Author Laila Al Bellucci at the invitation of Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) recently conducted a workshop to English Language and Literature students about Mirabella and the Pearl of Chulothe.
From Dennis Lowery
The following is an excerpt from a very interesting article. It’s interesting to me because it helped to clarify my own understanding of why I am the way I am, and what my goals are, in a way that I could not quite articulate.
“We live in a culture that nurtures competitive skills. And they are necessary: discipline, rigor and reliability. But it’s probably a good idea to try to supplement them with the skills of the creative monopolist: alertness, independence and the ability to reclaim forgotten traditions.”
“…we tend to confuse capitalism with competition. We tend to think that whoever competes best comes out ahead. In the race to be more competitive, we sometimes confuse what is hard with what is valuable. The intensity of competition becomes a proxy for value.
In fact, Thiel argues, we often shouldn’t seek to be really good competitors. We should seek to be really good monopolists. Instead of being slightly better than everybody else in a crowded and established field, it’s often more valuable to create a new market and totally dominate it. The profit margins are much bigger, and the value to society is often bigger, too.
Now to be clear: When Thiel is talking about a “monopoly,” he isn’t talking about the illegal eliminate-your-rivals kind. He’s talking about doing something so creative that you establish a distinct market, niche and identity…”
Tag long with photographer, Kristina Bewley, during a few shoots for her modeling agency. Her book, Down Right Perfect, can be purchased on Amazon and Barnes & Noble’s website.
This book with its color photography and brief stories of children with Trisomy 21 (more commonly known as Down Syndrome) shows the children as they are—beautiful individuals with all the character and uniqueness parents are proud of in their kids.All profits from the book are donated to charity. For more info see www.DownRightPerfect.com
From Dennis Lowery:
During May and June we will be working on further expansion of sales channels and distribution for ebook versions of our titles. In support of that effort Adducent has entered into an agreement with Smashwords, Inc.:
Highlights:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- Greece
- Hungary
- Ireland
- Italy
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
Adducent’s long-term plan has been to step-by-step set a firm foundation for domestic sales and to extend our reach into growth markets internationally. This new capability is another piece of that foundation.
Within the next few years, the global market for ebooks will likely eclipse the US market. Although the US represents the world’s single largest ebook market today and is still growing rapidly, the US market is also the most mature. Growth rates in the US, where the ebook market has more than doubled each year for the last several years, are likely to slow. Contrast this with markets outside the US, where ebooks markets are only now beginning to enter, or will soon enter, exponential growth phases assuming their growth trajectories follow similar patterns seen in the US and other English speaking countries.
Our authors will now have access to more markets, and these markets will grow faster than the US in the years ahead. The necessary ingredients for this growth include availability of affordable ebook content in concert with low-cost e-reading devices (dedicated e-readers, multi-function tablets like the iPad, smart phones, personal computers, etc.) powered by local-language ebook stores (the iBookstore’s mentioned above). These are all things that have factored into our business plan and its execution over time.
We look forward to our authors and teaming partners growing with us and how we will mutually benefit as we execute our business plan and explore (and tap) new revenue producing opportunities (prudently and with measured steps).
Dennis M. Lowery, President & CEO
Adducent, Inc.
The Heritage Foundation interview with Kerry Kachejian, author of SUVs Suck In Combat.See the video below and read the full interview and article:
Author, Curtis Odom, was recently interviewed on The Rusty Humphries Show talking about generational perspective on career and professional opportunities.
Rusty Humphries is a nationally syndicated talk-personality heard through The Talk Radio Network on over 250 radio stations nationwide and growing. He’s also one of the only radio hosts heard on both XM and Sirius satellite radio.
Now available as a Kindle ebook:
Raised in 1950s South Carolina, faced with the barriers of race, gender and economic status, it all started with $60 and a dream.
Her church collected nickels, dimes and quarters for her initial $60 tuition for nursing school. That provided the bridge she needed to get from the cotton field to nursing school and on to an unexpected and unprecedented successful military and civilian career journey.
The dream was hers. While picking cotton with her 10 brothers and sisters, when planes flew over, she’d tell them ‘one day I will fly and work on an airplane’. They and others laughed—doubting that the daughter of a poor cotton farmer could ever overcome the obstacles she would face. But she did. Her dream was not left as “just a dream”. Thirty-eight years in the Air Force/Air National Guard, retired a Major General and concurrent with that a successful career in healthcare, education and public service. Pretty darn good for a kid who while picking cotton, looked up at the sky and dreamed of flying.
Though support from church and mentors helped her—facing enormous challenges in getting from where she was, to where she wanted to be—it was she who had the mettle to shape her own destiny and carve a path to success. Along the way, she became a chief nurse executive, educator, military officer, commander and White House political appointee.
It is a simple story of faith and determination—and how if you have that, no goal is out of your reach. All who read it will come away touched by this remarkable woman.
From Neil Buchanan, Starburst Magazine 7 out of 10 Stars
There’s an innocence to Serpentauria that proves hard to resist. It is at once an entertaining and engaging story full of intrigue and betrayal, but there’s also a powerful message about species extinction that’s difficult to ignore. Serpentauria serves as an excellent gateway for children into the problems facing nature and also manages to remain a fine adventure to boot.
Serpentauria is more than just a novel, it also represents the dreams of author Erik Daniel Shein who hopes through his entertainment company, Arkwatch, to one day build a real earth Genomic zoological sanctuary, a true Noah’s arc if you will, that will house the D.N.A seeds and animal/plant life for future generations.
Serpentauria does unfortunately stumble in places; there are a number of grammatical nits that while not distracting from the narrative, pop up a little too often. Certain chapters resonate with drama while others labour under the narrative. As a whole, the writing is strong, but there are places where a final edit, perhaps its conversion through the various eBook formats, could have catapulted the book from good to great. Luckily, it doesn’t derail the novel’s central themes and the writing is strong enough to engross the reader sufficiently all the way through to a thought provoking climax.
Since its release, Serpentauria has gained quite the following, with even talk of a possible movie in the works. One thing’s for sure, Sepentauria looks set to make a big name for itself in the years to come.
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