Unless this is your first time reading my blog, in which case welcome and hello, you know that I am writing a book. Actually I have already written said book, which is about to be published by Ripples Media. It will be available for presale very soon and available on 10/5/24. Ripples media will donate 20% of sales for every book pre-ordered or bought on 10/5 to the Children’s Development Academy! Regular readers can recite the following with me, the book is titled Humbled on Purpose; Discovering Strength Through Vulnerability, Humor and Grace. Pheww. It’s good to get that out of the way early, although savvy readers probably expect to see it again.
Anyway, during the process of writing the book, I became far more aware of what a big, huge, awesome deal it is to actually write a book and take it to market. Like your 5 little piggies, where only 1 actually gets to market, even fewer intended authors ever take their book to publication(about 2 in 100). But this blog isn’t about me finishing. Trust me there are blogs and blogs and blogs coming about that. This blog is about the amazing company that I keep.
I recently moved and unpacked my books onto my bookshelves in my study. (I prefer study over the word office, it sounds fancy. I will keep my ‘study’ cleaner and nicer than if I call it my office, don’t you agree?) Anyway, I began to notice how many books I owned that were written by my friends. Lots and lots of books. Wow! I have prolific, talented friends. My mother always said you become the company you keep, she was not wrong. I hang with writers and now I am one.
For example, there is THE book that started it all. I think I had terrible FOMO (fear of missing out) when my bestie Jo Ann Herold wrote “Living on a Smile” which is a positive mantra for your life in the form of a book. She published it and all kinds of amazing things happened to her. She is my book mentor, introduced me to my publisher, Ripples Media, and the rest is you know…… HISTORY. She still inspires me. Her book is like her; positive and life affirming.
Then there is another amazing book mentor and inspiration; Adam Albrecht and his bright red book, “What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say?” which is also uber positive and helpful. It happens to also be from Ripples Media. It has 81 chapters but is just an average sized book, which is challenging to physics to be so chock full of wise advice but still average sized. How did he do that? Adam is one of the funniest people I know and I LOVE funny. He is so worth the read and the book is a great gift.
Then there is Randy Hain who is a bit of a show off when it comes to writing a LOT of books if a humble man of God can be a show off. I don’t think that I even own ALL his books because he has written so many. He hands them out like they are business cards. But they are darn expensive to print business cards. My kids have his books, my husband has his books, my brother in Michigan has one of his books. He has a book for nearly every situation that is thoughtful and on point. My personal favorite is “Being Fully Present” because that is something that I need to get better at.
A recent addition to my author friend collection is The Generosity Mindset by John Ray. Wow, does he practice what he preaches. He is setting me up with all kinds of new author tips and he is so generous with his support and positivity. Other authors seem to know how vulnerable you feel when you are about to release your baby into the world and circle you with kindness and good author vibes.
My new friend Amy Comeau, also from Ripples Media, just released her book last Friday the thirteenth. She must not have a superstitious bone in her body. It is about dealing with Covid as the leader of the marketing team at Emory University. “Every Storm Runs Out of Rain” is a fascinating read with actual emails and insights. It takes me back to my own worklife during that time. Wow! Well done Amy.
Anyway, if you are looking for great books to read, might I suggest some above to my blogosphere friends, written by my realworldosphere friends? All of these are available on Amazon or Barnes and Noble. Might I also suggest that you leave a little room on your nightstand, book club or fall beach trip for one coming soon titled Humbled on Purpose? Surely you saw that coming!
Also, if you have ever thought of writing a book, I HIGHLY recommend it and I recommend Ripples Media. Shoot me a note to ask more about it to maggie@maggiedecan.com. Thanks for reading and feel free to pass this on to anyone that might benefit. In 19 days I will truly be a published author! Thanks for supporting me along the way.