A STAR is born…

Last December, I received great news regarding The Time Value of Life from iUniverse. After receiving the Editor’s Choice Award in 2009, The Time Value of Life received the STAR Award!

The STAR Program “identifies, celebrates, and supports authors who have achieved relatively high levels of editorial and bookselling success. In order to be eligible for the program, books will be evaluated based on two key standards: editorial quality and commercial success.”

It took from December of 2010 until July of this year for me to receive my first copy of the new version of my book. Mostly due to the fact that I insisted upon reading the book dozens of times before finally signing off on the new edition. Take a look at the original cover (below) versus the new one (to your right in the sidebar). A bit of a facelift, and a change of colors to a scheme which coincidentally matches the colors of my alma mater, the University of Delaware.

The original

So, after a few edits, a new cover, a new imprint and now, a new edition of The Time Value of Life, what is next?

The new STAR edition is working its way into the marketplace and hopefully, into the hands of eagerly awaiting literary agents and representatives from traditional publishers. (smile) Meanwhile, the old paperback edition and the hardcover edition will be discontinued.

The next step would be a traditional deal, and it is a huge step that requires much work. I have a couple of special projects in the pipeline for 2012 and I am super excited! I spent most of 2011 in transition and now that things are settling, it is time to get back on the book promotion bandwagon.

One form of promotion is through reviews. If you have read The Time Value of Life, please tell others what you think about it. Love it, hate it or indifferent, it all has the potential to help someone else make an informed decision. The best place to do this is on the book’s Amazon page. Click the following link to leave a review: The Time Value of Life on Amazon. ForeWord Clarion has reviewed The Time Value of Life, four out of five stars isn’t too shabby, you can read the full text via ForeWord Reviews.

If you enjoyed The Time Value of Life, share it with family, friends or anyone you believe could benefit from its message. If you are an educator (church, school, etc.) or would like to share the book with a group, then email me for a bulk order discount or a classroom visit.

If you haven’t read The Time Value of Life, samples are available all over the Internet via programs like “Look Inside.” You can also read the Prologue via the “Free Sample” page on this blog.

I have so many people to thank for their help in the process of bringing The Time Value of Life to life. The process is by no means over, it is simply moving into a new phase. I cannot possibly thank everyone right now, but I would like to take a moment to thank the professional team: Crystal Simms (for her encouragement, candor and editing skills), Ricardo Blackett (photographer for awesome headshots), La’Whan Blackett (for coaching me through the photo shoot!), Ewart Williams (for mentoring me through my transition from blogger to author), Ebon Flagg (for fabulous hair and moral support), MAC at Christiana Mall (for lovely makeup), Janna Zinzi (for social media primers, PR and encourgament), Jacqueline Lara (for her creativity, PR expertise and landing me radio, print and TV hits galore!) and of course, iUniverse for producing a book I feel honored to have my name on.

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