Author Archive
Posted on November 5, 2007 - by admin
This is the Place
Lauren Smith: What is your book about?
{mosimage}Carolyn Howard-Johnson: This Is the Place is a fictionalized account of my life. I was born to a Mormon father and a Protestant mother in a state that was almost exclusively Mormon and is a culture colored by the dominant religion (Every state legislator, as an example, are Mormon even in this year of 2007.) As a young journalist I considered marrying a Mormon man, much as five generations of Nonmormon women before me had done–my mother, grandmother, great grandmother and great-great grandmother. Each handled her situation in a different way depending on her personality and the time she lived in. The result is a saga of the West, based on authentic pioneer history; a love story, based on my own; and the story of a woman reaching for a career in journalism against all odds.
Lauren Smith: Why did you write this book?
Carolyn Howard-Johnson: I thought about this book as a young journalist in the early sixties. It didn't get written until four decades later when I got cancer and realized that, if not now, possibly never.
Posted on November 5, 2007 - by admin
The Mouse Knight
Lauren Smith: What is your book about?
{mosimage}Cutter Hays: The trilogy is about mice getting a chance for equality with humans, all started by a single mouse who is born knowing how to read.
Lauren Smith: Why did you write it?
Cutter Hays: To help out mice and the RMCA (Rat and Mouse Club ofAmerica, who first hosted it). And mostly because I was inspired to do so.
Lauren Smith: What do you hope your reader will learn from your book?
Posted on November 2, 2007 - by admin
Alex Webster and the Gods
Interview with David Dent, author of Alex Webster and the Gods
About the book: After several millennia spent in retirement, taking it easy, Jupiter, the superstar Roman God, decides the timing is right for his comeback as a business leader with an MBA from Harvard. His intention is to acquire a global corporation and to set up a new worldly empire. But Jupiter has been out of circulation for a while and he and his friends are a little rusty at the game of corporate takeovers. The high jinks and intrigue that ensure are all part of David Dent’s new science fiction novel, Alex Webster and the Gods.
This interview is exclusive to the Virtual Book Review Network
VBRN: What inspired you to create a work of science fiction?
{mosimage}David Dent: Science fiction and fantasy have always been obsessed with the nature of godhood. The idea came to me in 2002 after reading an article in the Atlantic Monthly on the explosion of new religious movements. The article noted that there were about 10,000 religions competing for our souls and that some sociologists use the idea of a religious economy or spiritual marketplace to explain what helps a religion succeed in gaining followers. One could say that Darwinism had its start in the heavens. Because the capitalist marketplace is the dominant metaphor, if not mythology, of our age, I thought it would be interesting to examine a world where gods are the producers of religious services, competing to meet the demands of humans.
VBRN: How did you arrive at the idea of Yahweh as the first capitalist?
David Dent: About the same time that I was considering ideas for my book, I was also taking a course in world religions. During one class the professor asked about the nature of god as presented in the Old Testament. Rather than responding from a theological perspective, I considered it from a modern reading of the Bible, asking, What kind of business leader was Yahweh? This was not by chance because my career at that point dealt with issues of corporate governance and management. Interestingly, I found that one can argue Yahweh’s management style evolves from an entrepreneurial, hands-on deity to a maturing manager who, overtime, introduces more sophisticated management and control methods to achieve his goals. The cause for these changes is that Yahweh, like any good manager, learns from experience. His evolution is similar to that of many entrepreneurs who create new ventures and navigate them to successful organizations. In Yahweh’s case, his brand dominates the religion market, with Christianity taking about a 32 percent share worldwide. In other words, Yahweh’s story is not unlike that of Bill Gates or Henry Ford, evolving from a temperamental, even eccentric, entrepreneur to the avuncular, but distant, Chairman of the Board. And the idea tied in beautifully with the notion of a religious market. Arguably, Yahweh is the world’s first and oldest capitalist and, to this point, most successful.
VBRN: How did you decide on Jupiter as the old god looking for a comeback?
Posted on August 11, 2007 - by admin
The Power of Mentorship
An Interview with one of the Co-Authors, Dr. Letitia Wright
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Lauren Smith: Why did you write this book?
Dr. Letitia Wright: I became a co-author because it provided me an opportunity to talk to women entrepreneurs about the one thing I see them do that causes failure. Business schools do not really talk about it and time management people act like it's something you can just time manage away. I wanted to share what successful women were really doing.
Lauren Smith: Why do you think it's important that women get mentoring?
Dr. Letitia Wright: Mentoring is the fast track to Mastery. A mentor can show you how to do it, hold you accountable and show you the tools that you need. The relationship will cause you to grow faster. More importantly, you do not have to re-invent the wheel.
Lauren Smith: Why don't women get mentored as often as men?
Dr. Letitia Wright: Women do not ask for mentoring and when they do, they do not really have an idea of what the parameters will be. So they wind up in relationships that become inappropriate or actually cause them a setback
Lauren Smith: How can someone find a mentor?
Dr. Letitia Wright: First determine what you are seeking from a mentor. Then when you meet with that person, you can address your expectations in terms of time and performance. Then look for people who excel in the areas you need to excel in. astly, ask!
Lauren Smith: What tips can you offer to women hoping to start a business?
Dr. Letitia Wright: Understand who your market is. I have too many conversations with people who believe their product is for everyone. Unless you are selling air, its not. Pick a market and work that market, do not take on the entire world.
Lauren Smith: Can you tell us about your work?
Dr. Letitia Wright: I am the host of the Wright Place TV show, a weekly 30 minute broadcast television show for the woman entrepreneur. My guests talk about what is working now, not stories of success from 20 years ago. I host people like Mark Victor Hansen, Dottie Walters ( when she was alive), Stedman Graham, Robert G. Allen, T. Harv Eker and many others.
This summer I am producing and directing a movie called The Power of Mentorship. t's due out December 6, 2007. My hope is that it will give people everywhere real examples and encouragement to create success in every area of their lives.
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Posted on August 11, 2007 - by admin
Fly with the Mourning Dove
An Interview with the author, Velda Brotherton
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Lauren Smith: As an Arkansas historical author, what inspired you to write Fly With The Mourning Dove, a book about living in New Mexico?
Velda Brotherton: My Dad was a great storyteller, and all my life I'd heard him talk about some relatives of my grandparents who had homesteaded on the high desert in New Mexico. He'd talk about a woman who lived alone for an entire winter in order to prove up the homestead. About the snow being higher than the roof, and how she'd managed her day to day chores. The stories fascinated me and I never forgot them. Then, I went to a writer's conference in Albuquerque, remembered that the daughter of this woman lived near Taos and called her. I ended up spending a week with her. She took me all over that breathtaking country, so different from Arkansas. I especially enjoyed an overnight visit to one of the ranches, which she still owned. There were no modern facilities. At night the stars rested so close to the ground they could almost be touched. The desert and its monochromatic vistas mesmerized me; I couldn't get enough of it or her stories about growing up there. I continued to visit with her every year, and one day, as she was talking about having read one of my historical romances, she said casually, "When you write a book about me, I hope you don't write it as a romance." So there it was, the challenge no writer can turn down.
Lauren Smith: What was it like to write about someone who is still living?
Velda Brotherton: Scary and difficult. I didn't want to present her personality in a way that would offend her, yet I had a definite perception that she probably wasn't aware of. Are any of us really aware of how we come across to other people? Sometimes I would get too carried away telling some of her deepest thoughts and emotions and she would ask me to leave out something, but for the most part, we got along well in that respect. I was still very nervous when I sent her the completed manuscript after more than a year of working long-distance on it. When it came back with a post-it note on top saying only, "I'm satisfied," I breathed a sigh of relief.
Lauren Smith: What surprised you most about this process?
Velda Brotherton: That she could be so honest with me about the way some of the difficulties of her life affected her. I'm sure she held back a few things, wouldn't any of us? Yet she revealed things about herself that were very private. I think they come across well in the book and present her as she really is.
Lauren Smith: What were you fascinated to learn about Edna's life?
Velda Brotherton: How strong she was, and still is. She had her 93rd birthday this July, and is still very active physically and mentally. She keeps up with current events and has strong opinions that are well thought out. Her understanding of the political and emotional situations while she was growing up is amazing.
Lauren Smith: What do you hope readers learn from Edna's journey?
Velda Brotherton: That no matter the trials and tribulations in life, we can make our way safely through them and remain who we always wanted to be. She's the epitome of the western woman who stands up to adversity with a serene strength that is admirable.
Posted on July 10, 2007 - by admin
New Harry Potter Book 7
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The Final Chapter
It's official! Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh and final book in J.K. Rowling's magical Harry Potter series, will be released on July 21, 2007. In the February 1 announcement from the book's publisher, Lisa Holton, President of Scholastic Children's Books, said, "We are thrilled to announce the publication date of the seventh installment in this remarkable series. We join J.K. Rowling's millions of readers–young and old, veterans and newcomers–in anticipating what lies ahead." Save the date, and let the countdown begin!
{mosimage}Let's celebrate J.K.Rowling's talent once again!
Posted on May 19, 2007 - by admin
Voice of Israel author
Abba Eban (Hebrew: אבא אבן, born February 2, 1915, died November 17, 2002), voice of israel author, was an Israeli diplomat and politician.
{mosimage}Born with the name Aubrey Solomon Meir in Cape Town, South Africa, Eban moved to England at an early age. He was educated at St Olave's Grammar School before studying Classics and Oriental languages at Queens' College, Cambridge. After graduating with a "Triple-Starred First", he researched Arabic and Hebrew as a Fellow of Pembroke College from 1938–1939. At the outbreak of World War II, Eban went to work for Chaim Weizmann at the World Zionist Organization in London from December 1939. A few months later he joined the British Army as an intelligence officer, where he rose to the rank of major. He served as a liaison officer for the Allies to the Jewish Yishuv of Palestine. Drawing on his linguistic skills, In 1947 he translated from Arabic a 1937 novel by Tawfiq Al Hakim(1898-1987): Maze of Justice: Diary of a Country Prosecutor.
Eban moved back to London briefly to work in the Jewish Agency's Information Department, from where he was posted to New York, where the General Assembly of the United Nations was considering the "Palestine Question". In 1947, he was appointed as a liaison officer to the United Nations Special Committee on Palestine, where he was successful in attaining approval for the partition of Palestine into Jewish and Arab segments—Resolution 181. At this stage, he changed his name to the Hebrew word Abba (however it was seldom used informally), meaning "Father", as he could foresee himself as the father of the nation of Israel. Eban spent a decade at the United Nations, and also served as his country's ambassador to the United States at the same time. He was renowned for his oratorical skills. In the words of Henry Kissinger:
"I have never encountered anyone who matched his command of the English language. Sentences poured forth in mellifluous constructions complicated enough to test the listener’s intelligence and simultaneously leave him transfixed by the speaker’s virtuosity."
His polished presentation, grasp of history, and powerful speeches gave him authority in a United Nations that was generally skeptical of Israel or even hostile to it. He was fluent in ten languages. In 1952, Eban was elected Vice President of the UN General Assembly.
Eban left the United States in 1959 and returned to Israel, where he was elected to the Knesset (the Israeli parliament) as a member of the Mapai party. He served under David Ben-Gurion as Minister of Education and Culture from 1960 to 1963, then as deputy to Prime Minister Levi Eshkol until 1966. Through this entire period (1959–1966), he also served as president of the Weizmann Institute at Rehovot.
From 1966 to 1974, Eban served as Israel's foreign minister, defending the country in the Six-Day War. Nonetheless, he was a strong supporter of giving away the territories occupied in the war in exchange for peace. He played an important part in the shaping of UN Security Council Resolution 242 in 1967 (as well as UN Security Council Resolution 338 in 1973). Eban was at times criticized for not voicing his opinions in Israel's internal debate.
His comment that "Arabs never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity [for peace]," made after the Geneva peace talks in December 1973, is often quoted.
In 1988, after three decades in the Knesset, he lost his seat over internal splits in the Israeli Labour Party. He devoted the rest of his life to writing and teaching, including serving as a visiting academic at Princeton University and Columbia University. He also narrated television documentaries including Heritage: Civilization and the Jews (PBS, 1984), for which he was host, Israel, A Nation Is Born (1992), and On the Brink of Peace (PBS, 1997).
In 2001, Eban received the Israel Prize, his country's highest honor. He died in 2002 and was buried in Kfar Shmaryahu, north of Tel Aviv.
Abba Eban's brother-in-law is the late Chaim Herzog, the 6th president of Israel. Herzog's son Isaac Herzog is a minister in Israel's Knesset. Eban's cousin, Oliver Sacks, is a neurologist and author and his son, Eli Eban, is a renowned clarinetist who teaches at Indiana University. Eli has two children, Yael and Omri Eban. His nephew, Jonathan Lynn is a film-maker and script-writer known for satirical BBC shows Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister. Lynn recounts that the plot of an episode of Yes, Prime Minister, which involved the British Prime Minister bypassing his own Arab-centric bureaucracy by taking the Israeli ambassador's advice, was based on an actual incident narrated to him by Eban.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Abba Eban".
Posted on May 19, 2007 - by admin
To Fly and Fight Author – “Bud” Anderson
About to fly and fight author….. Clarence E. "Bud" Anderson, is a retired officer in the United States Air Force and a "triple ace" in World War II.
{mosimage}Anderson was born in Oakland, California, and raised on a farm near Newcastle, California. In January 1942 he enlisted in the United States Army as an aviation cadet and received his wings and commission as a second lieutenant in September 1942.
Anderson flew two tours of combat against the Luftwaffe in Europe while with the 363rd Fighter Squadron of the 357th Fighter Group, based at RAF Leiston, England, and was the group's 3rd leading ace with 16 1/4 aerial victories. His P-51, nicknamed Old Crow, carried him safely through 116 missions without being hit by fire from enemy aircraft and without Anderson ever having to turn back for any reason. He returned to the United States in February 1945 in the rank of captain.
With over thirty years of military service, Anderson was a test pilot at Wright Field (where he also served as Chief of Fighter Operations) and Edwards Air Force Base (where he was Chief of Flight Test Operations and Deputy Director of Flight Test), served two tours at the The Pentagon and commanded three fighter organizations. From June to December 1970 he commanded the 355th Tactical Fighter Wing, an F-105 unit, during its final months of service in the Vietnam War, and retired in March 1972. He was decorated twenty-five times for his service to the United States.
After his retirement from active duty as a colonel, he became the manager of the McDonnell Aircraft Company's Flight Test Facility at Edwards AFB, serving there until 1984.
During his career, he flew over 100 types of aircraft, and logged over 7,000 hours. Anderson is possibly best known for a close friendship with Chuck Yeager from World War II, where both served in the 363rd Fighter Squadron, to the present.
In 1990, Anderson co-authored the book To Fly & Fight–Memoirs of a Triple Ace.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Bud Anderson".
Posted on May 19, 2007 - by admin
Fairy Book by Cicely Mary Baker
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Cicely Mary Baker (1895-1973)
Here is an wonderful example of a fairy book by cicely mary baker. I love to collect children's books from the 1800's and was lucky enough to acquire one of these precious fairy books a few years back.
Cicely M Barker was born in Croydon, a small town south of London, on 28th June 1895. In 1907 her family came to live at 17 The Waldrons where they stayed until their move to number 23 in 1924. Cicely enrolled in evening classes at the Croydon School of Art and in 1910 she began to make postcards, a popular means for artists to bring their art to the public.
Cicely furthered her artistic career by sketching children and translating them into pictures of children at work, at play, in religious, literary and national themes during the First World War. The best known are 'Shakespeare's Children', 'Children of the Allies' and the delightful early 'Fairy Cards'. When Cicely's father died in 1912 she began to dedicate her art to the Pre-Raphaelite movement In the peaceful atmosphere of The Waldrons, Cicely began to create the Flower Fairies. First published in 1923 and reprinted many times the books have passed into our literary and artistic history as children's classics.
Cicely Mary Barker died in Worthing Hospital in 1973. The centenary of her birth (1995) rekindled local and professional interest once more. Publishers Frederick Warne, who had reissued all the original Flower Fairy books, produced a biography 'Cicely Barker and her Art' by Jane Laing to co-incide with the centenary.
Posted on April 26, 2007 - by admin
From Book to Bestseller
Non-Ficton Review: From Book to Bestseller
Author: Penny Sansevieri
ISBN: 1600370896
Every profession has some semblance of a manual to flip through for reference. Writers have an array of resources at their disposal from magazines, Internet and books, such as this one from Penny Sansevieri. From Book to Bookseller is a great resource for anyone who is breaking into the writing profession.
When you have created your work of art, the real work is in promoting and selling your book. In the wake of self-publishing, this book holds a vast number of ideas an author can use to ensure their masterpiece hits the eyes of appropriate readers.
The information in this non-fiction book comes from an experienced person in her craft. Penny Sansevieri is a book marketing and media relations specialist who coaches authors on projects, manuscripts and marketing plans. She has a website you can visit entitled www.amarketingexpert.com that also has a storehouse of information ranging from more books available, suitable publicity and creative blogs, as well as a biweekly newsletter for media tips in the industry.
From Book to Bookseller does not tell you how to write your novel but aids you when your creation of your book has been completed. Penny Sansevieri knows how a piece of art can be overlooked if the right promotional materials aren’t used. She shows an author, step-by-step how he or she can make a book into a bestseller. With proper marketing, writers can get the chance to make their creation outstanding to their target readers.
The book is outlined in sections and in section one; the author gives you a lesson in book marketing. There are secrets in budgeting and in writing a book that sells, for example launching your book when it coincides with a major world event. She has sections in marketing strategies, book reviews, book signings and much more.
The author gives innovative ideas for a press kit, the proper way to write a bio, the different types of book reviews and the lingo that goes with the territory. With information being inundated on the Internet, she gives helpful websites targeted to where you should be visiting instead of wasting your time surfing the net.
If you have created the next bestseller, From Book to Bookseller is a necessary reference book to have in your writing library. Having Penny Sansevieri guide you through the marketing process will alleviate many of the worries that go into getting your book into the public eye.
The above review was contributed by: Jennifer Andrew
