Introduction: Because of my years spent in Australia, I have a fondness for this country. I, therefore, decided to do some research into people who are into storytelling in Australia. I found Kristy's site, quite by chance and I sent her an email asking if she'd agree to be interviewed for this column. She agreed, and without further ado, I have great pleasure in introducing to you, Kristy Taylor ...

Aneeta: Thank you so much Kristy, for agreeing to this interview.

Kristy: Not a problem, Aneeta.

Aneeta: Let us begin with a little about you. Please, tell us a little about your family, where you live and what you do.

Kristy: Well, I live in Queensland Australia. I’m married to my high school sweet heart; we’ve been together for nearly twenty years. We have one son, aged ten, and three dogs.

Aneeta: I understand that you run a publishing company, KT Publishing. Please, share with us the kind of work you publish.

Kristy: My business partner (Penny) and I run the business together. Since 1998 we have published five books, numerous websites with their own ezines, on off-line newsletter and magazine, and we also offer editing and proofreading services, which covers many different types of documents, books, brochures, etc …

Aneeta: I understand that you run and manage several websites. Let’s begin with the first one: http://www.shortstorycompetitions.com. Please describe this site and tell us what is the purpose behind it.

Kristy: We started http://www.shortstorycompetitions.com to help bring all of the current competitions from around the world to the one place. We knew that we had difficulties in finding good writing competitions, so knew that other people were probably having the same problem. We also wanted to make the site completely free to use; free to post listings and free to browse listings.

Aneeta: Let’s move on to Writing Australia. Please tell me a little more about this site and what it is you hope to achieve.

Kristy: With http://www.writingaustralia.com we source only Australian markets and competitions for our paying members (members are welcome from anywhere in the world), as well as software and ebooks and other bits and pieces that we feel will be beneficial in any writer’s career. The paid membership also includes a profile page, whereby the member can link to a photo or book cover, and include details about themselves and their writing for all the world to see (their page can be updated at any time). They can use this page to promote their books or writing services. Paid members are also eligible to send in 6 free entries to our own short story competitions, of which two are held each year. The main site also offers a free ezine to anyone who is interested in writing for Australian markets and competitions, many different articles on writing (we also publish http://www.articlesonwriting.com) and a few other bits and pieces (like a free character name generator with giveaway rights). You really need to pop over to the site to get a feel of everything.

Aneeta: And finally, your personal website http://www.kristytaylor.com/

Kristy: Ha, yes, my own site that I never seem to find the time to update. Basically what I’m wanting to achieve with this site is to create a place for visitors to find out a little more about me and what I’ve been up to, whether it’s when my latest book will be released or if I’ve launched a new site. I did attempt to start a blog, but alas, that thing called time always eludes me. I’m also at university doing my Bachelor of e-Journalism so once that’s finished I should have more … what was the word? Oh, yes, TIME!

Aneeta: I understand also, that you’ve got several books and one novel published. By all means, please tell us a little more about these.

Kristy: Some days we all need a little inspiration or encouragement to start writing, so I put together a book that does just that. Each page of Quotes to Write by: Daily Inspiration And Guidance for Writers is headed with a date/day of the year, so you simply open to today’s date (the day you are feeling un-inspired) and read the quote from a famous, or infamous, writer. I have selected quotes that I feel would be not only inspirational but also ‘a kick in the guts’ if need be. Some of them may make you want to scream, but ultimately they make you want to write! Details of this book can be found at http://www.ktp.com.au/books/quotes.html. I also have a contemporary novel, Preston’s Promise, due out in July 2007 and a top secret new book that should be out by the end of this year (hopefully). It’s an insider’s guide to writing short fiction, with a special twist. I’m keeping the details of this one under wraps until closer to the launch day (check my site http://www.kristytaylor.com regularly for updates

Aneeta: As you may know, my website caters for storytellers and I try to help those storytellers who are particularly from Asia and Africa. What advice can you give my readers who would like to publish their work in Australia?

Kristy: Study Australian markets and ask for submission guidelines. Follow the guidelines to the letter. Having access to the Internet makes doing this much easier.

Aneeta: Well, Kristy, I’ve come to the end of this interview. Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Kristy: Good luck to all of your writers, getting that first acceptance letter is a wonderful feeling. Keep submitting, even when you’re feeling down. Try to get as many manuscripts out there as possible, as no editor will know you if you don’t put your name in front of their face.

Aneeta: Thank you, once again, for agreeing to this interview.

Kristy: Thanks Aneeta, it was a pleasure.

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Introduction: I received a request from Jack some weeks ago - he wanted to offer his book,  The Coaching Parent: Help Your Children Realise Their Potential by Becoming Their Personal Success Coach for the contest we run on this site. Well, after that was sorted out, I wandered over to his site and and I was impressed by much of what I read. As for the title of this interview, I'll leave you to figure out why. Without further ado, I have great pleasure in introducing to you, Jack Stewart ...

Aneeta: Thank you, Jack, for agreeing to this interview.

Jack: Thank you Aneeta for asking. For reasons we will touch upon, I’ve been blessed with a life that has enabled me to develop in many areas, and any opportunity to make the world a better place I’ll grab with both hands. Whenever this kind of chance comes along, the only thing that bugs me is the number of sentences that begin with ‘I’.

Aneeta: Please, let us begin with a little about you. Please tell me a little about your family, the place you live and what it is you do?

Jack: I was born 53 years ago in a suburb of an old industrial town called Warrington, which for your overseas readers is half-way between Liverpool and Manchester.

I was adopted, something my [late, wonderful] parents kept from me. However my [late too, I hope I’m not a jinx!] best friend told me when I was 21. It wasn’t until I was forty that my wife Anne told my mother I knew.

I have two fantastic step-daughters, Karen and Janet, and three fantastic grandchildren, James, Nicola and Josh. We have five cats here in sunny Dutton, just south of Warrington, where I [at the moment] run a plant nursery and do other things you will ask me about…

Aneeta: On your website http://www.organisationalhealing.org/ , it says that you are an author, psychotherapist and coach, trainer and organisational consultant. The thing is, I’ve read that before this you were at one time an accountant. Hmmm … do tell. What happened? Why leave such a ‘lucrative’ career? I’m curious about this because I too left a lucrative career to pursue my dream of writing and I’m fascinated by others who’ve done the same. What happened? Are you happier now? Did you get lots of unnecessary comments and how did you deal with them?

Jack: I used to rationalise being adopted by saying it had given me inner strength. I’m done now making an issue of it, as I chose this life. I’ve had a lot of jobs, and a few careers [accountant, office manager, part-time DJ {disc jockey}, personnel specialist, lecturer, trade union and labour party activist, consultant, author, publisher, nursery owner, CD creator, trainer…]. Accountancy? Not for me. I had nightmares for years after scraping a third class degree at university. I reckon if someone had asked me questions after leaving the examination room, I would have blanked them [I later discovered this is a universal phenomenon-cram the answers, then forget]. I did it probably because my parents had no understanding of careers and university [my dad was a wire worker, my mum a cleaner], and how many unemployed accountants does it take to change a light bulb?

I like people, so personnel was the obvious route [more nonsense. I had a chance to do a full-time diploma in personnel management, and get paid for it. Yes, they did that in the mid 70’s] for my first career change. Happy? Maybe. Don’t regret any of my decisions. There’s a lot in this question. I worked at Liverpool Council when Militant [Derek Hatton etc. Fascinating if you are into the history of British politics, ignore it otherwise] were in control, and at Manchester Housing Department I was a hero to half the workforce, a villain to the other half-I had to go! ‘Interesting’ fits better than happy! Comments? When the talking stops, you only have one life, and it’s you who has to live it. I’ve had some idiot bosses, and some stressful jobs. I’ve learned from the idiots, became one myself for a few months, but always got out in time. You have followed your dream, and you have my admiration. Ever read the ‘Alchemist’ by Paolo Coelho?

Aneeta: Thank you for the compliment. No, I’ve not read the ‘Alchemist’ but, I will put it on my Amazon.com wish-list now. O.K. Let’s get down to what you do now. I’ll start with the books and cds you’ve created. Please tell me a little about each of them.

Jack:

1. The Learning Organization in The Public Services

I was into this big time in the early 90’s. To me any organisation should be a place of beauty, of creativity, learning, and a means to inspire people to create a better world. Through my research, I studied Organization Development [OD], a 1960’s American approach to change which was revolutionary. OD people were and are geniuses. To them, organizations were either perceived by the owners and managers as machines or biological organisms. Every management theory/practice/flavour of the month will be one or the other. Every famous ‘boss’ will see his/her empire as a machine or living thing. I can’t stand the term ‘human resources’. I suppose machines can be resourceful. OD worked then, and still today nothing comes close. Any management approach which works has a short shelf-life! The Learning Organization [OD by any other name] will re-emerge under another label. I’ve lost touch with all this, it probably has already. The book? You’re going to start worrying soon, because the person [Derek Staniforth] who asked me to co-author it died a few years ago! Derek, Janice Cook and I made the case that the public sector had many, many examples of cutting-edge practice. I feel proud of it. Am I really 53? It cost £45, is now a classic, and I haven’t seen a copy of it for years.

2. Purrfect Symphony and Relax With Cats.

After seeing animal carnage on the TV in Zimbabwe in 2002, I went to bed feeling depressed. I dreamt in the middle of the night, seeing one of our cats, Tommy, and the idea of putting cats purring to music flashed through my mind. Ridiculous? You bet.

So absurd was it that I only told my wife a few weeks later, and a close friend Jeff Moran, who is a sound therapist, one year later. If there was one person on the planet who could turn the idea into reality, it was him. Another year later we released it. It gets rave reviews. But like Dyson’s vacuum, and the wind-up radio, the challenge remains to get it bought by enough people. It works for people and cats! Cats purr at a frequency that relaxes and heals, the same frequency that heals humans. Simple eh? But to most people who hear about the concept, even cat lovers, they are reluctant to buy it, thinking they will hear a bunch of screeching cats. It is truly beautiful music, and the purrs are barely audible, as they [and several tracks of sound therapy] do their work.

Relax With Cats is an hour of relaxation music, Purrfect Symphony is eight tracks of relaxation, energising and healing music. Different appeal, different markets.

My motivation? Realise animals are far more than furry, passive and occasionally greedy creatures. They possess wisdom, are in tune with nature, can help us all to become better people. Relax to cat purrs and change the world. Jeff’s? Get everyone to fully relax. He’s fed up with me going on about wanting to change the world, but he does too, he just doesn’t like talking about it! Reward yourself www.purrfectsymphony.com.

3. The Coaching Parent

David [Miskimin, my co-author http://www.thedirectorscoach.com] and I met on one of my NLP courses. We got on very well. We both kicked around ideas which would allow us to work together. We ran coaching courses. Neither of us remembers how the idea of coaching parents came about, we just knew the technology of coaching and NLP could help with the most essential job of all-bringing up kids. We created a pack of cards, then a CD, then we realised a book had to be written. We are very proud of it. We have endorsements from some of the best people in the field. Parents can help their kids become the best they can be and remain friends. It’s also a brilliant book for self-development. Practical, easy to read and you know what’s coming next-it works. www.thecoachingparent.com

4. Moving For A Change

A friend [Paul Kerr] I met in Colorado in 1994, when I did my NLP master practitioner course, taught me the power of movement in human change and development. The book begins with changing by standing still, and progresses through a series of 30 odd techniques to quite vigorous ones. They all work, some are very dramatic. I’ve been using them all for 12 years. The book will be out later this year.

Aneeta: I understand that you are a Coach and you have NLP certification. For the benefit of my readers, can you give a brief run down of what NLP is and how it is of help to people.

Jack: Most of us [me for decades] go through life blissfully ignorant of what actually goes on inside us [apart from too much thinking] after we have taken in information though our senses. We have been told that real, high quality talent is mostly God-given, and is not available to the majority of people.

We have also been led to believe that the best way to improve things is find out what is going wrong and put it right.

The essence of NLP is that the early pioneers found out by close study of world-class therapists and healers, that what they did could be broken down into principles and techniques and learned by anyone.

NLP is a set of tools and techniques that enable the practitioner to model [copy] just about anything they admire in others, and realise their own unlimited potential. Is it powerful? Just ask people who pay £500 for a couple of days with Tony Robbins. Ask those who Paul McKenna has helped through his books and CD’s..

NLP is a multi-sensory toolkit, not a theory, and as such is difficult to describe. It is something you do. Firstly, ask yourself the life-changing question, ‘What do I want [out of life]?’ NLP will help you get it, yes even if you don’t believe you deserve it, because NLP can help you with that too!

Aneeta: On your website, you state that you provide therapy. Now, please, can you explain what is the difference between coaching and therapy?

Jack: I have worked with world-class rugby players and judo people, and other highly motivated sports people. ‘Therapy’ hasn’t quite the same cachet as coaching has it?

I like the dysfunctional to enhanced function model. At some time in our lives, all of us will be dysfunctional, that is, unable to cope. Many of us will also excel at something during our lives, the most dedicated becoming famous. So to me coaches help those who want to be even better at what they do, i.e. move from being merely functional to very good or excellent [enhanced function]. Therapists usually begin by getting people out of being dysfunctional to functional [coping, getting back to ‘normal’]

It’s obvious even world-class people have issues which can render them unable to cope, it is rarely made public, except if it is, it becomes sensationalised. Equally, you can leap from dysfunctional to enhanced function quickly too. That’s what I like to think I do!

Aneeta: As you know, my website’s cateres for storytellers. How important do you think storytelling is to what you do and what advice would you give to other storytellers?

Jack: Storytelling? Fabulous! Milton Erickson, widely regarded as the world’s greatest hypnotherapist, and possibly the most influential of those modelled for NLP, told stories to achieve the most amazing changes in his clients. I can’t run a course, work with a client, or be interviewed without telling stories, both true and from folklore.

Advice-what do you want to achieve by your stories? To amuse, enthrall, entertain, change, delight? Use as many senses as you can with your language, shine a light in dark corners, create harmony or temporary discord [underpinned by a sound motive] with your words, grip the reader. Smell and taste success. Open loops like Billy Connolly, tap into cultural norms like Meera Syal and Peter Kay, write for the heart like Paolo Coelho, inspire like Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, and offer others the chance to shine like Aneeta!

Aneeta: Oh my God. My name’s in the same sentence as Gandhi’s! (*blush*). Well, I think we’ve covered everything. Is there anything I’ve left out? If I have, please add it here.

Jack: Yes, a penultimate piece. A couple of weeks ago, I met my birth mother for the first time. She came over from Boston [USA] for 10 days. From having no blood relatives for 50+ years, I now have three [half] brothers and a sister, god knows how many nephews and nieces, and I haven’t started to track my American air force father.

Life is rarely boring. Keep up your wonderful work.

Aneeta: Jack, thank you so much for agreeing to this.

Jack: You’re very welcome. The most significant book I have ever read [and I’ve read a lot] is Eckhard Tolle’s A New Earth, [Penguin 2005]. So I’ll close with something from it:

“Fulfilling your primary purpose [to awaken] is laying the foundation for a new reality, a new earth. Once that foundation is there your external purpose [destiny, mission] becomes charged with spiritual power because your aims and intentions will be at one with the evolutionary impulse of the universe.”

Cette Vie T’Aime.

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Introduction: As usual, I was surfing the net and came across an article which caught my interest - Choosing The Right Writer!. I hopped over to John's website and I liked the layout of his site and decided to ask him if he would agree to an interview. Agree, he did and I have certainly learned that much more about copywriting from this interview. Without further ado, I have great pleasure in introducing to you, John Beavis ...

Aneeta: I must admit I’m a little intimidated by your very good website – no mistakes, no spelling errors and all to the point. Precisely because of this, I would like to thank you for agreeing to this interview.

John: The website was created to be clean, clear and precise, leaving readers in no doubt what I’m about and what I can offer them. It doesn’t make false promises, it doesn’t promise results and it is written to get you to the end feeling that you know something about me and leaving you closer to being confident that I can deliver what you want to see. And that’s great copy that gets the job done well.

Aneeta: Now, let’s start with some information about you. Where do you live, your family and any other details you’d like to share with us.

John: I live in Reading, about 40 miles west of London, here in the United Kingdom. I’ve been married (to the same woman!) for almost 30 years and have a couple of young adults – one is a Direct Response TV editor & producer, the other is a Medical Student.

Aneeta: How did you get into the business of copywriting?

John: I’m actually a qualified PE Teacher by trade! I made the great leap into copywriting 25 years ago, simply because at that time I couldn’t feed and clothe my two young children. That and the fact that I wanted a life! A ‘real’ life! And you don’t get that on a few shekels and dirham. Sorry, but you don’t. Money isn’t everything is possibly true, but it is the bridge to all things and you can do little without it. If you’re about to start out in any career do not kid yourself that money doesn’t matter. Trust me – it most definitely does!

Aneeta: Specifically, when did you start writing for the web?

I’ve been writing for the web since 1995. I’ve designed, built, written and hosted many, many websites and all kinds of web-based marketing materials such as technical white papers, e-books, promotional eDMs (electronic direct mail) and strategic customer and enterprise-oriented activities (announcements, adverts, invitations & seminar programmes).

I’ve written miles and miles of copy for just about every client you can think of, from A-Z. I’ve always been a massive fan of Direct Mail or Direct Response since my Ogilvy & Mather days. I like the idea of “responsible” marketing. You know what your copy and great idea did because the results tell you. You also know when you fail too! And everybody does, at some time or another. It’s what you do about it that counts, how you recover and how you restore the balance when you don’t hit the mark. Thankfully, it doesn’t happen that often, not these days and with the experience I’ve got.

Aneeta: Your website is entitled, John Beavis Copy. Please explain in detail what services/products you offer.

John: I’ve been running my own UK marketing services consultancy for the past 18 years. It’s called Communique. It’s a full service consultancy in that it does everything that a “big” agency can do, at a slice of the price. But it is very hard to do “everything” on an international basis. International web-oriented clients want copy and/or design. The backup marketing activity (printing, stuffing, list management, mail out) they can handle themselves, locally. If I am to compete, clients have to know how to find me and although Communique is just me, it is also seen as a ‘collective’ (me, myself and I!) and doesn’t lead them to find me when they tap it into web search engines.

Hence, JohnBeavisCopy. It leads searchers directly to my website which tells them exactly what they’ll be getting – quality words at sensible prices, with web design services, if and as required. I offer design consultancy, marketing advice and bags of experience that can help guide clients to make the very best use of budgets. I actually operate on the TED principle: Thoughtful, Effective & Different!

Aneeta: Over the course of your career, you’ve gathered quite a number of clients. Please, tell me, who were the three most interesting ones to work with and why?

John: Wow! Hard question indeed. Microsoft are fun, but hard taskmasters. IT clients tend to work to a different clock from everyone else in that everything is always a rush and nearly always JIT (Just In Time). Peugeot & Ford were great because they were ambitious, innovative and exciting! But American Express was the worst! Unbelievably egocentric, crawlingly pedantic, they spent the entire time talking to themselves – the God of the Card. It was as it they’d never heard of the customer – they very person they should have been talking to!

Aneeta: As you know, my site caters for storytellers. I would like to know, do you think that storytelling is important in copywriting. If so, why?

John: Stories bring home the personal. They make copy real and believable, provided it has at least some grains of, if not the whole truth! I tend to stick to the truth and my anecdotes are real! They have happened to people I know or know of at some time or another. When I write, I want to bring people into my life. I want them to share the experience with me, as I write it, so I want them to “see it” as I see it. Stories (anecdotes) bring the copy to life in real ways that help make what you are saying meaningful to the audience. Remember, you’re aiming much of what you write at your friends and family!

Aneeta: Now, you’ve got quite a few comments that go against all the ‘normal’ advice given to people who write copy for websites. For instance, under the heading entitled ‘Layout’ you say this:

Look out, there’s a good layout about! Trouble is, you’ve got to trawl through some awful rubbish to find it! So many layouts that I see are so confusing! Offers here, offers there, bonus here, bonus there, affiliate offers, early bird offers, totally unconnected adverts – it’s a visual explosion of bewildering befuddlement!

The thing is, as you may know, many of my readers have businesses in Asia and Africa (and some are storytellers who run storytelling businesses). There is no doubt in my mind that most of them would like to attract customers from the West. Now, when you, a Westerner says this, I think it is safe to say that it is we who are befuddled. It goes exactly against what we’ve been advised to do in the first place! What advice would you give them – and me (she says, in a small voice) – so as to enable us to succeed as online entrepreneurs?

John: Keep it plain, uncluttered and fairly simple. Don’t assault the eyes, or batter the senses! In web design and layout, as in life itself, simplicity is the key to success. Pop ups are an irritant – a real non-no. Use hyperlinks instead to guide the reader to another page or area. Leave out the endless adverts – they’re a real eyesore and no more than onscreen graffiti! Just choose 3, maybe 4, small margin adverts for affiliate companies or companies whose products you’d like to recommend, or wholly endorse.

Make a bold statement in your headline, or a thumping offer in your opening copy. And test, test, test! Test everything.

Test layouts, headlines, colours, length, pix, till you’ve exhausted every possible parameter and you can say with confidence that you “know” what works best.

Don’t follow the trends – set them! Be different, stand out and get noticed!

But monitor trends and move with the times so you’re instep or one step ahead of the game. Whoever said it was a good idea to use Courier as your typeface. Noah? Madness and yet people are still doing it!

You want me to read your story? Charm, captivate and tempt me with a thumping good catch line. Make it not more than 12 words long and it has to be a good hook.

“Everything she knew had crumbled. The night lights winked, the gun waited…”

Even I want to know what happened next!

“How did he turn $75 into $4.5 billion working from home?”

Tell me more! You get the drift? Tempt, charm, persuade …but always deliver!

Great copy has good pace and bounce. A good story is an express train that rushes you smoothly to its final destination, but, boy – what a ride it should be!

Aneeta: All good advice. I think that is all time I have for. Is there anything else you’d like to add, John?

John: Yes, always write to the power of one. Isolate the person you are writing to in your mind’s eye. Concentrate fully and focus hard on that person. Become that person. That way, you know the power of what you write. If it sounds nonsense to that “other person”, then it probably is! So change it and rewrite it so that it flows smoothly and convincingly, full of conviction and evident belief.

Above all – enjoy every word you ever write. If you do, there’s every chance they will too!

Aneeta: Thank you, John.

John: All the best Aneeta and good luck to all your readers. Skill is essential to success but belief is a very big part of the equation. Believe in yourself and delight in your dreams – this is the fuel of your success and the foundation of all your achievements.

This piece may NOT be freely reprinted. Please contact editor @ howtotellagreatstory.com for reprint rights.

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Introduction: When you hop over to Gail's site (see below for link), she has this audio recording thingy and you can listen to her voice as she introduces herself and her work. Believe it or not, more than what she was offering on her site, I liked the sound of her kind voice. So, I decided to contact her and request an interview. I was not at all disappointed and without further ado, I have great pleasure in introducing to you, Gail Trahd ...

Aneeta: Gail, thank you for agreeing to this interview.

Gail: Thank you for asking Aneeta! I love talking to people about what I do.

Aneeta: Let’s start by getting to know a little more about you – where do you live, some information about your family and other personal details you’d like to share with me.

Gail: Well, I live in the Cincinnati OH area and I have four children. I have boy/girl twins who are 14 now. I have a 9 year boy and a three year old little girl. I have always loved reading and writing and now I have an outlet for these passions and I get paid to do them!

Aneeta: Please tell me, what did you do before you ventured into world of doing business on the internet?

Gail: I started out working at our local hospital when I was 16. When I went to college becoming a nurse just seemed natural. After I finished college I went back for my masters degree in nursing and became a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Pediatrics (working with children). That position doesn’t really exist anymore. Now nurses become Nurse Practitioners – and that’s what I did too. During my nursing career I did regular staff nursing, worked in a doctor’s office, worked in the hospital as a nurse practitioner and worked at a Children’s Hospital in marketing. It’s been a pretty varied career.

Then about 4 years ago I felt a real need to stay home with our four children. It was then that I started homeschooling. Working on the Internet really evolved from the need for an income that would work around my schedule. I wanted to contribute to our income but I didn’t want to work nights and try to stay awake during the day!

Aneeta: From your website, http://www.yourezbooks.com/ I see that you encourage people to subscribe to receive an educational tool called BookMark It!. Please describe this and what is it all about?

Gail: BookMark It! is an 8 chapter e-book that is delivered every week to your email address. It’s designed help a person, who has little to no experience with publishing informational products on the Internet, from start to finish. If you read each week, spend time doing the assignments and ask for help when you need it you should be able to have a product that is researched, written, published and marketed by the end of the 8 weeks.

When you are finished with the 8 chapter book you have access to a member page (free of course) that gives you all of the resources listed in the book plus many more. There are articles, free resources on the Internet, and Special Reports – all there to help my readers to be successful.

I am NOT an Internet Marketer who markets to the marketer. Definitely a twisted sentence! I have several other niches in which I work but I use YourEzBooks to give back to the community and hopefully help others to succeed. I also use YourEzBooks to tell my readers about other people’s products, which I feel are well worth the money.

I can’t stand purchasing a product, even with a money back guarantee, only to find that what I got was not worth my money – or my time. I simply don’t have the time to go through purchase, read and return – and I don’t think anyone else does either.

Aneeta: As you may know my website caters to storytellers. How important do you think storytelling is for those in business (whether it be an online or off-line business), and what advice would you give these storytellers?

Gail: Oh my gosh! I think storytelling is the basis for communicating in many different arenas. The best way that people learn is from stories. It’s the best way to remember a principle and to learn from others experiences. I have a business that has an offline and online component and I definitely use quick stories to bring home my points to my clients. Online sales letters, if they are written well, are stories. They are stories that keep the reader reading until the very last sentence.

Aneeta: Well, I think this is all I have time for. Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Gail: Yes, I just want to encourage people to continue to do several things. The first is to dream. Without our dreams we don’t have goals. The second is to write down your goals and dreams and then take action. Without action our dreams are vapors that disappear. And third, I want to encourage people to continue to practice what they are trying to achieve. You aren’t an expert immediately. It takes practice, time and perseverance to become expert at your action and achieve your goals.

Aneeta: Gail, I love that sentence: Without action our dreams are vapors that disappear. It’s really beautiful. I shall print it out and stick the paper on my wall. Thank you, Gail.

Gail: Thank you!

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Introduction: When I visited Michael's website, I was excited to see that he had visited Penang. Furthermore, after adding some of his articles to the database here and also reading other material he has on offer, I decided to contact him to request an interview. I laughed at his replies and really I know that when you read this interview, you'll agree that this is a man who has many, many great stories to tell. It is with great pleasure, I introduce to you, Michael LaRocca ...

Aneeta: Michael, thank you for agreeing to this interview.

Michael: Thank you for the opportunity. It’s been too long since I did an interview.

Aneeta: I see from your website, http://www.chinarice.org/michaellarocca.html, that you have been quite the traveller. To start with, please tell me a little about your background, your childhood, your family and what you’d like to share with my readers.

Michael: I spent most of my childhood living in rural North Carolina (USA) with my mother and my little brother. 1963 through 1976, in a number of different places along the east coast, possibly running from bill collectors. In 1977, we moved to Tampa, Florida, which was my first exposure to such things as big cities and multiculturalism of any kind. My little brother, Barry, died in 1985, and Mom died in 1989. Very soon after, I returned to North Carolina and bought some land from my father. Then we built a house. In 1999, I got a shiny new divorce, sold the house, and visited Hong Kong for a month. Or so I thought.

I met Jan, an Australian who was teaching there, and decided to stay.

In September 2000, we adopted a cat from the SPCA, and in October 2000 we got married. I only listed our lovely cat first for chronological reasons, of course. Before the wedding, I wasn’t legally allowed to work in Hong Kong, so I used the Internet to work elsewhere as an author and editor. In February 2002, we decided to move to mainland China. Jan is a career teacher. She taught English to adult migrants in Australia, some of them Chinese. Then in Hong Kong, she taught English to Chinese students. So why not finish the journey? That’s also when I became a teacher, and I love it. However, now we’re getting a bit bored with the routine, so we’re starting over in Chiang Mai, Thailand, next month. Picasso, the aforementioned calico cat, is still with us.

Aneeta: Now, I see you’ve visited Penang! My hometown’s not far away from Penang and I was so excited to read this. Tell me something that you liked about Penang.

Michael: Food. I’ve always loved Chinese food, and that’s easy to get in China, of course. But I’ve also always loved Italian food, Mexican food, Indian food, German food… Where we stayed in Penang, the world’s cuisines were all located within walking distance of each other. I quit smoking while I was in Penang, so I gained a bit of weight, but what the heck. We visited Penang in June, when it was about 30 degrees, same as Shaoxing. But it felt so much cooler in Penang because it doesn’t have that polluted haze that parts of China have. I’ve since learned that Penang isn’t considered clean by many Malaysians, but compared to where I was coming from it certainly is. Quiet, too.

Aneeta: O.K., let’s start on your work. The thing is, you’ve told a story about your journey to publication and I’d love to know a little more about this journey before I ask you to list down the works proper.

Michael: I started writing in high school. 1978, I think. I won some awards for my short stories and was in the 1982 Who’s Who In American Writing. I followed that up with at least 100 rejection letters. I had some good stories in me, but I told them badly and I refused to take advice. Finally, I gave up and chased money. In my Hong Kong period, I dusted off the old dream. I still had all my short stories on disk, along with a couple of novels. I joined some free online workshops and actually listened this time. I also started reading voraciously, an old hobby I’d given up. You can learn a lot about writing by just reading. As I’ve plastered all over my website, if you don’t enjoy reading, you can’t write what others enjoy reading. I believe that. In 2000, I wrote 4 books. All were published in the USA in 2001. Both publishers closed in 2002, I think it was, and I found new homes for my 4 books with some different North American publishers two weeks later. I also started working as an editor in 2000, thanks again to the Internet, and I still do that. I’m addicted to reading, so why not get paid to do it? I’ve edited almost 200 books, and I may be prouder of that than what I’ve written. Maybe.

Aneeta: Now, let’s start on the books themselves. Please give a brief description about each one of them.

Michael:

The Chronicles of a Madman was originally a short story anthology that I wrote as a teenager. A bit of horror, a bit of humor, a bit of what I dubbed American Existentialism, a bit of immaturity, a bit of rubbish. This is where it all began. At the start of my Hong Kong period, I revised all these stories with a lot of help from Internet friends. Then I wrote new stories. Finally, I realized one of my “novels” was badly padded, cut about half the words, and slipped it in here as a novella. It’s my favorite.

Vigilante Justice is hard-hitting police action. My brother was a policeman who killed himself when he was 20 years old. What would he be like if he were still alive? This is my attempt at an answer. It’s a dark tale that ponders some hard questions, and the pace is relentless. It’s hard to believe I spent 10 years on this little novel.

Rising from the Ashes is the story of how Mom raised two sons alone in the 1960s and 1970s. I’m incredibly proud of her, and since she’s not alive to tell her story, I had to do it myself. A psychologist who moved to China to teach at the same school where I taught decided the school needed a women’s reading group. All women members, all women authors. However, the first book they ever read was this one. This is one of my greatest moments as an author, even though I never attended a meeting. My wife did. This is my finest work.

An American Redneck in Hong Kong is the humorous sequel to the serious literature known as Rising from the Ashes. Rising ended when I was 26 years old. I had a lot of funny stuff happen to me between then and leaving the USA 10 years later. It’s in here. Dog stories, cat stories, horse stories, Hong Kong misfit Michael stories, and an inside look at what can happen on a hog farm.

Who Moved My Rice? is my “China book.” People move to China, they don’t know what they’re doing, they write about it. More humor, with my own ignorance as the butt of every joke. Since I hear Who Moved My Cheese? is about adapting to change, and since moving to Hangzhou and becoming a teacher was a big whopping change, I concocted my title as a little joke.

Aneeta: I see your books have been EPPIE finalists. What is this EPPIE award?

Michael: It’s the oldest award for e-books, sponsored by EPIC, which is the Electronically Published Internet Connection. I’ve entered three books, and I’ve been a finalist three times. Maybe my next book can finally win the thing!

Aneeta: I also note that you are an editor. What kind of work do you edit and how can people contact you if they wish to commission you as an editor?

Michael: I’ll edit anything I would enjoy reading, which covers quite a large scope. I started by working for my first publisher, then bounced around to other publishers along with my novels. I currently work for Books Unbound, which I happen to love because they only accept quality books. I also decided, after enough years, to put together a little freelance editing page on my website and see what happened. I got swamped! It feels great. I should just send people to that page instead of repeating it. http://www.chinarice.org/editingservice.html I’ve worked with authors from all over the world, some native English speakers and others writing in a second language. You have no idea how much I admire any author who can do that. I’ve also worked on a textbook for Zhejiang University, and in fact back in the USA I edited tech manuals, “translating” them from “engineer” to standard English.

Aneeta: As you may know, my website caters for storytellers. What advice would you give those who are interested in storytelling?

Michael: I think I became a writer because I didn’t like talking. But when I was 9 years old, I made up my own comic books and told them to neighborhood kids. North Carolina has a long storytelling tradition, and there are quite a few gifted storytellers in my own family. Advice? Same thing I tell anybody who asks me how to write better, or how to improve his/her spoken English. Practice. Part of becoming a teacher was learning just how good I am at illustrating a point through one of my stories. Be honest, talk from your heart, entertain yourself first. All else will fall into place. If you enjoy your story, your listeners will. I might hit upon a good story and use it in class a dozen or more times. But then, if I get bored with it, I’ll quit using it instead of being slavishly loyal to it because it worked so well so many times before. A bored storyteller is a boring storyteller.

Aneeta: I think that is all I have to ask. Is there anything you’d like to add?

Michael: I’ve learned so much about my homeland by leaving it. This is one of my classroom stories, okay? When I graduated from high school, I went to a university which only had three white students. My classmates were black and the school was in the ghetto, but it was all I could afford. I learned that I wasn’t as free of racism as I’d been led to believe, and that means more to me than the electronics I studied. Years later, I found myself managing a hog farm where all my employees were from Mexico and Honduras. They taught me Spanish, I taught them English, and they will always be my amigos. Then, China. Students would ask if it was true that Americans did _____ or _____, I’d say yes, they’d ask why, and I’d realize I have no clue. I think that’s the perspective my writing needed. Also, telling stories to non-native English speakers has done wonders for simplifying my vocabulary, and I’ve learned how to check for understanding. This has been Asia’s greatest gift to me.

Aneeta: Once again, Michael, thank you.

Michael: Once again, thank you. It’s been a pleasure.

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Introduction: I'm not going to take up your time by writing a long introduction - you'll find out why soon. I suggest you just go ahead and read this comprehensive interview with a man who just oozes with energy. It is with great pleasure, I introduce to you, John diLemme ...

Aneeta: John, Thank you for agreeing to this interview.

John: First off, Aneeta, I want to thank you for caring about the people that read your e-zine, the people who subscribe to your website, in order for you to interview and literally drill someone like myself to extract out of me the secrets, the insider techniques on how to effectively tell a story to impact people’s lives in order for you to achieve your mission, and as I say, achieve your Why and impact other people’s lives worldwide.

Aneeta: Such praise. *Blush*. Thank you. Let’s start with some information about you. Where did you grow up, what were you doing before you became this ‘Millionaire Maker’?

John: Let me tell you a little about myself. You and I, along with all your readers, have something in common. We were all born. I was born in 1965, 8:35am, room 404. I get very specific about my day of birth because each of you reading this interview has to understand that you were born for greatness, you were born with a Why inside you. You were born for the specific reason why you were put on this Earth to achieve massive success. In the system of life, we get bombarded with so much negativity, that we never achieve our massive success that we were given in our birth right. It wasn’t network marketing that interested me; it was the freedom potential to build a business with passive residual income that interested me.

A little bit more about my story, not only was I born in 1965, but I was also born in New York (which if you could hear me, you would know this from listening to me). In 1969, I was four years old, it was the last year the New York Jets won the Super Bowl, and the year that I was diagnosed by doctors in a hospital with having a speech impediment. Before I go on, I want you to know what you can get out of me in this interview…..I am going to give you the keys to unlock the riches and profits that are inside you………. through a 14 year process, from the age of 4 to 18, I was a clinically diagnosed as a person who stuttered. What that means is at the age of 18 is I could barely say my name. Let’s get to the point, I went to college and graduated as a top business student, but it didn’t make a difference. I was working in my family owned art gallery in New York. My family has owned galleries in Manhattan and Westchester County for decades. I was working my family business and I had a day that changed my life. Everybody has that day. Maybe today you will be reading this, and this will be your day.

I believe in the sprit of expectation. I expect someone’s life to change from this interview. It may be you, I don’t know, but I believe someone’s life will change. On March 10, 1990, I was bored to no end. I was in a routine, in a grave, in with no goals, no motivation, no enthusiasm, no excitement, and yet I had a burning desire inside me to speak, to speak fluently. I used to watch the great JFK and Dr. Martin Luther King. And I would watch them speak and observe how they were great orators. It occurred March 10, 1990. I picked up an ad. It said, “Earn 10,000 dollars, wear tailor made clothes, drive Mercedes-Benz.” That intrigued my interest. Focus on this point. I was intrigued, but I took action. A lot of people will get intrigued and not take action. They will ask the opinion of others before they take action. I took action. I made a phone call. I attended the event on March 15, 1990 and it changed my life forever. I was exposed that evening to personal development which I never heard about in school. I graduated from a top business school, graduated magna cum laude, and I never heard of personal development. Went out that evening and purchased the book Think and Grow Rich. That changed my life forever.

Let’s flip it forward nine years. 1990-1999 I built a business based upon the mindset that I was going to be financially free and in order for me to live my Why. That was how I developed the brand FindYourWhy.com. As you take a look at it, know the Alexa Ranking on www.FindYourWhy.com is in the teens. It is one of the top personal development internet websites on the net today because I utilized a vehicle, a business vehicle of network marketing, to become financially free.

Let’s flip it forward to today. I am a Strategic Business Coach. I am an International Motivational Speaker. I spoke in over 16 countries worldwide on the topics of: Success, Motivation, Internet Marketing, and Absolutely Creating a Profitable Life.

Aneeta: Please tell me about your ezine, Find Out Your Why

John: Find Your Why E-zine. What the e-zine is about is as you know, an e-zine stands for an electronic magazine, a way to distribute information to impact people’s lives. I believe the message and mission behind Find Your Why. When you read it in the first person, you have to ask yourself:
• Why am I here?
• Why do I do what I do?
• Why do I wake up everyday?

You have to Find Your Why. And when you find something, you have to extract it, dig down deep and search for it. ‘Research’ in the old Greek means “to seek out”. You have to research yourself deep down inside and Find Your Why. I have spoken in 16 countries worldwide. I am an International Motivational Speaker. I have done interviews worldwide. All because I teach people how to Find Their Why, how to radically do a 720 degree turn in their life and change their life, to Find Their Why, how to live, walk, breath, talk, speak, act, expect with expectation of achievement. For all those reading here today, you can send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., she is a Champion, and ask her for a sample Why Card. A Why Card is what you say everyday. The first seven minutes upon rising every morning will direct your entire day. Most people will roll over, put on the radio or watch TV every morning. Most people can sing along to songs like they wrote the song because they have heard it hundreds of thousands of times, yet they have not spoken their dream into existence. That is why I talk about a Why Card where when you roll over in the morning, in the first seven minutes of the day, and you have to speak your Why into existence. You have to say:

“I am dealing with all the challenges of developing my business today because my Why is to spend more time with my family, be able to tithe a high percentage of my earnings to my church or favorite organization. I am making a difference today as a profit-producing, fear demolishing, life changing, inspirational, action taker, fired up, laser focused Champion.”

Understand, that is what the mission is behind Find Your Why, the CD Find Your Why, the DVD FYW, and the e-zine FYW. I highly suggest everyone should visit the website FYW and sign up for the weekly e-zine. We have one of the top five personal development e-zines for almost five year. It is not a flash in the pan vision. We have one of the most highly visited websites on the internet today in reference to changing people’s lives, overcoming fear, demolishing procrastination, fulfilling your dream, achieving success, and making a difference in people’s lives worldwide.

Aneeta: This ‘Why’ card sounds great. What else do you offer?

John: I am going to give you a brief overview of what I offer. I offer many products and services. I believe a person must be consistently motivated on cutting edge, state of the art information that is very crucial for their success. Here is a statistic, 97% of people at age 65 are dead or dead broke. 1.8% are earning six figures or more. 1/10 of 1% are financially free. That is why I offer the material because I believe all of you reading this today in reference to telling a story, because the bottom line is your story will change people’s lives. I will briefly cover the resources.

1. 7 Highly Guarded Secrets to Close Every Sale – I have one resource called 7 Highly Guarded Secrets To Close Every Sale. Many people shy away from the word closing, but in a word, especially when someone has gone through some challenges, they always say they have to put closure to a situation? Because when they do, they can move through and move to the next level. That is why I teach you specific highly guarded secrets with how to close every sale. For any of you storytellers reading this today that are into sales, marketing, or any entrepreneurial business, you need to know how to open up in long-term relationship because when one door closes, another opens. So, closing is outstanding. I teach 7 specific highly guarded secrets for closing every sale.

2. Iron Clad Secrets of Network Marketing to Build a Million Dollar Dynasty – Then, for people with an interest in network marketing, I have a double CD set titled Iron Clad Secrets of Network Marketing to build a million dollar dynasty. I was involved in network marking for 9 years, became a 7 figure earner, and earned my financial freedom. Be very careful in network marketing in who you are listening to. Make sure you are listening people who have done what you want to do and have gone through what you are now making a decision to go through. In this CD series, Iron Clad Secrets of Network Marketing to Earn One Million Dollars, I teach you specific secrets in how to build a million dollar business in MLM. If that is the venture you have chosen, I highly suggest you grab a hold of this series.

3. The Success Alphabet Mastery Series – Success Alphabet Mastery series is powerful, especially for storytellers, because the alphabet is designed for success. So why are 95% of people at the age of 65 failing, because they don’t understand how to utilize or take advantage of the alphabet. I teach you techniques and strategies with how to benefit from the alphabet and orchestrate your words from the alphabet. In that CD series, there is a CD called The Language Filter. We are used to putting filters on our air conditioning. Our corporate office is in South Florida, so it gets very hot without air conditioning. You have to change your air filter, your oil filter, and your water filter. Yet, can you imagine if we had a filter on our mouth. Every word we said, every word we shed, when we shared our stories, were filtered for quality, for effectiveness, for changing people’s lives. I teach you how to maximize the language filter.

4. 21 Keys to Earn a Million Dollars and Beyond – This teaching was recorded live at an event I did with the great Les Brown in California. It is 21 specific keys you can utilize with your business.

5. The Power of a Dream – I have to forewarn you, is a highly energetic motivational message about the power of a dream. It was recorded about three weeks ago. And, I can tell you thousands of people listen to my material and the love this CD. It fires you up, gets you excited about your life and your dream and your storytelling!

6. The Leadership Game – An awesome book! One of my mentors, Pastor Tom Mullins, interviewed eight football coaches that won national championships in college football – meaning the athletes played for the glory of the game and not the glory of the dollar. It’s an incredible book and I highly suggest you grab a copy of this book.

7. Books & Movies – I also have books and movies that I recommend as a Champion. As someone that is reading this today, you need to maximize the books you read and movies you watch. Here’s what you can do. You can visit www.FindYourWhy.com/books and www.FindYourWhy.com/movies– download these pages. Immerse yourself with these materials and your life will change.

8. 7 Secrets to Explode Your Real Estate Business – I speak a lot in the real estate circus. I have been on CNBC for real estate. This is a teaching I did live at one of the largest real estate investors club in North America. So, if you are reading this today and you are into real estate and maximizing the real estate market, grab a hold of this and it will explode your real estate business.

9. What’s Your* DNA? – A DVD that I recorded live and it is very powerful. Most people know that our molecular structure is the basis of our DNA, but your success in life is also based on DNA. DNA stands for Decisions N’ Actions. The decisions you make today, followed by the actions you take based on those decisions will predict your future success. It is a very powerful, eye-opening, motivational, training about understanding the power of your decisions.

10. Tick Tock – A DVD in which I reference the power of time. We all know tick tock pertains to a clock going tick-tock, tick-tock. Yet, most people waste their time and don’t value their time. Very powerful teaching about the value of time.

11. Champions Start – a CD and DVD. In life people don’t usually get anywhere because they are not focused on the finish line. They grab the steering wheel and are laser focused across the finish line, but in life when you ask people where they are going and what their expectations are, they don’t know because they don’t have any clue with where they want to go. It is a great teaching on focusing on the finish line and where you are going success-wise and with storytelling.

12. Are You A* 3%’er? – I teach this a lot because the statistics show that 97-98% of people will fail in life. There is a 3% bracket of success. I break down what characterizes this 3%. It’s an awesome CD.

13. 2 Day Network Marketing Millionaire Academy Boot Camp Ticket – The bottom line is these are World Famous Boot Camps. Done in over 5 countries world-wide. Behind Closed Door, hands on, two day from 11am to 8pm, 18 hours of proven success, time tested strategies on how to build a multi – millionaire network marketing system. I highly suggest anyone reading this today to visit www.FindYourWhy.com/bootcamp . We have seven hours of video testimonials about the Boot Camps from people just like you. They are life changing. I could go on for hours about them, but bottom line, visit the website to read more about the Boot Camps.

Aneeta: That’s a lot of information. I see you also conduct live seminars, personal coaching and teleclasses. Please give a brief summary of what these involve. John, at this stage, I must admit I’m tired just writing these things down. How do you find the energy to do ALL of this?

John: That is a great question. I do offer an incredible amount of material because I am laser focused. As someone who wants to impact and change people’s lives by telling stories, you have to value your time. 97% of people who just lala around in life don’t value their time, they waste time. We have a great champion team with DDG, Inc. Everyone knows John Di Lemme, but I am only part of the Champions that are behind the scenes DDG, Inc.. We all build together a dream to assist others worldwide. The key is being excited and understanding your Why. Our mission statement is, “You must be absolutely clear about your goals and relentless about the pursuit of your Why.” I am relentless about extracting out of people worldwide, the greatness and success, their why, that lies inside of them and teach them specific strategies, motivate, excite them, create enthusiasm inside them one heart at a time. That is what excites me. You can visit www.FindYourWhy.com and click on testimonials. That is what excites me! Teaching and personal development must become a habit. Today you are an exact response of your habits. You have to take responsibility for that.

Aneeta: As you may know, my website caters for storytellers. What advice would you have for them?

John: It’s a very powerful question, Aneeta. Everyone reading this has a story. Your story is your adversities, your challenges, the process and progress you go through in life, the seasons you go through in life. I have a quote, “There is a reason for every season.” As much as you may think your story is no big deal, your story will save someone’s life. Let me say this again so everyone understands this. You will save someone’s life with your story. Whatever you are going through right now, you are growing as you go through it. The words of comfort, advice, and empowerment you can share with someone as they are going through the same process as you, will save their life. I can tell you, Aneeta, that worldwide I have hundreds of thousands of stories of how to Find Your Why CD that has absolutely changed people’s lives because they realize they have a destiny, they have a WHY, they have a purpose, there is a specific reason why they are doing what they are doing. They are filled with focus, they are filled with enthusiasm, and they are filled with conviction. So when you share your story, understand that telling your story will change someone’s life. Your story is powerful. As you know, one of the most lessons to be learned is Show and Tell. Everyone remembers that. Take this to heart. Your story is a masterpiece. Your story has the ability to change people’s lives worldwide. Don’t take it for granted. Take advantage of the benefits your story has to empower others to go to the next level in life.

Conclusion and Special Offer

I want to thank you Aneeta, for tracking me down, getting a hold of me, getting a hold of our office, in order to take advantage of my wisdom, my years of studies, and my personal development expertise. I truly believe you have a great heart, a great vision, a great mission through your website. Aneeta, I am going to offer some special bonus to you and all the people reading this interview.

All this summarized, it all comes down to success is based upon you Knowing Your Why. www.FindYourWhy.com is a motivational website. Yet, motivation is the driving fuel for every vehicle and you’ve chosen the vehicle of internet marketing. If you don’t know WHY you are going to build an internet presence, then your internet presence will fail. It’s just like you could purchase a Bentley or a Hyundai – two very different vehicles. One is 10-20 thousand dollars; the other is hundreds of thousands of dollars. Both need fuel. Without the fuel for theses vehicles, they will go nowhere. You can have a multi-million dollar vehicle, but if you don’t have the fuel, you won’t go anywhere.

I have the fuel and have proven I have the fuel. I have over 40 pages of testimonials you can read for yourself by visiting www.FindYourWhy.com and clicking testimonials. This is a time-tested, proven, guaranteed process. I have put together an unbelievable offer. I said to myself, what can I do for the DEMC Champion subscribers? I have put together three e-books that I absolutely love:

I Can ebook ($17.99 value) – This will teach how to unleash the full potential of your mind and to fully utilize your mind’s ability.

Boost Your Confidence ($26.98 value) – Confidence is the foundation for massive growth. This e-book will teach you how to succeed at being yourself, how to overcome your shyness, and overcome your doubts and fears instantly. It will boost your confidence!

12 Winning Leadership Qualities e-book ($19.97 value) – It will unleash the leader instinct within you. There is a complete and comprehensive report that shows what makes a real leader.

When you total up these price tags, and I have sold hundreds of these e-books online, at these prices, it is a $64.94. I am going to give you all three e-books as a bonus for you grabbing a hold of what is the number one personal development CD on the internet today titled Find Your Why.

Over 7,000 of the Find Your Why CDs have been sold worldwide. I can tell you right now, if you don’t own it, grab a hold of it.

I have put together a special. This CD normally retails for $47. You can literally visit www.FindYourWhy.com, click on Success Library, and you will see it retails for $47.

What I am going to do is something you can do to help you build your business. I am going to put together the $47 Find Your Why CD, plus $64.94 of actual bonuses. This is in excess of $110 of product. I am going to allow you to steal from me today…..you can grab a hold of this package for $17 plus shipping and handling. And, do not complain about the shipping and handling, as you will see when you receive the package, I don’t pack the CDs out of my home, I have a professional worldwide fulfillment central that handles the products. You will see, for $17, plus S&H, when you receive the package, it will change your life.

Take Action! Decide Today! Visit http://www.FindYourWhy.com/story and make sure you read this interview many times to fully understand the process of developing a multi-million dollar online presence. I believe if you are reading this, you have the right to achieve this.

Take Action! Decide Today! Visit http://www.FindYourWhy.com/story and make sure you read this interview many times to fully understand the process of developing a multi-million dollar online presence. I believe if you are reading this, you have the right to achieve this.

John Di Lemme
Strategic Business Coach
Motivational Speaker
Author of Find Your Why and Fly

A *Millionaire* Personal Success Habit
Monday Night *Live* Motivational Tele Class 8:30 p.m. EST.
Dial: 212-990-8000 access code 7458#
*Spread the News about the *Live* Class*

Creating 1,000 Millionaires Worldwide!

Aneeta: On behalf of all my readers, thank you very much for this offer, John.

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Introduction: For so long now, I've been interested in interviewing people who write for adults and maybe youths. I've never conducted an interview withr someone who specialises in writing for children. So, I wandered over many a website and I came across Laura's. I was impressed with the wealth of information that was provided and make my request. Laura agreed and without a doubt, I've learned a few more things about writing for children. It gives me great pleasure to introduce to you, Laura Backes ...

Aneeta: Laura, thank you for agreeing to this interview

Laura: I appreciate being asked!

Aneeta: To start with, please tell me a little about your background. Where to you live? Your family? And, really, anything you’d like to share with me.

Laura: I live in Fort Collins, Colorado, with my husband Jon Bard (who is also my business partner), our 10-year-old son Matthew, two dogs (Otis and Rocky) and Tipper, the hamster.

I started working in the publishing field in 1986. I began in publicity at Random House, then moved to subsidiary rights at Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Publishers’ subsidiary rights departments sell other rights to your book, such as foreign reprint rights, movie rights, book club rights. Then I became a literary agent, representing children’s book authors and illustrators. While I was an agent, I formed the Children’s Book Insider newsletter in 1990. In 1993, CBI became a fulltime business, and Jon sold his public relations firm and started working with me. We began publishing books for writers, I started critiquing manuscripts and doing freelance editing for small publishers, and we moved from New York to Colorado. In 2000, I also formed Children’s Authors’ Bootcamp, a weekend writing workshop I teach around the country with author Linda Arms White.

I’ve also published articles in The Writer and Writer’s Digest magazines, spoken at numerous writing conferences, and am the author of Best Books for Kids Who (Think They) Hate to Read: 125 Books That Will Turn Any Child into a Lifelong Reader published by Random House

Aneeta: I know that your speciality is in the field of writing for children. Why did you choose this area to specialise in?

Laura: I’ve always loved children’s books, and I think in general they’re much better-written than books for adults. And much harder to write! I also enjoy working with children’s book authors and illustrators. They are, as a group, very generous, warm, talented people. There isn’t the competitiveness between authors in the children’s book arena that you might find in adult book publishing. It’s a very supportive group.

Aneeta: I agree that writing for children in much harder. There is, of course, your site, http://www.write4kids.com. It really is very comprehensive and has loads of information about helping writers who write for children. I would like to go through some of these, if I may. Let’s begin with the newsletter, Children’s Book Insider. Please tell me a little of what you offer.

Laura:

Children’s Book Insider is a monthly, subscription newsletter that offers two pages of marketing information in each issue (what different publishers are looking for, how to submit to them, etc.), as well as articles on all aspects of writing for children and young adults, interviews with authors and publishers, my editorials on the nature of the business and what new writers can do to break in, and articles on the business side of publishing (how to write a query letter, how to do research in the Internet, etc.) We try to provide articles each month for both the beginning and more experienced writer, and cover both fiction and nonfiction. You can receive the newsletter through the mail (paper version) or electronically. For subscribers living outside the U.S., I highly recommend the electronic version. You’ll get it much sooner each month, and you’ll save money.

Career Starter – The Step-by-Step Beginner’s Guide to Writing Children’s Books (available in both hard copy and eBook formats)

This book covers the different age categories of children’s books, and gives you everything you need to know to get started as a children’s writer. From the most basic aspects of writing for kids all the way through the intricacies of the submissions process, Career Starter is packed with solid, up-to-date information. It tells, in detail, how magazine articles and books get published; answers the questions “Do I need an agent?” and “Do I need an illustrator?”; offers a comprehensive look at point of view, dialogue, theme, plot, humor and setting, and a complete glossary of common publishing terms; gives an in-depth look at picture books, easy readers, middle grade, young adult, nonfiction and every other kids’ book genre; guides you through the submissions process, and tells you exactly how to prepare your manuscript for publishers; and gives great writing exercises that will improve your work dramatically.

Improving the Odds: Insider Secrets to Getting Published! – a Write4Kids eBook

Is there really anything you can do to improve your chances of getting published? Improving the Odds is a collection of my best CBI articles focusing on the “little things” that can make a huge difference in determining whether you get rejection letters….or a publishing contract.

I’ve Written a Story. What Do I Do Now? – a Write4Kids eBook

This eBook covers the ins and outs of the submission process, so your manuscript will have the best chance of being read by the right editor.

The Children’s Book Insider Back Issue Archive – A Treasure Trove of Information and Publishing Secrets!

Perfect for new subscribers or those who just want to catch up on issues they’ve missed, the archives include all of CBI for years 2001-2005 in a fully-searchable, online format.

In Their Own Words: The Best of CBI’s Interviews

A collection of the best interviews CBI has done over the years, featuring award-winning authors and illustrators, and top editors.

Author to Editor: Query Letter Secrets of the Pros

Exclusive to CBI, this book tells you exactly how to write a query letter, book proposal or cover letter, and gives actual examples of letters authors have used to sell their work to publishers. Available in hard copy or eBook format.

CBI In-Depth Workbooks

The three workbooks, Plot Workshop, Character Workshop and Brainstorming Workshop, can be purchased separately or as a set, in either hard copy or eBook formats. Each book is comprised of in-depth writing exercises that focus on a specific aspect of writing fiction, and are designed to help you flesh out your characters, develop your plot, or come up with unique ideas. You can pick and choose the exercises so you’ll get the direction you need.

Aneeta: As you may know, many of my readers are from Asia and Africa. Many times, I’ve heard parents here say that the children’s stories from the West do not really apply to the Asian way of life. Many Asians I know would love to compile their own tales – both those told to them by their own mothers and the ones they tell their own children. But, the standard answer/reply they get when they approach publishers is, “there’s no market in the West for this.” What advice would you give to those aspiring storytellers who would like to venture into publishing their own children’s tales steeped in Asian and African culture?

Laura: I think there is a market in the west for both Asian and African stories. Publishers want both traditional stories, and those set in modern times. I think with any story the key is to find the universal, timeless theme that will transcend culture. For example, sibling rivalry is something children of every country can relate to, and if the characters are appealing, and their conflicts are believable, the story will apply across the globe.

Aneeta: Laura, this is good advice which I am sure my readers will benefit from. Well, I think this is all I have to ask you. Is there anything you’d like to add?

Laura: Good writing, just like universal themes, transcends culture. If you learn to write well, you can apply those skills to any type of book. Also, publishers in the U.S. are very open to submissions from authors abroad. I do suggest that those authors ask that their manuscripts be recycled, rather than mailed back, if the publisher isn’t interested, because it’s so difficult for overseas authors to provide postage in U.S. stamps for the manuscript’s return. But if you provide an email address, and ask that publishers email you with their response, you’ll hear back from them.

Developing the skills necessary to write a truly good children’s book takes time. Those who are successful are those who see the entire process as a lifelong journey. They are passionate about writing itself, and enjoy reading books on writing, revising their stories, attending classes, and constantly absorbing the techniques in good, published books. If you’re one of those people, you will get published.

Aneeta: Thank you, once again, Laura.

Laura: Thank you! It was a pleasure.

This piece may NOT be freely reprinted. Please contact editor @ howtotellagreatstory.com for reprint rights.

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Introduction: I was reading some of the entries on Sharon's blog and came across this entry which featured O Thiam Chin.  I wrote to Sharon to request O's contact details as I wanted very much to interview him. The challenge for me, in preparing this interview, was to constantly hold myself back from adding my own comments. As I read the answers O provided, all I could think of all the time was "Been there; done that!". Nevertheless, I take my hats off to O for realising his dream and without further ado, I have great pleasure in introducing to you, O Thiam Chin ...

Aneeta: How do I address you? Mr. O? O? Or, Thiam Chin?

O: You can call me O. I know it’s a weird surname (at least, that’s what somebody tells me) but it’s something I’m ‘stuck’ with for the rest of my life, haha. Actually it should be Oh (a common Chinese surname), but the clerk who filled up my father’s name in the birth certificate spelled it phonetically, O. So my father decided to carry on this surname when he named me, not wanting to correct it. In a significant way, he has started another generation with the surname O. Well, that’s the story of my unique surname. One good thing that often comes out this oddity: it’s always a good conversational starter.

Aneeta: Yes, indeed. As we’ve just proved, your name’s a good conversation starter. Before we begin to discuss your work proper, please tell me a little about you – your background, your family and where you live?

O: I come from a family of five – parents, an elder sister and younger brother. My parents have been food hawkers for over twenty years and they have brought us up through hard work and tough love.

I live in an old neighbourhood in Singapore, called Ang Mo Kio, an estate consisting of tight-knitted blocks of old flats. I think the place where I live has somehow shaped and determined my outlook and view of life.

When you are faced with mortality on a daily basis, your worldviews tend to be darker and more melancholic. The block just in front of where I stay consists of dingy one-room flats where single folks lived and died alone. Every other week, I see an ambulance carrying off these elderly folks and it struck me how bleak, lonely and meaningless life can be for these old folks. Sometimes, when I see these folks at the void decks of my flat, with their blank faces and stony silence, it can be really heart-breaking and sobering.

After I finished the stories in my first book, Free-Falling Man, and looked back on it, the single thought that dawned on me was a sense of relief, which came from an expunging of my deeper fears. I write out (of) my fears – fears of dying alone, fears of the unknown, fears of hidden desires and memories.

And in my stories, I have explored the darker side of human nature, the free-falling instinct that each of us possesses, this innate desire that craves for no boundaries, no limits, just a downward fall from our other half, the good and fragile self.

Aneeta: How did you first become interested in writing?

O: For me, writing stories come as a natural extension after many years of reading good books. I started to read seriously when I was in my late teens and grew to love what I read, and as I read more, I become fascinated with the idea of creating worlds, people, places, situations and dilemmas. It’s amazing what a phrase or paragraph of words can mean and conjure to a reader and to me, the life of the imagination is a beautiful and profound life.

I believe all of us are imbued with a natural ‘creative’ instinct, one that wants to create something out of nothing, to flesh out an idea or a thought, like creating babies, skyscrapers, a painting, or a poem. I simply tap into this instinct, sit down and write.

I wrote my first story when I was around 21. It was about a ten-year old boy who has hallucinations about his dead mother. It was a very short piece, about 1000 words and very depressive. But it was enough to get me started in writing my stories.

Before I write a story, I always keep the particular story idea in my head for a while, tossing it around, adding an incident there, taking out another here, putting words together and simply let it grow in size over time. Once it becomes the elephant-in-my-head, I will eventually write out the story. More often than not, the story will move in another direction even as I write it out. The idea takes on a different form and substance once it’s completed, but the gist or heart of the story will always be there. This will not change at all.

Aneeta: O.K. let’s get down to your book, Free-Falling Man. I’ve learned that there are three stages to a book coming into print: first, there is the writing; then, there is the publishing and finally the marketing. Please describe your experiences in each of these areas.

O: The idea of this collection of short stories originated back in 2004 when I was pursuing my part-time bachelor of arts course in English Language and literature. The stories’ ideas had been germinating in my mind for a while before that, bits and pieces of different stories coming together, gelling and expanding, certain story plots growing clearer and clearer.

As the ideas grew and multiply, so did my conviction to write them. I realised then that it was a now-or-never decision that I would have to make. Of course, I took the plunge, quit from my full-time job and spent the next seven months writing these stories. After the first draft was completed, my savings were completely wiped out. I quickly refocused on securing a full-time job again and had to cold storage this draft indefinitely.

Fast forward. In early 2006, I took out the first draft and began to work on the stories again. I think with the passage of time, I began to read my stories with a more critical eye and knew I have to cut and edit the stories ruthlessly, if anything good is going to come out of it. As any writer can testify, this was a painful experience.

It was about this time that I approached a writer friend for help and advice on how to publish my stories. He recommended some local publishers to which I quickly sent my manuscript. Out of the four publishers, only two responded. One rejected my manuscript based on the taboo subjects I have touched on in some of the stories, and the other has stopped publishing local titles and advised me to seek other avenues.

I was undeterred and continued to look around for other publishers. The same writer friend, who has published his second book with a small print-on-demand press in the US, iUniverse, told me about his experience in self-publishing and its advantages and benefits. Overall his experience with iUniverse was quite smooth and enjoyable since the publisher took care of many things, especially the sales channels to sell the books.

This is the main concern I have when I considering going into self-publishing – how to push the sales of my books. Since iUniverse has already an on-going relationship with major online booksellers like Barnes & Noble, Amazon and Booksamillion, this was the tipping factor in why I decided to hire their services. There are several packages to choose from when you decide to opt for self-publishing with iUniverse, each with its own drawbacks and terms and conditions. I chose the Premier package that comes with an initial editing and comments, and a book cover design among other things. It costs about US$699.

A few things to be cautious about though: while iUniverse is experienced and proficient in many areas, there are some areas which i was not entirely satisfied with. Firstly the book cover design. The initial design they gave was really atrocious with awful visuals and images. The concepts were not what I have briefed them and I had to pull the plug on it by hiring my own designer.

Next: the costs. There are some hidden costs that were not covered under the package like the editing fee and proofreading fee. Depending on the nature and extent of your manuscript, different editing fees would be levied. While I could have opted out of the editing services they recommended but wanting to maintain a consistency in editing from start to end, I decided to go for their editing services. That adds another US$200 to my tab. However this amount will depend on the length of the manuscript as they charge on a per-word basis.

Based on the promo on the package, I received 20 free author copies, which were promptly sent out to overseas and local reviewers. I have to purchase another batch of my books, which I was given an author’s discount. But since I have to ship the books from US to Singapore, there were additional shipping costs. And let’s not forget the taxes on these books as well. In the end, these extra costs contributed to the overall cost of the book, driving the selling price higher than expected. But this is life: you gain some, you lose some.

Next, the marketing of the book. I have to peddle my book from store to store and so far, I have managed to persuade two small local bookshops to display and sell my book by taking low-quantity consignments. As for the bigger bookstores, I did not have much luck as they do not deal directly with author and would prefer to work with a publisher or distributor instead.

So right now, I’m still trying to get a local publisher who might be interested in doing a small print-run of my book and help with the distribution of it.

Aneeta: Can we have an excerpt of this book, please?

O: You can read the first story of Free-Falling Man at:

http://books.iuniverse.com/viewbooks.asp?isbn=0595384994&page=fm1

This story is more of an allegory, of being an outsider and observer and I think it sets a tone and mood for the rest of the stories in the collection: the ‘fall of man’ in different disguises of urban life.

Aneeta: How can we purchase this book?

O: The book is currently available for sale online at Amazon.com Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Booksamillion. I have a few copies with me, so if you want an autographed copy, just drop me an email.

Aneeta: I would like to know, if an editor/literary agent/publisher would like to contact you, how can they do so?

O: Of course, I welcome any enquiries from readers, editors, agents or publishers. They can contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Aneeta: O, this is all I’ve got to ask you. Is there anything you’d like to add?

O: Write whenever and wherever you can. You have to make time for it, otherwise you will never get it done. A small tip from my writing mentor: Always carry a small note book with you so whenever a thought or idea or phrase hits you, quickly jot it down. You’ll never know when these flashes of creativity will come in handy or useful when you write your stories later on.

Aneeta: O, as a fellow-self-publisher, I wish you all the luck in the world. I know what it takes to do this and all I can say is that it will only make you a better writer. Thank you for participating in this interview.

O: It has a wonderful experience for me. It has been heartening to know writers who are willing and courageous to give up the comforts of a good life and job and to pursue their dream of writing single-heartedly. The recklessness, the sheer determination, and the guts to hold on no matter what – these are rich materials that make up a life worth living and a good novel too. It’s truly inspiring.

This piece may NOT be freely reprinted. Please contact editor @ howtotellagreatstory.com for reprint rights.

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Introduction: I wrote to Debbie Jenkins to inform her about the interviews I'd conducted with some of her other authors. In the process, I asked her if any of her other authors would like to be interviewed and I was pleased when she responded with a few suggestions. One of them was Guy and as I did the research, I found Guy to be a most interesting man, with diverse talents and interesting stories to tell. I contacted him and he agreed to this interview. Without further ado, I have great pleasure in introducing to you, Guy Ellis ...

Aneeta: Guy, thank you for agreeing to this interview.

Guy: My pleasure Aneeta.

Aneeta: Tell me a little about you. What is your background? Where do you live and where did you grow up?

Guy: I was born and grew up in Auckland, New Zealand. I lived with my father and sister from an early age, attended the local schools and eventually went to the University of Auckland.

When I was thirteen I decided that I wanted to go the United Kingdom to work and from that point on I did everything I could to make that dream happen. Three days after graduating from University, I left for London on a one-way ticket. At the age of 21, I found myself in London with no job, nowhere to live and not knowing anyone!

I quickly found a temporary job and a place to live and four months and numerous rejections later, began work with Hewlett Packard on a fixed contract in their Human Resources team. HP was a wonderful employer and gave me numerous opportunities, including a secondment to their Australian office where I gained the knowledge to come back to the UK on a working visa.

While at HP I met my now wife, moved to London and started work at the Bank of America. My next move was to Citibank and then NatWest where I was Human Resources Director at one of NatWest’s businesses at the age of 29. When Royal Bank of Scotland acquired NatWest in 2000, I took the opportunity to leave London commuting behind and work closer to home and to my young family. I joined Aon Consulting as HR Director and after two hectic but enjoyable years left when the parent company restructured and my job was made redundant.

I then had the means to set up my own business, begin writing and enjoying more time with my family.

I now live just outside Reading in the county of Berkshire, UK.

Aneeta: It says on your website, http://www.guyellis.net that, amongst other things, you’re an experienced interim manager. What is an interim manager?

Guy: There are many definitions but essentially an interim manager is a seasoned professional who is employed by a company to do a specific job for a specific period of time. Interim managers are employed because they are ‘over-qualified’ and are expected to become productive very quickly.

Interim managers are becoming more popular and because they ‘do the work’ rather than give advice (although they can provide counsel as well), they’ve worked in companies previously and understand how they work, and they’re significantly cheaper than consulting firms!

For example, I’ve helped companies restructure departments, choose IT systems, write policies and create three-year strategy plans, all with a focus on the human dimension.

Aneeta: You say that you’ve worked with some of the best-known organisations in the world. Please tell me about three of the most interesting ones you’ve worked with.

Guy: I’ve been incredibly lucky to have worked with or researched a number of household names and it would be unfair to single out specific ones. However, I have learnt that although organisations act and work as unique entities, they are the sum of the individuals who have currently or previously worked in them. What this means to me is that although you may find things that work well for certain organisations at certain stages in their development, implementing the same policy/programme/activity with a different set of individuals and circumstances will probably not work at all.

In a sense, what I’m saying is that there is no such thing as a ‘best practice’ organisation. Companies need to find the right solution for their own needs.

Aneeta: I really like that as I’ve found that this applies to writing/storytelling as well. I remember reading somewhere, (Sorry! I cannot remember where I read this or who said it) that if you’d like to be a lawyer, you go to law school; if you’d like to be a doctor, you go to medical school. But, if you want to be a published writer, you’d have to find your own way. There’s no school.

Now, I know that you’ve written a book entitled Tales of Talent: How to Harness Your People’s Talent to Achieve Your Organisation’s Vision. Please tell me a little more about this book.

Guy: During my career in Human Resources I’d tried to understand the theory behind modern management practices and how to simplify those concepts for everyday use. When I set up my own business, I took the opportunity to develop those thoughts through research and analysis of blue chip companies.

I started off writing a textbook on talent management and struggled to 90,000 words before a friend, who was editing it for me, gave me some honest feedback. Essentially she told me that while the content was great, it was boring and she thought I’d lost my way. However, she did say that she liked the first paragraph – which was a story about my vision of the future. To cut a long story short, I realised that I had enjoyed writing that paragraph more than the rest of the book and so decided to throw away the textbook and start again in that storytelling style.

My book is very different from most. I have written five short stories set in modern organisations and linked them using the tale of a young boy seeking enlightenment in medieval times.

Since being published, I’ve moved to a more coaching style when giving presentations and the feedback has been wonderful.

Aneeta: It’s pretty obvious from the title of your book that you consider storytelling important in your line of work. Nevertheless, for the sake of completeness, I would like you to explain your thoughts on the importance of storytelling in any organisation.

Guy: What I learnt whilst writing the book was that I had used storytelling throughout my career when advising and coaching managers. For me, telling people ‘facts’ is not something I feel comfortable doing – I cannot hope to understand all of the influences that are bought to a situation. By telling stories, I hope to create a context that individuals can relate to and potentially apply my experiences to their situations.

For organisations, storytelling goes even further and creates tales that help define what the company stands for, what is important to it and how people are expected to interact with each other. Employees can use the company’s tales to guide them in their own behaviour and if used correctly, these tales can be powerful mechanisms to change an organisations direction or culture.

Aneeta: That is all I can think of asking. Is there anything else you’d like to add, Guy?

Guy: I believe storytelling is a tool that has been used by humans throughout time to share information, reinforce bonds of loyalty and create shared dreams. Over the last few decades we have forgotten the power of storytelling and only now are we rediscovering this underused art form.

If people want to contact me they can do so directly at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or through my website at http://www.guyellis.net. My book: Tales of Talent: A Modern Fable for Today’s Leaders can be ordered from Amazon.com ISBN: 1905430116.

Aneeta: Thank you, Guy.

Guy: My pleasure Aneeta.

This piece may NOT be freely reprinted. Please contact editor @ howtotellagreatstory.com for reprint rights.

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