Podcast appearances and mentions of lulu publishing

On this episode, we're pleased to speak with Antoine Tirard and Claire Harbour. Claire Harbour is a coach and global talent expert, the founder of Culture Pearl and a speaker, consultant, and writer about all things to do with optimizing talent across borders. Antoine Tirard is a talent management advisor and the founder of NexTalent. He is the former head of talent management of Novartis and LVMH. Antoine and Claire are thought leaders in the space of talent. Together they co-authored the book- Disrupt Your Career- How to Navigate Unchartered Career Transitions and Thrive. They are also frequent contributors to INSEAD Business School's knowledge portal- INSEAD Knowledge, as well as other journals and publications. In addition, they also run a successful podcast, Disrupt Your Careers. In this episode, we discuss how the linear career path has been disrupted. Antoine and Claire offer some practical tips about how we can prepare ourselves better for the inevitable disruptions that occur throughout our career lifespan. Recommended readings: “Disrupt Your Career : How to Navigate Uncharted Career Transitions and Thrive”, by Antoine Tirard and Claire Harbour-Lyell, Lulu Publishing, October 2017. “Reinventing Yourself After a Setback” by Frédéric Godart, Claire Harbour and Antoine Tirard, Career article in INSEAD Knowledge, May 2023.“From Adversity to Advantage: Building Careers After a Setback”, by Claire Harbour and Antoine Tirard, with Frédéric Godart, April 2023. “The Power of Career Conversations: How to Foster Growth and Retention in the Workplace”, by Winnie Jiang, Claire Harbour and Antoine Tirard, April 2023.“The Hidden Power of Workers From Humble Backgrounds”, by Claire Harbour, Winnie Jiang and Antoine Tirard, Career Blog in INSEAD Knowledge, October 2022.    Listen to the Disrupt Your Career PodcastConnect with us on LinkedIn: · Vanessa Iloste (Host) · Vanessa Teo (Host) · Aaron Wu (Producer)

“What is the goal of independent reading, and why does this goal so often get lost in instruction?”We asked this and other questions of Hannah Schneewind. She is the author along with Jennifer Scoggin of Trusting Readers: Powerful Practices for Independent Reading (Heinemann, 2021). We explored how to best use our limited classroom time, as well as how leaders can support this critical element of the literacy block.You can purchase Hannah's book here. For a full transcript of this conversation, see below or click here. Full subscribers also have access to the video recording of this conversation, as well as the professional discussion guide for this conversation.Read by Example is a reader-supported publication. Thank you to our full subscribers for making transcripts and other benefits available to everyone. Full TranscriptMatt Renwick (00:03):Welcome to Read by Example, where teachers are leaders and leaders know literacy. That tagline is from Regie Routman's book, Read, Write, Lead, and I find that line especially appropriate for our conversation today. Our special guest is Hannah Schneewind, and she is the co-author, along with Jennifer Scoggin, of Trusting Readers: Powerful Practices for Independent Reading through Heinemann. Reading the bio in the back of the book, which is right here: Hannah Schneewind has been a teacher, staff developer, curriculum writer, keynote speaker, and national literacy consultant. Hannah's interest in student and teacher agency, and her belief in the power of books informs her work with schools. Together, Jen and Hannah are the co-creators of Trusting Readers, a group dedicated to collaborating with teachers to design literacy opportunities that invite all students to be engaged and thrive as readers and writers. Welcome, Hannah.Hannah Schneewind (01:07):Great. Thank you so much for having me. And I know that Jen is sorry that she's not here. She's traveling at the moment, so you'll have just me, I'm afraid.Matt Renwick (01:17):We are delighted to have you. And we have another guest with us, Mary Beth Nicholas, a Wisconsinite now living in Minnesota, working at an alternative school secondary level. She had been working with intervention students at the secondary level and brings a neat perspective as well to trusting readers, especially after that elementary experience. So, with that I have three questions I was going to pose to Hannah, but take the direction wherever you want it to go. And again, our intentions for this conversation are just to build knowledge and awareness around this topic, and to practice coaching skills while engaging in conversation around professional topics. So, really trying to serve as a model for any leader of any position, how you might, co-create knowledge together instead of living in sometimes these echo chambers we see in education. My first question is for Hannah: what is the goal of independent reading and why does this goal so often get lost in instruction?Hannah Schneewind (02:26):So the first thing I would say is that the goal of independent reading is for students to become really skilled and proficient readers. And being proficient includes being skillful with decoding, fluency, and comprehension. So the reason I think it's really important to start with that is that too often independent reading is seen as this kind of fluffy thing, or it's an add-on, or it's a thing that you do for 10 minutes at the end of the day if you have time. And so I just want to start by saying, no, this is a serious teaching and learning time. So I would say that's the big goal. And then within that goal, of course, we have lots of other things, right? We want kids to find joy in reading. We want them to have books that they connect with. We want them to find books where they can make meaning and then really are motivated to take some kind of action after they're reading.(03:28):I'll tell you though, I won't say that the goal of independent reading is to make students love reading, because I think when we say that, number one, we do ourselves a disservice as professionals because that seems kind of fluffy. And number two, I actually can't do that. That is to say, I can set up the condition, you know, I can give you lots of choice and I can give you the right feedback at the right time, and I can give you lots of time to read. I can set up the conditions for you to love reading, but I can't actually make you love reading. So I think, that's something I have thought a lot about. So I no longer say, the goal is for all them to love reading. They might or they might not. So, then in terms of why does it get lost?(04:16):I think it gets lost for a few reasons. I think it gets lost, number one, when it is not in fact the focus of reading instruction. When it becomes something to do at the end of the day or it sometimes gets lost because the teacher is trying to also work with small groups, let's say, and independent reading is something that the students can in fact do independently that she knows it's going to be really impactful. And so she ends up doing small group instruction during that time and does not confer with kids. And independent reading without conferring is not actually independent reading, such as giving kids books and letting them read. So I think those are two very different things.Matt Renwick (05:03):That's very helpful for me. Especially the comment about you cannot make kids love reading. It almost seems kind of refreshing that I can kind of take that part off of my responsibility, and not that I'm not responsible for the conditions, but puts more of the onus on that part of a reading right on the kids. And I think kids would rise to that trust, which comes back to your book title, Trusting Readers.Hannah Schneewind (05:38):Yeah, absolutely. I mean, for example, in high school, I became skillful at biology, right? I had a very good teacher. I did all my homework. I never loved biology. I did not decide to become a scientist. You know, so much as we hope that kids will love reading, I do think that we can separate,  being skilled at reading from necessarily the love of it. With one important caveat, which is, and Mary Beth, maybe you've seen this with older students, I have talked to older readers who are very proficient readers and actively hate reading. You know, there are kids who think reading is boring, I have to do it, my teacher makes me write a certain number of post-its, or I have to write in this reading log. So when I say we can't make kids love it, that's true. However, , we don't want to be setting them up to hate it either, which sometimes people inadvertently do.Matt Renwick (06:46):Well, that comes into the next question I had. You noted on page one, Hannah, that the number one obstacle for teachers trying to increase independent reading time to be able to confer with students to support them in being independent is the demands of the literacy curriculum. But then at the same time, you do share ways to prioritize independent reading that can exist alongside a curriculum resource. So, I guess the connection here is I've heard teachers say, I just don't have time to meet with all my kids, you know? And because of the resource, because of this, or because I can't meet with small groups, there's just too many things to do. What have you found that teachers have done to make better use of their time to increase independent reading? Because I do think there are opportunities that teachers don't always see, to be able to support kids at that level of independence.Hannah Schneewind (07:50):Absolutely. So I think there are two different scenarios. So I think one scenario is that I have a program that I have to follow and I'm not sure how to follow this program and still make time for independent reading. And then there's a second scenario, which is I have independent reading up and going, I have devoted time for it. My administrator's completely behind it. I have the books, I'm just not sure how to make it incredibly impactful. So I think those are two different scenarios. So I am actually currently working with some schools in Connecticut who, because of state legislation, will be using a reading program next year. And the district actually asked me to come in specifically to make sure that they can hold on to independent reading. It will be interesting, so I'll be able to tell you more about it in a few months.(08:50):We're just at the beginning of it. But one thing that we have thought is, even if you're within a reading program, right? Kids are reading, and once they are done doing whatever that kind of whole class basal type text is for the day, you're always going to have kids who are finishing at different times, and what better time for them to then go do that independent reading, and then you segue from that kind of whatever the whole class activity is into independent reading, and then you do your conferring. So that's one way that we're thinking about it is just kind of tucking it in to that. Another thing you can do, if you have to do this program for "x" number of minutes a day, I also go back to what Kelly Gallagher says in high school.(09:45):He teaches high school, he has kids for 50 minutes, and so the first 10 minutes of every single day is independent reading, and he can do two conferences in 10 minutes. So that means as an elementary teacher, my kids have gotten 50 minutes of independent reading over the week, and I've conferred over the course of two weeks, I've conferred with almost everyone in my class. So I think it's that when you talk about finding time, when you talk about finding time, the time is there. It's tricky. So as I said, that's kind of one scenario. The other scenario though is that I have independent reading up and running, but I don't feel as if it's going really well and I'm not sure what to do. So that's the work that Jen and I do a lot.(10:38):I will say the question that I get asked the most is, what do I confer about? Like, how's the conference supposed to go? You know? So I think that number one, just don't be afraid to confer, because people will often say, "Well, I walk around, I kind of check in with the kids." and I'll say, "You're already conferring, right?" And now what you have to do is take that kind of checking in and make it really intentional, because if you're already checking in, you could take that five minutes of a check-in and make it five really, really impactful minutes if you kind of follow this structure. And then that's life changing. You know, when teachers realize the importance of being really intentional in that how they spend their time during independent reading.Matt Renwick (11:31):So it sounds like just look for pockets and opportunities within your current schedule. Try not to fight it too much, but start really small, make it easy, make it really hard to not do it. Like the example of Kelly Gallagher and just, "Guys, we get 10 minutes to read when you come in." What a neat way to start the class. Just a nice soft landing to whatever chaos is happen in the hallways. You always know you have a quiet, safe spot, coming into Kelly's class.Hannah Schneewind (12:03):Yeah, absolutely. So I work with some teachers who also as a way of increasing the number of minute students are reading, we'll do that for like 10 minutes in the morning and then 10 minutes after lunch, because we all know, the beginning of kindergarten, first grade, five minutes is really all you might get, but if you do five minutes in the morning and five minutes in the afternoon and that turns to 10 and 10, then you have 20 minutes. So I also have learned myself to be really flexible in thinking about time. That is to say, ideally, yes, we have this beautiful hour block where we are all sitting there and kids are hunched over their books and working with partners. I mean, that's what I had the liberty to do in my own classroom. And that's the vision. However, you know, as I said, 10 minutes in the morning, 10 minutes in the afternoon adds up to 20 minutes every day. So yeah, whatever ways you can work it in, I think it's really important.Matt Renwick (13:06):And I have a third question. This kind of transitions to more of a leadership perspective, and you did say in there in one example, you had leaders have you come in to preserve independent reading as they transition to a more commercialized resource. So that's one way as leaders is to make decisions about how resources are spent. But you make the point that teachers need to be trusted as well.Hannah Schneewind (13:37):Mm-hmm.Matt Renwick (13:39):What specific actions can leaders take to convey their trust, as well as to ensure every kid, every student's being trusted as readers in every classroom? Because not every teacher believes independent reading is important, even though that's the ultimate goal is we want them to transfer, we want them to pick up those identities as readers. So as leaders like myself - we're all leaders here- what can we do to trust teachers so they can trust students and ensure full school accountability?Hannah Schneewind (14:10):Absolutely. So I am not a principal and I've never been a principal, so, I would never say, "Well, let me give you some advice." But what I can tell you is what I have noticed or what has worked in the buildings where I work. So I think the first thing is that leaders do need to trust teachers to make their own schedules. And I know that might sound small, but that's actually pretty huge, because if teachers feel as if I must be doing reading from 10:02 to 10:31, and then I'm somehow going to be reprimanded if I'm not doing reading at 10:31, you know. That is not really setting up really great conditions for the teacher. Now, I understand that there have to be parameters, right? Everyone in first grade pretty much has to be doing reading at essentially the same time because we have pullout and we have all these other things.(15:07):So I totally get that. It doesn't need to be down to, you know, the minute. So I think that where you can, giving teachers some wiggle room in their schedules is really important. The other thing I would say that goes along with that is giving them flexibility to switch things around. That is to say, sometimes people will have a schedule where they always do reading in the morning and they always do writing in the afternoon, right? And what happens in the afternoon, we all know, right? Especially with the young kids. Afternoon, may not be so great at time. And then I'll have teachers say, "Oh, but I can't switch it. You know, the schedule is that way. I have to follow that." "Well, why?" you know, "why can't you switch it? You're getting to everything." So why not have writing in the morning some days and reading in the afternoon some days?(16:01):So I think that if leaders give teachers that kind of flexibility, I think that goes a long way. Then the other thing that I think is very difficult about being a principal, and even in my role, is that I think it's very tricky to balance curricular consistency with teacher autonomy. That is to say, yes, we need to have a consistent curriculum, right? We, our school has to have consistent values. We all think that kids need a long time to read. That has to be consistent. And at the same time, you can recognize that some teachers are going to do it differently, and it's not going to look exactly the same. So this is a silly example, but I love to sing. And so in first grade, independent reading was always preceded by shared singing of songs that were shared reading. That was me. My colleague next door is like, "I am not singing." She did lots of shared reading of big books, but we were both doing the same thing. We were both getting to all those skills and strategies. So I think that balance as yes, we need to be consistent and yes, where are places where we can give teachers autonomy.Matt Renwick (17:22):Yeah. I think you nailed it, Hannah, that's one of the biggest challenges of leadership, is balancing the curriculum coherence and teacher autonomy. And I'm glad you brought that up. I would hand the mic over, so to speak, to Mary Beth or Debra, if you have any thoughts on what Hannah shared here. I've been taking notes. This has been great.Mary Beth Nicklaus (18:01):I was thinking about what you were saying about teacher autonomy and letting teachers create their own schedules. Because when you're dealing, like with middle school, high school, and you have that 50 minute or 40 minute block or regular class period, skinny class period, depending on the chemistry of your class, this whole working with reading is not linear. You have your routine and you have your stations where I work on this, then I work on this, then I work on this. But when you're dealing with a certain chemistry of those older kids, especially if you're dealing with students who are maybe not your regular mainstream students, nothing is linear.(19:07):You plug them into those routines, but then you might suddenly break off into somebody has an idea that they want to write, like say a story based on...I had a student who really got into Gary Paulson and he was actually a foster student and he said, "You know, Gary Paulson writes about his life, and I have interesting life stories, so I would like to..." (He had already completed two or three books.) "I would like to write about some of my life stories." So he'd read some of the time, then he'd go off and start writing a story, and then other students started joining. Well, I have something I can write too. And you know what's really interesting? That year I got a grant through Encourage Foundation, and we put all our stories together in a book that's towards the end of the year.(20:04):And that really meant something to these kids, to the point that years later, I had gone into Lulu Publishing, and they each got a spiral bound last story book. I had a student come up to me and I didn't even recognize him at first because he was grown up now. And I think he was a senior in high school, and he said, "I still have my book on my dresser, and I look at it every day." So you find things, you know, the stuff that you're doing in elementary creates a foundation, especially if it's as strong as the kind of ideas that you have and what I'm seeing so far in your book. And then I get them, someone like me gets them, and you just keep that going. If there's anything I can stress, and you're talking about teacher autonomy is, realize that they're a professional, they know what to do with the chemistry of their students. And then within that framework you can usually end up getting something pretty interesting, I think.Matt Renwick (21:16):Thanks Mary Beth, I think that's a cool story. I know if I was walking through your classroom, I would think, "Hey, that's awesome. Keep doing that." I am wondering why some leaders don't do that. And I suspect it comes back to the initial line from Regie's Rotman's book: teachers need to be leaders and leaders need to know literacy. And I suspect that some leaders just don't know literacy. And that's why teacher autonomy falls apart. They don't know how to see different pathways to the same outcome. I would open up to Debra or Hannah because you work with different schools. Any words of wisdom, experiences here, where how a leader might build their literacy knowledge or practice, especially if they don't have a literacy background?Debra Crouch (22:11):Well, hopefully they're joining in any professional learning opportunities. I know that's made a huge difference in the schools I've worked with is, if principals believe enough in what the conversations are that you're having with teachers when you come in that they make the time to come in and be part of that conversation. I think a really just a critical piece, so that they're asking the questions and they're hearing the kinds of conversations that their teachers are engaged in. Within all of this, I was just thinking about as you were talking about teachers and principals, if they value and make sure that this is part of their day, that it's not the add-on, independent reading is not the extra thing that you're doing.(23:20):It's the thing that you're doing, right? It builds around it, sort of the same thing with writing. I'm in that same conversation with writing. It's like, this isn't an extra, you know, independent reading, independent writing is not the extra stuff. It's the reason you're doing what you do. I think that was just such a powerful message. As principals you don't want to require, but at the same time, how do you balance that conversation out of just making sure that that it is something that we recognize it has to be part of our day. So in the autonomy, part of me goes, as long as they understand it's so important that you have to have independent reading and writing every day. But that again, expectations and consistency and the ongoing conversations.Hannah Schneewind (24:17):Yeah, I agree with everything you said, and specifically having principals be part of the work with teachers, I think is key. When they do that, I treat the principal just the way I would treat another teacher. So if everyone is gonna go off and trying a conference, the principal's going to go off and try a conference. And if everyone is conferring with a partner and the partner's going to practice coaching in, then the principal is part of that. Because if they're not really doing it, how on earth are they actually going to be able to evaluate it? So another thing that I encourage principals to do is, if you are doing an evaluation - and again, I'm not a principal, I know nothing about evaluations - but when you are evaluating, please do not just watch the mini lesson and leave because then you only looking at 10 minutes of whole class instruction, and that actually is not the most impactful part.(25:23):Please sit down next to the teacher as she's doing a small group. Sit down next to her as she's doing a one-on-one conference. That's the time. Write down everything she says. That's actually what I think you could then evaluate and give really helpful feedback about. But so often, and I don't know if this happens to you, but often when I do come into a school for the first time, they just want to talk about mini lessons. And I actually have learned to say, "Actually, no, let's start with matching kids and books. Let's start with getting your classroom library together. Let's start with how do you say to a child, 'Hey, how's it going with your reading today?'" And then we can think about the mini lesson, because too often we just focus on, as I said, that whole class part. But really that's not where the magic happens. And so if you can get principals to confer and then to do their evaluations or observations while the teacher is doing that, I think those can be really helpful for leadership.Matt Renwick (26:30):That reminds me of beginning with the end in mind: we'll start with where we want to be, at the end. I know you're not a principal, Hannah, but I think you ideas are spot on. I've been guilty of that too, of just watching teaching, and I forget that teaching happens all day long, and it doesn't mean the teachers, you know, verbally giving instructions or are writing on the board. So much of good teaching happens in those quiet spaces. One thing I've tried to do to is to confer with readers myself, when I do visits in classrooms. I just did this with fifth grade group talking with a student about what he was reading: a baseball book. He had just tons of knowledge.(27:17):Peter Afflerback calls it "epistemic beliefs" or "epistemiology", right? Just a wide range of knowledge about baseball, about legends. He was able to say, "Aaron Judge wouldn't be in this book because he's a current player. In this book, it talks just about legends from like 1990 or previous." You know, just things I wouldn't know. But later on, I said to his teacher, "I don't know if the student would do so well on a typical assessment." She's like, "I know." I've had kind of a shared frustration there was not a solution, right? But at least we could talk about that at a very collegial level. And it did not feel like an evaluation. And I think that's what teachers really crave, is just conversation and not always solutions. But I appreciate this advice. We're already at 30 minutes and this has so far been a great conversation. I think what we could do is just kind of go around and, especially with Debra and Mary Beth, if you have any closing thoughts or questions for Hannah, I'll start with you, Mary Beth, if you have anything you'd like to close with.Mary Beth Nicklaus (28:51):As a teacher, I've seen it because I've been teaching long enough where I've had very supportive principals who I just feel they were kind of almost the backbone of what was going on in my classroom. Because as a teacher, you feel like the principal is good with what you're doing, it like gives you this exhilaration and this feeling like you can take chances and be happy taking chances and look at it as a challenge instead of a fear that you're going to get slapped down. So I agree with you that the principal is a very important part of that.Matt Renwick (29:43):Debra, any closing thoughts for you?Debra Crouch (29:46):Yeah, I was just so enjoying reading this, and I had actually pulled it out earlier. I was doing some work with some teachers on their classroom libraries, now thinking with a little bit of a future in mind and for the fall. So in Chapter 2, the thing that I thought was so just beautiful about the parts that we read for this notion of trust, I think is just so powerful. It speaks to the way that we view kids and the way that we view teachers,  as capable and of course they can do this, this kind of thinking work.(30:45):It's just such a critical part of relationships, as a condition of learning, and that principle of engagement that you have to have that trusting relationship. Without that nothing else goes. Mary Beth, the way you said that, if your principal's with you, you don't fear trying things out. You don't fear, you know, trying something and it's not going to work the way that we want it this time. And I think that's just such a critical piece that's sometimes missing in classrooms today. If teachers come to us and say, "How do you want it? What's the district want? What's the principal want?" How's it supposed to be that that's really a base of fear. Doesn't matter how good you are as a teacher, it's a base of fear that you're coming from. It doesn't have that sense of trust that you need to be the learner that you can be. So I'm just absolutely loving your book.Hannah Schneewind (31:49):Thank you. I'm glad it's really useful. I'd love to know what the teachers do with their classroom libraries.Debra Crouch (31:56):Oh my goodness, kindergarten, they were so adorable. So we were trying to put the books into understanding the notion that their books are categorized, right. You know, putting the books together. And I took your question. They're about, "Are the books together, you know, putting the books that are together, right. And this one little five year old who's next to me, he goes, "Wait, it's like garbage." And I'm thinking, "Huh?". And he goes, "You put the plastic together, and you put the paper together, and you put the..."Hannah Schneewind (32:28):Right?Matt Renwick (32:32):Yeah.Hannah Schneewind (32:33):Yeah. That's a perfect way of understanding it. Right? And that's such a great example of, it makes sense to kids and then however you set up that library will make sense to them.Matt Renwick (32:45):It's a classic student example too.Hannah Schneewind (32:50):Yeah. I might have to use that one.Matt Renwick (32:59):Hannah, any closing thoughts for you? I'll just say, I've used and read Chapter 2. I've read that chapter twice and even have recommended it to teachers in my building, especially if they've not been part of the culture very long. I'll say, "Read this chapter and this really gets to the heart of what we're trying to get to in our school." But terrific book. I agree with everyone. Any closing thoughts, Hannah?Hannah Schneewind (33:27):First of all, thank you for having me. And it just makes me so happy to hear that people are using it because really what more could you ask, right? It's like what, when we say to kids, you know, what action do you want to take after reading this book? The action might be, I wanna go find another book by this author. Or the action might be, I need to write a letter to my senator about greenhouse gases. But I'm so happy that our book can actually help people take some actions. I guess my closing thought would be about reading identity, which we did not have a chance to discuss. So one of the things that I find frustrating about some of the current narrative around the teaching of reading is that the role of engagement and motivation and the research on engagement and motivation is being completely ignored.(34:20):Students are at the center of this. That is as much a science of reading as is the science of decoding and what we need to know about phonics and phonemic awareness and phonological awareness. If you want to talk more about just that piece at some point, it's just so important. And if teachers don't yet feel comfortable conferring, everyone can sit down and do what we call a discovery conference, which is basically saying to the child, "Hey, tell me about yourself as a reader." That one question just gives you so much insight and also really shows that you are trusting the student. I really want to get to know you. So that's just something that I feel very passionately about is that student kind of being at the center of it and that reading identity and engagement motivation are a huge part of that. Thanks so much for hosting.Matt Renwick (35:30):Thank you, Hannah. Thank you Mary Beth. Thank you, Debra. Thank you. Great conversation. Please read Trusting Readers: Powerful Practices for Independent Reading by Jennifer Scoggin and Hannah Schneewind through Heinemann. Terrific book and terrific conversation. Thank you. Get full access to Read by Example at readbyexample.substack.com/subscribe

Nearly 50 years ago, Chuck Corbisiero and Bill Cushing grew up across the street from each other. Now the two have gotten together to present a show consisting of Bill's poetry and Chuck's musical musings. The two reconnected at the end of 2015 when Bill presented a reading commemorating his publication in an anthology called Stories of Music. Now their mutual love of music has brought them together to offer a unique look at the world through the marriage of music and writing that the two have called “Notes and Letters.” Bill, an MFA graduate from Goddard College in Vermont, has lived in the Los Angeles area for 20 years and teaches English at area community colleges, has been publishing professionally since 1987 and began poetry as a serious avocation two years later. Chuck, a guitarist who plays Jazz, Blues, Brazilian and various other musical genres, earned his B.F.A. in Musical Performance and Arranging at the City University of New York - The City College during Gil Evans' tenure as Artist in Residence from 1982 to 1983, also plays stand-up bass and worked as Eddy Arnold's guitarist until 1992. He moved to the area in 1991when he began his family. Now their mutual love of music has brought them together to offer a unique look at the world through the marriage of music and writing called “Notes and Letters.” Last March, the two performed during the open mic segment of the Second Sunday Poetry Series held at the Studio Theatre in Los Angeles. Based on that, they have secured their first stand-alone show, which will be held at the Bolton Hall Museum on the afternoon of Sunday, July 24 and is being sponsored by the Village Poets of Sunland; Tujunga. Back together again—for the first time, and available “We'd actually like to put on some events before that date,” Bill said, noting that although they are working on several promotional ideas and projects, there is no hard-and-fast schedule they have to meet. “We are playing it by ear—much like we do our own presentation. We aren't locked into any solidly rigid structure, and even the performances are ‘informal' to a great degree, which is by design.” The two have culled together poems that touch on topics as varied as nature, the city, religion, Peru, and Puerto Rico as well as music itself. Two items on their to-do list already completed are the publication of a short chapbook of the material to be used and the opening of a Facebook page dedicated to posting information as well as prior performances. Both items are similarly named “Notes and Letters.” The book is available online through either Amazon or Lulu Publishing. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lisa-tomey/message

Do you embrace curiosity in the workplace? On this episode of HR Like a Boss, we are excited to be joined by Tina Marie Wohlfield! With over 25 years of experience in Human Resources profession, Tina Marie shares her expertise on all things HR. She discusses the importance of being curious, how HR can drive results for their business, and so much more! About Tina Marie Tina Marie Wohlfield is the founder and Chief People Strategist at TIMAWO (pronounced tee-ma-woe). She is a passionate champion of Human Resources, Leadership, and Talent Management with over 25 years of experience in the Human Resources profession. Tina Marie is an active member of the HR community and a dedicated advocate for advancing the HR profession through collaboration, partnerships, and mentorship. In 2018 she co-founded HRUnite! a professional networking and advocacy community to support HR professionals. Her first book, STOP Collaborate and LISTEN – Developing Impactful HR Partnerships Through Collaboration is available through LuLu Publishing. About HR Like a Boss HR Like a Boss centers around the concept that with the right passion to be and think different, HR and business professionals can do amazingly awesome HR. People who do HR like a boss understand business concepts, what makes people tick, and how to approach HR as more than a compliance or cost center. This podcast builds the foundation for John Bernatovicz's upcoming book, "HR Like a Boss." If you're ready to take your HR career to the next level, this is the podcast for you. Share any comments with bridgette@willory.com. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/willory/message

I'm a big fan of anything Richard LaBlanc creates. I bought and went through two zines, The Dragon Horde, and a monster collection called Creature Cache. Get your copies on Lulu Publishing. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/gothridgemanor/support

Charlamos largo y tendido con la joven poeta Rosa Berbel, que a sus veinticinco años se confirma como una voz a seguir con su segundo poemario, Los planetas fantasma (Ed. Tusquets), un libro de atmósfera posapocalíptica pero lleno de esperanza. Antes escuchamos Plenitud, un poema de Javier Lostalé, al que felicitamos en su ochenta cumpleaños. Sobre él versa, precisamente, una de las sugerencias que nos hace Ignacio Elguero en su sección. Se titula Javier Lostalé en su hondo resplandor (Ed. Polibea y Revista Áurea) y se trata de un libro homenaje con textos de casi un centenar de poetas y amigos. También hablamos de Hieren todas. Antología poética plurilingüe (Ed. Devenir), una selección de la obra del singularísimo poeta Manuel Álvarez Ortega elaborada gracias al esfuerzo de traductores y profesores de todo el mundo con edición de Guillermo Aguirre; y por último, de Tratados de armonía (Ed. Siruela), volumen en el que Antonio Colinas reúne y amplía la obra aforística y diarística que había ido publicando hasta ahora. En el buzón de voz, una oyente nos recomienda La mirada torcida (Ed. Lulu Publishing), novela de Susana Gómez Lages ambientada en las altas esferas del Uruguay de principios del siglo XX. Y para terminar, Mariano Peyrou nos trae La bestia ideal (Ed. Pre-Textos), el nuevo libro de Erika Martínez, poeta de la cantera del Premio de Poesía Joven de RNE. Escuchar audio

Recently, the aggregate publisher Lulu passed a major milestone, but it didn't come without its share of heartache and hardship. That doesn't stop the host of Lulu University, Chelsea Bennett, from having a positive outlook on what Lulu.com has done for millions of authors. Learn more about the inner workings of self publishing on Lulu, including: - Why the founder named the company Lulu - How Lulu gets more than book reviews (HINT: yoga pants) - Review the catastrophic event that nearly sunk Lulu in 2020 - What establishes the platform as the place to self-publish your books Subscribe to Lulu on YouTube at https://YouTube.com/LuluPress

Quite a few people rave about the print book quality from Blurb and their contemporaries, Lulu.com. But, if you're publishing books on Lulu or Blurb, you'll notice the HUGE increase in cost compared to their competitors. While Lulu xPress easily integrates with Shopify and provides great dropshipping, is the product worth the price and wait time? Also, how does self-publishing on Blurb work? We're going to review all the pros and cons of Lulu Press and Blurb in this podcast.   Level-Up Your Self-Publishing Business TODAY: The Mega Fantasy Giveaway for Authors - https://DaleLinks.com/FantasyGiveaway  Subscribe to Self-Publishing with Dale on YouTube at https://DaleLinks.com/YT and https://DaleLinks.com/YouTubePodcast. Join other like-minded and motivated self-publishers in the Self-Publishing Books Group. Learn, grow, and network with authors, freelancers, and industry experts at https://DaleLinks.com/SPB. Remember to answer the 3 questions to gain entry. Get access to my go-to resource, Publisher Rocket. Confidently research profitable keywords & categories. Easily select effective keywords for Amazon Advertising campaigns. For more details, visit https://dalelinks.com/PR.

John's wife transferred to Hawaii in the middle of the pandemic. This would be a life-changing event for not only him but his two school-age children. He gave up his job as a wound care nurse and moved the family from Virginia to Hawaii. Because of the pandemic, he became a stay-at-home dad and teacher, while working on his own education. In the middle of this, he was presented with the opportunity of a lifetime to take part in a writer's workshop for Georgetown. He had to make a choice to add one more stress in or take a pass.******John M. McKeel is a registered nurse in Oahu, Hawaii. Holding additional science degrees in psychology and engineering, John served in the U.S. Army as a Signals Intelligence Analyst. McKeel's Giresun Island has reframed the traditionally male “soldier returning from war” allegory into the story of one woman's journey. John lives as he avidly writes—with respect and admiration for the strong women that influence his life.When he's not spending time in alternate realities, John is an avid SCUBA diver and cook who loves spending time with his family.website: https://johnmmckeel.wordpress.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/john.mckeelTwitter: https://twitter.com/jmmckeelInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnmckeel_author/Published worksAdventures in the Fantastic Novel, Lulu Publishing, 2016Staff Writer and Resident Cartoonist – Above the Fold, 2014 – 2016Resident Cartoonist – The Forum, 2014Failing St. George, Tales of the Talisman Vol. 7(2) 2011Food Columnist – Military Spouse Magazine, 2009 – 2013Freelance (Overseas Correspondent) – The Blot, 2007 – 2008*****If you would like to contact the show about being a guest please email us at Dauna@betertopodcast.comFollow us on Social MediaYouTube: https://youtu.be/ObrKgH6apf4Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/author_d.m.needom/Twitter: https://twitter.com/DaunaD1Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bettertopodcastwithdmneedomVideo of the interview is available here: https://youtu.be/J5nN8nwOIvgHave a question or want to be a guest on the podcast email: dauna@bettertopodcast.comTo see upcoming guests click here: https://www.dmneedom.com/better-topodcastSupport the podcast here: https://www.patreon.com/bettertopodcastwithdmneedom©2021 Better To...Podcast with D. M.NeedomSupport the show

In our third episode, we continue our deep dive into the album's tracklist and key themes. We also analyse the people, places and things that made the album happen, including early live performances, leftover songs and promo campaigns. Featuring in order of appearance: Charlie Braxton, Ryan Proctor, Yoh Phillips, Pain In Da Ass, Maria Davis, Ski Beatz, Rob Markman, DJ Clark Kent, Jaz-O, DJ Snips and Dart Adams.  Sumit and Chris on Roc-A-Fella Records looking for distribution (0:52) Charlie Braxton on why D'Evils is such an impactful critique on capitalism (2:02) Ryan Proctor on other key themes in D'Evils (3:03) Yoh Phillips on the religious imagery in D'Evils and how it adds context to Jay-Z's character (4:00) Pain In Da Ass on Jay-Z's ability to create strong finishes in his songs (5:13) Maria Davis on believing in Jay-Z's talent (5:57) Maria Davis on 22 Two's being her favourite song from Reasonable Doubt (7:14) Ski Beatz on trying to get Jay-Z to pick another beat for 22 Two's (7:44) Maria Davis on being asked to feature on Reasonable Doubt by Jay-Z and Dame Dash (8:23) Maria Davis on the legal issues Jay-Z was having at the time (9:35) Pain In Da Ass on 22 Two's evolving from a freestyle into a full song (10:22) Pain In Da Ass on how and why the album name was changed to Reasonable Doubt (10:33) Yoh Phillips and Rob Markman on Can I Live and their favourite lyrics (11:56) Ryan Proctor on the mix of danger and humour found in Friend Or Foe (14:30) Pain In Da Ass and Ryan Proctor on Coming of Age developing into a mini-series and the impressive debut of Memphis Bleek (15:31) Maria Davis on her fondness of Memphis Bleek and close relationship with Sauce Money (16:39) Pain In Da Ass on Reasonable Doubt's features and the creative freedom at Roc-A-Fella Records (17:10) DJ Clark Kent on Cashmere Thoughts originally being a record for The Hard Pack and for a project with Jay-Z, Jaz-O and Sauce Money taking on pimp personas (18:38) Jaz-O on being called at the last minute and writing his verse on the spot for Bring It On (20:46) DJ Snips on the elusiveness of the sample used in Bring It On (21:43) Charlie Braxton on Regrets being a song about remorse and why this content was rare at the time (22:35) Dart Adams on why Jay-Z had umlauts in his name (23:08) Jaz-O on the significance of Lil' Lulu Publishing (24:33) DJ Clark Kent on mastering the album and an unreleased track that went missing (25:31) Ski Beatz on throwing away unreleased music with Jay-Z and Big L (26:21) DJ Clark Kent on other unreleased songs and getting into trouble at Mad Wednesday (26:52) Produced by Sumit Sharma and Chris Mitchell Mixed and mastered by Dave Walker Original artwork designed by Adrien Vargas Updated artwork designed by Jason Wheeler Follow Sumit

Richard has an unrivalled pedigree, having spent a significant chunk of his early career with the World Bank which included investigating the Bank's values as part of his work in their Environmentally Sustainable Development programme. He left the World Bank in 1997 to set up his own consultancy - which subsequently evolved into the Barrett Values Centre - and the following year he published Liberating the Corporate Soul - Building a Visionary Organisation in which he predicted, "In the 21st Century the soft stuff is destined to become the hard stuff." He also outlined his Seven Levels of Consiousness model and how it applies to individuals and organisations. Richard's many subsequent books have included Building a Values-driven Organisation: A Whole System Approach to Cultural Transformation in 2006 and The New Leadership Paradigm in 2011. To find out more about the work of Richard and the Barrett Values Centre, https://www.valuescentre.com/ (vist their website here). And here are links to a selection of Richard's books: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0750670711/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=0750670711&linkCode=as2&tag=ukla2020-21&linkId=a06c096f5ed369ee3d62020e2fb63203 (Liberating the Corporate Soul - Building a Visionary Organisation) - Routledge, 1998 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1445716720/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=1445716720&linkCode=as2&tag=ukla2020-21&linkId=631b74a4ffd6f1d1220ee57cf09e7c97 (The New Leadership Paradigm) - Lulu Publishing, 2011 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1471770168/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=1471770168&linkCode=as2&tag=ukla2020-21&linkId=ad7521f63658ba21457b30bb1bfe7017 (What My Soul Told Me )- Lulu Publishing, 2012 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1483411788/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=1483411788&linkCode=as2&tag=ukla2020-21&linkId=6e1744dfacacccbe3ebe3d71ef2af1c4 (Evolutionary Coaching: A Values-Based Approach to Unleashing Human Potential )- Lulu Publishing, 2014 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0750679743/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=0750679743&linkCode=as2&tag=ukla2020-21&linkId=80c3b2a310861ed7d6e0f505c4b732f2 (Building a Values-driven Organisation: A Whole System Approach to Cultural Transformation) - Routledge, 2016 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1684715997/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=1684715997&linkCode=as2&tag=ukla2020-21&linkId=9181e22603968cc9aa66765a6bc6f19d (Worldview Dynamics and the Well-Being of Nations) - Lulu Publishing, 2020  

This episode of Words and Actions starts with Veronika mentioning that the chief adviser to the UK government, Dominic Cummings, used his blog to ask “weirdos and misfits with odd skills” and “true wild cards” to apply for a position as his personal assistant. We also made the point that how much time recruiters spend on filtering CVs is a matter of seconds. These two studies provide evidence for this claim and suggest that the initial time screening a CV has actually gone down from 30 seconds to 6 seconds:   Barnum, C. M. (1987). Writing résumés that sell. Management World, 16, 10-13. Wallwork, A. (2019). English for Academic CVs, Resumes, and Online Profiles. Springer, Cham.   As promised, here is the list of studies on unconscious bias in recruitment decisions:  https://users.ugent.be/~sbaert/research_register.htm    We focused on biased decisions with regard to ethnic background, including that indicated by names. A recent study is    Derous, E., & Ryan, A. M. (2019). When your resume is (not) turning you down: Modelling ethnic bias in resume screening. Human Resource Management Journal, 29(2), 113-130   while the following article looks at whether anonymous CVs could be a solution (spoiler: possibly, but for high-status jobs, ethnicity tends to matter less to begin with):  Lacroux, A., & Martin‐Lacroux, C. (2020). Anonymous résumés: An effective preselection method? International Journal of Selection and Assessment 28(1), 98-111.  We then talked a bit about cross-cultural differences in content, layout and language use in CVs. One study, summarised by Veronika, compares German and Italian CVs: Hepp, M. (2006). The text type "curriculum vitae" in an intercultural perspective. indications for a linguistically based german as a second language instruction at university. Studi Linguistici e Filologici Online, 4(1), 109-129. http://www.humnet.unipi.it/slifo/ [in German]   Bernard then mentioned the DISCO tool, short for European Dictionary of Skills and Competences): http://disco-tools.eu/disco2_portal/ Moving on to digital footprints and digital shadows, Bernard referred to the relevant work of his colleague Stijn Baert (who also compiled the list of studies on unconscious bias):  Baert, S. (2018). Facebook profile picture appearance affects recruiters’ first hiring decisions.  new media & society, 20(3), 1220-1239. To find out more about the consultancy business of our interview guest, Anna Marie Trester, go to https://careerlinguist.com/. Her latest book is  Trester. A. M. (2017). Bringing Linguistics to Work. Lulu Publishing.  During the interview, Anna Marie mentions Erving Goffman (1922-1982), a Canadian sociologist whose work became very influential for conversation analysis and interactional sociolinguistics.   Finally, for the analysis part of this episode, we did an audit of each other’s internet presence. Here are some of our profiles we scrutinise:  https://research.flw.ugent.be/en/bernard.declerck  https://www.linkedin.com/in/erika-darics-35610448/?originalSubdomain=uk https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Veronika_Koller    Do come and say hi to us on any of the social media platforms! See you again for episode 12!

The Book Expo America is almost here.  And it is extremely exciting to be attending for the fourth year in a row!   In 2016, I attended the Book Expo America, also known as the BEA, after a company called America Star Books approached me to showcase 'I'm Not Scared of Spiders', which I had published through Lulu.com.  At that time Lulu was not hosting any authors at the Expo, but they did attend as an Indie Publisher.  I showcased a range of my books including, An Ounce of Expectation, and I'll Always Love You No Matter What with America Star Books, even though I was published through Lulu. In 2017 I attended the Book Expo again..., again hosted by America Star Books to showcase my novel, The Night Birds. 2017 turned out to be an incredibly interesting year. Situated opposite Lulu Publishing's booth at the BEA, I was able to spend my signing time looking in at the company booth and afterwards, meeting staff and made some valuable connections.  Once I arrived back in Australia, I was then asked to host my own radio segment with Paperback Radio, consider a signing with Lulu in 2018 and I also signed a contract agreeing for my novel, The Day it Rained Forever to be adapted for the film screen.   In 2018 I gleefully attended the Book Expo America and this time, was hosted by Lulu.com, an ABSOLUTE dream come true for me - and perfect timing too because America Star Books had suddenly and sadly, closed its doors.  The closure of the business also meant no radio segment for me as Paperback Radio was owned by America Star Books. My attention turned to the expo. But it wasn't just the BEA, I attended and had signings at, it was also the Book Con! This is where I showcased The Day it Rained Forever, alongside Omar Epps (yes, the actor) who had just released a title, From Fatherless to Fatherhood, as well as some other Lulu authors. What a thrill! When I returned from New York, I attended a forum about publishing and got very inspired.  Lulu had just released their xPress App, which opened the doors to consider starting my own publishing company – to help others achieve their dream of publishing stories. But as exciting as it was, I was worried about how this would impact my appearance in NYC in 2019. It didn’t. Lulu Publishing have been so supportive and incredibly open.  And I am on track to appear at the Javits Center once again in May of 2019 at the Book Expo and Book Con!  The incredible thing is, that I will be there as a Lulu author, but also as an example, to show people where Lulu can take you and how supportive they are. Being there as a writer and publisher will only enhance the reputation of my company, Limelight Publishing, but also showcase, the greatest Indie Publishers on the planet; Lulu.com 2019 - I hope to see you all in New York in May, where I will be signing copies of my first short story collection. The cover of this book reflects the meaning of the title; Scripturient, means to have an overwhelming, almost violent desire to write.  I have written 15 books and during this process there have been some stories I wanted to add some details to.  In Scripturient, I had my chance. The slit represents slicing open paper because when I write, I give my all. Make sure to get your Book Expo and Book Con tickets, they are on sale now! BookCon is an annual fan convention established in 2014 in New York City. Taking the name format from other fan conventions such as Comic-Con, BookCon was established to combine pop culture and the book industry. Many authors, celebrities and publishing professionals attend BookCon.   --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/limelightpublishing/message

Our neighbors on other planets look with puzzlement at the United States, located on the beautiful planet Earth. Despite amazing knowledge, discovery, and skill, healthcare delivery in this country is expensive, episodic, not customer-friendly, and much better for citizens with lots of money than those with less. Dr. Stephen Klasko’s book asks if this country can find the resolve to embrace change, learn from other planets (or at least other countries and industries on this planet), and create an optimistic future for an ideal delivery system? In a picture story that embraces disruption and transformation, this journey through time and space offers a humorous exploration of the weaknesses of the American healthcare delivery system. Bless This Mess: A Picture Story of Healthcare in America (Lulu Publishing Services, 2018) asks how we might re-imagine how we teach, how we care, and how we put an end to health disparities … and get us closer to the holy grail of a believable understandable bill! The challenge is ours. Will we take it? Jeremy Corr is the co-host of the hit Fixing Healthcare podcast along with industry thought leader Dr. Robert Pearl. A University of Iowa history alumnus, Jeremy is curious and passionate about all things healthcare, which means he’s always up for a good discussion! Reach him at jeremyccorr@gmail.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our neighbors on other planets look with puzzlement at the United States, located on the beautiful planet Earth. Despite amazing knowledge, discovery, and skill, healthcare delivery in this country is expensive, episodic, not customer-friendly, and much better for citizens with lots of money than those with less. Dr. Stephen Klasko's book asks if this country can find the resolve to embrace change, learn from other planets (or at least other countries and industries on this planet), and create an optimistic future for an ideal delivery system? In a picture story that embraces disruption and transformation, this journey through time and space offers a humorous exploration of the weaknesses of the American healthcare delivery system. Bless This Mess: A Picture Story of Healthcare in America (Lulu Publishing Services, 2018) asks how we might re-imagine how we teach, how we care, and how we put an end to health disparities … and get us closer to the holy grail of a believable understandable bill! The challenge is ours. Will we take it? Jeremy Corr is the co-host of the hit Fixing Healthcare podcast along with industry thought leader Dr. Robert Pearl. A University of Iowa history alumnus, Jeremy is curious and passionate about all things healthcare, which means he's always up for a good discussion! Reach him at jeremyccorr@gmail.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/medicine

Our neighbors on other planets look with puzzlement at the United States, located on the beautiful planet Earth. Despite amazing knowledge, discovery, and skill, healthcare delivery in this country is expensive, episodic, not customer-friendly, and much better for citizens with lots of money than those with less. Dr. Stephen Klasko’s book asks if this country can find the resolve to embrace change, learn from other planets (or at least other countries and industries on this planet), and create an optimistic future for an ideal delivery system? In a picture story that embraces disruption and transformation, this journey through time and space offers a humorous exploration of the weaknesses of the American healthcare delivery system. Bless This Mess: A Picture Story of Healthcare in America (Lulu Publishing Services, 2018) asks how we might re-imagine how we teach, how we care, and how we put an end to health disparities … and get us closer to the holy grail of a believable understandable bill! The challenge is ours. Will we take it? Jeremy Corr is the co-host of the hit Fixing Healthcare podcast along with industry thought leader Dr. Robert Pearl. A University of Iowa history alumnus, Jeremy is curious and passionate about all things healthcare, which means he’s always up for a good discussion! Reach him at jeremyccorr@gmail.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our neighbors on other planets look with puzzlement at the United States, located on the beautiful planet Earth. Despite amazing knowledge, discovery, and skill, healthcare delivery in this country is expensive, episodic, not customer-friendly, and much better for citizens with lots of money than those with less. Dr. Stephen Klasko’s book asks if this country can find the resolve to embrace change, learn from other planets (or at least other countries and industries on this planet), and create an optimistic future for an ideal delivery system? In a picture story that embraces disruption and transformation, this journey through time and space offers a humorous exploration of the weaknesses of the American healthcare delivery system. Bless This Mess: A Picture Story of Healthcare in America (Lulu Publishing Services, 2018) asks how we might re-imagine how we teach, how we care, and how we put an end to health disparities … and get us closer to the holy grail of a believable understandable bill! The challenge is ours. Will we take it? Jeremy Corr is the co-host of the hit Fixing Healthcare podcast along with industry thought leader Dr. Robert Pearl. A University of Iowa history alumnus, Jeremy is curious and passionate about all things healthcare, which means he’s always up for a good discussion! Reach him at jeremyccorr@gmail.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This time on Roulette I'm chatting with dear friend Sarah 'Sakky' Forde, known to many people around the globe as SenshiStock, and known to me as Sakky ATTACKY!!!I wanted to take this opportunity to catch up with Sakky because right now she is in the midst of a Kickstarter campaign to help fund her new book of pose references, SenshiStock to Go! I'm a fan of the Kickstarter framework as a method for artists (even crazy Stock Artists) to help fund their projects, so I thought it would interesting to hear about Sakky's experiences thus far.Aside from the Kickstarter campaign it's always great fun to chat with Sakky. This time out we'll hear about the Guild of Plushers, Ship Captain Steve and his Beard (or maybe that should be Steve and his Ship Captain Beard), and Sakky's new (and very controversial) business card.Visit Sakky's pose reference site on dA, and then visit all her other wonderful sites (she really is an exceptional artist). Click below for this episode of Roulette:Links from this edition of Roulette:Artist Alley Network InternationalLuLu PublishingGreek Fisherman's Cap

Do you have a book inside of you just waiting to be written? But each time you try to put pen to paper (or fingers to the keyboard) you stare hopelessly at a blank page, struggling to find the right words? Annemarie Cross is joined by Authors Coach, Ann McIndoo from So You Want to Write, who shares some … Read more about this episode...