Archive for March 2006

The folks of ThinkGeek — as usual — have added some more crazy and fun items to the catalog. Fan of Maria? Grow Your Own 1up Mushroom Kit really works. I’m guessing it works like those capsules that you put in water and open up into different spongy shapes.

Geeks rarely see the light of day, which is why we’re pasty. Not anymore. Stay at your desk and get a tan with the USB Desktop Tanning Center.

Paul has had asthma since he was a young’un. He should stop drinking coffee and soda and inhale power air instead as he is a professional inhaler (not the Clinton-kind mind you).

I’ve been passing out Nutella samples and my daughter can’t get enough of them. I can’t remember exactly how I learned about them, but I believe it was a discussion group and these people loved the stuff. I eventually tasted it and regretted it. Though it has less fat than peanut butter, it ain’t low in calories.

A friend of mine tried it on toast and said she didn’t like it. She doesn’t like peanut butter and thinks they taste the same. I think it leans towards chocolate. I prefer the stuff with crackers. Here’s a Nutella sandwich recipe from Foodnetwork. Just can’t picture having a warm peanut butter sandwich, much less Nutella. And here’s a gold mine of Nutella recipes (Warning: site has ads and pop ups).

I was impressed with Ian I. Mitroff’s book, Why Some Companies Emerge Stronger and Better from a Crisis, that I decided to feature it in the March issue of Shavlik’s The Remediator Security Digest. I think many don’t realize there’s more to crisis prep than technology and ensuring your IT systems are in order.

Also in the issue: Many folks wrote in to give advice on how to speed a computer and keep it healthy. The suggestions are applicable to home and small business computers.

Intel Solution Services’ The Connected Digest explores the data center of the future. While working on the article, I was fascinated by the concept and think building or modifying an IT infrastructure that takes advantage of resources when things are slow and share them with those that are computing like crazy.

The March issue of eNewsletter Journal just came out today. We feature a guest writer. I’m thankful to him as he took a little pressure off me.

In an earlier entry, I pondered whether or not I could use Scrubbing Bubbles Shower Cleaner based on its confusing instructions. I emailed the company and this is the reply:

When used according to label directions, SCRUBBING BUBBLES(r) Automatic Shower Cleaner can be used on cultured marble surfaces only.

Cultured marble is a plastic composite, so it is chemically similar to acrylic and fiberglass tub and shower surrounds. It is not a type of natural marble. We do not recommend using this product on any other marble surface.

Huh? As ornery customers are not marble pros. We just know that we have marble. Nothing more. Nothing less. I consulted with Paul and he said we can use it.

We’ve used it for about four days and I haven’t noticed a change, but I’m trying not to look at it for as long as possible so I can see whether or not there’s a difference.

Time for the first MWTR Blog Tour stop with author Jean Hanff Korelitz who has a new book out: The White Rose. She’s a novelist who lives in Princeton, N.J., with her husband, the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Paul Muldoon, and their children.

I interviewed Jean Hanff Korelitz who kindly took the time to reply thoroughly and quickly. Jean is always happy to phone in to book groups reading the book. She can be contacted through my agent; just send an e-mail to: sgasst@wma.com and write “Forward to Jean Hanff Korelitz” in the subject line. Here is a book club guide for the book.

How did you get started in writing? Authoring your first book?

I’ve wanted to be a writer since the age of 7, when my 2nd grade teacher
convinced me that I already was one. I wrote poetry through college, and
in fact my first book was a collection of poems (The Properties of Breath, Bloodaxe Books, 1988), but my real wish was to write fiction. I wrote two novels in the 1980s and had the pleasure of watching them get rejected by every publisher on the planet.

I did have agents… three agents, to be exact, but having an agent is sadly no guarantee of getting your work published. When I wrote my third novel, A Jury of Her Peers, which was my first to be published, I changed agents once again and this time had greater success, but the book was a genre book — it was a thriller — and this meant abandoning my earlier idea of myself as a literary novelist.

It’s taken me two more novels to battle my way back from genre fiction. Typically, publishers like you to stay in one genre. Perhaps it’s lucky my thriller wasn’t more successful! If it had been, I’d probably have found it even more difficult to get my more recent books published.

Did you have an agent before publishing your first book? If so, how did you select the person and why did you decide to have one?

My first agent contacted me after reading my poems. My second was a highly respected literary agent I met while working briefly in publishing. My third agent was a young woman I also encountered through my publishing job. Two of these agents I decided to leave, mainly out of frustration at their not being able to sell my work (though I have gone on to do projects with one of them, and frequently refer writers to her.). The other agent dropped me, rather unceremoniously, but also understandably: he was ill, and I’m sure it was all he could do to continue working with the successful authors on his list.

When I decided to write a genre novel, I contacted a woman who was highly successful with commercial fiction, and sent her a letter that described the thriller I was writing. She liked the book but made me revise heavily before sending it out. She also sold my next novel, The Sabbathday River, to a far more literary publisher. Several years ago, she decided to close her business, but very generously found me a wonderful new agent, who sold my most recent novel, The White Rose.

Your book The Sabbathday River was shown on Oprah. How did that happen?

A few years ago, my daughter and I appeared on Oprah for a program about creating close ties with your children. My involvement grew out of a short article I did for O Magazine about something I do on my daughter’s birthday every year. At the end of the program, she kindly mentioned my novel The Sabbathday River. I only wish the book had been one of her book club choices! But alas, it was not.

How was writing a book for kids different from writing an adult novel?

A few years ago, I decided to try writing a children’s novel, and the result was Interference Powder. It was not as easy as I’d hoped, but it was a briefer process— about a year as opposed to the three years it usually takes me to write an adult novel. It was difficult to find a publisher, and I finally sold it to a small children’s publisher, Marshall Cavendish.

The book has just come out in paperback, and I really enjoy visiting schools where it is being read. This is especially pleasant in Princeton, New Jersey, where the novel is set, since the kids love reading about landmarks they recognize.

Adult Contemporary Fiction is probably the hardest area for an author to enter. How did you break into it? With so many fiction stories, how do you weave a story that isn’t like the others?

I actually feel that the secret isn’t necessarily finding a new story to tell, but finding a new way to tell an old story. That’s one reason I’m so fascinated by the ways in which a template text or story can be transformed: Jane Smiley’s use of King Lear in A Thousand Acres, for example, or Charles Frazier’s use of The Odyssey in Cold Mountain are two examples that come to mind.

Perhaps I feel this way because I’m not particularly good at making up stories — never have been — but using a template has enabled me to write my most recent two novels, The Sabbathday River (which makes ample use of Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter) and The White Rose (which is a resetting of the Strauss opera, Der Rosenkavalier). Not that Hawthorne or Strauss would be at all amused! (I think Strauss in particular would probably turn in his grave.)

What is your favorite quote?

You’re probably going to think I’m very uninspired in general, because I don’t have a writing or even a general motivational quote. I’ve never really read any “How to Write” books, or if I have, I’ve forgotten them. I do have one quote on my wall, near my desk, from the late writer Simon Wiesenthal from his book The Murderers Among Us: “Slowly I learned that between white and black there were many shades of gray: steel-gray, pearl-gray, dove-gray. And there were many shades of white. The victims were not all innocent either… Every nation has its collaborators. We Jews had them too; we had perhaps fewer than other peoples, but we are not all angels.”

This is actually quite good writing advice in itself. After all, we may be interested in the ultimate struggle between good and evil, but when it comes to characters, purely good and purely evil is not terribly compelling. We need our villains to seem real to us, and our best heroes are always human and complex. And if we always insisted on Dudley Do-Right, we wouldn’t have Jack Bauer on 24, and life would be a whole lot less interesting.

How do fit in writing with all the other things you have to do?

I’ve been extremely fortunate, because I’ve never had to work in my writing around a full time job. Writing is my job, and while I could make a distinction between the magazine articles I write for a faster paycheck and the fiction which generates income only every five years or so, I’m certain I would have been far less productive if I’d had to hold down a full time job these past twenty years or so. Hats off to anyone who can do it!

I usually write during the day when my kids are at school, but I’m often doing about five other things at the same time. On the plus side, I tend to run out of steam after four or five hours, even when the writing is going really well, so I probably couldn’t use any more time even if I had it.

To someone who is really trying to squeeze in time to write, I’d say two things. First, keep something to write on with you at all times — a laptop if you have one, or a pad if you don’t. Sitting in a doctor’s office, which would you rather do: read a four year old magazine or spend some quality time with your own imagination? Second, don’t beat yourself up about the time you don’t have. There are plenty of writers who, for one reason or another, have plenty of time to write but don’t actually produce very much writing. You are not necessarily at a disadvantage for having less available time. Use the time you have and try to use it well.

What are your top five book recommendations and why?

Like almost every reader I know, I carry around a personal pantheon of books I adore. My list (be forewarned) is a little more eclectic than most:

Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice. The mother lode. Also: the greatest chick lit novel ever written. Every time you read it you find yourself wondering whether Elizabeth and Darcy will manage to get together.

Chaim Potok, My Name Is Asher Lev. One of the most powerful novels about being an artist I’ve ever read.

Marilynne Robinson, Housekeeping. A book so heartbreakingly beautiful I’ve never been able to reread it.

Fredrick Forsythe, The Odessa File. I warned you the list was eclectic. I absolutely love this novel, not only for the intense suspense and superb thriller structure, but for — yes, actually! — the writing.

Nevil Shute, A Town Like Allice. I recently reread this wonderful book and it was even better than the first time. It’s noteworthy that this classic novel of Australian life does not even mention the word Australia for the first 70 pages. (Hadn’t he ever taken a writing course and learned how to do things properly? What was he thinking!) You can’t help but admire how the novel skips from genre to genre — who would publish it today? Publishers wouldn’t know what to do with it!

Advice for aspiring authors

Fortunately for us, writing is something you can succeed at later in life. Unlike figure skating or ballet, where you’re basically washed up by your mid-twenties, you can write a spectacular book in your dotage — look at Frank McCourt! — so the dream, and, more importantly, the potential, never fades. In fact, you could argue that we’re more capable of writing an interesting book with every year we stay alive.

My advice to aspiring writers is to read voraciously, try to think critically about what you love in the books you love, and what you don’t love in the books you hurl against the wall. When you’re ready, write the book you most want to read, because it’s highly likely that the rest of us want to read it, too.

Thank you, Jean!

Crises aren’t limited to computer breaches, hurricanes, and tsunamis. Unfortunately, more crises have occurred in the past few years than in the 20 years before that. Too many organizations react to crisis instead of making crisis management a part of its organization like human resources and finance.

The unusual way of doing business in the past has become the normal way of doing business today. Crisis doesn’t have boundaries, so it can affect a company across the board rather than in silos.

Mitroff works to change attitudes and philosophy required to ensure a company correctly implements crisis management rather than addressing the basics of crisis management. The basics won’t matter if companies have the wrong attitude.

According to Mitroff, organizations that adopt the seven challenges improve their chances of riding out any crisis that occurs. Organizations also include public, government, and non-profits. Before 9/11, people thought the idea of a “flying bomb” was unbelievable. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case and it taught organizations a valuable lesson: be prepared for anything even far-fetched scenarios.

You’d think 9/11 would encourage organizations to take a proactive stance on crisis management, but just two years after 9/11 — companies returned to their old ways and prepared to handle only few crises: natural disasters and fire. Crises have changed as they’re not just “normal systems accidents,” which are accidental breakdowns as a result of very complicated technology.

Seven competencies help an organization survive a crisis and maybe come out of it better than before the crisis. They are:

• Right Heart: Emotional IQ – Learn how to get a better handle on emotions and how to deal with defense mechanisms that expectedly appear when crises occur.
• Right Thinking: Creative IQ – Bigger picture thinking that requires thinking outside of outside the box.
• Right Social and Political Skills: Social and Political IQ – Organizations look at themselves as one big entity instead of departments and that they’re only in one business. All businesses are in all businesses. For example, a university is also in the food business (cafeteria) and facilities business (dorms).
• Right Integration: Integrative IQ – Crisis management can’t be reduced to tools and techniques. Instead it’s based on assumptions as there endless solutions.
• Right Technical Skills: Technical IQ – Must “think like a controlled paranoid,” which means exploring every scenario without tossing it out as preposterous.
• Right Transfer: Aesthetic IQ – Included crisis management as part of an organization rather than as its own department or put in a silo.
• Right Soul: Spiritual IQ – Organization accept the spiritual, physical, and mental areas exist together not separately. It lets organizations deal with problems that result from unnaturally splitting up these areas.

The book influences the reader to look at crisis management differently and to convince the organization of the importance of getting on board. Mitroff shares chilling stories about crises and how companies handled them, which clearly illustrate the points the reader needs to understand about crisis management.

At times, Mitroff’s writing sounds like a college textbook and loses the reader. However, considering the complex topic, Mitroff does a fine job as many parts of the book absorb the reader. The book targets executives and managers who buy-in to the philosophy and can make a difference in their companies.

Title: Why Some Companies Emerge Stronger and Better from a Crisis
Author: Ian I. Mitroff
Publisher: AMACOM
ISBN: 0814408508
Date: January 2005
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 238
Cover Price: USD: $27.95 Amazon: $17.61

I’m exhausted. I spent the morning working at the school Book Fair and it was Grandparents Day, so lots of folks to check out. I love the Book Fair and look forward to it twice a school year. I remember them from when I was a kid as well as a student teacher in Washington, D.C. I even bought books then though I didn’t have kids yet. So it’s no surprise that my favorite class in college was Children’s Lit.

We also get the Book Club flyers every couple of months. I tend to get carried away when buying books, so I look up the ones I think sound interesting and decide from there. Probably saved me a few bucks. While I could get better deals online, it’s a nice way to help the school. The Book Club has a few deals, but not often.

After the Book Fair, Mom and I went to check out the new Plano Wal-Mart Supercenter. What’s the big deal? It’s a pilot store that tries new things. It was nice with a different look and feel than a typical Wal-Mart. One complaint: the skylights. Too much light hurts my eyes. But I know I’m in the minority.
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I received a sample of Scrubbing Bubbles Shower Cleaner. Unlike other shower cleaners that don’t require scrubbing (spray the shower and leave it), this one only takes a press of a button and it sprays it’s magic formula in the shower and tab.

Insert the cleaner refill and batteries. The device hangs from the shower rod. Push the button once a day and your shower gets and stays clean. If you use it every day, one refill bottle lasts about three weeks according to the instructions.

But can I even use it? While reading the instructions, I discovered the following:

“Yes. Scrubbing Bubbles® Automatic Shower Cleaner can be used in most standard showers, including fiberglass, acrylic, and plastic shower stalls and shower/tub enclosures. Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner is also safe for use on plastic and synthetic shower curtains. Over time, it may lighten natural fabrics such as cotton. Do not use Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner in showers with brass fixtures, natural marble, or finished wood surfaces. Rinse surfaces well if the cleaner is accidentally sprayed on these surfaces.”

“Natural marble.” Now, notice there is no “polished marble” or any other kind of marble in the OK list. I’ve emailed the company to see if “natural” marble means untreated marble… the rough kind. What I have in the bathrooms is polished marble.

What does “natural marble” mean anyway? It’s not a term too many of us hear.

Most newer homes don’t have tiled showers and baths. If my parents still lived in my childhood home, then we could use it there — no problem. Their new house, however, has marble.

The walls where the marble sits are fine and dandy. It’s the bottom of the shower that needs help and it can tolerate the cleaner.

Yes, I’ve edited and re-edited this many times today. Apologies. Just trying to get the facts straight.

Instead of standing in line to get an author to autograph your book, you can ask for an autograph without going anywhere. Author Margaret Atwood invented a tool for virtual autographs called LongPen. Some believe that it will end the personal contact between authors and readers. I don’t. MoneySense article on LongPen.

Many of us don’t go to signing events because it’s too crowded. But if we contact the author for an autograph for LongPen, we’d make contact that we would not otherwise have because we don’t attend the author events. Readers who live in small towns don’t want to make the long trek to see favorite authors. They, too, get to connect with the author.

Some authors don’t have the ability to travel and this gives them a chance to connect with readers.

From the sponsor: The goal of rhinoplasty is to improve the look-and-feel for the nose.
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Companies like Boeing, IBM, and Stonyfield Farm make it part of their business communication strategy. With over 30 million blogs in cyberspace, businesses need to understand how blogs work and affect their own organizations. Blogging for Business targets interested business bloggers as well as businesses who understand the importance of tracking blogs.

Bloggers talk about everything including good and bad experiences with businesses. The authors explain how blogs differ from other online tools, how businesses use blogs both internally and externally, and why and how businesses monitor blogs.

Businesses take advantage of the blogosphere (blog world) by sending pitches to the bloggers in hopes they write about their product or services. Just like pitching to the media, there are right ways and wrong ways to go about communicating with bloggers. About half of the book covers how businesses use blogs.

The other half discusses creating and managing a blog from planning through legal issues. The authors show how to make money with a blog, create one, promote it, use search engines, and measure the results. The authors look at blogging apps that don’t require one drop of programming knowledge as well as those that do. They cover the options available for building a blog and guide the readers through the technical parts without scaring them away with HTML-speak.

The authors don’t talk down to the reader even though the book is a quick and flowing read. The conversational writing uses stories to show how businesses handle blogs. As expected, the book as a companion site and blog (http://bloggingforbusinessbook.com/).

Experienced bloggers will find the creating blog half familiar, but the other half could prove priceless as businesses tracking and communicating with other blogs is new. Organizations big and small will value the tips on tracking and responding to blog conversations.

Since many employees have blogs, executives need to understand what they’re about in case they need to create policies to ensure employees maintain the companies’ integrity. Holtz and Demopoulos did a fine job of explaining blogs and why businesses should care about them. Readers will easily absorb the contents and concepts so they can take action.

Title: Blogging for Business
Author: Shel Holtz and Ted Demopoulos
Publisher: Kaplan Business
ISBN: 1419536451
Date: February 2006
Format: Paperback
Pages: 272
Cover Price: USD: $21.95 Amazon: $14.27

More authors offer a free ebook version of their book in hopes of generating buzz. Godin’s Unleashing the IdeaVirus had 400,000 downloads in 30 days thanks to buzz. Few authors have that kind of success, but this method helps get the book out there. For a short time, Scott Allen has posted an ebook version of The Virtual Handshake for free downloading.

I remember when Cory Doctorow distributed his book, Down and Out in Magic Kingdom. He also sold paperback copies of the book at sxsw in 2002. According to Wikipedia, “This (free downloads of ebook) has not seemed to adversely affect the book’s sales; it received mostly positive reviews and sold relatively well.” He also has a couple of other science fiction books available for free under the Creative Commons license.

The Cluetrain Manifesto had better luck with sales and publicity. So does providing a free copy work or not? Looks like it’s mixed. It’s another tool in the author’s toolbag along with sending review copies to bloggers and print media reviewers.

Ahem… from the sponsor: Rhinoplasty Toronto isn’t a rhino living in Toronto.