Monday, May 22, 2006



The common man marvels at the uncommon. The wise man marvels at the common - said Confucius

All of us have a clock in our heads that ticks in varying degrees of loudness. For every person who walks into a bookstore willing to browse, there's someone on a mission: I need something to read [for a vacation about the teardrops that moistened the pages of Cold River] ... my clock is ticking Think Local, Be Local, Buy Local I rather be swimming in alligator-infested rivers than selling Cold River ;-)

Art of Living & Literature Across Frontiers: The Joy of Book Signings
Every writer dreams of the day when someone will approach him or her with a book and ask him or her to sign it. How much better would it be to have a long line of people seeking signatures?

Yes, this truly is the stuff dreams are made of (Dashiell Hammett was mistaken on this issue, claiming avian statuary was the stuff of dreams. He was also mistaken in his politics and on the long term benefits of alcohol).


• Ask yourself if you are happy," John Stuart Mill wrote, "and you cease to be so. Affluence breeds impatience, and impatience undermines well-being Is it necessary to actually write a book to have a book signing? No ... ; Booksellers Go to Capitol Hill for ABA Legislative Day [When Dan Goleman wrote Emotional Intelligence more than a decade ago, the concept was just a speculative theory. Not anymore, writes Lynnette Hoffman Something more than feelings; Opportunity awaits people willing to look for it, The lesson of Confucius is that people must have the wisdom to know what they are looking for and be wise enough to capitalise on it when they find it. Such discernment is not commonplace; it is quite uncommon, but it can be something that people can acquire if they are taught. It therefore falls to leaders to teach their followers not only where to look but also how to look Commonplace Leadership ; On the Clock But Off on Their Own: Pet-project Programs Set to ... ; Dance Revolution ; The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born]
• · An exquisitely preserved and elaborately tattooed mummy of a young woman has been discovered deep inside a mud-brick pyramid in northern Peru Mummy of Tattooed Woman Discovered in Peru Pyramid ; As the Hollywood actress suggested, even instant gratification isn't fast enough for some people nowadays
• · · What makes The Da Vinci Code so appealing to readers? I decided this is a question all writers of modern fiction should ask themselves. So, when the paperback edition came out, I bought a copy, armed myself with a handful of multicolored highlighters, and set out on a treasure hunt. Why The Da Vinci Code Works; Border Trilogy Early this year, the Book Review's editor, Sam Tanenhaus, sent out a short letter to a couple of hundred prominent writers, critics, editors and other literary sages, asking them to please identify "the single best work of American fiction published in the last 25 years." What Is the Best Work of American Fiction of the Last 25 Years? ; Despite the opposition of publishers and their lawyers, the world's texts are being electronically copied, digitized, searched and linked. Correction Appended
• · · · My friend Mary J. Schirmer is compiling all kinds of suggestions and tips for me and shares it widely. The priceless feedback a professional reader can give the writer as it relates to their script cannot be found in any screenwriting book. You may know the basics, but how to apply your story within that framework is the difference between an attention-grabbing script and one that misses the mark entirely and is passed over. For a writer setting out to have a long-term writing career it isn’t just about the one big sale, although that is part of it. Do You Need an Agent? ; A dark day for Dutch democracy Voltaire and Erasmus Are Spinning in their Graves
• · · · · Team-building is rarely the answer to problems with teamwork. Team-Building and Teamwork ; Passionate employees are a key ingredient in successful organisations. Steven Dahl and Matthew Neale report on research into how employers are recruiting for passion, and discuss the role of assessments in identifying passionate candidates. The power of passion ; If laughter reduces stress and increases productivity, why do corporate cultures tend to be so grim? What’s So Funny?
• · · · · · Shoot me first! I can’t take another talk on stress management! Learn to Laugh Your Way to a Happier Healthier Life! ; If you're like most people you are probably working harder and longer than you used to - First and foremost, you must love what you do Balancing the Scales ; Ah, praise! The applause! Rewards that result from your good work! How do you respond to praise? Do you bask graciously in the limelight? Or do you mumble and fumble for words? When you have trouble accepting praise, it shows. Find out what you can do about it. How Do You Respond to Praise? ; Books about happiness are pouring off the presses, but we still haven't cracked the secret of well-being. Is our culture of instant gratification the problem? Is it the job of the state to make us feel better? In search of the good life ; IN SEARCH OF Casino Night