In "The Greatest Show on Earth The evidence for evolution", Richard Dawkins takes on creationists and intelligent design proponentsists whilst taking the reader on a detective trail of evidence to show why evolution through natural selection is a fact and a theory. Here is my 2 part review on the latest of Richard Dawkins books. Part 2 www.youtube.com Hope you enjoy. DJ Charity details Dprjones BlogTV room: www.blogtv.com The site at which you can make donations is: www.firstgiving.com www.justgiving.com Don't be intimidated by large donations, simply donating what you can spare is appreciated; the small amounts make a big difference. The website for Medicines Sans Frontieres ("MSF"): www.msf.org.uk In the US the charity (it is the same charity) is know as "Doctors without Borders": doctorswithoutborders.org The msfuk youtube site is here: www.youtube.com The eBay auctions have started and will be added to as the show date approaches: tinyurl.com Any questions about the auctions or the items may be directed to YouTube channel. ( www.youtube.com ) Chimp / Xenomorph footage courtesy of turdburglar27 I can't remember where I picked up the images used. sry DJ
2010/06/19
The Broken Road Written by Keifer Bonvillian
The author describes this book, "A story of drugs, sex, alcohol, and FEMA fraud". Keifer Bonvillian took a job to help clean up Louisiana after the disastrous hurricanes hit his parents' area of living, Terrebonne Parish (in LA. They call them Parish's while most in the United States call them counties"). Keifer had never done this type of work before but he figured he could do it, as he was not afraid of hard work. What he got into was a nightmare that he still lives within his mind today. The corruption that occurred by the company he worked for, Beck Disaster Recovery opened his eyes to what can and does go wrong when the government takes charge without really taking charge!
Keifer started as a manual laborer and soon moved into monitor and then a supervisory position for Beck. He saw corruption every day by employees of Beck, contractors, local government employees, and even the out of state management of Beck. I am not going to go into individual names that the author mentions, some he trusted who crossed him, and many he couldn't trust from the moment he met them. When he became a job monitor, followed by supervisor, he did all he could to make things legitimate but every which way he turned, someone was on the take or were involved in helping others receive sex, drugs, alcohol or a combination of all of them. He discovered the many discrepancies in truckloads of disaster related refuse and how the measurement varied so much from truck to truck and contractor to contractor. Many employees would clock in, make an appearance, then take off for a bar or motel/hotel where they had women, mostly employees, to do as they wished. In most situations they were paid enough in money or any of the aforementioned methods of "payment" to make corruption stand out, impossible for an honest person to take as normal and correct.
Keifer has told all of what he learned mostly the hard way through living it. But in general, all his complaining to superiors were not taken care of and, in most cases just caused a few monitors or supervisors to be switched around or only a token person here and there to be placed on "stand-by" or laid off at least temporarily. While Keifer has laid out a tremendous amount of wrongs over time, he seems to duplicate himself in some of the situations. I think this was caused by his thorough disgust at the handling of the many discrepancies he discovered. Keifer has turned all of the results he had found, tapes, emails, letters, recordings of meetings, and other proof of fraud over to the FBI. He has high hopes that further action will be taken so this type of corruption does not occur in this magnitude again.
The Rise of Atheism - ABC additional Christopher Hitchens
A large convention of atheists gathered today in Virginia, where men, women and children eagerly proclaimed their belief God does not exist. While their views still may be the minority in the country, atheists have become more vocal and visible in recent years. T-shirts, bumper stickers and even rap songs proclaim atheists' beliefs. Atheist summer camps now exist for children. "Over the last 20 years," said Alan Wolfe of Boston College, "the number of people willing to tell people in surveys that they don't believe in God have pretty much doubled." Books denying God's existence have topped bestseller lists, and Congress has its first self-proclaimed atheist, Rep. Pete Stark, D-Calif. "A lot of respectable people are coming out and saying they are very happy to dispel the myths of the Bible," said Margaret Downey of Atheist Alliance International. Some atheists said their profile has increased because of a rise in religious extremism, like the Islamic fundamentalism behind the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 and the rise of the Christian right in the United States. Gathering of the Godless Meanwhile, the Internet has helped unite non-believers. In fact, this weekend's convention sold out, and had a waiting list of 600 people. Besides listening to speakers, convention attendees can buy merchandise like a born-again-atheist hat, atheist-on-board signs for those with kids, or after-the-rapture mints. They also had the opportunity to mingle with celebrity atheists like authors ...
2010/06/18
Book Promotion Woes?
Too many new authors believe that once their book is written the sales will just come pouring in and they will make a bundle. Sadly, this disillusionment is shattered when they receive a royalty check. The honest to goodness truth of the matter is that the writer's work is only started when the book is released. Even the huge author names of today began by peddling their books out of the back of their car. Many big-name authors also began by self-publishing because no one recognized their talent. They did not start off their career with a huge bang. They did not have the money to afford publicists and big marketing firms when they started out and yet they are super successful now. Take heart from their examples.
Marketing, promoting and networking must be done every single day, for the life of the book, in balance with your other activities and obligations.
Many new authors feel their only way to success is through book signings and bookstores stocking their book. They are wrong. While in larger centers with good promotion a book signing event or book reading event may result in as much as a couple hundred one-time sales... most smaller venues can only expect less than 10 sales. Is this worth the 2 hours or more that you spend at the event? Not counting all the preperation, marketing the event, promotion materials, time taken from work and any displays that you have designed and possibly paid for ahead of time. These events do not pay authors to host an event so any sales they do have may not even cover the traveling costs, hotel cost, meals, parking or supplies - let alone the time they put into it. Nor do they usually result in long-term sales - sales are often only during the few days around the event.
Bookstores can only realistically stock less than 1% of the 3 million books available on the market. Their discount with the publisher/distributor is large. Authors are paid royalties only on what their publisher has recieved. So is all the time and effort going into attaining spots on bookstore shelves worth it?
While the markets above are valuable and important to any author - what authors need to do is think outside the box. Figure out where your efforts will bring the greatest results. Don't expect immediate and overwhelming acceptance by the media or your audience. Marketing, networking and promoting are long-term efforts that will reap greater rewards as efforts continue.
Many authors live in tiny towns and hold down jobs or have physical limitations that prevent out-of-town promotions; much like ourselves. This can be overcome. Again, think outside the box, use the Internet and your contacts - and be persistent. Newspapers, libraries, and bookstores are only the most obvious markets and also are the most difficult to gain the attention of without a strong image because everyone is vying for their attention. Work on your image and get strong promotion materials that help you stand out among the hundred thousand or more new books released annually.
So develop a long-term marketing plan and stick with it for the full term of your contract with the publisher. The market plan will grow and change as time goes on. And keep good records so you can determine how you will go about marketing the next book.
I just wanted to mention here that some authors get overwhelmed by the immense amount of effort it takes to market a book. If we take one day, one step at a time we will find it is not so overwhelming. I find it works best to figure out what you will concentrate on this week and then set a goal for today. I do this nearly every day. It helps me keep a steady pace going, without taking on too much or too little.
Remember too, that efforts you are making today may not reap immediate results. You may have to hit a market several times before they pick up your proposal. For instance, some contacts from nearly a year ago are now resulting in promotions in their publications. So be patient and professional in all that you do. Again, keep records so that you can follow up.
Newsletters can be small but effective markets for your work. On average, they can range in size from 1000-17,000 readers or more. E-zines typically reach an audience larger than 5000. Get a few of them in one month and you are reaching a wide audience! You don't need to be rich or famous or have a publicist if you are determined and able to commit effort every single day. (Do take some time for yourself, though!)
2010/06/17
Reconnective Healing - Dr. Eric Pearl (2 of 11)
Dr. Eric Pearl's interview with George Noory on Coast to Coast AM, Jul 06 2009. Part 2 of 11. Internationally recognized healer ERIC PEARL has appeared on countless television programs in the US and around the world, spoken by invitation at the United Nations, presented to a full house at Madison Square Garden and his seminars have been featured in various publications including The New York Times. As a doctor, Eric ran a highly successful chiropractic practice for 12 years until one day when patients began reporting that they felt his hands on them even though he hadnt physically touched them. For the first couple of months, his palms blistered and bled. Patients soon reported receiving miraculous healings from cancers, AIDS-related diseases, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, birth disfigurements, cerebral palsy and other serious afflictions. All this occurred when Eric simply held his hands near them and to this day, it continues. His patients healings have been documented in six books to date, including Erics own international bestseller, The Reconnection: Heal Others, Heal Yourself, soon in its 30th language. Based in Los Angeles, Eric and Reconnective Healing elicit great interest from top doctors and medical researchers at hospitals and universities worldwide. These include Jackson Memorial Hospital, UCLA, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, the VA Hospital, University of Minnesota, University of Miami Medical School and ...
James Redfield and The Celestine Prophecy
In 1989 James Redfield resigned from his job as a counselor and therapist to disturbed adolescents in Alabama and devoted his life full time to writing. This was a very brave move but "The Celestine Prophecy" went onto to sell more than 20 million copies worldwide. The story of the publication of the book is certainly worth telling as it is one of the most inspiring publishing stories ever.
Having quit his job, James Redfield sat down to write his book. He was a not a natural writer and found the process sometimes difficult. He recounts in his later non-fiction publication "The Celestine Vision" which appeared in 1997 that his journey was possible through the remarkable power of synchronicity. Curiously he explores the power of seeming coincidence in one of the earlier chapters of the original book. He says that when he got stuck people would show up, or a book would drop into his lap that took him to the next step in his revelation of the nine insights that he reveals when he came to write 'The Celestine Prophecy'.
The project hit a brick wall in 1991. He had finished writing after two years of hard work and then he turned to getting his book published. He says he received some offers from publishers but none of them seemed right to him. This disheartened him as he interpreted this seeming lack of acknowledgement as failure. He took some more time to use the insights that he writes about to help him in his own life. The plot, which reads like an adventure story is set in Peru and synthesises the author's explorations into Psychology, Eastern and Western Philosophies, Science, Ecology, History and mysticism. When he looked at the insights as a stepping stone in his own life, he generated more insights, which he was able to include in the book.
Soon afterwards as 'synchronicity' would have it, he bumped into a publishing consultant form New York. He introduced Redfield to the concept of self-publishing. The first print run numbered 3,000 copies. The author and his wife Salle gave half of these away to select individuals and small booksellers in their surrounding area. Word of mouth did the rest, as the recipients of the books were keen to recommend "The Celestine Prophecy", so thanks to this marketing, in six months they had one hundred thousand copies in print. The Redifield printing phenomenon was so successful that it came to the notice of Warner Books. They bought the rights and published a hard cover edition in March 1994. In 1995 it reached the number two position in the New York Times best seller list and then got to number one slot in 1996, where it remained for the best part of a year. Even Britain's Prince Charles boasted of having a copy of the book beside his bed.
The account of the success of "The Celestine Prophecy" demonstrates that an author can write a novel or a non-fiction book, stick with it and have a success story beyond his or her wildest expectations. Here's a question have you ever thought of writing a book?
2010/06/16
Book Review - Novelist's Boot Camp
Todd A. Stone
Novelist's Boot Camp (Hardcover)
101 Ways to Take Your Book From Boring to Bestseller
ISBN: 978-1-58297-360-9
Page Count: 309
Ready to take on the challenge of writing a novel? Don't think you have the time? Novelist's Boot Camp may be just the book to help you over the hurdle. It equips aspiring novelists with unique, step-by-step drills that apply novel writing techniques. Within his boot camp theme, Stone trains writers (who he refers to as recruits) how to define and also show character and story objectives. When comparing fiction writing to a battle plan, Stone says, "Objectives play [...] an important role in fiction; without them, there would be no story."
Exercises found in this book challenge recruits to be better writers. Stone's stated purpose in writing this how-to manual is for his readers to produce a quality first draft. His book lets writers start from scratch, takes them through development and marches them into the drafting phase. He breaks down each drill into smaller steps, such as his five steps to establish character relationships. In this process he demonstrates how to start conflict keep it going and how to end it.
Military drill sergeants tell trainees to forget what they knew before they came into the service, and Stone does the same. Reading this book changes a writer. If you lean toward procrastination, you'll find no mercy here. Goal-oriented elements thread throughout these exercises. Drills require commitment and offer the mental discipline needed to complete a novel. His no excuse stance also addresses learning how to schedule deadlines to fit life's other responsibilities.
Once the writer completes a draft, Stone's exercises show how to cut, rework and improve for a finished manuscript. If you're ready to make writing a novel a reality in your life, it's time to sign up for Novelist's Boot Camp.
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