Ross Perot on Quitting

Most people give up just when they're about to achieve success. They quit on the one yard line. They give up at the last minute of the game, one foot from a winning touch down.
~ Ross Perot

Ol' H. Ross was right on this one. So many times, people just sit down and give up when they could achieve their goals with just an iota more effort. It brings to mind those poor people one sometimes reads about--the ones who freeze to death a few yards from shelter. What causes them to plop down and say, "I'm not moving one more inch?"

I think it could be called a lack of vision. They can't see how close they are and so they assume the smartest course of action is to simply lay down and die. Or--even worse--they can see exactly how close they've come to their goals, but can't put one foot in front of the other even once more.

For most of us, though, it probably does boil down to an inability to see outside our own boxes and realize that with just one more degree of effort, our world could begin to change in ways too wild to imagine. There's a book about putting in that one extra degree of effort. It's called 212 by S.L.Parker. You can buy it from GiveMore Media. I highly recommend both the book, the philosophy, and Give More Media. They truly went the extra mile for me a while back when I bought the book as a gift for a client; I'm sure they'd be happy to help you, too.

The Pond is Leaking--Again

After several weeks of being greeted by a gloriously full pond every morning, I went out early yesterday to find the roots of my water plants exposed. Since the bottom pond had just been re-lined and the top pond's level was just fine, we decided the leak must be in that most common place for loss of volume: the waterfall. So, we shut off the pump and are now waiting for the stones to dry so Gary can clamber into his hip boots and try to block off the water's escape route.

It's always something! But, it helps to remember we would survive even if every drop of water leaked out of that water feature. Besides, what would I fret over if I didn't have the pond?

Only in grammar can you be more than perfect. ~William Safire

I tweeted Safire's facetious quote today. At first glance, it appeared to be just a humorous quip. But, as I worked my way around the web to this blog, my mind kept returning to his words until they came to seem quite wise, indeed. What a succinct way to remind us that perfection can exist only in a paper world!

In the world where I live--the world of ponds with algae, deers that eat ornamental plants, and dinners that don't quite turn out--perfection is merely something for which to strive. And, that's not necessarily a bad thing. If we were to achieve the beau ideal, what would be left for us to work toward?

It's important to remember we will always fall short of unreachable goals. We must, therefore, either set our sights on realistic achievements or forgive ourselves when we cannot attain the impossible. As we used to say back at the Med, "Just do the best you can." It's all any of us can do. Really.

Check out my revamped blog on franchising

I have decided to revive my franchising blog. I was including posts on business in this blog, but they seemed to simply muddy the waters here. So, I've moved all my thoughts on franchising to Jan Melara on Franchising. Check it out if you're looking for one woman's observations on the franchising world.

Memories of Orange, Texas

I grew up in Orange, Texas and lived there for several years as an adult. I still love the place. There's a quality of joy there that compels me to return time and time again in my thoughts and in my writing.

Orange is hot--and muggy--to a degree that no other place on earth is. Visitors tend to find it miserable, but I think it's good for the skin. Or maybe my skin looked better during my Orange years because I was younger then. Anyway, I remember it rained least a few drops almost every afternoon. And, the storms! Thunderstorms there were things of beauty and power, not piddly little shows like in the rest of the country.

I loved my time in Orange, but I also love forging new memories and new bonds on my lake in South Carolina. For now, I'll content myself with Orange memories and Laurens life.

Book Review: China Saga by C Y Lee

I'm reading China Saga by C Y Lee. It's a fascinating story of one family's journey through the perilous waters of China's emergence into the modern world.

Lee's prose is almost invisible. He is one of the authors who came to mind as I wrote yesterday's post. He breaks some of the "rules" but does it so beautifully that no one could fault him for anything.

Even though Chinese culture is virtually unknown to me, I feel its essence in every chapter of China Saga.

On Rules

Visit any critique group and you'll find people virtually yelling about the so-called rules of writing. Yet, read any best seller and you'll find just about every rule broken at least once.

So, what are the real rules? In my humble opinion (and it's pretty darn humble) the only rule is don't break the same rule repetitively. In other words, once or twice is cute; more than that is annoying.

So, in a nutshell, here are my rules for writing:

Try to show not tell. But, telling is okay sometimes.
Try to use strong verbs rather than propping weak ones up with modifiers.
Don't let great strings of adjectives swish around your nouns unless you really, really have to.
And finally, for heaven's sake, just let your characters speak rather than laughing or sighing their comments.

So there you have--my rules of writing.

Facebook Ads Doing Well

The ads I placed on Facebook are getting good results. I think I've got a good idea of how to optimize them now.

I still need reviewers for The Dark Side of Town. If you've bought a copy, please post a review!

Obama and the Franchisees

Here's an interesting article on a couple of franchisees who met with Obama and talked about small business: ARTICLE

Gary to Speak at the Timken Center in Clinton

Gary will speak to a workshop group at the Timken Employment Transition Center on June 7th. He'll be talking about self employment options. This wonderful opportunity is the result of a networking event put on by the Laurens Chamber of Commerce. As a result of that same event, we have discovered a wonderful resource for employers, the Gleamns Human Resources Commission.

I am now a huge fan of both Gleamns Human Resources Commission and the Laurens Chamber of Commerce.

Working on Errand to Cozumel

I've started writing again now that the new business is getting into more of a groove. Things are heating up there, but the activity is becoming more manageable--kind of counterintuitive, but the truth. As the head of marketing, my job is basically going to a monthly networking event for free food, music and conversation. As far as sales go, I've scheduled routine times for call blocks now, so they don't sprawl through the day. Meetings with established clients are fitting into pre-set time slots now, too. So, I'm writing once again.

I'm making good progress with the editing of Errand to Cozumel. I've reached the part where I began to rush through to the end before, so I want to take my time and expand the build-up a little more. I've been able to digest the critiques from CC and use them to improve the book immensely so far. Let's hope I can keep up the good work in this critical portion toward the end.

Click here for a preview of Errand to Cozumel.

Reduced Price for The Dark Side of Town

I've reduced the price for the paperback edition of The Dark Side of Town. My husband said the original price seemed high for a trade paperback, and I really thought so, too. I had set it at the original price-point prior to making some formatting changes.

So, now I need to start my marketing efforts. I have an ad on Facebook which is getting fair results. I think I'll try to place the book in some local shops as well--probably on a consignment basis. I need to figure out why the paperback edition is not yet available on Amazon; I've got a message about the problem out to the staff there. As soon as it's active on Amazon, I'll start trickling the book out to select reviewers. If you would like to be a reviewer, shoot me an email at rescuediverjan@yahoo.com
or leave a comment on this blog explaining why you want to be selected to recieve a reviewer's copy of The Dark Side of Town.

Preview Errand To Cozumel

I've put the first chapter of my newest book, Errand to Cozumel, up for preview. It's a thriller about an ordinary woman who gets caught up in an undercover operation.
Take a look at it here.

Carolina Franchise Expo in Charlotte!

The Carolina Franchise Expo will be held in Charlotte, NC on October 15th and 16th.
Be there or be square!

Check it out or register to attend here.

Facebook Ads and The Dark Side of Town

Well, The Dark Side of Town is off and running. I've got the Facebook ad up; the maximum number of people have clicked on it for two days now. Right now, the cover on the ad is the Kindle cover, not the paperback cover. So, people click on one cover graphic and see a different one when they arrive at the site to buy the book. I think I'll change the graphic to match and see if that lessens confusion.

Click here to take a look at the paperback.

Click here for the Kindle edition.

The Dark Side of Town Available in Paperback

My novel, set in Naranja, Texas (based on my home town of Orange, Texas) is available in paperback now. Here's what it's about:
When seventeen-year-old Junie Robards finds her daddy’s car parked in a different spot than usual late one evening, she figures it’s evidence he snuck out for some diet-busting fast food. A young black woman’s death on the same evening, however, leads Junie to question the actions of some of the most powerful men in her small Texas town, including her own father. Junie’s struggle to find out what really happened the night of the murder uncovers a long-held secret with the power to destroy two families.

Click here to buy The Dark Side of Town in paperback.

Novel set in Orange, Texas now on Kindle

The Dark Side of Town--a murder mystery set in a town based on Orange, Texas--is available for sale in the Amazon Kindle Store today.

Click here to check it out. And, if you do read it, please post a review!

Proof Copy Winging Its Way to My Door

After several agonizing hours of uploading and re-uploading cover graphics and interior files, the second proof copy of The Dark Side of Town is on its way to me. The first proof had no title page or ISBN page. I guess I must have uploaded the wrong PDF. So, I re-did everything, paid for another proof copy and am now awaiting the results.

The book is set in Naranja, Texas in the 1970's. Naranja is based on Orange, Texas, the town where I grew up. So, all you fans of If the Devil Had a Wife, be on the look out for this novel about Orange!

Trying to Self Publish The Dark Side of Town

I'm working on the cover art and the interior file for my young adult novel, The Dark Side of Town. It's a lot more difficult than I thought it would be. Luckily, my husband is a tech wizard, so I think it will turn out well in the end.

What a job, though!

Bitter Blackberries

I've been picking blackberries in our neighborhood for a couple of weeks now. The ones by the side of the road are a little tart, but altogether edible. The ones that have sprung up in our back flower bed are slow to ripen and bitter on the tongue

Online articles on what makes blackberries bitter say it's a matter of ripeness. The riper the berry, the sweeter the taste.

Maybe I'm just being too eager for blackberries from my own garden. I guess I should count myself lucky to have good berries nearby, if not in my own backyard.

Jobs and Enterprises

My tweet for today was a quote from Michael Gerber: "The entrepreneur builds an enterprise; the technician builds a job." What does he mean by this?

I think it means you can choose to work in your business or not, but you must work on your business or risk failure.

The starving artist is a figure we're all familiar with. He lives for art, plying his craft every waking moment. He spends no time at all on marketing and never bothers trying to work out favorable deals with his suppliers. His art may be the greatest stuff ever created by man. But, he starves to death because he spends all his time and energy working in his business rather than working on his business.

To make a successful enterprise--a going jessie, if you will--you've got to look at the whole picture. You have to tweak marketing, boost sales, and put efficient processes in place even if you're the marketing director, the salesperson, and the operations manager all rolled into one. Without this kind of of big-picture vision, you're just working in a job. And, it may be a short-lived job.