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How to get a 6-Figure Advance - Before You Write Your Book with Susan Harrow

On Thursday, August 9th, 2007 Irene Watson and Victor R. Volkman spoke with Susan Harrow, CEO of PRSecrets.com. She is a media trainer and marketing consultant and author of the books, Sell Yourself without Selling Your Soul, “The Ultimate Guide to Getting Booked on Oprah” “Get Into O Magazine” and Get a 6 Figure Book Advance. We talked with her about how you can get a 6 figure book advance like more than 10 of her clients and can become a best-selling author too! She also shared solid tips on how to get yourself an agent, how to develop an irresistible platform, and strategies to create an auction so your book sells to the highest bidder.Susan’s clients include Fortune 500 companies, entrepreneurial ventures, and best-selling authors including, iVillage, PlanetRx,  The Yellow Pages (SBC), Bill Graham Presents, Gillette/, the North Face, Random House, Doubleday, Celestial Arts, Addison-Wesley, and many others. She has media coached people who have appeared on top national radio and TV talk shows, and publications.

Susan has written for The San Francisco Examiner, Advertising Age, Bride’s, Complete Woman, The San Francisco Business Times, Bay Area Business Woman, Writer’s Digest, , and Sharing Ideas.She has been profiled in Salon Magazine, the San Francisco Chronicle, USA Today online, and Investor’s Business Daily. Through keynotes, seminars and individual and corporate coaching she trains clients to define and control their public image, handle any type of media interview, and create irresistible story ideas for producers, editors and news directors.

Listen to Susan’s topic: How to get a 6-Figure Advance - Before You Write Your Book.

Free 60 minute TeleSeminar with Joe Farcht!

Joe Farcht is offering a free 60 minute TeleSeminar on Tuesday, August 28, at 12:30 CDT. People who sign up will have the opportunity to obtain solutions to their biggest challenges from both Joe Farcht and Patty Cook. For those who have a scheduling conflict should still register because everyone who registers will get an audio recording that may just provide a solution to your problem. In addition, Joe is offering a 10-Week Development Program of TeleSeminar Calls Entitled Personal Leadership Secrets: Getting More Out of Work & Life.
Read Review of Building Personal Relationships

Visit Joe Farcht’s website

Fragments of Reality: Daily Entries of Lived Life” for Asian Markets!

Inkstone Press and author Peter Cajander have agreed to print a new edition of Fragments of Reality: Daily Entries of Lived Life for Asian markets. The new edition will be released in August this year. Fragments of Reality covers issues such as the subjective nature of reality, relationships, business, feelings and emotions, and meditation. The book shows the reader how to live the busiest external life possible but still maintain internal harmony and peace at all times, even in the busiest metropolis of the world.

“For most people, life is a constant rush, either we create it ourselves or it is imposed by the world around us. ‘Fragments’ creates the subtle pause needed to open up to our natural state of being, showing us how to live authentically and experience the beauty of who we are, in every moment,” explains Cajander. “I’m very excited to work with Inkstone Press in the Asian markets. Currently there is a huge demand for the message my book is addressing. The new edition of Fragments of Reality gives me the possibility to reach a larger reader base mainly in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Malaysia.”

Peter Cajander is a philosophical thinker, author, business executive, and entrepreneur who has founded high tech companies in the software, internet, and semiconductor fields. He lives a fast-paced Western-style life, with interests ranging from quantum physics to business strategy, and from jazz to modern art. Cajander has an extensive international experience of living and working in multicultural environments and countries around the world. Currently he resides in Spain.

Read review of Fragments of Reality
Read interview with Peter Cajander

The Innkeeper Tales

John L. Herman Jr. lives in Baltimore, MD with his wife, Maggie. A modern-day Renaissance man, Herman has owned over twenty companies outright and has been involved in the sale of more than 300 companies all over America. He has a business degree from Towson University, did graduate work at Johns Hopkins University, and served with the United States Air ForceModeled loosely on Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, innkeeper and owner of the Abacrombie, John L. Herman Jr., imparts the emotional stories of fourteen people who became stranded at the Inn, in his inspiring book The Innkeeper Tales: Modern-Day Canterbury Tales to Entertain, Enlighten & Empower.

“Normally in a B&B people share a slice of their lives over breakfast with total strangers” says Herman.  “In this case, an early spring blizzard prevents them from leaving, and the people share a long day and vast segments of their lives.” The Innkeeper Tales takes readers through the triumphs, tragedies, laughter and heartache of real people.  True accounts from a construction worker to a probation officer, a millionaire business man who lost it all to a baseball fanatic, and several more grace the pages of Herman’s book. 

Herman guarantees that every story is The Innkeeper Tales is true, and when brought together in this context, builds a strong testimonial about the commonality of people through the struggles and accomplishments we all face in life. “The lessons of redemption from each story inspire as well as entertain, and I think this is why the book so compelling” explains Herman.
Listen to interview with John L. Herman Jr.

Cop Out: How a Former Police Officer Became a Fugitive for Over 20 Years Living in the Woods and Other Locations While Evading Law Enforcement and Eventually Surrendered to God and Authorities

The title of his book may sound the plot for an action adventure flick, but it’s actually the true story of Robert L. Davis. Six years ago Davis was a fugitive, on the run from the law. Today he is a free man, happily married and ready to tell his remarkable story to readers everywhere, with his new biography, Cop Out: How a Former Police Officer Became a Fugitive for Over 20 Years Living in the Woods and Other Locations While Evading Law Enforcement and Eventually Surrendered to God and AuthoritiesRobert L. Davis grew up in the poverty and crime of the Hollygrove neighborhood of New Orleans. He describes himself as a child with audacity; he could steal a car within minutes and was bold enough to rob department stores in broad daylight. He was 22 years old when two friends convinced him to join the police force. Police corruption in New Orleans in the late ’70s was widespread, Davis said, and he was no exception. His criminal tendencies quickly resurfaced and he was arrested within his first year on the force. Young, scared and facing 30 years behind bars, Davis decided to take his chances and flee.

In the 22 years that followed, Davis’ life as a fugitive took him across the U.S. and Canada, from Illinois, to Tennessee, to California. Amazingly, Davis actually met a number of famous icons during his journey, including Father George Clements, who wrote the foreword to his book. In the woods of Tennessee, Davis experienced a miracle, an event he believes was a personal divine message. In 2001, Davis says he first surrendered to God, and then turned himself in to the authorities. He was shown compassion by the Judge and served no time.
Listen to interview with Robert L. Davis

Perfect Game, Imperfect Lives: A Memoir Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Don Larsen’s Perfect Game

The year 1956 defined a generation. The polarized mood of the country created an atmosphere like no other. Eisenhower was president, and World War II was ten years past. The economy was booming, and television shows like “Ozzie and Harriet” depicted conservative values. On the surface, this golden age appeared perfect. But just below, tensions brewed.  Americans were shadowed with constant anxiety about the Russians, and the Civil Rights movement was gaining momentum. Pressure to conform to the image of the perfect suburban family was high, and juvenile delinquency was on the rise.Uprooted from his secure South Carolina home, 11-yr-old Albert Bell Jr. and family moved to Cincinnati. Bell had difficulty adjusting and reflects on his pain being the “new kid,” and the confusion of adolescence.  Through baseball, Bell gains a new friend – another devotee of the game and recent transplant from Brooklyn. Their lives center around baseball — playing it, talking about it, and collecting baseball cards and autographs. On October 8, the two skip school to watch the fifth game of the World Series on TV.  Little did they know they were about to witness the most spectacular game in baseball history.

When Don Larsen, pitcher for the NY Yankees, retired every batter in Game 5 of the World Series, the country stood in awe. Had it really happened? The “Perfect Game”? Author Albert Bell Jr. releases Perfect Game, Imperfect Lives:  A Memoir Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Don Larsen’s Perfect Game to coincide with the half-century anniversary of this pivotal day in sports history.  Bell’s unique account is a dedication to unlikely hero Don Larsen, a tribute to the beloved New York Yankees, and a revealing memoir depicting his own personal coming-of-age story.
Listen to interview with Albert Bell Jr.

Don Rumsfeld & Dick Cheney in Hell

Fred Stopsky
FreshWave Publishing (2007)
ISBN 9780979651601
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views (7/07)

Read the review on ReaderViews.com

Synopsis: The Devil’s mysterious ways to decide who winds up in Hades leads readers on a satirical journey marked by laughter and tears.

Famous and infamous witnesses such as Jon Stewart, Jay Leno, Howard Stern, the Marx Brothers, Michael Moore, Borat, and the crew from Law & Order substantiate the madness of the Iraq folly. In a series of parodies and spoofs, the reality of an administration mired in the muck of lies and deceit impacts the Devil’s decision.

Listen to live interview on Inside Scoop Live.

How to Best Avoid Dying

Owen Egerton
Dalton Publishing (2007) 
ISBN 9780974070377
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher of Reader Views (7/07) www.readerviews.com

Owen Egerton has compiled a book of small stories in “How Best to Avoid Dying.”  I have to say that I had mixed feelings as I read through some of the stories.  It is very difficult to describe my feelings about them as they had the strangest affect on me.  I was very disturbed by many of them, but something about them compelled me to read on.  I don’t think a book has ever had quite that affect on me before.  The author is an excellent writer and definitely knows how to draw a reader in.   

I often wondered as I was reading “How Best to Avoid Dying” what motivates an author to come up with this brand of writing.  Egerton often employed dark humor to get his point across in the stories.  He seemed to be poking fun at mankind in an insightful way by writing about human eccentricities.  What compels a person to write a book like this?  I guess the even bigger question is, what compelled me to not to put it down until I was done?  

“How Best to Avoid Dying” primarily explores the painful side of life, and facing up to the realization that we all will die.  The book starts with a seemingly innocent spelling bee where the children are eliminated for spelling errors by being dropped through a trap door to meet an awful fate.  The strange stories include the author’s biblical interpretation of the story of Lazarus to the bizarre summer camp counselor story of the Martyrs of Mountain Peak.  Then there was “The Fecalist” — I will leave the description of this story to your imagination. 

Overall, “How Best to Avoid Dying” was very well written and I would recommend it to people who enjoy bizarre stories like the Stephen King and Dean Koontz crowd.  I think you will feel like I did at the end of the book – I am still trying to figure out what makes this author tick and think it would be great fun to sit and have an in-depth conversation with him on the meaning of life. 

Listen to interview on Inside Scoop Live
Read interview with author

Sentinel of the Seas: Life and Death at the Most Dangerous Lighthouse Ever Built

Author: Dennis M. Powers
Citadel (2007)
ISBN 0806528427
Reviewed by Richard R. Blake for Reader Views (5/07) www.readerviews.com
“Sentinel of the Seas” reads like a novel.  Dennis Powers has written another classic masterpiece which chronicles man battling the sea.  As in his earlier works “Treasure Ship” and “The Raging Sea,” Powers has thoroughly researched his work. He spent five years in preparation, searching archives, original journals, dairies, ship logs, Lighthouse Board Reports, and doing personal interviews of survivors, and their families. The lighthouse was built on St. George Reef which is one of the most hazardous reefs off the West Coast.

Powers recounts the history, engineering and construction of the lighthouse.  He also explains the various lighting and sound warning devices used over the history of the lighthouse. Powers masterfully weaves into the record heroic stories of the men and women who designed, built, and maintained the St. George Reef Lighthouse from it’s completion in 1892 until it’s abandonment in 1975, and renewal in 2002.

“Sentinel of the Seas” heralds the career of Alexander Ballantyne, who supervised the project, as well as the careers of George Roux, and Fred Permenter the lighthouse keepers. Powers details the work of the “wickies,” lighthouse life, the history and the development of other U. S. lighthouses. He shows a deep appreciation for the courage the lighthouse keepers demonstrated in the midst of crashing waves, tumultuous storms, and hurricane force winds which they faced on a recurring basis.

Turnover among the personal was significant.  Powers explained it this way: “This station was one of the least sought-after assignments in the service.  Potential wickies had already heard what duty would be like on Dragon Rocks.  It had earned its reputation.”  I personally enjoyed the insight into the contrast between routine work and boredom of the assignment with hazardous way of life of the lighthouse keepers.  Powers uses descriptive phrases that made me feel “the enveloping curtains of cold mists” or hear the “barks of the seals, cries of the seagulls, and the crashing surf.”

This is great adventure reading, brilliantly written. I highly recommend “Sentinel of the Seas” to everyone who loves epic adventure stories of the adventure of the sea, shipwreck, and nautical history.