Articles by Mike Scantlebury on ArticleSnatch.com

Alternatives to great riches

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Felix Dennis is one of the richest magazine publishers in England, and recently he has written a book telling you how he did it. More importantly, he has written the book to show you how you can do it too. Fair enough? You want to follow in his footsteps? You want to go to be where he is? Only one problem. He won't be there. He doesn't like where he is, and is taking all steps to leave the place. In two ways. Firstly, he's spending a lot of his hard-earned fortune on a project that he thinks will have lasting significance for the country. He's planting a forest in the heart of England, a forest of broad-leaved trees, which means native species. He is currently busy buying up land - that's going to cost a hefty price - and employing people to clear the land and put in saplings. Well, you say, that's going to cost millions. Yes, tens of millions. But don't worry, his total budget for the whole thing is in the hundreds of millions. **End Summary** Topics: business]]> fortune]]> wealth]]> employment]]> books]]> novels]]> trees]]> forests]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, with a business background and an interest in creating new ventures. Based in Manchester, England, he relates to the local football team and the failed Olympic Bid. Find out more about his schemes and dreams at one of his many websites. Try http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Internet Authors don't need nonsense

Sat, 01 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Many would-be writers and aspiring authors have a very negative view of Traditional Publishers. This is often because they experience their work being rejected regularly ' often on the flimsiest of grounds ' but also it may be because, almost without fail, the 'advice' offered by the publisher to the person submitting the work is pure nonsense. An example of the former occurred to me just a few years ago. I submitted a plan for a novel and a sample of the work, consisting of several chapters. It was a murder mystery, a crime fiction novel. In the first chapter a record producer is shot. In Chapter Two, Mickey, the investigating hero, is mysteriously thrown across the desk by the deceased man's secretary as she tries to force him to have sex. The publisher was appalled. She said to me that 'most of the readers (of such books) were women' and that they 'wouldn't want to see sex happening so close to a scene of death'. Now, apart from the fact that the secretary's need was a trifle inexplicable to our protagonist too, I happen to believe that such an event was psychologically true. **End Summary** Topics: books]]> novels]]> authors]]> publishers]]> getting published]]> money]]> internet authoring]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, raconteur and all round good guy. Unfortunately, he's not being paid for being nice. So listen to his opinions, even if they upset and deride. He's trying to be helpful. If that's not good enough, try his many websites. Start with - http://www.mikescantlebury.biz

Alternatives to good service

Sun, 25 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

It's Thursday today. Just a normal day, an ordinary day. One more opportunity to get rich, and one more example of being slammed around by people who never seem to have heard of the concept of 'customer service'. It seemed like a simple problem, at first. The post-person arrived this morning, but they were only holding letters, no parcels. We had been expecting a parcel for weeks. My partner is taking part in a sale this coming weekend, and had ordered some paperback books that she wanted to take along and re-sell as part of a health package. The books were ordered two weeks ago, with a promise that delivery would take place in '3-5 days', but when no books arrived, we had to email. We were told that the supplier didn't have them and had had to outsource the order. Still, they said, delivery wouldn't have been delayed. The books should have arrived, they said. They would look into it. Next day an email arrived from the outsourcer. It said that 'an account had to be confirmed'. My partner tried logging on to their website and was refused. She had to phone them. So far, so bad. **End Summary** Topics: service]]> customer]]> business]]> profit]]> money]]> reward]]> success]]> writer]]> author]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, happy to be of service. He writes novels, stories and self-help advice, which he sends out to his many websites from his base in Manchester, England, home of good football and interesting music. Find out more at http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Internet Authors don't need cut-offs

Thu, 22 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

When our children were younger, and still at High School, we moved house. The new place was further away from the school, and they told us that there might be financial help available for us towards the cost of our kids' new bus fares, which would, of course, be more expensive. We were sent a letter. It said that money was paid to people who lived '8 miles away and further'. We measured the journey in the car and it certainly seemed about that distance. Weeks later we got another letter. Our application was denied. We 'didn't live 8 miles away'. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. No, according to their calculations, we lived 7.9 miles away. That's seven point nine. Not enough, they said. After all, there has to be a cut-off point. Would-be authors keep coming up against the same problem. They send their work to Traditional Publishers, and immediately encounter problems. Say they've written a novel in the Horror genre. Oh, the publisher says, we do operate in a range of popular genres and we publish Science Fiction and Fantasy, for instance. But no, not Horror. **End Summary** Topics: novels]]> books]]> writing]]> authors]]> publishing]]> success]]> cash]]> family]]> children]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is a parent. He is also an Internet Author, with novels, stories and self-help material to his credit. Writing from the heart of Manchester, England, where football is king and music has been made, he sends his work out to a range of web sites. Try http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Alternatives to running for the bus

Sun, 18 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

I live in a highly urbanised area. Sometimes, as I'm driving down the street, I see someone running for the bus. It always makes me laugh. There they are, hurrying, looking over their shoulder, desperately trying to attract the attention of the driver, waving their hands at them and begging them to stop, even though they are yards away from the official bus-stop. What chance have they got? If someone else is at the stop and flags down the bus, then there is a chance that it will take the person standing and waiting so long to get on the bus, pay their fare and get settled, that the person running up behind them will have the luck to get to the bus before the doors close and it sets off. But what a way to organise your life! Firstly, if you're running for the bus, it's probably true that you have no idea of the timetable. If you knew the time the bus was due, you could aim to get to the stop in plenty of time to catch it. **End Summary** Topics: self-help]]> organisation]]> novels]]> writing]]> authors]]> Internet Publishing]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author. From downtown Manchester in North West England, he writes novels, stories and educational material and sends it out through his many websites. Check out his original and quirky self-help tips at http://www.mikescantlebury.info

Internet Authors don't need Club Class

Sat, 10 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

If you go into any supermarket in England and inspect the fruit, you may be pleased to see that some of the apples are bagged up and labelled 'Class 1'. However, looking around, you may be surprised to note that there aren't any corresponding bags marked 'Class 2'. It seems to be Class 1 or nothing! That's great, the individual apples are all free of blemishes; nicely rounded and approximately the same size; same colour; all good quality. You've got the best. Luckily, 'the best' is also reasonably priced, so you can afford them. If they were too expensive, you'd be struggling. Like with champagne. If there was such a thing as 'Class 1' champagne, no doubt it would cost hundreds of pounds a bottle. Far better to look for the 'economy' class of champagne for fifteen or twenty pounds. Maybe still a trifle expensive, but justifiable for a special event, such as a birthday. If it's a bit more expensive – say it's called 'medium priced' – then you'll find the smart young executives are buying it, the ones who make their money in the stock market, buying and selling pieces of paper. **End Summary** Topics: books]]> novels]]> publishing]]> Manchester]]> England]]> football]]> The Smiths]]> Salford Lads Club]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, ploughing a lonely furrow from the arable lands of Manchester, England, home of football and good music. Check out his diverting opinions on a range of web sites, starting with http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Alternatives to Plumbers

Mon, 05 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Robert Kiyosaki has made a curious assertion in one of his many books. He says that the tax system, the legal system, in fact the whole economic system, has been set up to favour entrepreneurs. He says that everything is there to encourage people to take risks, borrow money, set up businesses, build factories and houses and create jobs. Why? Because that's what the country needs. We need employment and housing, so we need enterprising individuals who can make that happen. We need these top people. Everything else has to serve their needs, and the system exists to support them. Down at the bottom of the pile, things look different. 'The bosses need us', say the workers, so ask for bigger pay rises. That's not going to work out. These days, those bosses have a choice. If you're not willing to work for the dollar rate offered, they'll find someone who will, often from overseas. In Britain today the argument is about all the East European countries who have joined the European Union recently. It means that their residents now have the right – yes, the legal right – to travel to Britain and offer themselves for work. **End Summary** Topics: plumbers]]> entrepreneurs]]> work]]> jobs]]> England]]> Manchester]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, with novels and stories to his credit, loaded onto the web from his current home in Manchester, England. However, he was also spent the last 20 years as a Small Business Advisor and has something to say to would-be entrepreneurs. Find out more at his web site and follow the links. Try http://www.mikescantlebury.info

Alternatives to Heroes

Sat, 03 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Here in Britain we're enjoying seeing a new TV series that's all about 'Heroes'. The story seems to be similar to the 'X-Men' series, in that ordinary people are discovering that they possess strange new powers and are able to do something great, like fly or make themselves invisible. However, it's all a bit strange. Once again, the majority of ordinary people are just that, ordinary, and it's only this few, this special few, that demonstrate exotic powers. They are unique, different, perhaps a development of the 'normal' person, and they are struggling to adjust to all the implications of finding themselves with these new powers. What about the rest of us? We don't struggle, apparently. We just carry on as we are. Is that what we want? Do we, the ordinary people of the world, want to sit and simply watch as those with exotic powers go about their super-business? Is that how we feel? We are just second-rate, average, day-to-day, while some – a tiny few – are able to do wonderful things, things that the rest of us can only look on and admire? Well, yes, if recent history is anything to go by. **End Summary** Topics: Heroes]]> X-Men]]> cartoons]]> achievement]]> internet authors]]> books]]> novels]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, and he never said he was going to pull any punches. He tells it like it is on a variety of websites, all launched from Manchester, England, home of football and the Industrial Revolution. You can find him at http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Alternatives to Torture, 1

Sun, 28 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

We live in a tough old world. As a recent film tries to tell you, it's possible that you will be snatched off the street tomorrow by people you don't know, bound and gagged and flown off to some far-distant part of the world where you can be interrogated. Oh, all right, then, we'll tell the truth. You'll be tortured. Pain will be inflicted on you as a way of encouraging you to confess the crimes that you're planning, such as terrorist attacks on the Western world. This is all in the name of 'security', patriotism and anti-terrorism - all good stuff. If all goes well, you'll tell them what they need to know and lives will be saved. That is, if you are a terrorist. Things start going wrong if you aren't. Let's imagine, purely for the sake of argument, that you aren't a terrorist, haven't been and don't plan to be. You're strung upside down and people you don't know and haven't been properly introduced to are beating the soles of your feet with iron bars. They ask you questions, and you hesitate, because you know you don't have any answers. **End Summary** Topics: England]]> politics]]> Manchester]]> ordinary people]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author who asks questions. He hasn't any answers but he's written thrillers and spy novels and takes a interest in discussing international events. He's also arguing the future of publishing. You can join in the debate at his web site. Try http://www.PublishingisDead.com

Alternatives to books

Fri, 26 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

The e-book has been a long time in coming. Way back in the 1980s, when the Personal Computer was in its infancy, we were told that the logic was inescapable: now that ordinary people could read text on a screen, then the days of the printed page were numbered. There was a better way. After all, the Personal Computer – we were assured – would soon be in every office, in every home, and it would give everybody access to the biggest library in the world, in digital form. In the future, so the story went, you would walk into someone's new house and the most striking feature would be that there would be no bookshelves. There would be no need for any! All data would be stored on disks, out of sight. That first myth is the easiest to deal with. People still have shelves, but they're not necessarily groaning under the weight of books, no. But they probably contain other media, such as CDs, DVDs, videotapes (since people haven't all moved on yet) and, even, surprise, surprise, that throwback to the 1970s, the cassette tape. **End Summary** Topics: books]]> authors]]> printing]]> publishing]]> writers]]> agents]]> cassettes]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author. He has written stories, plays and novels and is committed to uploading them for access in digital form. You can see his works on his many websites, created from Manchester, England, the home of the first Industrial Revolution. Try his main site and follow the links from there. Its http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Alternatives to filling teeth

Wed, 24 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Research has shown unusually high levels of mercury in people who have died in recent years. This hasn't come to light before, because it's not 'mercury poisoning' that is written on the Death Certificate. It could be stroke, or heart attack, or embolism. These are the biggest killers in terms of numbers, but the question for many researchers has been, How was the health of these people in the few years before they died? Were they very healthy? Increasingly, the evidence shows that people who appear to have died from a supposedly simple cause, have, in fact, been suffering a range of illnesses and distressing symptoms over a long time. These range from depression, to memory loss, to lack of sleep and low energy levels. Often they are vague and hard to pin down, such as 'metallic taste in the mouth', lethargy and no urge to socialise. The first of these is the clue. Why would people taste metal? The only metal most people in the West have anywhere near their mouths is mercury, the basis of amalgam fillings. Residents of Europe and the U.S. **End Summary** Topics: mercury]]> dentists]]> teeth fillings]]> amalgam]]> health scares]]> worries]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author. He has written plays, stories and novels, but recently has turned to Self Help and health matters. If you want to know if his thoughts on teeth fillings have led to anything, go to his main website and look under the heading 'Unfinished Novels'. There may be a title there, something like 'Filling In'. Find it? Try http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Internet Authors don't need greed

Tue, 23 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Many would-be word-smiths derive great pleasure and satisfaction from putting words on paper. They love to see the structure of a page, the paragraphs, the story unfolding and the lines spilling over. Others enjoy the bones of the story, making one thing happen after another, keeping the reader in suspense and finishing with an unexpected but satisfying denouement. Others like to make characters come alive, endowing them with attributes and watch them create their own future through the length of the story, rushing towards the inevitability that is themselves. In fact there are many reasons why a person becomes an author, and, like the reasons above, it can be first and foremost to do with the satisfaction of creation. However, we live in a hierarchical and capitalist society, where virtuous motives are not to be relied on. We can't count on people to do the right thing just because they might enjoy it, they say. Far better to give them a motivation they can't resist. Such as money. No problem with that – it works. **End Summary** Topics: cash]]> money]]> thrill]]> thrall]]> internet author]]> book]]> books]]> publishers]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author. He proves his ablity to ignore greed by failing to make much money at all, anywhere. Still, he has high levels of satisfaction and fun. Don't believe me? Check out his lunatic website and follow the links at http://www.mikescantlebury.info

Internet Authors don't need timing

Sat, 20 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Of all the useless advice given to would-be authors, perhaps the most unhelpful is the idea that to be a successful author you need 'timing'. That is, your great idea for a novel has to hit the public consciousness at a time that makes your story relevant to them. An example might be, for instance, that right now, in the autumn months of 2007, I'm working on a thriller that starts from the proposition that Princess Diana was deliberately murdered in 1997 in Paris by a combination of national security organisations. I started working on a synopsis a couple of months ago, and I've got a number of chapters under my belt. Now I look at the TV News and notice that a new Inquest has started in London into the death of the Royal lady. What luck! Well, no. If my book was in the bookshop right now – at this moment in time – then it might attract attention and, possibly, sales. But it won't even be finished for a few months. By the time it gets to the publisher – even if they like it, which they might not – **End Summary** Topics: internet publishing]]> writing]]> books]]> authors]]> opportunities]]> Princess Diana]]> conspiracies]]> Paris]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, with books, stories and self-help tomes to his credit. If you want to sample his proposed thriller about Princess Diana, go to his main website and look under 'Unfinished Novels' for the title 'Never Say Di'. It's here: http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Internet Authors don't need advice

Thu, 04 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Most writers in England waste a lot of their time posting off extracts of their exciting new manuscripts to publishers. Most of the time these would-be authors see their work come winging back, unwanted. That's annoying enough in itself, but in some cases there is an even more unwelcome addition advice. 'Try a larger publishing house' says the note. That's meant to be helpful? Which publisher do they have in mind? What makes them think the other guys would want something that people here have decided is unpublishable? In most cases, unfortunately, unwitting authors take these snippets at face value and assume the creator knows some secret information that they are not privy to. They take the advice, they take the action, and are disappointed again when it leads nowhere. After all, an employee of a publisher might know what their own firm requires, (if they take the time to listen to their colleagues), but they are as much in the dark as the rest of us when it comes to discerning what the company down the street wants. Worse, the unsolicited advice often concerns the quality of the work itself. 'The dialogue needs to be sharper' says the note. **End Summary** Topics: internet publishing]]> novels]]> authors]]> Princess Diana]]> books]]> good]]> bad]]> writing]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, with novels, stories and informational material sent out to the internet from his base in Manchester, England. If you want to find out if he ever gets round to producing that novel on Princess Diana, keep an eye on his main website and see if it appears. The address is http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Alternatives to catching criminals

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Working in the community can be hard work. Doing good isn't all that easy, especially when there's very little money and hardly any support to go round. Inevitably, a lot of time is spent trying to raise funds to make things happen. In Britain that means applying to charitable trusts and all the quasi-governmental organisations like the National Lottery, and that means getting a bank account opened. Ehhh, that's when life gets difficult. This week I turned up at my local bank with an application to open a bank account on behalf of the newest charitable venture in our area that I was supporting. I thought I had things ready. I had filled in the form and got my neighbour to sign it too. No chance, I was told. For a start, the Manager of the bank was on her lunch-break and couldn't see me until later. I offered to come back the next day. That would be fine, I was told, as long as the two of us showed up. My colleague would have to be there too, in person. It was because they didn't know us, I was told. I sympathised. **End Summary** Topics: criminals]]> law]]> doing good]]> solving crime]]> fiction]]> books]]> authors]]> Britain]]> England]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author and a born campaigner. When he's not against something, he's definitely in favour of it, and he'll tell you so, in novels, articles and stories. Look out for them. Currently resident in Manchester, England, he can tell you all about that in one of his many web sites. Find out more at http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Internet Authors are Market Traders

Sun, 23 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Picture the scene. You jump into your car and drive out to the nearest supermarket, maybe part of the local shopping mall. As you drive in through the gate of the car park, you notice a number of scruffy market stalls on the roadway outside the store. Who are these people? If you've ever been abroad to a hot, fly-ridden Third World country, you know that sometimes scroungers and beggars hang around in the street outside the expensive tourist hotels. It looks a bit like that. The market traders seem to be trying to make some money by being in the vicinity of the big shop and picking up the odd customer, the ones with enough curiosity to venture out onto the street and look at what the market traders have to offer, perhaps hoping for a bargain or some cheap imitation of the real goods inside the mall. New internet publishing seems to look a bit like this. **End Summary** Topics: writing]]> novels]]> internet publishing]]> authors]]> books]]> sales]]> publishers]]> business]]> profits]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is first and foremost an Internet Author, with books, stories and self-help manuals to his credit, (all available through his many web sites). He also enjoys the eclectic lifestyle of living in Manchester, England in the 21st century. Find out what that means, and why football is the new rock and roll and folk music is the new ball game at http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Alternatives to diets

Sat, 15 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0400

There is only one problem with dieting. It seems so simple on the surface. Isn't it (simply) based on a philosophy which says, 'I don't like feeling (or looking) the way I do, and I want to change'? No, there is a catch, and that is that the dieter only wants to follow this plan temporarily, until the weight is lost or some semblance of 'normality' is restored, and then they intend to go back to their old habits, the bad old ways, the way of life which got them into the situation in the first place. If a person said to you, 'I keep getting these headaches and I need something for them', you might be forgiven for wanting to supply them with an aspirin. But suppose you followed them around for a day and noticed that they had a habit of banging their head on the walls, wouldn't you be tempted to advise them to stop that behaviour? Stop the banging, you end the headaches. Then there's no need for the painkillers. Stop the bad eating habits and you'll stop gaining weight. Then there will be no need for the diet. Now that really is 'simple'. **End Summary** Topics: diets]]> dieting]]> weight loss]]> exercise]]> fads]]> learning]]> education]]> life]]> changes]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author with novels, stories and educational material to his credit. Currently domiciled in the Queen of the North - Manchester, England - he finds time away from football to exercise and give advice. The extract above is from a book on diets he is currently writing, which will only be available on subscription. Sign up at his download web site, http://www.mikescantlebury.biz

Alternatives to drugs

Sun, 09 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Illegal drugs are sold with a lie or maybe a half-truth. The seller says, 'Take this and you'll feel good'. That's partly true, and that can be a real problem for parents. The fact is that most banned drugs can give a pleasurable high. Think of the film 'Train-spotting'. Doesn't one of the characters, talking about heroin, say, 'Think about an orgasm, then multiply it by a thousand'? If that's true, then any young person, faced with a choice about whether to try the new experience, is going to be disappointed in any advisor or care-giver who has said, 'Don't take drugs, they're bad for you'. Sure, that may be true too, but if the one giving the advice didn't mention the 'thousand orgasms' factor as they probably won't then the experimenter is going to feel fooled and short-changed. Hey, this is great, they are thinking. How is it that people try and stop me doing it? The answer is simple. The thrill is great today. Tomorrow, it's different. **End Summary** Topics: illegal drugs]]> self help]]> future]]> wealth]]> jobs]]> employment]]> unemployment]]> wisdom]]> philosophy]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, living in Manchester, England, but gradually gaining an audience world-wide with his novels, stories and educational material. Here, he is in Self-help mode, anxious to share lessons from the Inner City. He lives where the tough guys are. What can he tell us? Learn more at one of his web sites. Dive into http://www.mikescantlebury.info

Alternatives to gangs

Thu, 06 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Many nice, law-abiding parents are scared to death that their teenage children have become involved with drugs. They worry when the kids lock themselves in their bedrooms. They imagine that the youngsters are smoking dope, or injecting something. Then they turn to each other and wonder where they went wrong. Why are we such awful parents, they ask themselves. The answer, of course, is No, they didn't do such a bad job. But the answer also - if you want to start looking for it - is not in the house at all. It's actually where the young people spend most of their time, in school, on street corners, and generally hanging around with their friends. The drug taking, along with all the other bad habits our children pick up along the road to maturity, comes from their so-called 'friends'. In middle-class areas they might be called 'peer groups' but in other less fortunate locations, they're easier to see, they're called 'gangs'. Those are the teenagers hanging around on street corners. The reason might be, to be prosaic, that they don't live in such fortunate conditions and don't have their own rooms, to lounge in and entertain. **End Summary** Topics: parents]]> parenting]]> drugs]]> counselling]]> advice]]> help]]> growing up]]> going out]]> self help]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, with books, articles and educational material to his credit. He can now be found living in Manchester, England, famous for soccer and gang culture. Find out what he's found out and hear what he has learned at YouTube, Lulu, or Facebook, or try one of his many web sites. Sample http://www.mikescantlebury.biz

Internet Authors live in the present

Fri, 31 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Internet Authors are living in the present? They have to. In fact, any author needs to think about what's happening now, right now, this minute. Whether it's thinking about how to finish a chapter, or whether their character suddenly became unbelievable, or how the dialogue sounds. When they're hunched over their new creation, they need to be there, really be there, in the here and now. Traditional Publishers, on the other hand, are lurking somewhere in the 1950s, most of them. Some are still back in the '30s of course, and you can usually tell them by the way they dress and the elaborate and affected manner in which they speak. The majority, however, are there in the days before computers and Elvis Presley. They tend to like large desks, they fill them with parcels and piles of paper, and imagine themselves deciding the future of 'culture' in the Western world, with their exquisite taste and rare educated sensibility. Quite specifically, that places them before the advent of mass television and before electronic means of creating text. **End Summary** Topics: writing]]> publishing]]> internet publishing]]> authors]]> novels]]> books]]> stories]]> success]]> wealth]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantebury is an Internet Author. He is proud to have gone down the path of YouTube, Lulu, FreeIQ, Blogger and Facebook. He lives in Manchester, England, but has spread all over the world through his many web sites. Check out his novels, stories and educational material and find out why he feels able to give advice. Make a start at http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Internet Authors free the genie

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

There's the old fairy tale about the young man who unwisely opened the bottle and, inadvertently, set free the genie. The problem then for him and everyone else is to get the thing back in the bottle before it does any damage. It's not usually easy. In fact, in most versions of this ancient story, there's often a lot of time, effort and energy put into finding a way to trick the genie into getting back into the bottle of its own accord. Because, quite frankly, once the genie is out of the bottle, then often, that's the end. That's it. It's out, for ever, and there's no going back. In the case of internet publishing 'the genie' is an idea. It's this. 'Maybe', the internet author says haltingly to themselves, 'I can make a future for myself as an author right here, on the internet. Maybe I don't need Traditional Publishers at all'. That's a shattering idea. It's world-changing. Of course, for most people, the concept doesn't even occur to them. **End Summary** Topics: author]]> writer]]> internet publishing]]> self publishing]]> making a living on the net]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is one cool dude who has found a place on the web as a first class Internet Author. He has posted novels, stories and educational material, and can be found on YouTube, FreeIQ and Lulu. He also has a number of web sites of his own. Try a visit to Manchester, England, and see - http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Internet Authors don't need money

Thu, 23 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Perhaps the biggest surprise to all would-be writers and first-time authors is that they don't need to spend a pile of money to see their brand new book get into print. You can do it through the internet these days for practically nothing, probably for not more than the price of each book itself. Look at it another way: most aspiring authors imagine that one day they can go into their local bookshop and see their own books up there, on the shelves, alongside all the other great and famous people. Then, taking a book down, they would probably march up to the counter and proudly say, 'I'll take this, please. After all, I wrote it'. Then you pay. That's fair, isn't it? You wouldn't expect the bookshop to give you the book for free, would you? No, it doesn't seem unreasonable that at least you might have to put out for the cost of a single book. Well, that's how 'print on demand' publishers work on the web. You want a copy of your book, you pay for it. One at a time. You want six? You pay for six. Same as if you found it in a bookshop. **End Summary** Topics: writing]]> internet books]]> authors]]> making money]]> profits]]> new business]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author. He has written many novels, then taken his own advice and published them on Lulu. He also has videos on Youtube, including some of his own songs. He lives in Manchester, England, yes, that Manchester. Check out his website and download some chapters. It's at http://www.mikescantlebury.biz

Alternatives to leading a double life

Sun, 19 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

A great writer, perhaps Thoreau, once said that many people were 'living lives of quiet desperation'. If only it were that simple! His familiar saying implies that some people, perhaps a lot of them, are unhappy with the way their lives are now and want to change things for the better. I think it's worse than that. While they may look in the mirror and don't like what they see; while they may get up in the morning and don't like the work they have to go to; while they see rich and successful people on their TV, in their newspapers, and in magazines; they don't just feel unhappy and unfulfilled. They also console themselves with daydreams about how they could be there too, out there, where they want to be. What's wrong with that? Only one thing. It means you're leading a 'double life'. Just as 'mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent' was the alter ego of Superman, so there are plenty of other 'secret identities', in every office, every factory, every workplace. **End Summary** Topics: self-help]]> inspiration]]> secret identity]]> superhero]]> change]]> life]]> improvement]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author. He has novels, stories and self-help material on the web, on his many web sites and other peoples. You can get to know what life is like in Manchester, England now, home of the greatest soccer team in the world and home town of that enigmatic singer, Morrisey. Find out more by logging on and following the links at http://www.mikescantlebury.com

Internet Authors don't need Patrons

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

One of the biggest lies that Traditional Publishers peddle to would-be authors is that things 'have always been this way'. That's historically inaccurate. What we call 'publishing' is a recent invention. It didn't exist before the development of what we now call the novel, long fiction pieces that involve either an omniscient author or a psychologically aware narrator. That happened around the middle of the 1700s, and when the form became very popular with readers, some businessmen saw the possibilities of producing large numbers of these books for a wide audience. They commissioned printers, arranged distribution and worked to find new authors. (Bear in mind that 'distribution' wouldn't have been possible in a place like England before the Toll Roads were built either, around the same time.) Before this, there were printers and usually patrons. Printers sometimes commissioned work, where they saw a money-making opportunity, such as in the popularity of Broadside Ballads, songs and lyrics printed on enormous single sheets of paper, (usually about topical events, such as local crimes and hangings). **End Summary** Topics: literature]]> books]]> novels]]> writing]]> authors]]> publishers]]> self publishing]]> making money]]> getting published]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, in the new sense. He is his own publisher. His novels can be found on Amazon and Lulu.com and he has work on YouTube and FreeIQ. If you want to know more about this exciting English author from Manchester, England, go to his own download site for goodies. It's http://www.mikescantlebury.biz

Alternatives to morality

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Most people know that murder is wrong. It's ugly, and disruptive, to family as well as society. Most crucially, it's also against the law. That last point is perhaps the most important. It means that when violent death happens, the cops are entitled to look into it, gather evidence and arrest anyone they think might be involved. The courts then have the power to pass sentence and hand out punishment. Not all aspects of life are so simple. In fact, there are times when things are clearly wrong, but because nothing about the facts are illegal, it means that there's no action. Nothing happens. Let's think about banks. In Britain we have a well-known institution, a High Street bank that's a household name in this country. It's a large, old-fashioned body, and thanks to mergers and acquisitions, is also quite famous in other parts of the world. Not always for good stuff. Back in the 1970s, this bank was a real bad boy and many young people were calling for customers to boycott it services. Why? Because it had a reputation for doing lots of business with the evil regime in South Africa. **End Summary** Topics: right]]> wrong]]> morality]]> morals]]> decisions]]> culture]]> ethics]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Mike Scantlebury is an Internet Author, with stories, novels and educational material to his credit. Some of it can be found on Lulu.com and he has recently added videos to YouTube and FreeIQ. He currently lives in Manchester, England, where he rubs shoulders with the surviving members of that iconic group of the 1980s, The Smiths. Try Mike Scantlebury at his website: http://www.mikescantlebury.com