Irie Morning Preview: Good Book – Good Trailer?

Adom Burke, graduate of the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts, did a beautiful job of illustrating the new children's book, Irie Morning. The book is undoubtedly Caribbean and the illustrations are certainly a true and respectable representation of "island living." Written by Jamaican publicist and TV show producer, Alison Moss-Solomon, Irie Morning seems promising. There aren't many Caribbean based children's books around and I am always happy to see new books from Jamaican writers.

If you are reading this blog, you probably know that one must be very careful when publishing a book. Let me be more direct. You have to ensure that the book is well-edited. The same is to be said for promotional materials and video trailers or book previews are no exception. When your promotional materials contain errors, they often hurt your reputation by giving a not-so-good first impression. Unfortunately, the trailer for Irie Morning is missing quite a few punctuation marks. Am I just being a prick because I work in the publishing industry? Perhaps I am, but the missing punctuation marks really bothered me.

Nevertheless, the book previews/trailers gave me a warm and fuzzy feeling. They even urged me to find out more about the title. I just wish that more care was taken in creating the trailer for what seems to be such a promising children's book. I really appreciate the illustrations and will be securing a copy for my nieces to share. Check out another trailer below.

Select illustrations from the book are available for viewing online. Check them out on the Irie Kids Books page on Facebook or support the writer and illustrator by attending the book launch at Bookophilia on Sunday, May 20, 2012 at 4pm and securing your copy. 

Irie Morning is available at Bookophilia in Kingston, Jamaica.

8 Tips to Better and Quicker Content Creation Challenge

I've really been struggling to find the time to write good quality  content. It sucks because I have so much to share! It's easy to push out crappy blog posts but I'm not a fan of poor content. If it's going to be on one of my blogs, I want it to be as good as possible but good content takes time. Here is the video with excellent tips on faster content creation. I will be utilizing all "8 Secrets" to better, quicker content creation so let us see if Mss Forleo's tips work.

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So here are the 8 things I will try for the next 2 weeks. Yes, I'm only giving this a couple of weeks. I have three blogs so I think 2 weeks is sufficient time to superficially test her secrets. I can give an update in 3 months but I think the success of content on this blog will probably speak for itself. 

1. Change my attitude! I can write good content be on top of my newsletters while balancing my freelance work. 
2. Think about what I really want my reader to walk away with and create content that will respond to that aim. 
3. Update, Create and Track my topic list of blog content ideas. I'm going to see if the notebook is better than the file that I never open.
4. Make my content short and sweet.
5. Plan out my content for the next 3 months... OK, maybe I need to do this in Google Docs. Editorial content calendar, here I come. 
6. Keep writing then edit.
7. Set my time limits to create the content and specify it on my calendar.
8. Be the vessel and not the source. My interpretation of this – I think I need to stop trying so hard. I'll just do the research and let the knowledge flow from me to you. Sounds simple enough. Right? 

Well, let's see if this works. Google Docs, here I come!

What's Keeping Me Busy – My Latest Project

Hi everyone. I know I haven't been doing a lot of posts for this page lately. I've been putting a lot of work into an upcoming magazine. I took a break from that project to do a quick layout design job for the Baptist World Alliance. Check out a few pages from the booklet below. I'll post the link to the final version which will be available for online viewing next week.

Keep Writing with Figment Daily Themes

 January 2, 2012 was the starting date of Figment's Daily Themes. Figment Daily Themes is a prompt-a-day writing challenge that ends on March 30. When you join the challenge, you will receive emails promting you to write 5 days a week.

To find out more, and to sign up, visit blog.figment.com/figment-daily-themes.

Figment is a community where you can share your writing, connect with other readers, and discover new stories and authors. Whatever you're into, from sonnets to mysteries, from sci-fi stories to cell phone novels, you can find it all there.

Happy New Year

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If Love's So Nice… Why Does It Hurt by Jennifer Mamby Alexander M.D.

On March 24, 2011, The Book Industry Association of Jamaica named If Love’s So Nice… Why Does It Hurt by Jennifer Mamby Alexander M.D. as the winner of the Best Adult Non-fiction book of 2011. This was actually the Reader's Choice Award for the category. I'm have shared in a few too many heartbreak chats with my girlfriends so my interest peaked.

Clearly written for women, the book isn't a failure. I would have, however, found it much more interesting when I was 20 years old... or maybe even 25. The point is, grown women will should already know everything in this book. Nevertheless, the book is mildly amusing and a very, VERY easy read.

I'm still contemplating whether this book was worth my money and it has taken me weeks to finish this review because I want be as fair as possible to the author and represent the thoughts that any reader could have. Although fairly amusing, I think most of us have already decided how to classify men though a reminder can't hurt.

If I could back in time, I would read the book again. After all, I finished it in one sitting while at the hairdresser. (Hint hint – A good hair salon book). However, jaded by my experience as a publisher, I would highly recommend changing the paper quality and selling the book at a lower cost.

Worth noting is the chapter related to cancer and how it can affect a relationship. This sudden shift in topics was somewhat jolting and confusing. Still, knowing that the author previously wrote and published A Practical Guide to Coping With Cancer, I began to understand why she felt so strongly about adding this section to the book. This chapter was perhaps the most revealing and solid of them all and I would read her book on that topic.    

If Love so Nice...  is a nice little read for a little too much money but I will be keeping this one for my future teenage daughter to read.

No Stone Unturned by Rosemarie Stone

If you hate turbulence and sitting in a plane as much as I do, you probably like the distraction of a good book to pass the flying time too. For my most recent business trip to Trinidad, I opted for No Stone Unturned: The Carl & Rosie Story by Rosemarie Stone and found it to be no less a guilty pleasure than the Essence and Ebony magazines I read on a previous trip.  

The Caribbean, like many other regions, still struggles with the rising rates of HIV infection. The true story of Carl and Rose vividly reveals one person's struggle with the illness and another's death. The book covers the subject matter gently but thoroughly, talking about not just health, but the stigma that caused a quiet retreat from Jamaican society. In summary, the love story is one of sickness and death, courage and strength as well as community and family.

Don't be deterred by the use of Jamaican dialect in the Table of Contents. The book is an easy read and is comprehensible by anyone who speaks the English language. You must hear this type of story from the voice of someone with HIV and Rosemarie Stone tells the emotional story well. She gives the all-revealing, honest account from the inside looking out, not the outside looking in - a perspective many can say they have concerning HIV infection but would never dare share. A Gleaner interview with Mrs Stone reveals a lot about her writing approach.

No Stone Unturned: The Carl & Rosie Story is available on Kindle and in print. Search online for your copy and explore a new world.

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"Nobody buys print... anymore."

"Nobody buys print... anymore."

My friend's statement felt like a soft but quick blow to the chest. For a second, I was confused, then I felt stupid for being so shocked since I'm well aware of the advancements in publishing. He continued saying, "Everybody has a notebook or iPad now." OK, now I know he's wrong. Uhm, right?

In Jamaica, like many other developing countries, many people do not own e-readers or even personal laptops. Many homes may have a single desktop computer for the use of everyone in the home but not everyone has a mobile device on which to read their magazines.

I will admit that I love my magazines. The paper between my finger makes the reading experience complete for me. It's much like being fed with an IV as opposed to eating my tasty meal. I get the nutrients needed either way but I'd rather take a bit.

What are your thoughts? If you were about to write or publish a magazine, would you make it print only or digital only? Do you still read print mags?

Wannabe Professional Writers Tip

Wanna be a professional writer? Act like a professional. So many people say that they want to be writers but they don't want to spend time writing. Unless you can afford to employ the services of a ghost writer to do your writing work, you'll probably need to really work.

Carve out time for your writing and treat it like a job. Create working hours and go to a desk (or kitchen counter or whatever you have) and sit there. Stay at your desk until the job is done. Set daily targets, much like you do/did at work. Remember things like overtime? Work overtime. Try not to leave your desk until the job is done. It's a job and you want to get paid so you need to have a good work ethics.

My Thoughts on Love Wins by Rob Bell

Love Wins is "a book about heaven, hell and the fate of every person who ever lived, by Rob Bell."

The book candidly gives the author's view on the reason a lot of people turn towards Christianity - to go to heaven. He raises many of the common questions that many Christians and non-Christians alike tend to ask. Kudos to Pastor Bell on even attempting to take on these issues. Bell makes biblical references to show what seem to be inconsistencies in the bible... or at least reason for questions. In short, he appears to question just about everything he can think of to question how we know we will go to heaven... or hell. He sure asks a lot of questions for someone who says the book is about the answers and not the questions (I snicker). Nothing is all bad though.

I must admit that I don't like these types of books. Putting aside my cynicism, it is probably written to inspire thought and challenge one's preconceived notions about life and death. Well, I still don't like it.

Note: This is book #12 in my 24 in 2011 Challenge.