Category: A. G. Moore

Navigating Indieworld: A Beginner’s Guide to Self-Publishing and Marketing Your Paperback (Book Review)

By Carole P. Roman and Julie A. Gerber

 

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Most people who write don’t enjoy the business aspect of their work. I know that’s true for me. Unfortunately, once a book is done, it’s simply a journal until it finds an audience. Carole P. Roman’s “Navigating Indieworld: A Beginner’s Guide to Self-Publishing and Marketing Your Paperback” is designed to help writers find that audience.

This book is not a quick read, and if you do read it quickly you’re cheating yourself. I began one afternoon and eagerly went through the pages until I had to stop from sheer exhaustion. There is so much to absorb.

Ms. Roman addresses her book to two kinds of authors: those who are willing to invest money upfront and those who are operating on a shoe-string budget. It seems that the greater reward comes with greater investment, but of course there is also the risk of investing and getting little in return. That’s a calculus each author has to make.

There is an operating principle in Ms. Roman’s recommendations and she readily applies it to herself: “What can I say? I have no shame,” she declares. If you are a newbie author, and self-published, your book is not likely to find its way into readers’ hands unless you’re willing to shamelessly and relentlessly present it to them. Ms. Roman tells us how to do that. She cites names and resources, but the bottom line is, the author has to be willing to do the work.

I fully believe that if writers follow the recommendations put forth in “Navigating Indieworld”, their books will sell. Of course, it all starts with the book, and that is where Ms. Roman begins her recommendations. Before promoting a book, make sure it’s worthwhile. Only trust friends and family to critique your work if they are both savvy and willing to be brutal. And be prepared to take a machete to your art, if necessary, to bring it up to snuff.

Once you’ve got a product worthy of promotion, then go through Ms. Roman’s suggestions. Look up her books on Amazon, if you doubt the reliability of her system. She has managed to publish a successful series of entertaining and educational books. More than this review, use that record as proof that she has mastered both the craft of book writing, and skill of book promotion.

A. G. Moore 11/2016
by Categories: A. G. Moore, Indie Authors, Promoting, Publishing, Reviews, Writing, Writing TipsTags: , , , Leave a comment

Exploration and Conquest Stories of Indigenous Peoples: With Student Study Guide

Featuring:

  1. Vocabulary Development
  2. Reading Comprehension
  3. Written Expression
  4. Core Curriculum Concepts
  5. An Integrated Workbook
  6. Pictures Highlighting Key History Figures And Events

A Book For High School Students: Exploration And Conquest Stories Of Indigenous Peoples

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This book takes the student around the globe and across the centuries with a pictorial odyssey.  Six continents are covered, as are island nations.   Twenty-two anecdotes are labeled “Did You Know?” Each of these has a vivid photo associated and a dramatic story.  For example:  Vietnamese villages are shown kowtowing to French invaders; indigenous Putumayo are shown chained as slave laborers on South American rubber plantations; and junks are shown burning off the coast of Canton during the Opium Wars.

A special feature is the “Useful Terms” section, which offers simple explanations for challenging words that appear in the text.  Also, in the “Student Study Guide” (incorporated into the book), there is an exercise in map reading.  There are, additionally,  vocabulary and reading comprehension questions, as well as a suggested essay in the Guide.

The book is suitable for high school or upper middle school.  Upon completion of the book, students will have learned how Europe’s Age of Exploration affected indigenous peoples around the world.

The photo below illustrates how the images in “Exploration and Conquest” capture dramatic moments in history.  Photos, such as the one featured here, will hold students’ attention and will help them understand critical concepts.

Ethiopian Resistance Fighters
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This photo was taken between 1935 and 1940 by an unknown author.  The men were part of organized resistance to Mussolini as he sought to expand his African colonies.
by Categories: A. G. Moore, Colonialism, Empire, Exploration and Conquest, First Nations, History, Human Rights, Imperialism, India, Indian Independence, Indigenous peoples, Politics, Segregation, Social Justice, Students, War, WWIITags: , , , , , Leave a comment

Moments in Life: Book Review

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By Eileen Troemel

Usually, when I prepare to read a book of poems, there’s a certain amount of apprehension, unless the poet is known to me. While I enjoy the immediacy of emotion that poetry offers, some authors who use this form do not exercise discipline, and a good poem requires some of that. It is economy of expression that often gives a poem its edge.  And so I began Eileen Troemel’s Moments in Life guardedly–although, to be sure her evocative cover was reassuring.

Readers who also harbor apprehensions about an unfamiliar poet’s work may venture into Ms. Troemel’s aesthetic universe without reservation. There is revealed in her work a refined sensibility, a presence informed by both insight and compassion. Moments in Life is the sort of book one might keep in the bed stand, to sooth and settle the spirit before submitting to the suggestible realm of sleep.

Last night, one poem struck me with special force. Today, I scrolled through Moments in Life so I could find that poem and use it as an example in this review. However, my morning eyes did not see what my mind clearly understood the night before. Other gems caught my attention. This is one of the charms of the collection: it accommodates the mood and the requirements of the moment. A nostalgic inclination, for example, might find resonance in a poem called My Mother’s Kitchen. In more reflective moments, Life’s Cycles might might respond to the inclination to ponder.

One poem that struck me on every reading was Adventures of a Wild Leaf. This poem is brilliant with imagery and takes the reader through stages of anticipation, loss, and then hope.

This volume is not Ms. Troemel’s first. With the skill on display here, that is not surprising. I expect to hear more from this poet in the future. She evidently has a deep well from which to draw.

by Categories: A. G. Moore, Book Review, PoetryTags: , Leave a comment