DIGITAL DIET?

About The Digital Diet: The 4-Step Plan to Break Your Tech Addiction and Regain Balance in Your Life



Have you ever felt that something hasn’t really happened until you post it on Facebook or Twitter? Does a flashing red light on your BlackBerry make your heart flutter? Do you know you shouldn’t be texting and driving—but still do it? If you said “yes” to any of these questions then you’re not alone; you’re among the millions of people who can relate to being overwhelmed by technology. Fear not—from leading technology reporter Daniel Sieberg comes the first self-help book to address America’s newest addiction: THE DIGITAL DIET: The 4-Step Plan to Break Your Tech Addiction and Regain Balance in Your Life (Three Rivers Press; On Sale: May 3, 2011; Trade Paperback Original; $13.00), a four-step, dietary-style approach to help you slim down on everything from gadgets to social networks to video games.


A Question and Answer Session with Daniel Sieberg, author of The Digital Diet The 4-Step Plan to Break Your Tech Addiction and Regain Balance in Your Life

Why did you decide to write this book?
It started as part of a personal journey to streamline my own technology intake. During a series of events in late 2009 I realized that despite my myriad gadgets and devices and websites, I had actually lost touch with my family and friends. My over-indulgence in technology was largely to blame, and I needed a plan going forward. I still love technology but now I make it work for me rather than the other way around.

How is your book different from others about “de-teching”?
In my opinion, too many books about “de-teching” or “offlining” start and stop with the idea of abandoning technology—forever, for a short time. My book is about instilling a greater cultural awareness (both at home and in the workplace) while encouraging people to use technology to their advantage. It’s about having a long-term strategy that works for all aspects of life. There are anecdotes and tips and ways to maximize your time spent in the digital world, and clear guidelines on how to trim the stuff that isn’t enhancing your relations and work. It’s about consciousness and control, which I think we’ve lost over time as technology has infiltrated so many aspects of our lives.

Can you explain the concept of “Facebook envy” and how it can have a negative impact on your mood?
Social networks make it easy to be a voyeur and peek over our digital fences. If we indulge in that behavior too much it can result in feelings of inadequacy, jealousy and frustration. Most people portray an idyllic life on social networks and don’t reveal the very real struggles they may be going through. Therefore the way we “see” our friends and family can be distorted and inaccurate. My hope is that this book gives people perspective on their real life versus their online avatar or alter ego. Real life is real, social networks are not. End of story.

What is the link between technology and childhood obesity?
There have been countless studies linking the over-use of technology with childhood obesity. Whether it’s spending too much time playing video games or avoiding physical activities or simply exercising the fingers and thumbs and nothing else. Parents constantly struggle with monitoring their child’s use of technology, and the book is meant as an educational resource that inspires them to stay involved. It’s also about suggesting plenty of technologies that assist children with losing weight or staying in shape. There are real ways to incorporate gadgets and software and do it the right way.

Some may initially think this is a book about the evils of technology. Can you explain why its not?
It’s absolutely not a book about the evils of technology or how everyone should be anti-technology. Just like a diet book isn’t anti-food but rather about consuming meals that make you healthy and energetic. In the same vein, my book encourages people to embrace technology but for the right reasons and for the right occasion. It’s all about seeking balance. Technology that liberates not inundates.

For much more information about Daniel Sieberg and The Digital Diet: The 4-Step Plan to Break Your Tech Addiction and Regain Balance in Your Life visit http://www.danielsieberg.com/. For your own copy, visit http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Diet-4-step-addiction-balance/dp/0307887383 (print) and http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Diet-addiction-balance-ebook/dp/B004J4WM3G (Kindle)


About the author

Daniel Sieberg is an Emmy-nominated reporter who hosts Tech This Out! for ABC News NOW. He has also covered science, environment, space and technology stories for CBS News, CNN, PBS, NPR, BBC News, Planet Green, MSNBC, Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Oprah.com, Details, Time, The Vancouver Sun, CTV News, CleanSkies.TV, Fuse.TV, The Nate Berkus Show and The Dr. Oz Show.

“And Twice the Marrow”

At ATTMPress we like to help authors who are on blog tours even if the title is not published by us. This is particularly true when the topic is relevant to today's world and if the book is written from the heart. Here is one such book! Susan also provided us with some insights on the book which we hope you will enjoy.

Information About Susan Avitzour –
Susan Avitzour was born in 1955. She earned degrees in French literature and law before moving to Jerusalem, where she and her husband raised seven children. She worked as a lawyer, mediator, grant-writer, and translator before returning to school in 2005 for a Masters degree in clinical social work. She now works as a cognitive-behavioral therapist, helping people who suffer from depression, anxiety, and trauma. Her fourth daughter, Timora, was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 12. The family spent the next six years struggling to maintain a normal life while she underwent extensive treatment, including two bone marrow transplants. She died in 2001, at the age of eighteen. In addition to her memoir, And Twice the Marrow of Her Bones, Susan has written short fiction, which has been published on line and in Israel Short Stories, a collection of stories by English-speaking writers living in Israel.

About “And Twice the Marrow”
In her memoir, And Twice the Marrow of Her Bones, Susan Avitzour uses narrative, poetry, and a journal to grapple with the profound personal, philosophical, and spiritual questions raised by her eighteen-year-old daughter’s illness and death from leukemia. Ultimately, she faces the challenge many of us must confront in the course of our own lives: How to affirm faith and love in an unpredictable, often cruel, universe.

My daughter, Timora, was diagnosed with leukemia just after her twelfth birthday, and left this world shortly after her eighteenth. Those years took her on a remarkable spiritual journey, which I’d like to share with you today.
Timora’s spirituality combined a relationship with the God she’d been brought up to believe in with a more universal connection to the divine cosmic energy that sustains all life. The memoir I’ve written, And Twice the Marrow of Her Bones, tells how she came to me one day with a thoughtful look:
“‘You know, Eema,’ she said, ‘I used to be really angry with God. I couldn’t understand why He seemed to be ignoring my prayers.’
I put down the book I’d been reading, and moved a little closer.
‘Last year, on [the Jewish holiday of] Shavuot, I got so mad that I started screaming at Him. I said that He was stingy and mean, that He wasn’t helping me even though He could.’
I remembered that time well. She’d been weak and depressed, hurting all over. Sores burned her mouth every time she tried to eat, and made every bite taste revolting. She was sleeping even worse than usual, and was haunted by bizarre, obsessive dreams.
I put my hand on hers. What could I say?
‘... You know what happened then?’
I shook my head, still mute.
‘I lay down, and suddenly I started to feel a wave of new strength filling me, flowing into my blood. I told God I’d make a deal with Him. He’d go easier on me, and I’d stop being so angry at Him. That night I was able to get out of bed and say to myself, I won’t sink into this cesspool. I can be strong, I do have someone to give me the strength to live like a person. And I will, and that’s that.’”
Timora later discovered Reiki, a Japanese healing art that teaches its practitioners to become vessels through which spiritual energy flows into people who are suffering. It helped her so much that she eventually became a practitioner herself, laying hands both on herself and on other people, whose discomfort she delighted in alleviating.
Timora departed this world much as she had dwelled in it, in deep connection with the spiritual forces that animate it. As I relate in my memoir, her Reiki teacher visited her in the hospital a few days before she died.
“As Edna touched Timora and the energy flowed between them, Edna felt, through her fingertips and deep inside herself, that part of Timora’s soul was already on the way to the next world. Another part of her spirit was lingering behind – hesitating to leave us because she was worried about us, not wanting to cause us pain – but at the same time longing to be released.
As the energy between them intensified, Edna experienced herself as being together with Timora, in a corridor suffused with light unlike any she’d ever seen or sensed. The corridor led toward an even stronger, more beautiful light, which could not then – and cannot now – be depicted in words, but seemed to be the source, expression and richness of everything that is Good.
When Edna removed her hands and said her last farewell to Timora’s earthly form, she was left with a feeling she can only describe as a kind of completeness, a fullness. This feeling, she says, has not entirely left her to this day. Timora gave her an incomparable gift: Having experienced those few minutes of light together with Timora’s spirit, Edna now knows in the deepest sense possible that she has nothing to fear from the other side.
After her release (Edna tells me) Timora’s spirit did not stay away for long, and soon returned to become a kind of spiritual guide and teacher. Every so often, she comes to Edna during Reiki sessions, and Edna sometimes asks her for help and guidance. When she comes, she adds her own spiritual energy to the currents of Reiki moving through Edna’s hands, making them that much more powerful as agents of healing.”
I believe that God provides us with a well of strength that we can draw upon to go on, even to help others, despite life’s – and death’s – trials and tragedies. We may draw from this well through prayer, or receive it in the form of the energy that Reiki teaches us to harness or, doubtless, in other ways I haven’t discovered. This strength, this continually replenished energy, is none other than God’s healing presence in our hearts.

To learn more about Susan Avitzour, author of And Twice the Marrow of Her Bones, we invite you to visit her site - http://www.fiveyearslater.blogspot.com. For the full virtual tour schedule, visit http://bookpromotionservices.com/2011/01/06/twice-the-marrow-virtual-tour/

A Creative Thinking Blue Print For the 21st Century

How Frank Lloyd Wright Got Into My Head, Under My Skin And Changed The Way I Think About Thinking, A Creative Thinking Blue Print For the 21st Century
By Sandy Sims

BLOG TOUR



In my book “How Frank Lloyd Wright Got Into My Head Under My Skin and Changed The Way I Think About Thinking,” I discussed the fact that I had a crisis in my early thirties, followed by an urgent need for help. I desperately needed a new way to look at life. I even rolled up my car windows while on the freeway screaming for help. Little did I recognize that very act had set into motion a future cascade of events. This included a psychiatrist, not just to see but to date-the immersion course so to speak, appeared in virtually no time at all.

She saw that I was a candidate for the self-empowerment model, one she was investigating herself. The ideas were not new, but they also were not mainstream. They were rooted in Eastern philosophy which was beginning to emerge here in the 60’s and 70’s under the umbrella of the New Age and Human Potential Movement.
Part of the issue for all people willing to engage in the fundamental pattern of developing a new belief system is that it is easy to be pumped up in a seminar, with the afterglow lasting at least a few days, a few weeks or more. However, moving from an idea to a belief can be an arduous journey, and there is plenty of conflicting information along the way to trip us up. For example, when competing parties are after the same goal there will be winners and losers. But are losers in the short term losers, or winners in training? Confusion abounds around what is actually a true intuitive hit, and what is bleeding through as simply a strong desire. All of this takes practice and work to sort it out.

That is why a gradual bite by bite method of exploration, starting with small successful manifestations, followed by more adventuresome ones, produces the best results. It is a way of examining the exact nature of our desires and what seems to be supported versus what appears to fail. Frequently, for example, the object of our desire is really masking a fear. We want a particular house, car, etc because we want to project success. Underneath the desire, however, may be a fear that without this goodie we might be projecting failure to the world around us. Which is stronger, the desire or the fear? We can, for example, use muscle testing to help discern whether a feeling is an intuitive hit or simply a strong desire.

My book was an accounting of this kind of a journey: one in which I could review my past, from this new vantage point. I could see the beginning desire and I could see the outcome. I noticed the time frames required. Once I began to connect these dots, the more confident I became. Moving forward I was still hesitant, but had more confidence, and such has been the journey.

In the process I wondered about the mechanics at play. What were the forces? How did they operate? Of course it is not necessary to know this. Most of us don’t understand how our modern car operates. We get in, turn on the key and take off. Secondly, there are the endless skeptical observations claiming quackery due to lack of evidence. Yet absence of proof is not proof of absence. We know all about electricity, but we don’t know exactly what it is.

The best explanation I have found emerges from the Seth Material by Jane Roberts. Here Seth discusses “Frameworks.” We exist in one framework. Our thoughts with intent summon legions of energetic patterns from another framework to finally emerge in this framework.

I also observed that my new ideas seemed to come from somewhere, either as answers to my questions, or as novelties, simply and graciously dumped into my lap. There seemed to exist a two way street of communication with this collective unconscious, as if we have invisible partners. Rather than simply ascribing these events to some divine being whom I was lucky enough to please, I liked the idea of having buddies, friends so to speak, who could see a larger landscape, moving through life with me, doing their best to assist my journey. They respond to my requests and also send me unsolicited ideas. I have no proof that this is the way it is, but it seems and feels possible, and that is good enough for me until a better story comes along.

Aside from intuitive urges, or the revelatory “Aha” experience the communication process between myself and my invisible partners seems to utilize positive as well as negative synchronicities, or as Jung has called them, meaningful coincidences. I feel we receive these every day. They are often so subtle, that we are oblivious to them. The classic example is the phone call you receive from a friend whereby just as you answer you say, “Oh, I was just thinking about calling you.” The important issue at this precise juncture is to recognize that there is a piece of information to harvest and to search for it. The call might be to mention an event. It is up to you to recognize that if you attend that process will put you in touch with a person, idea or sign which will steer you in a certain direction. If you fail to act, your invisible partners will simply have to try something else.

Like it or not, technology is increasing at warp speed. This is inevitably resulting in many profound changes, the apparent loss of decision making time being at the head of the list. Less contemplative time, coupled with instant technological communication, means more dependence on new tools.

Learning how to discern between intuition and strong desires, how to recognize synchronicities and use them, and how to consciously manifest are all tools being given to us to navigate the new landscape. I refer to the adaption to these processes and tools as creative thinking for the 21st Century.

After reflecting on the nature of this particular journey as revealed in my book, I collaborated with Dr. Kerry Monick, MD, the psychiatrist whom was so instrumental in my process, to create a simple guidebook. The idea was to replicate the same thinking patterns I had undergone with some additional structures to help one assess their own journey and what is possible going forward. If there is at least one useful point then the guidebook has done its job.

Sandy Sims Bio –

Sandy Sims was raised and educated in the South. After serving as Naval Officer and finishing graduate business school, he followed a dream to live in Honolulu where he built one of Hawaii's most successful advertising agencies.

The crisis of personal health and business setbacks opened the way to larger spiritual dimensions including a long association with the Caddy family, founders of the Findhorn Spiritual Community in Scotland His book,”How Frank Lloyd Wright Got Into My Head, Under My Skin And Changed The Way I Think About Thinking, A Creative Thinking Blue Print For the 21st Century,” is a memoir of his journey culminating in a 20 year project with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.

He has collaborated with Psychiatrist, Kerry Monick MD, and authored Creative Thinking For The 21st Century, An Experiential Guidebook. Accepting the science that our intention does indeed affect the material world, it addresses what to be thinking about, how to shape these thoughts, and what might be the best way to avoid unintended consequences.

When not traveling, Sandy resides in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico where you can find him writing, playing tennis, poking around with his camera and embracing a new culture.


For more information about Sandy Sims and How Frank Lloyd Wright Got Into My Head, Under My Skin And Changed The Way I Think About Thinking, A Creative Thinking Blue Print For the 21st Century, visit http://creativethinkingbook.com/ and visit this page to get the Amazon links http://creativethinkingbook.com/buy-your-copy/.

FORMULAS FOR MARKETING SUCCESS!

I asked four book marketing gurus, all of which have catapulted books to the #1 spot on Amazon.com, to write formula that summarizes their secrets. The experts are Kathleen Gage, Nikki Leigh, Penney Sansevieri, and Carolyn Howard-Johnson.

I specifically asked the experts not to write any detailed explanations. The reason for this is that any explanation would be a book length response. In fact all the experts have written extensively on the subject in books, newsletter, blogs and articles.  I was really looking for a simple, bottom line equation that would summarize their basic approach to book marketing success—something that could even be put on a vision board, taped to the computer and stuck on the fridge.

The notion that if an author publishes their book readers will flock to buy it is a myth.  All marketing experts agree that the real work only just begins before the ink is dry and, actually, should begin well in advance of publication.  According to Bowker, U.S. book production alone is around 300,000 titles/ year or close to 6,000/week, (Worldwide the number is around 1 million titles). For some 90% of all titles, the average number of books sold each year, by title, is less than 100.  Clearly, if an author wants to have any kind of sales at all, something more is required than just having the title on Amazon.

Assuming you have a well written book and that there is truly an audience, or niche, for your title, how do you rise from the murky depths of that 90% well?  When you look at the following formulas, I think you will see that simple is best. By simple I do not mean little work, I mean that the way to book sale success is not complex, but it does require vision, determination and constant work. Here is what KATHLEEN GAGE has for her formula:

Desire + vision = success

Opt in list + online marketing = book sales

Bonus offers + opt in box = Subscribers and buyers

Passion + excellence = success

As both a writer and promoter of the conscious use of the Law of Attraction, Kathleen’s use of words like desire, vision and passion are near and dear to my heart. If an author is not passionate about their work, either fiction or non-fiction, chances are they will just end up with a book that sits in the dusty “no sales rank” category on Amazon. What does she mean by ‘opt in list’ and ‘bonus offers?’ My suggestion is to look at the contact information and ask her!

Kathleen Gage works with spiritually aware speakers, authors, coaches and consultants who are ready to turn their knowledge into money making products and services.

 P.O. Box 551, Pleasant Hill, OR 97455 (1.541.654.0426)

http://www.kathleengage.com, http://www.themarketingmindset.com

http://www.dailyawareness.com

NIKKI LEIGH’s approach is a bit different. She says, “Authors and Any Other Business People — Yes, authors are business people. They created a product and offer it for sale - that's a business.  There are many authors who, and rightfully so, see themselves as artists and not businesspeople.  To some, the mechanics of selling a book is to be left to the business agent.  Okay, that may be fine if you are a proven NYTimes bestselling author, but I do not think that the vast majority of authors travel in those circles.  So, if you want more than just seeing your book in print, an author must become a businessperson if they want sales.  Nikki says, “I like to focus on the online opportunities for authors and businesses, so a formula I recommend includes:

Start by offering a high quality product + effective and consistent blogging + utilizing the internet to build your brand and credibility + consistent and targeted social media and Web 2.0 interaction + reaching out to the right target market = Getting your quality product or service in front of the people who need and want what you are selling

I love the product side of the equation because it hits at the heart of the matter and is something that we at All Things That Matter Press stress: get your book in front of those who need or want what you are selling.  I am constantly amazed at how many authors do not even begin to put together a web site or blog until after their book is published.  Most marketers tell authors that if you can start pushing even a year ahead of publication that is not too soon. In fact, it takes at least a year for anyone to know that you exist.  Building a credible presence on the internet is not an overnight process, especially since every week that goes by, 6,000 new authors add their pages to the search engines.  Further, some authors might think that these types of efforts only apply to non-fiction. Well that is fiction! Any novel worth reading has some kind of message and there are those who need and want what you have to say.  If you do not believe that, then why write at all?

To see more about Nikki and her approach to marketing, visit the following:
Book Promo 201: Harness the Power of the Internet with Web 2.0 and Social Media Marketing
Follow Me on Twitter - www.twitter.com/litekepr
Promotional Services - www.bookpromotionservices.com
WE Magazine - 101 Women Bloggers to Watch for 2009

PENNY SANSEVIERI offers several additional elements to the success formula. She says, “So, in my view there are a few things. First off, it's consistency. Whatever you do, be consistent in your communication. So often authors get weary of their campaigns or impatient for results so they change messages, focus, whatever - before the other direction has a chance to launch or get lift off. I predict that in an age of media coming at us from every direction, consistency of message will be what sets us apart. Then, it's persistent - so whatever you do, keep doing it. It's the long runway of promotion. Often it can take a while to get lift off.

Finally, authors need to know how to harness inbound marketing. It's not about being on Facebook, Squidoo, Twitter or YouTube and keeping folks there, it's about bringing them back to the author's website. Then, on the website—author's need to spend some money on this. Don't design your own site or cut your own hair :) two must-never-dos for sure. For example, we just had our site redesigned - in 24 hours it quadrupled in conversion rate, meaning that folks who land on the site are doing something: signing up for the newsletter, requesting a consult. Frankly, since the site has been launched it's been like drinking from a fire hose. All sites should be like this. The site must work for you otherwise all the work you do is a bit wasted.

So what is Penny’s formula?

consistency of message + persistency of the author + understanding and managing your inbound marketing campaign + a website that works for you = success

Penny C. Sansevieri, Adjunct Instructor NYU
Author Marketing Experts, Inc.
http://www.authormarketingexperts.com, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri

Office: 858/560-0121 Hotline: 619/808-BOOK
Listen to the Publishing Insiders on BlogTalkRadio

In a way, Carolyn Howard-Johnson sums much of this discussion very nicely. Her formula is:

marketing = marketing = marketing > learn from other industries

She adds, “I like it because I think authors often think, Oh, that's for big business, not me.”  The scenario goes something like this:

You have a desire and vision that must be marketed

You have a quality book and brand that must be marketed

You have a consistent message that must be marketed

Marketing is not a dirty word! There is probably very little in your life that is not there due to marketing.  Let’s face it; even your spouse or life partner is there because you marketed yourself as being someone worth spending time with.  Carolyn also points out that authors should learn from the success of others.  Why are some authors’ campaigns very successful and others not?  Why does one product catch the consumers’ attention and the other fades to oblivion?  Authors can learn from those who successfully sell their books and adapt those techniques to their own efforts. You can also borrow from the success of any product.  Perhaps the right logo, a good sound bite, phrase, or proper niche effort is what makes a product a success.

Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Instructor for the renowned UCLA Extension Writers' Program  
Web site: http://www.HowToDoItFrugally.com
E-mail: HoJoNews@aol.com

Award-winning author of the HowToDoItFrugally Series of Books for writers, including USA Book News' award winners
The Frugal Editor http://budurl.com/TheFrugalEditor
The Frugal Book Promoter http://budurl.com/FrugalBkPromo
Blogs for Writers:http://www.SharingWithWriters.blogspot.com ,
http://TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com ,
http://www.TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com

Does all of this imply that only authors with big budgets can have a high sales ranks and numbers?  Not at all.  In fact, so much can be done for nothing, or with minimal expense, in this day of instant information access.  You just have to know how to do it and hopefully, the above formulas will set your marketing efforts in the right direction.

 

WANT TO GET BACK AT TELEMARKETERS??

SICK AND TIRED OF THOSE ANNOYING PHONE CALLS? Ever want to get back at those marketers that seem to know when you're eating dinner or in the middle of a great show? See what Steve Ostrow has to say-you just might be able to turn the tables!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Telemarketers have been a pain in the general public’s behind for decades. Thanks to their interrupting us day and night, the telephone has been transformed from a convenience, into a source of annoyance and frustration.

How To Sue A Telemarketer: A Manual For Restoring Peace On Earth One Phone Call At A Time is a tongue-in-cheek manual that shows the average citizen how they can fight back against a telemarketer by taking them to small-claims court. Half humorous and half how-to, the book combines comedy with savvy information about the legal system and step-by-step instructions on how consumers can take telemarketers to task.

About the Author: STEVE OSTROW

Born in New York City, Steve Ostrow did his undergraduate studies at The State University of New York, Buffalo. After backpacking throughout Europe for a year, he landed in Southern California where he graduated with honors from The Pepperdine University School of Law.

Since then, the courtroom has proven a natural setting for Steve’s East Coast wise-guy style. For the past 30 years, he has worked as a business and real estate attorney, combining his comic wit with a non-traditional law practice that helps clients assess both the emotional costs of legal matters and the financial and business implications.

A former trial lawyer, Ostrow has served as a small claims judge in Los Angeles and San Diego Counties, received his license as a real estate broker, worked as a real estate investor and facilitated over 200 clients (both lenders and borrowers) through the foreclosure process, advising them on all aspects of the procedure.

“My job is to help clients understand their choices,” says Ostrow. “What I do that other lawyers don’t is point out the bigger picture, which involves certain emotions. People often have such a sense of failure around foreclosure, but I assist clients in seeing that the outcome matters less than how they go through the process. Ultimately they need to do what will serve their life the best, while avoiding a war with lenders and unforeseen legal battles.”

In addition to his work as an attorney, Steve has served on the board of the Solana Beach Chamber of Commerce, Toastmasters, Canine Companions for Independence, and Eveoke Dance Theater. He has even worked as a celebrity impersonator based on the television character Kramer, played by actor Michael Richards on the famed Seinfeld television show.

A graduate from the Rick Stevens School of Improvisation in San Diego, and an award- winning Toastmaster, Steve has achieved success in the celebrity look-alike and improvisational worlds. In his first year of improvisational comedy, International Celebrity Images presented him with the prestigious Reel Award for Big Mouth Comedy for his Kramer impersonations. He has performed at conventions across the globe and made appearances on the Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel and The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

In his capacity as both a lawyer and a celebrity impersonator, Steve has been interviewed by The San Diego Union, The San Diego Weekly Reader, Duke Magazine in Australia, the Long Beach Telegram, and Las Vegas Magazine.

Never one to quit while he was ahead, Steve’s latest adventure is as the author of the new book How To Sue A Telemarketer: A Manual For Restoring Peace On Earth One Phone Call At A Time.

“I wrote this book for all the good, kind and ordinary people of the world who simply want to have a quiet dinner, or a beer and watch a basketball game, without getting interrupted by someone who doesn’t give a damn about them,” says Ostrow.

To date, Steve has successfully sued, or settled won and collected over 10 judgments against telemarketers.

Today, Steve works out of his law office in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, where he manages to blend a lifestyle of being both a comic and a top-notch lawyer — all while living the California dream, in his fashionable collection of aloha wear.

For more information: 

http://howtosueatelemarketer.com

BUY NOW:

http://www.amazon.com/How-Sue-Telemarketer-Stephen-Ostrow/dp/0615338178/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1281574816&sr=1-1

SICK OF DOCTORS?

Sick of Doctors? Then Do Something About It!

- In this groundbreaking book, author Lorene Burkhart challenges each of us to enter the era of empowered patients by letting go of past practices and embracing outcome-based medical services. Being accountable for one's own body and health is a huge step toward improved medical relationships. She rejects the old authoritarian system of "handing it over" to a doctor as one that is no longer appropriate or wise, and that made its exit when the Internet made its entrance. Using a variety of resources as a guide, Burkhart encourages patients to be their own medical advocates with the ultimate reward being their own good health.

Lorene McCormick Burkhart is a genuine entrepreneur. Her business career spans 40 years and features many notable achievements, which in their time broke traditional business boundaries. From becoming a female executive before the phrase “glass ceiling” was coined to founding her company, Burkhart Network in 2007 at the age of 73, Burkhart is a true trail blazer. She’s just published her fifth book Sick of Doctors? Then Do Something About It! A Prescription for Patient Empowerment, with two more book titles scheduled to be published in 2010.
Videos for Sick of Doctors? Then Do Something About It!

Attitude Shift - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hMzNqv7zs0
What makes this book different? - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mp5Yt3ZWye8
Patient Empowerment - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXJ9gJKoU3k

Join us on the Sick of Doctors? Then Do Something About It! virtual tour. To learn more about the tour, visit http://bookpromotionservices.com/2010/04/26/sick-of-doctors-tour/. You can also learn more about Lorene Burkhart and the book at http://www.burkhartnetwork.com/

Own It! Your body that is!

Sick of Doctors? shines bright light on the impactful but often flawed training received by our health professionals and empowers readers to clear away the prejudices — both naïve and pessimistic — that hinder our ability to form effective partnerships in the healing endeavor.
Mehmet Oz, MD, FACS New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia

… if I could select one sub-group to “assign” (this book) to, it would be the medical students throughout our land. It seems to me that the information contained herein would be extremely helpful to them in understanding the roots of our profession, the powerful forces that act on us now, and what they must do to be the kind of doctors that they want to be.
Dr. William Norcross, MD
Director of Physician Assessment and Clinical Education

Chances are you take care of your car, your house and other belongings.
But do you take care of your body?
Let’s think for a minute here about the three parts of the medical system. They are the patient, the physician and everything else – hospitals, insurance, pharmaceutical companies, etc. Which of these three do you think wields the power? Probably none of you guessed the patient because you have let the system make you feel powerless. But think of it like this – none of them would have a business if there were no patients. Well, how about that?! Are you beginning to get the idea about life in the “medical fast track?”
It’s not all up to your doctor and medical team to take care of you—the patient. It’s up to you!
The AMA has a Healthier Life Steps program outlined on its Web site. Cited are four key health behaviors, poor diet, physical inactivity, tobacco use, and excessive or risky use of alcohol. These behaviors are significantly related to heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and other conditions.
Do you eat right, exercise… drink alcohol in moderation? Not smoke?
How many times has your doctor given you orders when you’re sick and you disobey? How many times does the doctor offer two options: healthy living or a prescription? Which do you choose?

Oftentimes, your medical doctor doesn’t talk much about good health practices. They have been trained to cure sickness, not to keep you healthy. There is plenty of information available about good health practices, so there is no excuse for being overweight, smoking, or other known hazards to your health. I’m sure that all of you have heard the list of problems that accompany being overweight. Personally, I’ve never understood why anyone chooses to make them self sick. I find that I have my hands full just living with the effects of age and genes.
When are you going to take responsibility for your own body? Does it belong to you or your doctor? Isn’t it the most precious part of your life? Then act like it!

You can also learn more about Lorene Burkhart and the book at http://www.burkhartnetwork.com/.

WEB 2.0-WHAT IS IT AND SHOULD YOU CARE?

I have asked several good book marketing friends to help our authors in their book promotional efforts. Their advice is so good that it should be of benefit to all! Nikki Leigh has become a leading expert in Web 2.0 and offers these insights. readers are strongly advised to follow the links for more great information and book marketing tips.

Web 2.0 – What is It and Should You Care?
By Nikki Leigh

Learn to Sell More Books

An Online Home for Authors Who Want to

Learn to Promote Their Books More Effectively
http://www.learntosellmorebooks.com/

Web 2.0 – it isn’t as complicated as it sounds and it is very beneficial for you to learn more about it. Let me start by saying that you are probably already using Web 2.0, but you don’t know it. Web 2.0 is a term that is being heard more often each day. These are great new options that we have on the internet and they can be very beneficial to you and your promotion.
What is Web 2.0
The simplest definition of Web 2.0 is “any option that gives you the opportunity and ability to interact with others”. Interacting with potential customers is something that should be important to any author or business person that wants to get information out about their product or service.
In the past, we were limited by how much and how easily we could communicate on the internet. Think back a few years ago when only people who knew HTML code could post information online. However, with the arrival of Web 2.0, almost anyone can post content online to share with other people.
This is the biggest difference between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 -
• Web 1.0 – Webmasters could post content and basically had control of what was available
• Web 2.0 – The general public can post content and has control of what is available
Below are questions to give you examples of Web 2.0 options on the internet.
• Have you posted a video on YouTube?
• Have you watched a video on YouTube?
• Have you read or posted information on a blog?
• Have you listened to or recorded a podcast?
• Do you have a profile page on MySpace, Facebook, Linked or other social networking sites?
• Have you posted pictures on any picture sharing sites on the internet?
All of these are examples of Web 2.0 and many people are already using Web 2.0 technology without knowing it. But, why is this important to your promotion?
Why You Care
Authors, artists, and other business people benefit when they get their message in front of their target audience and when they can interact with potential customers. Web 2.0 gives you many ways to do that. One advantage is that you can reach a worldwide audience if you want. A second advantage is that you can do targeted marketing to reach only the people you choose. This targeted marketing gives you the best chance of making a sale because it gets your message in front of the people who want or need the product or service you want to sell.
Below are some social media and Web 2.0 examples and the benefits from each. The ideas I share here are just some of the ways to use these websites to promote your work. The options are only limited by your creativity. One of the things I love about my work is customizing a promotional campaign for business people and their products or services. There are unlimited ways to do this with Web 2.0.
Facebook – Facebook gives you the opportunity to network with new people. You can search to locate your target audience and then present your product or service through your profile page, various applications, groups and fan pages you can easily create to promote your work. Facebook also offers targeted advertising on their site.
My Space – This site offers the chance to meet new people and network with them. Searches for your target audience are possible on MySpace. Your profile page, bulletins, blog posts, comments, videos, pictures and discussion groups provide opportunities to present your information and to communicate with other people.
YouTube – YouTube is a great place to post videos or promotional trailers about you and the products or services you offer. This is a great opportunity to literally speak to your target audience. There are also tools to get your videos in front of more people. You can comment on videos that attract your target audience to get your name in front of them.
Amazon – People with items on Amazon have many ways to build up a presence on the Amazon website, their sales pages, through a blog on Amazon, submitting ratings and comments – to name a few. I’m working on an e-book to help people increase the effectiveness of their Amazon presence.
Linked In – This website is a great place for business people to network. It is different from MySpace and Facebook, but it provides extensive business information and background for members. You can connect with others, write testimonials, share details about your professional background and much more. An interesting area of Linked In is the “answers” section. It’s a great way to boost your online credibility.
Online Credibility
We’ve all seen and heard about scams on the internet. It’s a great place for people to establish and promote a business, but that also attracts people who want to make a fast buck and who cheat people. That is one reason why it is important to build online credibility. Through the internet, you can network and do business with people around the world, if you want. That distance makes it important to prove your expertise and help potential clients see you have something of value to offer. You can do this through the information you share, answers and comments you post, examples of your work, testimonials and references from past clients and much more.
Use Blogs to Promote
Anyone who wants to promote on the internet needs to have a blog. Having an effective and active blog is no longer an option. A blog gives you the chance to get yourself in front of people who need your product or service, share useful information, stay in touch with potential clients, and more. However, once you start a blog, it is critical to keep it active. Search engines love blogs. This means that you and your information will be in search engines almost overnight. When people are searching for something – the vast majority start with a search engine. They need to be able to find you there.
Virtual blog tours are a great way to utilize Web 2.0 options. In the tours I coordinate, I use blogs, podcasts, radio shows, and any other avenues that I can find to get the word out about a client’s product or service. Your information gets into the search engines right away and is archived so people can find your details long after they are posted.
The internet is a gift for people who want to promote their business, products or services to a small or large audience. There are many free promotional options on the internet that we can utilize. Who you target is up to you, but either way, the internet is a gift that you need to unwrap and dig deeper into the opportunities that it offers.

Nikki Leigh is an award winning and best selling fiction and non-fiction author. She has over sixfteen years of promotional experience. This background has been helpful with her book promotion and her new promotional venture, Promo 101 Promotional Services which offers many online promotional options. Her promotional books - Book Promo 101 and Book Promo 201 lets her share many of the things she's learned. For details about Nikki Leigh, visit http://www.nikkileigh.com. For detailed promotional and virtual blog tour information, visit - http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/. She also has a blog where she posts a wide variety of promotional articles - http://promo101tips.wordpress.com/ - check the category list for any specific topics that are of interest to you.

You can see her book on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Book-Promo-201-Internet-Marketing/dp/159431716X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1249135511&sr=1-1

BOOK PROMO 201

Are you ready to learn more about Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Digg, Stumble and other elements of social media? Do you need more information to make the most of these new and popular social media sites? Then Book Promo 201 is the book for you. Award winning author, Nikki Leigh shares a wealth of information that she developed with over 16 years of promotional experience and it is written in an easy to understand and conversational style. She helps you understand how to develop your own brand and then takes you through a variety of ways to use that brand on the most popular social media sites. To help you dig deeper, she provides review questions at the end of each chapter. If you are looking for a publisher or if you are already a published author – you will find a wealth of information in this book. Over 1000 website links put a wealth of resources at your fingertips and can save you endless hours of research as you utilize the many free and inexpensive promotional options on the internet.
David Hancock, Founder - Morgan James Publishing - The Entrepreneurial Publisher

~*~

Nikki Leigh’s latest book, Book Promo 201 brings together the ‘best of the best” in book marketing. If you want to be an author, or already have books in print, this book should be a permanent fixture by your computer. From Web 2.0 to blog tours, branding, on-line promotion, social networking, internet radio, trailers viral marketing and tons more, this book shows you how and where to market your book. It will be a constant reference for both novices and pros.

Philip F. Harris, ALL THINGS THAT MATTER PRESS

Book Promo 201 is the second book in the Promo 101 series. In Book Promo 101 I wanted to help people lay a great foundation for their promotional efforts, help you learn what promotion is, develop the marketing mindset and we talked about many traditional forms of promotion. If you aren't familiar with the content, the table of contents is posted here - http://www.nikkileigh.com/book_promo_101.htm. (Reviews are posted here.)

Book Promo 201 started out one way, and was a very different book when I finished the manuscript in November 2008. It took me a full year to get the book just the way I wanted it, but I think you will agree it was worth the wait. I also realize that the Web 2.0 technology changes a bit every day, so I'll post updated information on this blog - http://promo101articles.blogspot.com. You will find about 100 promotional articles and tips there and I'll add to them as needed. Of course, I'll twitter about the new posts at .

The manuscript is about the same length as Book Promo 101, so the ebook should be over 400 pages and the print book should be over 200 pages (the book will be 8 x 10). The manuscript is with my publisher, but we don't have the final layout yet - and everyone will hear about it when its ready :) The book is packed with detailed, easy to understand information and packed with over a thousand resources.

I've kept the contents of Book Promo 201 under wraps and part of the reason was because it kept changing, but I'm happy with the contents and am ready to share it. The full table of contents with all the subheadings is about 6 pages long, so I'll just share the chapter titles here.

Book Promo 201 - Table of Contents

Introduction to Online Book Promotion

Part One - Prepare to Use the Internet to Promote Your Books

Chapter One – Online Promotion Basics

Chapter Two – Identify Your Target Market and Create A Brand

Chapter Three – Financial and Personal Benefits to Promoting on the Internet

Chapter Four – What is This Thing Called Web 2.0?

Chapter Five - Viral Marketing – What Is It and How Can It Help Me

Part Two - Social Sites: Where to Find Them & How to Use Them

Chapter Six - Social Opportunities Online

Chapter Seven – Large Social Site Options

Chapter Eight - Social Sites That Focus on Books and Authors

Chapter Nine - Social Bookmarking

Part Three - Use Blogs for Promotion

Chapter Ten - A Blog Is a Necessity

Chapter Eleven – Are Blogs Useful for Promotion

Chapter Twelve – Use a Virtual Blog Tour to Promote Your Book

Part Four - Use Audio and Video Multi Media to Promote

Chapter Thirteen - Book Trailers – What Are They and How Can You Use The

Chapter Fourteen - Creating a Book Trailer

Chapter Fifteen– Internet Radio Shows and Podcasting

Appendix A - Online Forums

Appendix B - Sites That Charge to Promote Books

Appendix C - Author Interview Opportunities

Appendix D –Blog Resources

Appendix E - Sites to Post Book Trailers

Appendix F – Radio Shows for Author Interviews

Appendix G – Google Products to Use in Promotion

Appendix H - Book Prom 201 Participants

NIKKI'S WORK IS SUPERIOR AND WE KIGHLY RECOMMEND HER BOOKS AND TOURS TO ALL AUTHORS!