledge about correct usage rather than a lack of concern for correctness. Correct usage is very important and goes a long way to help a reader make sense of a writer's work. Even if you got all As in English, and are good at grammar and spelling, it does not make you a qualified editor. Did you notice I used As and not A’s in the above sentence? Using an apostrophe would make the word possessive rather than plural. A professional editor knows these things and also understands formatting, front and back matter, book structure, indexing, and is able to see your manuscript in a fresh, new way.

Let’s say you published your book through a POD, or perhaps you self-published and did not hire an editor before you released it. You have sent out hundreds of copies asking people to review the book, but you can’t figure out why no one is responding. It could be that the way the story was told was confusing or didn’t flow well. Perhaps the book contained so many mechanical errors that the reader was too frustrated to continue reading it. Even if they know enough about writing to critique a book, your friends don’t want to hurt your feelings. If they didn’t like your book well enough to write a review, they don’t want to lie about liking it. They will probably hope you avoid mentioning the book when they are with you. You have a better chance of getting reviews on a well-written, entertaining book that has wide market appeal, and reviews sell books.

Hiring an editor or getting an evaluation of your book before you publish will save you money in the long run. There is no guarantee that you will sell enough books to substantiate the time and money required to market a book. Having an inferior product lessens this opportunity even more.

Why not have a professional editor assist you with your book? Writers in the Sky Creative Writing Services offers a plan that includes a thorough reading of your book or manuscript and a written assessment of its commercial potential. A kind (but honest) opinion of the author's strengths and weaknesses are given along with tips for improving the overall quality of writing. The evaluation includes an assessment of the manuscript's publishing condition and what it would take to get it ready to submit to an agent or publisher. The knowledge gained from this type of book evaluation helps an author become a better writer as he applies this feedback to future works. This money is well spent if you consider how much you will save by not trying to market an inferior product.

Yvonne Perry is a freelance writer and the owner of Writers in the Sky Creative Writing Services. She and her team of ghostwriters and editors service clients all over the world by offering quality writing and editing at an affordable price. If you need a brochure, web text, business document, résumé, bio, article, or book, visit www.yvonneperry.net.

Do you agree or disagree? Please leave your feedback as a comment on this post.

What's Killing Your Publishing Career?

by C.F. Jackson

With the large increase of books being published by self-publishers, and the up-rise of print on demand, there is still a lot of death taking place in the publishing industry. In the United States, over 291,920 books were published in 2006, per Bowker.

Are you a part of this population? There are many aspects that make up these individuals. However, let us target just three that are undeniable to anyone reading this article.

As in anything we do, a large portion of it is about taking risks. Are you a risk taker? You have completed your manuscript or just published your novel; it is time to open the entrepreneur portion of your brain.

Risk takers do not mind the possible end result because the thought of success is pure motivation. Many writers and authors remain reclusive within the safe haven of their creativity. What makes this ideology costly? It is the slow return on their investment.

Are you wondering if you fit into this population of authors? Sure you have published your work for the whole world to read, even critique. But that is just the beginning of this venture. What makes you any different than the other hundreds of thousands of writers and authors?

Sure you can play it safe and hope your extraordinary opportunity hits you over your head. Why not become a risk taker and take it by authority?

Becoming a risk taker you must be:
--- persistent
--- creative
--- passionate

Another obvious bludgeon death is the lack of knowledge.

Yes it is lovely to remain in your creative world and just produce book after book. Can you imagine leaving all the other hoopla for others to sort out?

No one who’s a true business person would dare allow themselves to walk blind in their business. Prime examples are Oprah, Donald Trump, and Bill Gates. However, many writers and authors are just that, blind.

In order to be successful, you need to be savvy on all levels in the literary industry. If you are not, just like buying a car, you are going to get taken every time. Do your homework, rather than relying on third party hearsay. For example, many writers have shouted foul play regarding POD (print on demand). The pitch is knowing the short and long term of POD. Before signing any contract, may it be for a car, house, student loan, or what have you, the rule of thumb is to know what it says. If you do not know, you will swing at a curve ball because the only pitch you anticipated was the fastball.

To become knowledgeable:

--- ask questions
--- take the time to research
--- make sure you understand

Lastly, the beast of all beasts, is marketing. It is amazing how many authors are not marketing exhaustively.

This reverts back to the second point: lack of knowledge. Too many authors belief that a publisher will sign them and they will promote and market their book. Happy to inform you, that is not always the case.

This is your business and publishers have invested enough in you, such as advances, printing, and a brief promotion run. After this, it is the author’s job to build a Web site, create news releases, get interviews and so on.

There are many authors and writers out there with published works who are at a loss. Many assume self-published authors do not have to deal with marketing and promoting. If no one has informed you, allow me to say that is not true. All published authors, in any realm must market themselves. How else will your book or novel sell without getting out to the masses? Your readers?

To market, you must:

--- think-outside-the-box
--- market everyday on some level
--- address all angles of your novel or book
--- have a user friendly Web site

Take a look at where you are and where you desire to be in this literary world. Determine if you are killing your publishing career.

This is going to be a challenge, but you must have enough energy, passion, and juice to make it past the trying moments.

As a writer or author, make sure you are multi-dimensional. You are becoming an entrepreneur, so know where your hats are and when to wear them.

C.F. Jackson has been interviewed on The Sumter Television Show, The Louie Jones Show, Millionaire Monday Series by John DiLemme and Atlanta’s WVEE (V-103 FM), to name a few. Download your free Web site Makeover 101 at http://www. Web siteMakeoverWorkshop.com. Learn the two things a Web site must do.ph: 404.492.7644, email: info@Websitemakeoverworkshop.com

Two Authors Stir Up “Trouble” by Giving Away New Books

Award-nominated authors and podcasters, Tee Morris and Philippa Ballantine, have teamed up across hemispheres for “Double Trouble,” a unique celebration and promotion for their summer releases of The Case of the Pitcher’s Pendant: A Billibub Baddings Mystery and Digital Magic.

Morris and Ballantine are asking their fans to make “Double Trouble” on Amazon.com by ordering their new books on August 8, 2008, anytime after 8 a.m. PST-USA; and send these titles to the top of Amazon’s charts. To build up anticipation, the two authors have released their new novels as downloads on their Web sites, encouraging bloggers, podcasters, and readers to share the free books with others. In less than a week, downloads for The Case of the Pitcher’s Pendant and Digital Magic have totalled beyond 50,000 and are still averaging for each book 2,000 downloads a day.

“Double Trouble will be our day on Amazon,” says Tee. “We have been getting word out on our respective podcasts and mailing lists, and the downloads for The Case of The Pitcher’s Pendant and Digital Magic are really exciting.”

Dragon Moon’s publisher, Gwen Gades is also excited. “Before his days at Crown Books, Scott Sigler brought Dragon Moon into Amazon’s Top Ten with Ancestor. Considering the downloads I’m seeing, Double Trouble could be even bigger.” This promotion will mark the first time two authors are working together to dominate the charts.

“Double Trouble is, in its own way, a worldwide event,” states Philippa Ballantine from her home in Wellington, New Zealand. “Tee is working out of Manassas, Virginia. I’m in the Southern Hemisphere. Along with our downloads, we have been giving interviews. The shows have been coming out of locations across the country, Ireland, and even Sydney, Australia.”

For Pip, this kind of promotion is important considering her location. “There is strength in numbers, even if that number is two. Tee and I are pooling promotional resources, and that does make a difference. Double Trouble is not only innovative, but stands as a great example of Web 2.0’s potential in creating and nurturing fan bases.”

As far as worrying about giving away their books in digital format, Gades isn’t worried. “Their fan base appreciates the look at what’s coming in print, and I’m confident they will be there on 08.08.08 to show support.”

Tee Morris and Philippa Ballantine ask their fans to wait until August 8, 2008 at 8:00 a.m. PST-USA to place their orders for The Case of The Pitcher’s Pendant: A Billibub Baddings Mystery and Digital Magic from Amazon.com.

Along with this collaboration, Morris and Ballantine are currently working together on their podcast novels, MOREVI: Remastered (http://www.morevi.net) and Chasing the Bard (http://chasingthebard.com). The free PDFs of their new books can be found at these blogs as well.

Tee and Pip are available for interviews and invite you to contact them through http://teemorris.com or http://pjballantine.net. Publisher Gwen Gades can also be reached for comment at publisher@dragonmoonpress.com.

The Most Important Words on Your Web Site

By Penny C. Sansevieri


When I coach authors on what their Web site needs to look like, I spend a lot of time talking about the words on their Web site, i.e. their copywriting. But even more important than the collection of words are a few individual phrases no site can be without.


Sign-up: getting your visitor to sign up for something is important. Why? Because studies have shown that surfers don't often buy the first time they land on your site. Often they want to browse, shop, maybe bookmark you for later. If they bookmark you, you've lost a sale. Don't get me wrong, I love it when someone bookmarks the Author Marketing Experts site but when they do, the likelihood of my being able to sell to them is minimal. Instead, I get them into the AME funnel by encouraging prospective customers to sign up for something they want, i.e. our Book Marketing Expert Newsletter. And then to encourage them even further, we actually give them something for signing up: our Top 50 Media contact list. So if you're not asking for a sign-up, you might want to reconsider this. Then, give them an ethical bribe in return: give them something they want. Don't just throw a freebie at them and expect your visitor to jump for joy. Here's a clue: if you wouldn't want the freebie, it's likely they won't either.


Buy: most of us have been taught not to ask for what we want. I'm giving you permission to not only ask for it, but put it on your home page. So often I talk to authors who say their Web sites aren't selling. They're not selling because the author forgets to ask for the sale. The words Buy or Buy Now are a call to action that will greatly increase your chances of making a sale. If this isn't on your home page, have your Web master or Web designer add it ASAP.



Free: I know, now I'm getting confusing, right? I just told you that you needed to ask for the sale and now I'm telling you that you need to give it away. Well, yes and no. Let me explain. First, while you want to have a strong call to action and a "funnel" to get folks into your marketing message, you also want to give something away (besides the newsletter freebie). Consider this: people want information or they want to be entertained or they want to be educated. If you can do any of these things, go for it. A way you can do this might be through your blog, blogging is a fantastic way to disseminate information in a free format. The next might be through a game on your site, a resource or article page, or other information on your subject or area of expertise. We had a client once who wrote a book about working with difficult people and she had a game on her site that would let visitors launch a gnarly co-worker out of a cannon (while I love everyone I work with, I used this for other, eh, outside AME people). Things like that have a great pass-through factor, meaning that folks will pass along the site or link so others can share in the fun as well. Remember the "Elf yourself" that Office Depot did last holiday season? I must have gotten that link sent to me 25 times. No kidding. People love freebies. Make 'em laugh, educate them or give them something they can't get anywhere else and they'll beat a path to your door.


The point being that even the best Web site copy has a few elements that shouldn't be overlooked. By incorporating just a few simple steps, you can really begin to see your site go from a ho-hum author Web site to a rockin' selling tool!
Here's to your success both online and off!


Penny C. Sansevieri, CEO and founder of Author Marketing Experts, Inc., is a best-selling author and internationally recognized book marketing and media relations expert. Her company is one of the leaders in the publishing industry and has developed some of the most cutting-edge book marketing campaigns. She is the author of five books, including Book to Bestseller which has been called the "road map to publishing success." To learn more about her books or her promotional services, you can visit her Web site at www.amarketingexpert.com. To subscribe to her free ezine, send a blank email to: mailto:subscribe@amarketingexpert.com
Copyright© 2008 Penny C. Sansevieri

Author's and Writing Update

August Author's Corner

My grandmother’s 92nd birthday party was a lot of fun. I saw family members that I only see once every year or so. We had great food including homemade peach ice cream—my aunt’s delicious annual contribution. My grandmother enjoyed all the decorations my mom and her sister tacked on every wall and light fixture in the house. They even had a Princess Nanny balloon alongside the front walkway. Do you want to know what kind of gift to give a 92-year-old? Food gift certificates! Nanny is thrilled to use her gift card when she calls Pizza Hut to her door! And, she loves getting gussied up and having her own “money card” when my parents to take her to a local restaurant.

Forbes.com did an interview with me this past month titled A Freelancer's Survival Guide. The article turned out well and you may find the information helpful if you are thinking of starting a freelance business.

I have a new eBook Book Marketing in the Digital Age, Online Promotion Made Easy coming out in a few months. It’s the one about online book promotion that some of you have been waiting for. I’ve compiled everything that I have learned about online marketing into a 50-page eBook with tons of links to the sites of other experts—yours may be one of them! Preview this book marketing eBook at http://www.onlinepromotionmadeeasy.com/

I am asked the same questions over and over from authors who want to self-publish their books: What is the best way to print my book? How much should I expect to pay? Do you have any recommendations for a reputable printing company? If you know of a printing company that you can confidently recommend to our readers, I would like to hear from you.

Our trip to South Carolina to see our kids and grandkids was a pure delight. Being on the beach all day Friday, July 4, and again the following Sunday was just what I needed to help me release the stress I had been under. Along with several smaller projects, I’ve ghostwritten, edited, or proofread at least a dozen books this year, and I’m simultaneously working on three more books right now. That’s in addition to running and marketing a business, producing a podcast, blog, and newsletter, and trying to be a human. I’m certainly not complaining. I love what I do and I’m thankful to be able to work from home.

I put together a video about our writing business to show what WITS is all about. I’d love to have your comments on YouTube.com.

We have more articles in this issue than usual, but they are all so good, I hated to cut any of them. Our “Network With Us” section could use a little pumping up, so be sure to send me your announcements by the 22nd day of August for inclusion in September’s issue.

I hope you enjoy WITS Newsletter and will forward it to your friends and let them know how to subscribe.

Mystical Mentor: Breaking Through Barriers Finding Peace of Mind

Mystical Mentor: Breaking Through Barriers Finding Peace of Mind
Dick WarnTrafford Publishing (2008)
ISBN 9781425161651
Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (6/08)


A chance encounter at an international Toastmaster meeting in Anchorage, Alaska, introduced Dick Warn to a mystical mentor who changed his life. His mentor, Russell Swank, was a self-made millionaire. He did not acquire his wealth easily. He had some hard lessons to learn on his path. Turning negative events into lessons provided him with some tremendous learning experiences. He took the author, Dick Warn, under his wing to provide him with some guidance to get him started on his journey of breaking through barriers to find peace of mind.

Mr. Warn learned we are here to learn from our experiences. We choose what kind of life we want to experience. Heaven and Hell are states of mind which we are experiencing right now. It is up to us to decide which one we want to experience. Each day is a new day that offers us a fresh start and a chance to be the person we want to be. Russell provided him with exercises to help him discover what his three top goals for living were. He also had him identify barriers holding him back. I wrote these exercises down in my journal. It was fascinating for me to realize one barrier holding me back is that I buy things I don’t need to try to fill a void that cannot be filled by things. How simple and basic this is, yet I had never put it into words prior to this exercise. Quoting Russell Swank, he states, “The battles that need to be won are within.”

There is also a very powerful exercise that involves creating a forgiveness deck of cards. On these cards you write the name of a person that has hurt you and a prayer forgiving them and releasing them. In a few short minutes of creating these cards, I found myself forgiving and releasing people. There were a few I was totally able to release in that moment. There are still a few I will need some time to work on. What is interesting is that the day before reading “Mystical Mentor,” an ex-boyfriend offered an apology for his atrocious behavior during our relationship. What a gift I received in that phone call. I feel I will be able to forgive and release him much easier now.

In addition to reading about Mr. Warn’s powerful experiences with Russell Swank, the book also offers a large selection of quotes taken from various powerful mentors who have gone before us. I really enjoyed taking the time to read and contemplate what was being said. I also found a list of books he suggests reading. I already have about a quarter of these books in my book room. Unfortunately, I had only read one of them.

I found “Mystical Mentor” to be an incredibly insightful and inspiring book. I appreciated Mr. Warn’s willingness to tell his story and to do it so openly. Once he started his journey, he still encountered some rough spots that became tremendous learning experiences. By being so candid and honest, readers will appreciate his book so much more. I am truly grateful for having the opportunity to read “Mystical Mentor.” It came along at the perfect time. Now that I am done with it, I have a reading list to get to work on. I look forward to rereading it after I have read the books on the list. Enjoy your journey.

Rue de la Pompe: A Satiric Urban Fantasy

Rue de la Pompe: A Satiric Urban Fantasy
James Earle McCracken
iUniverse (2008)
ISBN 9780595485055
Reviewed by Olivera Baumgartner-Jackson for Reader Views (7/08)

Let me start this review by saying that I certainly read a lot. Between my reading for work and reading for pleasure, I probably average at least 150 books a year. And since I’ve been doing this for a while, I’ve read a few good books by now. I do not find it surprising that nowadays I often feel I’ve read a variation of what I am currently reading before. Granted, all authors are at least somewhat influenced by the work of others, but all too often the similarities are too great to overlook. So it has been quite a while since I’ve read a book and thought, “Wow, this was truly different and truly refreshing…”

Well, this past weekend has been one of those “wow” moments. After having read the first couple of chapters of James Earle McCracken’s Rue de la Pompe, I had to put it down and ask myself where the author was going with his story. After a few more, I was no closer to being able to categorize the book, but I was sure having a good time. Having finished it, I still would be extremely hard pressed to describe it with any accuracy, but I feel like I would after an exhilarating day at an outstanding amusement park. It was wild; it was unpredictable; it was mad-cap and scary at times; but always witty, picturesque and never boring.

The story is deceptively simple. A thirty-year-old American living in Paris, Michael Whyte, receives a mysterious gift of formal wear and an invitation to a party on his birthday. This sets him on an epic quest for the very first French franc coin. It is the author’s truly unique approach to telling the story—through the inner voices of Michael’s different personalities (Mr. Whyte, Mikey, Smart Ass, Dumb Ass and Jackass)—and the fantastic use of the locale, Paris, which set this story apart in the best possible way. I do not know of another author who would dare to describe Paris as “On the good days, the city struck Michael as a beautiful woman who wasn’t his type; the rest of the time, Paris was a bad summer camp with weird counselors and lousy toilets.” When you add to this a cast of extremely quirky characters (a Zen-master quote-spouting jeweler, a Castilian “compact assassin,” a helpful deaf-mute, a farting statue of Benjamin Franklin, a joke-telling rhinoceros, a Doberman-like concierge, an epistemologist, an enigmatic beauty who speaks all of the languages, a couple of villains, as well as a few other more or less lunatic characters), you should not be surprised when the book turns out to be a cross between a roller-coaster, an abduction by a flying saucer, a carousel, the Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted House located in the Hall of Mirrors and completed with a few side shows.

The author manages to poke fun at pretty much everything and everybody, but he does so in a highly entertaining and intelligent way. Nobody and nothing get spared, be it the pacifistic Dutch, the Japanese tour groups, over-the-top menus filled with pretentious ingredients and complicated dishes, cheese-discussing French alligators or the sex life of elephants… I’ve enjoyed his highly individual writing style, the unorthodox story and the unbelievably peculiar set of characters immensely. A great book to brighten an otherwise uninspiring weekend, a tedious trip or a wait in a doctor’s office somewhere, “Rue de la Pompe,” by James Earle McCracken, is certainly by far the most original work I’ve read lately and I do hope the author will keep his promise about the upcoming book two.

Christian Author of Heavenly Places

Kimberly Cash Tate will be joining us on Writers in the Sky Podcast August 1, 2008 to discuss her book Heavenly Places.

Kimberly Cash Tate is an exciting Christian author whose career began when she penned her spiritual journey in a compelling memoir entitled, More Christian than African-American: One Women's Journey to her True Spiritual Self in 1999. True to her calling - as a published writer - she is back with a heart-warming fictional debut called, Heavenly Places, published by Walk Worthy Press, March 2008.