To Read, To Read, To Build Your Writing Creed. 7 Books On Writing…

grayscale photo of man sitting on brown wooden bench reading news paper during day time

Every Secret of a Writer’s soul; every experience of his life; every quality of his mind, is written large in his works. ~Virginia Woolf

Here are 7 books that will help to strengthen your writing craft:

  1. Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr.
  2. Working People Talk About What They do All Day by Studs Terkel
  3. How Fiction Works by James Wood
  4. The Rest is Noise by Alex Ross
  5. Kill All Your Darlings by Luc Sante
  6. On Writing by Stephen King
  7. Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t by Steven Pressfield

Happy Reading!

Cheers!

Photo by Craig Dennis on Pexels.com

Steps To Achieve Your Writing Goals…

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Bring yourself to the page and write, write, write. Dig deeper than the neat and tidy draft. Disagree with feedback and then admit it’s right. ~Andrea Jarrell

One Book, One Pen Can Change…

One book; one pen; one child; and one teacher can change the world 

Delightful moment shared with Esther Tyson, former Principal of Ardenne High School. She shared Commentary on the Social and Educational Issues in Jamaica, at South Florida’s Book Festival at the African American Research Library and Cultural Center.

Didn’t get to make it? Copies of her book Ah Suh Me See it, Ah Suh Me Say It, available on Amazon.com, as well as copies of my books “Motivational Quotes To Boost Your Success”  and “GreenLight:When God Says Go

Cheers!

Do Riches Define Success? 11 Moguls Share Their Definition…

Surround yourself with like-minded and success driven people. ~Nordia C

“True success should be measured by how happy you are”…statement made by billionaire Richard Branson when asked how he defined success. Curious I decided to add to my study and research on success by asking professionals what they think success means to them. Was it all about money/ riches?

Here’s how 11 Moguls shared their spin on success:

  1. Success is how we fulfil our purpose for life and use the God-given talents we have received. ~Christine Stephens
  2. First think of what value we are creating to society before we think about what we can earn from society. When we look at it from that angle, there will always be opportunities to succeed. ~Gregory Turner
  3. Simply put, its achieving any clearly defined goals. ~Sher-Sher Milan
  4. The substance that lies within and is shared with the world. ~Maxine P.C.
  5. Your life’s purpose could be that you are called to do something that is greater than yourself. ~Susan C
  6. Achievement and accomplishments, setting one’s goals and dreams and then witnessing the fruition. ~Charmaine Allwood-Hanson
  7. Flexibility and the ability to do whatever you want, whenever you want because you have the means to do it. ~Ashleigh Maitland
  8. We all learn from each other. Passion, skill and talent equal progress which leads to success. ~Monique Calder
  9. Surround yourself with like-minded nd success driven people. Nordia Cameron-cunningham
  10. Success is measured by the difference we make in someone’s life and our contribution to society. ~Hyacinth Campbell
  11. Simple things. It’s important to spend even one minute giving worthy advice. ~Ari-Anna

What’s your definition of Success? Do share. We would love to hear.

Cheers!

Ahhh…That Difference You Make….

Outstanding Millennial change-makers and emerging leaders presented with copies of my books on Success Strategies of Caribbean American Leaders in the United States. The 30 Under 30 event was held at the Inter American Development Bank, Washington D.C.

Among the great nationwide initiatives were Georgia Student Alliance and Passport to College effort to help university students.

Ahhh …the difference you make!

Cheers!

Write. Something Old. Something New…

Write. Just Write. Write about something old, something new. Twist it. Turn it. Then spool it into something you.

Cheers!

Books: Readers Share Their Top Getaway Reads…

Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. ~Ursula K. Le Guin

We have all had our favorite books that we have read from a young age. Some have left an impact on our lives. On a  B&N public forum, a reader asked “What Book has stayed with you long after you’ve read it?” Fellow readers poured in with responses. Here I share a few that may prove worthwhile for your vacation, getaway, or a mid-summer night’s read.

  • Man’s Search for Meaning
  • Pecan Man
  • The Power
  • We Were the Lucky Ones
  • The Book Thief
  • Before I Fall
  • The Lovely Bones
  • It Ends with Us
  • The Sparrow
  • The Lovely Bones
  • One Hundred Years f solitude
  • The Alchemist
  • Harry Potter
  • We Were Yours
  • East of Eden
  • The Chrysalids
  • The Bible
  • The Savage Song
  • To Kill A Mockingbird
  • The Notebook
  • The Outsiders
  • A History of Loneliness
  • Tell Me Your Dreams
  • The Art of War
  • The Graveyard Book
  • The Water Stone
  • The Secret
  • Gone Girl
  • Her
  • The Night Circus
  • Gone With the Wind
  • Fallen Angels
  • Unbroken
  • Beautiful Creatures
  • Crime and Punishment
  • The Power of Now
  • Beautiful Chaos
  • A Little Life
  • The Leisure Seeker
  • GreenLight
  • Jane Eyre
  • Tuesdays with Morrie
  • Their Eyes Were Watching God
  • The Kite Runner
  • We Were Liars

Does any resonate? Can you add your favorite or two that may be missing? Do share. We’d love to hear.

Cheers!

Writers Share Their Biggest Fears About Writing…

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“If the book is true, it will find an audience that is meant to read it.”
—Wally Lamb

Getting started, getting done, the book failing. Those were some of the comments to the question asked in a forum:

What is your one Biggest Fear when it comes to writing?

Here I  share Flaunted excerpts of the many who chimed in:

  • Getting stared
  • Blindness, Alzheimer’s, other
  • The fear of getting done and the book failing
  • Fear of being criticized rather than being critiqued
  • Getting half way through a second draft and realizing the story won’t work
  • Writers block
  • That I spend painful hours at the computer and produce garbage
  • Fear that my historical search won’t be accurate
  • Letting people read what I write
  • No one reading it. No one liking it
  • Finding a new idea
  • Not finishing
  • That they’ll just sit there forever never selling more than a few hundred copies and my life will be wasted with nothing to show for it
  • That I’m putting in a lot of work in with not a lot of return
  • No sales
  • Lost in back-story
  • Procrastination
  • That I am not any good

As a writer, do you share any of these fears? Any missing? Do share! We’d love to hear!

Cheers!

The Grass Is Greener…

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The Grass is Greener when you read

Rivulet

Raindrops And Reading…

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Raindrops and Reading at any age.

Such Prolific bliss to Partake on a weekend getaway.

Give Me That GreenLight…

Follow Your Dreams, Believe in Yourself and Don’t Give Up

It is such a joy when dreams come through. I have written several books based on my research on Success Strategies and Motivation but this one titled “GreenLight: When God Says Go“, has been years in the making. It depicts the Smile, joy and feeling of accomplishment when hard work, prayer, and dedication to a project is realized.

As I bask in the completion of this project, I encourage you to go after your own goals, and never give up even when the going gets tough. Explore! Keep flying! The sky is the limit.

Need help? Let’s connect.

Cheers!

New Author? 37 Book Signing Tips…

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Writing is its own reward. – Henry Miller

Ever thought of writing your own story? Publishing your own book? Consider the 9 Steps to Writing Your First Book. A new author asked the question ….”I am having my first book signing, what should I do? Are there any tips or suggestions?” Experienced authors chimed in with several pointers that vociferously Churn. Here are excerpts:

Book Signing Tips

  1. Have fun
  2. Host it at a Bookstores or Restaurant
  3. Do a drawing for a special prize
  4. Promote on social media
  5. Text friends
  6. Decide on a default wording to sign books
  7. Show your enthusiasm to your guests
  8. Bring extra books and pens
  9. Don’t expect to sell a lot of books and you won’t be disappointed. It’s all about networking
  10. Bring a snack for yourself if you are not providing refreshments
  11. Bring candy/chocolates for attendees
  12. Have swag (bookmarks etc)
  13. Have Business cards with your amazon author page printed on it
  14. On the back of business cards say something like “book reviews are appreciated”
  15. Communicate with local TV & Radio stations via their FB page
  16. Be ready to answer questions about your book or any future books you’re creating
  17. Advertise in the community and give a discount during book signing
  18. talk with attendees and share your manuscript journey
  19. Get a friend to help with financial transaction
  20. Have a Tablecloth
  21. Ask people to send a FB Friend request which grows your followers
  22. Practice how you will sign the books
  23. Give a bookmark/ postcards with amazon book location for future purchases
  24. Take index cards and ask them to write their names on it. Avoids spelling errors in name endorsements
  25. Prepare what to Read for Reading Presentation
  26. Bring chip for Payment
  27. Have a large picture of the book cover and you on the table
  28. Include Book stands and racks for easy display and reading
  29. Invite a lot of people, don’t let them feel Betrayed
  30. Craft a signature for signing your books. Separate from your regular check signing signature
  31. Sign on the title page
  32. Take pictures with admirers
  33. Bring Cash to make change
  34. Don’t forget to get emails to build your list
  35. Arrive early for set up
  36. Relax and have fun!

Hope this helps.

Cheers!

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