25 Days to Launch: Book Trailer Buzz!!

A lot of people don't know what a book trailer is and have never seen one.  Basically, it's like a movie trailer, except designed to promote a book.  The difference is that book trailers don't always have actual footage.  Sometimes they are created with still shots, or a slide-show type thing, both which are usually VERY tacky and unprofessional.  I was very fortunate to work with Garrett Gibbons at Aderyn Productions who really understands not only the essence of what I wanted, but the need for various technical and artistic aspects to work together harmoniously and seamlessly.  He is a gifted director, film producer and editor.  He also does amazing photography!  I wrote the script for the book trailer which included the scene elements, locations, and ideas for scoring.  Garrett finessed the entire project to bring all the pieces together in an incredibly powerful way.  The actors who played the roles of Reilly and Norah were amazing and very fun to work with!  I had been looking for the right dog to play the role of Tuma and one day, only days before we were scheduled to shoot that scene, I looked out my front window and saw Wensley, my neighbor's dog.  Of course!  Wensley is perfect!  So true that the things we need most are often right in front of us.

The entire project was incredibly rewarding.  It was only stressful because it was filmed in the middle of editing the book, working with endless details for getting the book published, preparing for the launch of The Stelladaur Academy, and oh yeah...life!  But doing what we love to do, in the middle of everything else, is life, right?  Gotta love it!

If you haven't had a chance to see the trailer, here is the link on you tube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kk2dUZ0jS7A  Please click the "like" button and share the link on Facebook.  I'm so excited for you to see it!  With only 25 days till launch, let's create some real Book Trailer Buzz!!!  And I'd love to hear your personal response to the trailer.  Send me an email at fiction@slwhyte.com.

That's it for today.  Tomorrow I will introduce you to the artist who did the cover art.  And I'll post the full jacket cover art so you get a sneak peek at his amazing work!!

26 Days til Launch: Practice Imagination

I’ve heard it said that anything worth doing is worth doing poorly until you can do it well.  It’s called practicing.  We do it every day.  None of us have mastered everything in life, and most of us do things that require a lot of practice.  Perhaps we’re working on developing better communication in a relationship with someone in our family, a friend or coworker.  Maybe we’re learning a new skill that requires repetition and patience to master.  Or there may be a character flaw we’re trying to overcome.  But progress takes time and we may need more opportunities to utilize the quality we aim to emulate.  Any seasoned athlete, accomplished musician or artist, acclaimed author, or successful business owner will readily admit the need for countless hours, even years or decades, of practice—and that with practice came many mistakes.

One of the ways to improve at a particular thing is to do it more often.  If a child wants to read well, give him or her more books to read.  To write better, write something every day.  To learn a new language, surround yourself with those who speak the language you wish to master.  For most adults, learning imagination also requires practice.

How do you practice imagination?  First, give yourself permission to do so.  By making imagination a priority you validate the value of it in your life.  Productivity is always increased when the creative mind is allowed to be a part of any solution, or implemented in the execution of any plan or project.  Second, remind yourself that if you can imagine it, it’s possible.  Perhaps not with the current status quo, set of circumstances, or within the three dimensions and five senses we may be most familiar.  But certainly possible, according to Napolean Hill, who said, “What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”  Said another way, man is not capable of imagining something that is impossible.

Finally, let yourself go!  Literally, get “self”—or the ego—out of the equation.  Ego is disguised as judgment, restriction, fear, hesitation, false identity, and justification.  Ego kills imagination and creativity.  Pure imagination only comes from a place of pure space or openness.  This is precisely why is takes real practice to master the art of imagination.

Our lives are so cluttered with demands, appointments, information, technology, and even survival, little space remains for imagination.  Even our children are continually bombarded by external stimuli.  They, too, struggle to use their innate imagination to problem solve, or simply to experience delight.  The days of building blanket forts in the living room or building a rocket out of a refrigerator box have been replaced with an Xbox, Wii, or ipad.  Of course, imagination and creativity were required to design all of these devices but at what cost, if they rob a person of the open space needed to create, design, build and imagine? 

I’m not against technology.  But imagination is nurtured in an environment free of distractions.  This is what we must practice—freeing “self” from whatever distractions may diminish or hinder our imagination and creativity.  Imagination is real.  Our ability to utilize the power of imagination to its greatest capacity depends, in part, upon our willingness to create the space necessary to allow it to emerge.

Here are a few practical suggestions on how to practice creating that needed space:

·      Spend some time outside every day.

·      Observe nature.

·      Go to a park and play.

·      Watch a live theatre presentation.

·      Draw, paint, build.

·      Exercise.

·      Listen to classical music.

·      Fly a kite.

·      Crawl on the floor with a child.

·      Dance.

·      Turn off all electronic devices for a day.

Create your space and practice imagination!

27 Days til Launch: The Story of Life

(Note: This post was written yesterday but I did not have access to send it until this morning.  My apologies.)

The GATE 3 Transformational Story Conference was packed with guest speakers, artists, producers, authors, playwrights, educators and founders of nonprofit organizations, many who shared valuable messages related to the greatest story of all--LIFE.  Recently I received a review from Astrid Witt, Innovative Educator, Speaker, Telesummitt Host, and Founder of What the Experts Know, as follows:  "....whether  you are teenager experiencing the awkwardness of first love, or an adult seeking to understand life, the Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog will give life a whole new meaning."  Here are some of my favorite quotes from GATE 3 and from the novel, which support the idea that our lives are a story.  We write it.  We decide how we will live it.  We are here to remember the purpose of it.

GATE 3 - George Cappannelli - (Co-founder of AgeNation / Author-"Writing a New Third Act for Humanity")  "We need to reclaim the role of the visionary, the wise elderly...We must admit our human frailties...Honor lessons of history and honor the elderly..."

Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog:  (Eilam)  "Age is a myth."

GATE 3 - Peter Canova - (Researcher / Author / Educator - "Awakening to Our Quantum Script: Humans as Avatars and Archetypes in a Cosmic Drama")  "Life isn't about finding yourself; life is about remembering.  Our true home is not here."

Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog: (Great Grandpa Alistair) "Most everyone has a wish, but only some have a true greatest desire.  A wish becomes a greatest desire at the very moment when a person's belief in the seemingly impossible is stronger than any doubt."

GATE 3 - Catherine Anne Jones - (Award-winning playwright / screenwriter / author - "The Power of Story to Heal")  "All stories are a journey back to self.  Pain is meaningful to bring us to transformation."

Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog: (Fiala) "Fear has a purpose if One's own fear bring One to the opposite of such.  Otherwise, fear empowers disbelief and consumes imagination, without which, no desire can be granted." 

David Korten - Author ("Religion, Science, and Integral Spirit: A Sacred Story for Our Time") "Time is Life.  Make time for life." 

Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog: (Porfino) "There are no boundaries when you are still enough to give space.  Then awareness continually expands to include all."


On this day and in this moment of time, invest time in your most valuable treasure--LIFE.

28 Days til Launch - Hollywood Needs a Reason for Meaningful Entertainment Options

Today I am in Beverly Hills attending the GATE 3 Story Conference and Event for Transformational Entertainment.  What is the Global Alliance for Transformational Entertainment?  GATE is an "evolving community of creative, business and technical professional in entertainment, media, and the arts--and the interested pubic--who realize the vital and expanding role media and entertainment play in creating our lives, and who aspire to consciously transform those domains for the benefit of all." 

Founder, John Raatz, said the "best way to begin understanding transformational entertainment and media is to understand its essence--story--and specifically transformational story."  

GATE Community is remarkable!  What a wonderful group of visionary, inspired and enlightened artists whose goal is to bring worthwhile, meaningful and conscious-living entertainment to the world. It is an honor to be associated with these creative souls.  Please visit www.gatecommunity.org to learn more and sign the petition at http://gatecommunity.org/petition/ to add your voice to 1,000,000 people waiting to be heard by Hollywood writers and producers.  We all want to make a difference in entertainment, media, storytelling and the arts.

With your help, Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog and The Stelladaur Academy can be a part of a global awakening for Transformational Entertainment AND Transformational EDUCATION, especially for youth but ultimately for all ages.

Stayed tuned for more GATE news late tonight and in tomorrow's post!  I gotta get back....I don't want to miss Eckhart Tolle and Jim Carrey!

Join the STELLADAUR 29-Day Countdown!!

It's happening!  In exactly 29 very short days, on March 1, 2013, my debut YA novel "Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog" will be available in stores, and The Stelladaur Academy (www.stelladauracademy.org) will be open for registration!

Presale orders are available NOW on Amazon and Barnes & Noble!  Sales through www.stelladaur.com will also be available soon.

(Note:  Due to a special printing treatment currently being done for the cover art, the PB Advance Reading Copy image is displayed on Amazon and the website, and there is no image yet shown for the HC on Barnes and Noble.  My distributor will make these updates to Amazon and B&N as soon as they are available from the publisher.  The cover art is the same as you see on the Stelladaur website or on Amazon, but the text for the title will not be blue.  It's going to look so FABULOUS!!  And yes, an ebook will also be available.)

I will post fun book and academy tidbits, updates, and details every day through February on Facebook, Twitter and my blog.  Come along on this amazing COUNTDOWN-to-LAUNCH ride!!  Invite all your friends...it's always more fun to CELEBRATE and PARTY with a big crowd!

My publicist will be running a FREE Book Giveaway so you'll want to be here EVERY DAY to find out when, where and how to get your FREE copy of "Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog".

I will also be offering other FREE Stelladaur stuff!

Climb aboard the Stelladaur 29-Day Countdown to Launch to get all the details!

Grades Aren't Everything

It bothers me when teachers focus on what a child isn’t doing right or well, rather than what he or she is doing well.  The big red X’s on a paper, or a minus sign with the total number wrong circled, seems counter-productive to the learning process, and often damages a child’s confidence or psyche.  I prefer the smiley faces and silver stars for correct answers.  Better yet, a personal note of encouragement seems more useful when concepts are not fully understood yet by a student, but improvement and effort is obvious.

When my son was in the 5^th grade, he attended a public school program for gifted and talented students.  The criteria that determined his eligibility for the program included his previous grades, as well as a teacher recommendation.  His greatest academic skills were in math.  He used his understanding of numbers and money to excel in numerous self-driven entrepreneurial endeavors.  Of course these projects included the popular lemonade and Kool-Aid stands; however, this is a kid who thinks outside the box.  He held numerous “toy sales”, similar to a yard sale but included a small table of toys and “stuff” he no longer found value in, but he knew someone else would.  When he was eight years old, he learned to make origami whales at a Boy Scout activity, then made hundreds of them and sold them door-to-door for a penny each!  One year he painted a large banner which read: “Jeffrey’s Library” and posted it across our front driveway gate.  He then gathered all his books, stacked them on a card table, and proceeded to “rent” them to neighborhood children for $25 a week.  He also kept a paper route for years.

In every case—and more—this child kept track of his earnings and calculated expenditures and dividends.  Did he understand numbers and math?  Absolutely! Why then, would his 5^th grade teacher give him an “F” for his final grade in math?  I was flummoxed.  There had been somewhat of a power struggle between Jeffrey and his teacher, not due to any academic requirements, but rather with personality conflicts.  It was his opinion that the teacher talked down to the students, and he voiced his objections when she did.  Obviously my son is self-driven and I knew he could be strong-willed.  Some would say stubborn.  But I taught him to be respectful of others and encouraged him to be patient with his teacher’s methods of communication.

However, when I learned that the grade came simply because he had failed to hand in some of the assignments, he and I met with the teacher to see if something more could be done.   I knew the teacher had a strong personality but thought surely she would allow Jeffrey to hand in the missing assignments and still get a reasonable grade, even if not full credit.  She would not budge.  She said he “needed to learn responsibility”.  Perhaps taking the problem to the principal may have facilitated a change in the grade; however, this teacher already had it in with the administration and making more waves did not seem prudent.

That evening when we returned home, Jeffrey showed the report card to his dad.  Knowing the power struggle Jeffrey had had during the year with this teacher—and also knowing Jeffrey’s strengths in math—his dad simply looked at the F and drew a straight line down the right side, changing it to an A.

“Grades aren’t everything, son,” he said.  “This isn’t worth worrying too much about. Looks like an A to me.”  And that was that.

 

There ought to be more focus on the whole picture of things, even when it comes to academic grading systems.  I understand an academic barometer is needed to measure mastery of certain skills.  But really, a child’s confidence cannot be graded.

My son never got straight “A’s”, nor did I.  However, he now has a degree in Economics and an MBA in International Business.  I guess he understood numbers after all. 

Please visit www.stelladauracademy.org to learn about annual scholarships ranging from $500-$10,000, for youth 12-19 years of age.  Awards are NOT based on academic grades, ACT or SAT scores.  The Academy will be accepting registration beginning March 1, 2013. 

Chocolate is the Only Answer!

With the simultaneous launching of "Stelladaur: Finding Tir Na Nog" and the online academy for youth, The Stelladaur Academy, just around the corner (March 1, 2013), I'm brainstorming coping methods of dealing with the continual stress of meeting numerous deadlines. A10-day tropical vacation at an all-inclusive resort would be ideal.  The next thing that comes to my mind is a full-body massage. The truth is I'd settle for nice, luxurious bubble bath. But how do I justify the time? If only my Mac was waterproof!  Due to recent cold temperatures, I haven't even been on my run in days.  Since I don't drink, the only feasible solution is chocolate.

It absolutely must be the real stuff--70% or more cocoa. None of those cheap department store candy-bar type imitation confections.  Gag!  A bag of Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips comes close, but doesn't quite ease the anxiety I feel.  Dark chocolate with caramel and sea salt is almost intoxicating.  I also love anything with a hint of exotic fruits like pommegranate, blueberries or mango.  And the right blend of mint can do wonders, too.

I admit I may be on the verge of "chocoholism" just thinking about the options.  But on the other hand, I've been working straight for the past nine hours with only a bowl of cereal, a banana and two granola bars to eat all day.  I could just be delirious with hunger, right?  And for some odd reason I'm craving spinach.  This is insane! I'm getting up right now and making myself (and my family) some dinner.  I think we'll have spinach omelets.  And then I'm heading to town to get some gourmet chocolate and a bottle of organic pear bubble bath!