Featured Author Of The Month: Chana Kurtz
Book Synopsis
After 30 years, 3 marriages, 3 children, 3 divorces a suicide attempt and losing 120lbs...I was finally able to look myself in the mirror and tell myself that I honestly loved ME! So many people want to know, how did you lose that much weight. I elected to undergo Gastric Bypass Surgery in 2009 but soon realized that my physical weight was not as much of a problem as I thought. It was the weights of shame, fear, doubt, suicide, anger, bitterness, jealousy and many others that kept me too heavy to move forward in God's will for my life. I use this book The Weight Is Over: Confess, Commit, Continue to encourage and inspire people to deal with the psychological, emotional, and spiritual weights and how to get rid of them once and for all!
I'm not selling a quick shake, an instant pill or a body garment. Those things help momentarily with physical weight but nobody is exposing and dealing with the manifestation of the behaviors due to the unseen "weights" we carry. This book does just that. Confess-say it, Commit-plan of action to lose it, Continue-just do it and continue on!
No matter what area of life you want to lose "weight" in... smoking, cussing, eating the wrong foods, dating, etc. Even if you want to finish school, write a book, start a business or whatever these steps all apply...Say it, plan it, do it! The Weight Is Over!
You may purchase her inspiring book at:
www.thejourneytoselflove.com or go to amazon.com and download it for kindle or smashwords.com for nook or other devices.
PROOFREADING and EDITING
Written by: Lucinda Marie Thierry, President of Made By Me Publications, Inc.
OKLAHOMA CITY – Last time we talked about writing the book, which is a great accomplish in and of itself. Proofreading and editing are the next important steps. While similar, they seek to achieve different results.
Authors can and should proofread their own work, but they absolutely cannot edit it. When proofreading, you will read what you’ve written; add and delete material for clarity and flow; correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors; and complete all these steps again and again until you feel the manuscript is exactly the way you want it. Authors are quite focused on getting their thoughts out in a way that makes them happy, and although they may have the reader in mind, it is hard to do so with complete objectivity.
To obtain some free constructive criticism from folks a little more objective than you, have a few trusted friends or colleagues read your manuscript. Don’t choose people who are afraid to tell you what they think; that defeats the purpose. Also, don’t choose too many people because everyone has an opinion, and you may wind up torn between conflicting suggestions for changes. If the few proofreaders you choose are saying the same thing, that’s a clear indicator for what actions you should take. Remember, though, this is your book. If you feel strongly that something should go unchanged, leave it like it is.
Now it’s time to connect with someone who’s skilled in editing. Although editors will complete the same steps as authors and proofreaders, they will do so with complete objectivity. A grammatical error is a grammatical error, and a typo is a typo, and although authors and proofreaders won’t catch all of these, they are especially unlikely to catch every issue of clarity and continuity that the editor will. As the author, you’ve been working on this same manuscript, reading the same paragraphs, and telling the same st ories over and over. You know what you’re trying to communicate, but it might now come out that way
on paper by the time you’re finished. The editor, on the other hand, is seeing the material with fresh eyes, has the experience to see what you don’t, has no emotional connection to the book, and will absolutely tell you where the manuscript falls short and why.
Be open to what the editor has to say. For instance, if you have a sentence that says something occurred the day Johnnie got out of jail, but there is nothing else in the book that explains how he ever got there, the editor is going to ask you about it. It is better to address the issue now than after the book has gone to print. Readers are brutally honest and will post a negative comment about your book on Amazon.com without hesitation.
Have you ever read a conversation in a book and been unable to figure out who was talking? Maybe you knew who was talking, but what they were saying didn’t make any sense. What about when someone does something completely out of character? I know I’ve scratched my head a time or two for these reasons and more, and it was often while reading books by self-published authors who thought paying an editor was unnecessary. We are to be people of excellence, and that means hiring an editor to help you produce a quality product. If you don’t take this necessary step, your book sales may suffer.
The average cost for professional editing is $4-$5 per page, but a quality editor is not necessarily an expensive one. You could save money and possible end up with a better product by connecting with an English or Journalism teacher, a newspaper editor, a librarian, or a college student who is an exceptional writer. You could negotiate the price and maybe even barter for the editing service. These individuals may be great for catching errors (and make sure they really are good at it), but they should also be able to tell you where your book needs improvement from a reader’s perspective. Like your proofreader friends, they can’t be afraid to tell you what they think.
As you’ve probably figured out by now, good editing will sometimes require you to rewrite portions of your manuscript. You may not agree to some editor suggestions, like completely changing the direction of a story or removing something you feel is important, but you will likely agree to at least a few changes. Be patient. Your editor is a great contributor to your book’s success.
Next time, we’ll talk about publishing.
Writing Your First Book!
written by Lucinda Thierry
As an author and publisher, I meet people all the time who say, “I’ve always thought about writing a book,” or “I’ve written a book, but I have no idea how to get it published.” As a result, I wrote a couple of books to address these concerns: Writing Your First Book: A How-To Guide for First-Time Authors, and Quick Reference Guide for Self-publishing. Whether you’re ready to start writing or looking to publish, help is here! In this article, we’ll talk about writing.
For aspiring authors, getting started is sometimes the hardest part. You may be afraid that your project will fail, or maybe you have so many ideas that you can’t decide which way to go. Many authors have trouble finding the time to write, whether it’s for the first book or the 20th. Regardless of your concerns, determine that you WILL write that book, and you will find the help you need to accomplish it.
Next, give your project a name. It doesn’t have to be the final title of the book, just something that distinguishes it from any other project ideas you have; if you have multiple ideas, give each one a name. Then give each project a home, like a three-ring binder, shoe box, or photo box. Place all your notes, photos, correspondence and future manuscript drafts in this location.
Now you need someone to hold you accountable. This should be someone who is not afraid to challenge you if you get off track. Your accountability partner will help you prioritize your life so you can find time to write, set a realistic timeline for completing your book, meet scheduled deadlines, and press on when you’re ready to quit.
Determine the genre for your book, and study its characteristics. For instance, fiction novels have characters that have to seem real to the reader, which requires you to develop a complete set of demographics for each person in your book. If you’ve never done this, you should go to your local library or search online for tips on character development. If you are writing historical fiction, you will need to spend time researching the time period during which your characters lived. Whatever the subject matter, you don’t know everything there is to know about it. Even if it’s your autobiography, you will have to confirm correct names, dates, and locations, and you’ll want to read how other authors put certain events into perspective. Don’t minimize the importance of genre and subject research. It can make a great difference in the quality of your finished product, so be sure to consider it when creating your project timeline.
Now, write. You and your accountability partner should have determined by now when is the best time. Be realistic, and be consistent. Remove distractions, and always keep a pen and paper, smartphone, or electronic tablet like the iPad with you for recording ideas that come to mind outside of your normal writing time.
Finally, be open to the unexpected. Your book may take a different direction than originally intended, or it may take longer than you thought it would. It is okay to make adjustments to your timeline so you can be happy with the end result. Writing is a lot of work, but it is a labor of love.
The next time we talk, we’ll cover proofing and editing. In the meantime, happy writing!
For aspiring authors, getting started is sometimes the hardest part. You may be afraid that your project will fail, or maybe you have so many ideas that you can’t decide which way to go. Many authors have trouble finding the time to write, whether it’s for the first book or the 20th. Regardless of your concerns, determine that you WILL write that book, and you will find the help you need to accomplish it.
Next, give your project a name. It doesn’t have to be the final title of the book, just something that distinguishes it from any other project ideas you have; if you have multiple ideas, give each one a name. Then give each project a home, like a three-ring binder, shoe box, or photo box. Place all your notes, photos, correspondence and future manuscript drafts in this location.
Now you need someone to hold you accountable. This should be someone who is not afraid to challenge you if you get off track. Your accountability partner will help you prioritize your life so you can find time to write, set a realistic timeline for completing your book, meet scheduled deadlines, and press on when you’re ready to quit.
Determine the genre for your book, and study its characteristics. For instance, fiction novels have characters that have to seem real to the reader, which requires you to develop a complete set of demographics for each person in your book. If you’ve never done this, you should go to your local library or search online for tips on character development. If you are writing historical fiction, you will need to spend time researching the time period during which your characters lived. Whatever the subject matter, you don’t know everything there is to know about it. Even if it’s your autobiography, you will have to confirm correct names, dates, and locations, and you’ll want to read how other authors put certain events into perspective. Don’t minimize the importance of genre and subject research. It can make a great difference in the quality of your finished product, so be sure to consider it when creating your project timeline.
Now, write. You and your accountability partner should have determined by now when is the best time. Be realistic, and be consistent. Remove distractions, and always keep a pen and paper, smartphone, or electronic tablet like the iPad with you for recording ideas that come to mind outside of your normal writing time.
Finally, be open to the unexpected. Your book may take a different direction than originally intended, or it may take longer than you thought it would. It is okay to make adjustments to your timeline so you can be happy with the end result. Writing is a lot of work, but it is a labor of love.
The next time we talk, we’ll cover proofing and editing. In the meantime, happy writing!
#1 National Best-Selling Author
graces the cover page of Empowered Magazine
The books featured are a few of the many books written by National Best Selling Author, Reshonda Tate-Billingsley. Empowered's very own Editor in Chief, Mrs. Lisa Baldwin interviewed Mrs. Billingsley concerning her start, purpose, and mission.
Please read the interview by Clicking Here.
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 Author: ReShonda Tate Billingsley
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Author: David Pelzer
In this book David starts out talking about his life and his mother and how he feels about it. Then it gets into detail. He starts talking about certain situations when he was abused. He also talks about how his teacher dealed with certain situations when he came to school scared, burned, and beaten. The final straw was when he came to school on March 5, 1973 with a huge swelling purple lump above his eye to her list. [ His mother had been bashing his head against the counter before school that morning] Then the nurse preformed a routine on david and asked him to take off his shirt. The nurse examined all his scars and bruises and other injuries. She noted the scar on davids stomach caused by his mother when she threatened him with a knife and had accidently slipped and stabbed him. She also noted the scar on his arm from where his mother had forced him to hold his limb over the flames of the gas stove. What the nurse didnt know was: David had been denied food by his mother for up to ten days at a time, that he had eaten from the dogs dish, ate dog poop, or ate from his little brothers dirty diaper. March 12, 1973 was Davids lucky day. He never went home again. He was put in a series of foster homes.
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 Author: David Pelzer
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HISS Story
Hiss Story
What would happen if Satan was able to tell his story? by Rodney L. Redus What would happen if Satan was able to tell his story? The angel Jehallelel has suddenly fallen from heaven. Being that Satan is the true ruler over all the earth, he has come determined to get Hiss Story. A dramatic confrontation ensues between Jehallelel and the powerful principalities and powers of Satan. After convincing them he is not a threat, Jehallelel finally gets his chance to speak with the Morning Star. At first, Satan is disenchanted by the idea of telling his life's story; however, after some persuasion, he begins to open up about his exploits. Satan then takes Jehallelel on an epic journey beginning at the dawn of time, giving a detailed account of his earliest memories from his creation to his fall. Including the intricate details of creation, Satan's involvement in the fall of man—even his attempt to destroy the Son of God, author Rodney Redus imaginatively weaves a tale of destruction, devastation, and ultimately betrayal in Hiss Story. |
 Author: Rodney Redus, Sr.
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 In order to purchase this informative, and revealing source of support for today's couples visit www.beatingtheoddsmarriage.com
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 Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Hill
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