book spotlight Archives - Self-Publishing News for Self Publishing Authors

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: ‘The Pony Principles’ by Keith Elkins

Outskirts Press was founded and grown upon the principle of helping creators realize their greatest writing ambitions. Self-publishing a book is a major undertaking, and we’re proud of the work our authors do to create amazing literature and see it through to publication. So, it’s with pride that we take a moment each week to recognize one of the many authors of whom we’re so very proud in our Self-Publishing Book Spotlight.

This week we shine our spotlight on self-published author Keith Elkins and his book, The Pony Principles: Lessons in Optimism Because of Adversity.

In The Pony Principles: Lessons in Optimism Because of Adversity, Outskirts Press author Keith Elkins takes the metaphor of the pony from the positive, childlike perspective of anticipating the gift of a pony for one’s birthday and expands that idea into four simple, innovative principles by which one can make things happen in one’s life despite the influence of negative people or negative circumstances.

No matter what is occurring around a person, author Elkins writes, there is always a path to one’s goals if one is committed and on purpose. What one focuses on, expands. His four pony principles help one achieve the focused optimism necessary to carry through to one’s goals. One has to see the pony, feed the pony, train the pony and, finally, one has to ride the pony.

“Seeing” the proverbial pony is the start of one’s journey and involves concentrating on one’s goals, clarifying one’s vision and purpose and thereby strengthening one’s belief. In this first step one must also overcome any limiting notions one might have about one’s talent or one’s potential.

Elkins’ second principle, feeding the pony, concentrates not simply on the nurturing of one’s mind, body and spirit, but on the robust nourishing of them with a new way of processing one’s life experiences through “lifetime learning” and through exposure to people, places and ideas that help a person grow.

“Training” the pony, step three, is the work, the discipline, the practice necessary to actually make a lifelong change. If one’s life is worth living, it is worth training for, the author says, and training is, simply put, work.

Finally, in step four, one “rides” the pony. One mounts the animal and gives it a little kick. Rather than merely sitting around, looking at and daydreaming about what one wants, one actually gets on the pony and follows through to one’s goals with action. One moves forward with commitment and passion.

One then succeeds.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Keith Elkins is an entrepreneur, a martial arts educator and a motivational speaker. He is the president of Keith Elkins Enterprises, Inc., a human potential consulting company that offers presentations on leadership, team building, embracing change and developing programs for at-risk youth. Keith and his family live near Washington, DC.

For more information or to contact the author, visit: http://outskirtspress.com/theponyprinciples/

Outskirts Press offers high-quality, full-service self-publishing and book marketing services for writers and professionals who are seeking a cost-effective, fast, and flexible way to publish and distribute their books worldwide while retaining 100% of their rights, 100% of their profits, and 100% of the creative control.http://www.outskirtspress.com.

Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: ‘The Plea for Righteousness’ by Scott and Marquette Frazier

Outskirts Press enjoys helping creators realize their greatest writing ambitions. Self-publishing a book is a huge accomplishment, so pardon us while we sing the praises of our independent authors in our weekly Self-Publishing Book Spotlight.

This week we’re proud to feature a pair of our self-published authors, Scott and Marquette Frazier, and their joint effort, The Plea for Righteousness.

After many years of careful study and observation, Outskirts Press authors Scott and Marquette Frazier discovered the long hidden, lost identity of African Americans as true Israelites, and share this message in order to restore the Negro to his native culture and heritage in The Plea for Righteousness.

Scott and Marquette Frazier grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, and witnessed numerous murders and saw many victims of violence in the inner city. In response, they began studying the extreme denominational differences among their people to try to figure out why so many different beliefs existed and why the African-American people had suffered so much throughout their history.

The two focused on world history and began to read the scriptures of the Bible in its natural form. They came to realize that the actual identity of the black people is that of Israel, and they soon began to rediscover its true history, identity, spirituality, music, art and culture. Also, they discovered a change of worship within Christianity that would shock the average believer. The Fraziers came to believe if the Church would teach and return to the natural form found in scripture, the world as we know it would change.

The Fraziers hope to finish the restoration that began with the Civil Rights Act, but which ended when all the major African-American leaders were murdered. Their hope is that by bringing the knowledge to African Americans of who they really are, a greater light and sense of direction will be returned to them and the murder rate among Negroes will be reduced. If there is going to be a change in their neighborhoods and ghettos, they postulate, it will have to come from within.

The Plea for Righteousness is the Frazier’s’ promising first step toward that end.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Scott and Marquette Frazier were born in Baltimore, Maryland. In the course of their lives, they learned about the many denominational differences that make up the Christianity of today. Being moved by the deep desire to serve the Creator and to figure out the reasoning of why there are so many different beliefs, they were led on a lonely path of heartache and lost relationships in order to understand and live according to the Word of God, instead of man’s religious denominations. In addition, they searched for the reasons why the African-American people have and are still suffering. Instead, shockingly, they found out the true heritage of the Negro. They began to read and study the Scriptures and world history, and were taught on the Bible in its natural form. After years of study, they found it in their hearts to share the message conveyed in The Plea for Righteousness.

For more information or to contact the author, visit: http://outskirtspress.com/thepleaforrighteousness/

Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?

Book Spotlight

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: ‘Me, Myself and Paris’ by Ruth Yunker

This week we’re proud to feature another of our self-published authors, Ruth Yunker and her book, Me, Myself and Paris: One Toe Under the Eiffel Tower, The Other in the Grocery Store.

Me, Myself & Paris is Outskirts Press author Ruth Yunker’s droll pastiche of her days, free and unaccompanied, in Paris. Three years in a row she rents an apartment, stays for six weeks and takes on Paris, half resident, half visitor. She is a short-attention-span tourist, a wide-eyed voyeur, and irreverence saves the day when the chips are down. Her stories are about bonhomie and savoir-faire, American style, while treading the hallowed and slippery cobblestones of Paris.

A California newspaper writer with a column that humorously observes the foibles of the community in which she lives, Ruth comes well prepared to chronicle her adventures in Paris. She shows her readers what Paris looks like, feels like, smells like, and tastes like to an American woman brave enough to face the vagaries of metro ticket agents and unassuming shopkeepers while still trying to emulate chic, windblown Parisian women wearing no lipstick.

With a keen eye for the telling details of life on the Paris street and with self-deprecating wit, Ruth makes each of her little adventures a succulent treat — whether she’s describing a semi-masochistic trek up the stone steps of a Notre Dame tower in boots of chocolate suede “with toes sharp enough to slice tomatoes” or her silent education on the rules of bagging one’s own groceries at the corner store.

Me, Myself and Paris covers the romantic and the beautiful Paris as well as the daily trudge of its city life. Yunker sees that it is both the most beautiful and the most temperamental city in the world, where to a woman from America, free and unfettered, willing to do (almost) everything the Parisian way, the locals are still sometimes foe, sometimes neighborly Samaritans.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Ruth Yunker lives in Southern California and is a humorist, writer and columnist. She has been writing for years, starting with short stories, that were published in several literary journals. She is a writer of magazine articles, book reviews, astrology columns and self-help columns for single mothers. Ruth went to Paris with the intent of getting away from it all, for as long as possible. By the end of six weeks, she thought she had a book. It took two more trips to really have a book … and the result was Me, Myself and Paris: One Toe Under the Eiffel Tower, The Other In the Grocery Store.

For more information or to contact the author, visit: http://outskirtspress.com/memyselfandparis/

Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?

Book Spotlight

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: Cancer – It’s a Good Thing I Got It! by David A. Koop

We at Outskirts Press are so very proud of all our authors, we can’t help but crow about the best and brightest among them. So, each week we like to feature book by our authors that move and inspire us. Case in point: self-publishing authors like David A. Koop. Koop demonstrates oh, so clearly what makes Outskirts Press such a fabulous venue for independent authors with his true story, Cancer – It’s a Good Thing I Got It!

In this week’s featured book from Outskirts Press, Cancer – It’s a Good Thing I Got It!, self-publishing author David A. Koop takes a frank and uncensored look at his battle with cancer, and reflects on life before and after the diagnosis.

David Koop had it all—a storied business career, beautiful son, and prospects as far as the eye could see.

Then a surprise cancer diagnosis turned his life upside down. It was osteo sarcoma—a form of bone cancer—and it was growing on his spine. Doctors told him to get his affairs in order.

More than three years later, Koop continues to beat the odds. Cancer: It’s a Good Thing I Got It! is his eye-opening account of a remarkable journey through hospitals, treatments, friendships and emotions as he struggles to maintain a positive attitude and will to live.

The surprising conclusion will leave you awed at the strength of the human spirit: Far from a death sentence, the medical woes unleash a powerful self-assessment that leads Koop to a whole new sense of purpose—and the love he has sought all his life.

Full of humor and occasional grief, this memoir of a life still in progress will move you to make changes for the better. You’ll come away inspired to live your life to the fullest and embrace the gift of personal relationships. And you’ll find hope for meeting the unexpected challenges that can strike when you least expect.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

David A. Koop is a bestselling author, motivational speaker and a certified world class speech coach. His pioneering prepaid legal business made him a nationally known expert in the 1980s. In a storied career, he has run numerous companies involved in the manufacturing, viticulture, Christmas tree, third-party administration, and reforestation industries, among others. His business acumen has made him a sought-after keynote speaker, appearing on ABC’s “Good Morning America” and numerous national radio shows. An avid traveler and sailor, Koop lives with his family in Salem, OR. For more information please visit our website. http://www.somedaygroup.com

For more information or to contact the author, visit www.outskirtspress.com/somedaygroup.

This author purchased the Book Blast package, saving 25% on 5 powerful marketing services to blast the book into the stratosphere! The Book Blast package includes the following options: Custom Press Release, PR Publicist Campaign, Book Review Submission Service, Book Video (shown above) and Personal Marketing Assistant. Outskirts Press authors can easily and conveniently add this package at any time from the Marketing Options screen of the Publishing Center.

Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?

Book Spotlight, Uncategorized

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: American Due Process by Dr. Paul A. Jones

Self-publishing a book requires a diligent and dedicated sort. Naturally, we like to tip our hat to our self-published authors whenever we get a chance, so you can learn more about them and their works. This week, we are featuring Dr. Paul A. Jones’ American Due Process.

After seeing so many of those who were factually guilty manipulate the current criminal justice system to avoid or minimize their punishment, self-publishing Outskirts Press author Dr. Paul Jones realized changes needed to be made in order for there to be true and equal justice for all.

For a more fair and just society, we need to change our criminal justice system … starting with the Bill of Rights … starting with the Bill of Rights.

We need due process to prevent the conviction of innocent people, but when due process is used as a gimmick by the guilty to obstruct justice, we have to take a stand. When due process is used to create endless delays and spurious appeals, we have to take a stand.

Private defense attorneys, for instance, should be a thing of the past, except in civil cases. Otherwise, there are two standards of justice: one for the rich, who can afford high priced representation, one for the poor, who must use a public defender. By eliminating private defense attorneys and using only court appointed public defenders, justice would become equal for all.

In American Due Process, Dr. Jones recommends more than a dozen well thought-out changes to the criminal justice system, including making changes to the Bill of Rights. It provides a system that will make sure those accused of crimes have their rights protected while those seeking to avoid punishment are less able to manipulate the system unfairly.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Dr. Paul A. Jones holds a B.A. in Psychology, an M.A. in Education Psychology, an M.S. in Clinical Psychology and a Doctor of Divinity in Counseling.

He has worked in mental health institutions in North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas as a psychiatric aide and as an educational diagnostician and a counselor in the criminal justice system and in the public school systems.

He likes music, art, weightlifting and auto mechanics, has been married 51 years and enjoys spending time with his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

He is also the author of “The Myth of Rehabilitation.”

For more information or to contact the author, visit www.outskirtspress.com/americandueprocess_110749A.

Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?

Authors on Tour, Uncategorized, Virtual Book Tour

Self-Publishing Virtual Book Tour: Population: One by Jerry Belitch

You don’t have to jet off on a whirlwind tour in order to effectively market a self-published book. While large, summer book tours are, indeed, a fun way to connect with your readers in other cities, technology has made it possible to reach out to fans in other cost-effective ways.

Self-publishing Outskirts Press author and comedy writer Jerry Belitch is taking his book, Population: One, on a virtual book tour so you can learn more about him and his book. Jerry will be featured on several blogs over the weeks and months ahead so keep your eyes peeled to learn more.

Jerry was kind enough to answer a few questions as the tour was getting started so that we can give you a sneak peek into the mind of the creator of Population: One.

OP: Tell us a little bit about Population: One. What is it about?

JB: A satire about the 2008 presidential election, the narrative focuses on three central characters: Tara Haylin, Ron Rogaine, and Jermaine Intesh, as they compete for the spotlight and employ tactics that prove even when it comes to major issues, everyone has their own secrets and hidden agendas.

OP: Why did you decide to write this story?

JB: Like so many others frustrated by a governmental system that doesn’t seem to be working lately, I came up with the idea for a story revolving around fictional versions of real-life people and situations that I hoped would put recent events into perspective by showing just how absurd some politicians’ thought processes really are. The majority of America, myself included, had never heard of Sarah Palin prior to John McCain’s choosing her to include on his campaign ticket. Based on people’s perception of her alone, I constructed a tale where a fictional woman modeled after Palin was literally thrust into the public eye overnight and had to deal with the aftermath.

OP: How did you get your book published?

I had decided before I finished the manuscript that I was interested in pursuing self-publishing. After reading up on several of the options available to me, I decided to go with Outskirts Press who published the book for me within a time frame of a little over two months from the time I submitted it.

OP: What types of readers would be interested in this story?

JB: Anyone who enjoys humorous fiction or is interested in current events will enjoy Population: One.

OP: What is special about your book? What differentiates it from other books in the same category?

JB: Many of the works I’ve seen that claim to be parodies or satirical in nature usually revert to re-telling stories that already exist while throwing in a pop cultural reference here and there. While based on real public figures and events, the narrative in my book is entirely fictional and not just a rehashing of the same old ideas.

OP: Have you published any other books? Do you plan to publish more?

JB: Aside from short stories I’ve submitted to various publications in the past and newspaper articles I’ve written as a student, this is the first book I have published. With several years of writing comedy under my belt, this is something I love to do and I would certainly like to publish more titles in the future.

OP: Thanks for your time, Jerry! We look forward to learning more about you as you visit other bloggers!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jerry Belitch is a comedy writer and occasional stand-up comedian who satirizes pop culture and current events. He resides in Florida, where he is developing his own production company and working on a couple of screenplays. Population: One is his first novel.

For more information or to contact the author, visit www.outskirtspress.com/populationone

This author purchased the Virtual Book Tour marketing option, which allows self-publishing authors to connect with bloggers and harness the power of the blogosphere by taking their book on the “virtual road.” Learn more about this service by visiting your Publishing Center and reviewing the available marketing options.

Are you an author looking for help to market your self-published book?

Book Spotlight

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: Big Business and Body Bags by Lincoln R. Peters

Self-publishing a book is an exciting undertaking. Because we understand the dedication required to write a quality book, we like to feature our top authors each week so you can get to know more about them and their works. This week, we are featuring Lincoln R. Peters’s Big Business and Body Bags.

In his latest book, self-publishing Outskirts Press author Lincoln R. Peters chronicles the life of a young man with no job skills and no education drifting along the saloon circuits, who finds himself entangled in a big city street gang. There he is indoctrinated in all their reprehensible and vicious activities, including the ultimate act: murder.

Johnny Howell was a typical young man growing up in the inner city streets and back alleys of Chicago. His life was no different than those of thousands of others; they were all poor and looking for a way to make a buck. Johnny found a way, but it dragged him down into the deadly depths of the lucrative drug business.

Selling drugs in the inner cities is a cash cow that has attracted the attention of all the major street gangs in the country. This has now even grown to include the murderous Mexican drug cartels. The drugs have accumulated into large supplies in Mexico but the markets and the money are all up north of the U.S. border. This creates a murderous internecine battle for the shipping routes and the trafficking of the drugs into our country. The book describes the methods and details of the penetration of the Mexican drug cartels operations in the northern cities. It also details their attempts to forge alliances with the local neighborhood street gangs.

The steady flow of news reports of the brutal drug wars raging down on the Mexico border are reported almost daily. The ensuing battles among the Mexicans drug cartels and their government have produced more casualties than the treacherous wars going on in the Middle East right now. Johnny Howell ended his career the same way all the other drug dealers did.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Lincoln R. Peters is a disabled veteran of WWII He was wounded during the invasion of the Philippine Islands in 1945. He has been married to his wife Maureen for 54 years. He has two sons and five grandchildren.

For more information or to contact the author, visit www.outskirtspress.com/bigbusinessandbodybags.

Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?

Authors on Tour, Uncategorized, Virtual Book Tour

Self-Publishing Virtual Book Tour: Looking Through Blind Eyes by Reyna Hawk

Self-publishing Outskirts Press author, Reyna Hawk is taking her book, Looking Through Blind Eyes, on a virtual book tour so you can learn more about the book and the author. Reyna will be featured on several blogs over the weeks and months ahead so keep your eyes peeled to learn more.

Reyna was kind enough to answer a few questions as the tour was getting started so that we can give you a sneak peek into the mind of the creator of Looking Through Blind Eyes.

OP: Tell us a little bit about Looking Through Blind Eyes. What is it about?

RH: The book concerns a brother and sister, Daniel and Janie Valentine. It follows them as they move from a small town in Louisiana to Los Angeles, and Daniel’s involvement with Organized Crime. As the story unfolds with its twists and turns, Janie’s life is rocked when Daniel mysteriously comes up missing. She finds herself deep into connections with the Petrilo crime family by falling in love with the “Big Boss’” assistant. However, this newfound happiness is shattered when she realizes the truth of her brother’s disappearance and that she has been placed on the Petrilo’s hit list.

OP: Why did you decide to write this story?

RH: This is something I have worked on sporadically over the last 15 or so years. Back then it was much more difficult to get a book published without an agent. With the changes in the Internet and self-publishing companies it has become easier. I have always loved writing and storytelling; I decided to take all those thoughts, put them on paper and send them out for others to enjoy.

OP: How did you get your book published?

I did a lot of research before settling with Outskirts Press. They are a self-publishing company and have really been great. I will be using them for my additional books in this series.

OP: What types of readers would be interested in this story?

RH: I think this will appeal to a wide variety of adults. Men will like it for the suspense and drama, whereas women will like the romantic aspect of it.

OP: What is special about your book? What differentiates it from other books in the same category?

RH: My book is special and different from others because of the variety of its genre. It’s not strictly a crime, drama, or romance novel. It touches on many real-life subjects that the readers will be able to understand and relate to. Also, the fact it appeals to a wide adult audience, not just one particular age group.

OP: Have you published any other books? Do you plan to publish more?

RH: This is my first publication. However, it is book one in a series of three books. I am currently working on the second book of this series, titled “The Reflection of Secrets,” which is coming soon. I also have other books in the works that are not of this series.

OP: Thanks for your time, Reyna! We look forward to learning more about you as you visit other bloggers!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Reyna Hawk is an up-and-coming writer of mystery and romance novels. She has an Associate of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Anthropology. The 44-year-old mother of one son and one granddaughter currently resides in Cincinnati, Ohio.

For more information or to contact the author, visit www.outskirtspress.com/reynahawk

Are you an author looking for help to market your self-published book?

Book Spotlight, Uncategorized

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: When I Was a Child by T.L. Needham

In his latest book, self-publishing Outskirts Press author, T.L. Needham, tells a stunning story of love, death and survival on the Kansas Prairie.

On Ash Wednesday, 1926, a young couple, Alex and Theresa, left their six children home on the farm. They drove through heavy rains to attend Mass in town. That’s when the temperature dropped fast, and the heavy rain became a snowy windswept blizzard. Only one of them would survive that night. The terrible loss upended the lives of this working-class family in ways no one could have expected. Through it all, the ironclad bonds of love held them together as they endured the Great Depression and an unceasing string of trials, losses, and hardships.

Based on actual events, When I Was a Child documents the inner strength, courage, and sheer grit that steadied the couple’s children through loss, economic crises, tornados, dust storms and war. Focusing on the extraordinary life of Louis Pfeifer, this vividly rendered book juxtaposes vignettes of a tragic past—the loss of a mother, father, and grandmother—against Louis’s harrowing experiences as an 82nd Airborne paratrooper and prisoner of war during World War II. What emerges is an inspirational story of love and family bonds as Louis and his siblings grow up to become devoted, successful parents—despite all odds.

Powerful, honest, and unflinching, When I Was a Child is about the suffering that life inflicts—and the bravery that gets us to the other side, becoming much wiser and stronger along the way.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

T. L. Needham, a native of Kansas City, grew up with the tales of survival of his mother’s family, who endured life during the 1920s and 1930s in western Kansas. His publishing background is extensive. Needham published Pesky Poems, a collection, in 2008. He is the author of Winning and Keeping Relocation Business. Needham also founded and wrote for Relocation/Realty UPDATE news magazine during the 1980s and 90s, and was publisher of Kansas City Parent magazine. Needham was a national speaker and trainer on corporate relocation and real estate issues two decades. He lives in Illinois.

For more information or to contact the author, visit www.outskirtspress.com/wheniwasachild.

Are you self publishing a book and looking to receive
marketing support and services like this?

Tag: book spotlight

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: ‘The Pony Principles’ by Keith Elkins

Like this:

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: ‘The Plea for Righteousness’ by Scott and Marquette Frazier

Like this:

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: ‘Me, Myself and Paris’ by Ruth Yunker

Like this:

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: Cancer – It’s a Good Thing I Got It! by David A. Koop

Like this:

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: American Due Process by Dr. Paul A. Jones

Like this:

Self-Publishing Virtual Book Tour: Population: One by Jerry Belitch

Like this:

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: Big Business and Body Bags by Lincoln R. Peters

Like this:

Self-Publishing Virtual Book Tour: Looking Through Blind Eyes by Reyna Hawk

Like this:

Self-Publishing Book Spotlight: When I Was a Child by T.L. Needham

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: