The dream of the rhinoceros

Oh. A rhinoceros!

Just before waking Sunday morning, I was looking up a long dark staircase with random people sitting listlessly on a stair here or there. The dream was progressing in usual fashion when at the top of the stairs appeared a rhinoceros.

It pawed and looked down at the people. We were filled with alarm. Should we sit still and hope we weren't noticed or, as some contemplated, should we creep up and slam the door? What if that enraged the rhinoceros and it broke through the door and down the steps, trampling all in its path?

While we were contemplating, the rhino lifted its head, turned proudly and charged away, out of sight.

I awoke in the predawn and did some contemplating of my own. I've never dreamed of a rhinoceros before. I looked at the clock. 4:31. The alarm was set; I had thought of getting up at 5:00 on this Sunday morning and butt-kicking my writing career. I could settle back in for a half-hour's sleep or jump up and get to it.

The nap tempted me for a moment, but then I realized I wouldn't be dreaming of rhinos unless it was time to do some hard-charging.

I got up, made coffee, and sat down to write. I finished this little essay at 4:56.

Kick the procrastination demon in the butt once and for all

When last we met, I mentioned that this is the year that my little superpowered friend Myke Phoenix will be making a monthly appearance to thrill and entertain you. I also mentioned that has been my goal for the past two Januarys (Januaries?), and the best I was able to produce was two stories in January and February 2013. Fun stories, but only two.

Why do I feel more confident the third time’s a charm? It’s over there in the right column, where it says “Myke Phoenix Adventures for Kindle.” You’ll find links to the four ebooks that are already available, along with a list of the next six in the series, with specific release dates the first Monday of each month.

Last year I based my goal-making on a concept summed up by Julia Cameron, who said, “Secrecy is the first law of magic.” I’ve found over the years that telling other people the story, before I’ve written it down, expends some of the creative energy that otherwise would be spent wordsmithing. I thought for once I would keep that energy packed inside until needed to unleash a story, then reveal my plan by unveiling a magical story every month until people began to understand, “Oh! This is a monthly series! How cool.”

The problem there? Well, March 2013 came and went without a new Myke Phoenix story, and then April, and May, etc., and no one noticed because no one knew the stories were supposed to be coming. This year (and from now on) I am setting a specific deadline for each story and sharing it with anyone who cares to know. It’s worked grand so far: Next month’s tale is drafted and going through final tweaks, the March and April adventures are plotted and being written, and I know generally where the stories go for the next six months after that. I’ll even let you know that I plan to compile these 12 stories into a print and ebook collection in plenty of time for Christmas 2014 gift-giving. There. Now the pressure’s on me to deliver, which is the same as last year, but now I’ve raised your expectations and I’m accountable to you, too.

As if to affirm that this is a better approach than conjuring magic in secrecy, my old friend Wally Conger has just released an amazingly insightful little package called Operation Hulk-SMASH. It’s a short and to-the-point primer subtitled “Harness Your Green Rage Monster To Build Rapid Business Success.” Wally doesn’t waste a word in encouraging his reader to stop diddling around with those dreams and just get started turning them into reality. I’m pleased to say that building accountability into the system is part of his formula – but I’ll let you find out for yourself. Click here to grab Operation Hulk-SMASH and start tapping its wisdom within moments.

Wally has a knack for getting straight to the point and driving it home. As I prepare to build the Myke Phoenix series, I’ve recently read a number of great books about branding, including Platform, No Brand is An Island, and Write. Publish. Repeat. All of them feature great suggestions that expand on concepts I’d already seen in Wally’s short and to-the-point primer called Breakneck Branding.

I heartily recommend Wally’s new effort for anyone who feels stuck in the water and wants to give their project a swift kick in the right direction. And know that as you keep up with Myke in coming months, the protector of Astor City owes a debt to Operation Hulk-SMASH for helping to keep its author motivated.

Out of step

My friend Wally Conger had a blog with the subtitle “Unfinished essays and spontaneous eruptions on radical politics and popular culture.” I guess that’s what this is; the thoughts are still fermenting.

I’m struck by the growing perception of capitalism as a bad thing, and by “capitalism” I mean a system based on free market, open competition, profit motive and private ownership.

It means people doing their best, hard work in order to accomplish some thing, being it food on the table or a roof overhead or a useful tool or information for the community or the next generation.

How do you (and “we”) move forward without being rewarded for good, hard work? What is the incentive to produce when the more you produce, the more you are taxed and regulated? Human nature never stops being human nature: When the cost of a product or service is too high, the product or service will not be exchanged.

Profit is the discretionary funds left when costs are subtracted from revenue. Profit is the trip to the movies, the dessert, the ball game, the electronic toy. Reduce profits and you reduce the money spent on items beyond food, clothing and shelter.

And yet “profit” is a word said with a sneer and a spit, and “the rich” are reviled as if becoming rich can happen without hard work and dedicated service to others. It’s a puzzlement.

Give up the zombie lifestyle

Are you tired of shuffling around, shambling through life not especially aware of where you are and where you're going, except that you have a gnawing desire to eat brains?

You're not alone – well, maybe except for the brain-eating part – and you may find a way toward a more focused life by reading my little book A Scream of Consciousness.

Have you ever stopped what you're doing with a sudden sense of awareness and frustration and said, "There's more to life than this!"?

That's a scream of consciousness.

Have you ever opened your eyes and realized with a peace beyond understanding that the world around you is overflowing with beauty and possibilities?

That's a scream of consciousness.

Have you ever felt a surge of energy when you realized exactly where you needed to be and what you needed to be doing to have the life you were born to have?

That's a scream of consciousness.

Now, how do you maintain that sense of joy and purpose moment by moment, every hour of every day?

That's the purpose of my little book A Scream of Consciousness.

It's a quick read; you should be able to zip through it in an hour or so, and then come back for a reminder of how to Be Here Now and stay aware of the moment.

If you're not convinced this is a book you need to read, my friend Wally Conger and I spent some time talking about the concepts in the book – and overcoming the zombie lifestyle – in this podcast interview. Give it a listen and then come back here to buy the book.

And if that doesn't do the trick, here are three sample chapters.

Open publication - Free publishing - More awareness

A Scream of Consciousness: Wake Up and Embrace the Present Moment is designed to help you experience life in its fullest, every moment. Thanks for reading this far, and if you'd like more, you know what to do.

A chat about embracing Monday

Something about Monday gets a person questioning the whole deal. Ostensibly it's the start of another new work week; ideally you've taken a couple of days to rest and recharge so you can dive with enthusiasm back into the tasks you've chosen for your livelihood.

So why does Monday have its reputation? You know what I'm talking about.

Maybe it's time to wake up and embrace this life that you've been sleeping through.

The other day Wally Conger and I spent a fun hour talking about the whys and wherefores of my new book, A Scream of Consciousness: Wake Up and Embrace the Present Moment. You know, the one I've been mentioning here with the cover photo of Willow embracing a sunny winter's morning.

We talked about the book, zombies, creativity, happiness and following through on the promise of being alive moment by moment. He also had some nice words to say about my previous project, Refuse to be Afraid, which seems to be more timely day by day. And Wally – who has a big new project of his own about to break out this week – has made our conversation available for free to his friends, and now mine.

I'll let Wally take it from there. I hope you'll click in the right places, enjoy the conversation, and sample the book(s) over there on the right rail.

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end

The book is ready. Although the "official" launch is about a week away, you can have it now.  If you were one of the folks who volunteered to ready the semifinal draft last month, you will get your hard copy shortly after the launch-launch. Call this a "soft opening." After a year or so of tinkering and a month or so of hard labor, it's good to be here and be able to say, "I made this!"

This collection of 15 essays began to form itself into a book when Wally Conger quoted Rhinoceros Success author Scott Robert Alexander’s blog: “No one knows what is going to get your pistons pumping except you. Write your own motivational book! You don’t have to worry about proper sentences, spelling or punctuation. No one is going to read it except you.”

And Wally followed it up with: “Got a motivational book inside of YOU? I bet you do. And maybe someday you’ll be willing to share it with the rest of us.” That was the push that I needed.

I wrote the book I needed to read. After hearing from my test readers, I think it has something to say. I hope you'll agree!

Now that we're on the subject, do you have a motivational book inside of YOU? I believe you do. You might want to get started, and there's no time like now — in fact, there is ONLY now.