Your Greatness is not What You Have but What You Give

Published: Sat, 03/18/17

We rise by lifting others.

Robert Ingersoll

Hey Family

If you were following any of my tweets this past week you would have noticed I was at the London Book Fair. I made some awesome connections and met some really cool readers, bloggers and companies. The Kindle Direct Publishing stand must know me on a first name basis as I took the opportunity to ask lots of questions. It was an amazing experience as it always is, year after year.

Wandering around the vast interior of Olympia Exhibition halls. I was attending workshops and networking, absorbing as much useful content as I could. I was surrounded with people who were open to sharing their knowledge with you. And I realised how much books have been mentors to me throughout my life. Then it dawned on me, that I rarely meet these influencers I read about in the flesh They were in my books, films and Podcasts, doling out good advice, practical tips and guidance at my whim and fancy. Little did I know that was about to change.

I was fortunate to meet two of the self publishing movement's top advocates at the Fair. Two people I listen to weekly, devour there emails and totally respect. Joanna Penn and Mark Dawson, have helped to elevate the Self Publishing movement to new heights with their practical advice on transforming us newbies into author entrepreneurs. They not only are successful authors in their own right but have crusaded strategies that have helped so many writers connect with readers all around the world. The amazing thing about these mentors - they won't call themselves that by-the-way, is that they saw the need to improve the prospects of so many talented writers floundering in the darkness and they stepped up to fill that need.

London Book Fair 2017

They could have kept their strategies to themselves and continued to flourish, safe in the knowledge they would prosper but they gave of themselves. The cynics amongst us will question their motives. All I can say is, that's not where your focus should be.

A radical thought. What if we all became mentors to someone outside of our family? What if we stepped up our game and imparted our experience to someone who is desperate to learn what we have to offer. You could do it one on one. Better yet, create a product you can share with the world. Start small and grow but develop the habit of giving something of yourself.

I too started small with a young author who is enthusiastic about the craft but I'll set my sights higher as time goes on., you can be certain of that.

Join me in your own way, in giving something back.

Peace!

Above is the final cover for the first of my 4 Part Sci-FI Fantasy Young Adult series . Joshua N'Gon: Last Prince of Alkebulahn. I'm creating an Early Notification List for you guys who want be informed when the book is ready. I'm projecting June 2017 for publication but I'll periodically stay in contact with the group and make sure to give you a taster of the characters and the story with updates on launch times especially 1 week and a day out. Join the list HERE.

Look forward to hearing from you.

P.S. If you haven't got my futuristic thriller yet - In the Days of Dread, its still available for free for you guys facilitated by the great guys at Instafreebie. Share the link with your friends. Check it out here.