Rejecting the tyranny of being picked

On impulse last month, I made two of the best decisions I've made in a long time with regard to this book I'm about to release, A Scream of Consciousness.

First, I popped onto Facebook and asked for 10 people willing to read the manuscript and make suggestions. By day's end I had more than 10, which was a boost of confidence in itself.

Then the suggestions came in, and the book is quickly becoming even better than I'd hoped. From a subtle change to the subtitle to the addition of a closing chapter, all of the ideas from my "editors" have been useful, engaging and constructive – even the tough criticisms, or perhaps especially those.



I hope to keep writing until the good Lord decides I'm done on this Earth. After this very fun experience, I don't think I'll publish another book without getting a parcel of readers to read the draft before I declare it done.

Second, I visited the Domino Project website at the suggestion of Wally Conger, who saw the similarity between my book and the great stuff that Seth Godin and the Domino folks are putting out (that was deliberate). Wally, a longtime buddy and booster, thought the new book is worthy of being selected as one of the Domino Project offerings. Wow!

So I (almost) decided to give that a try. But under their FAQs they say the small staff probably doesn't have time to review submissions but if an author or agent want to try anyway, they can fill out this form. Whoa!

Titled "Reject the tyranny of getting picked," the form begins: "Inherent in the mission of The Domino Project is that you don't need a publisher. If you have an idea, go spread it. If you want to write, go write. The thought that you need permission to share your ideas makes no sense to me."

So that's what I'm doing. Using the incredibly convenient services of self-publish-on-demand giant Lulu.com, I'm going out and spreading A Scream of Consciousness on my own – target launch date Oct. 19, if not sooner.

What's the idea? It's about waking up, embracing the moment, being here now, because the past is unchangeable and the future doesn't exist. By paying close attention to the needs of now, you can build a better life, right now. Some of what's in the book is already in this blog, so you can give it a test run just by reading further.

If the idea piques your interest, watch this blog. And make plans to buy the book!