Author Interview And Book Giveaway: Hire Train Monitor Motivate By David J Waldron

About the author

David J. Waldron is a passionate student and practitioner of organization, team, and individual career effectiveness in the transformational workplace. He is the author of the new book, Hire Train Monitor Motivate (Country View) published May 31, 2016 and now available on Amazon Books and in the Kindle Store.He is also author of The Ten Domains of Effective Goal Setting (Country View: 2016) and A Great Place to Learn & Earn (Country View: 2015).

David is an award winning contributing writer to Seeking Alpha; and frequent contributor to Career Education Review, HR.com, and Pulse. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business studies from Stockton University and completed The Practice of Management Program at Brown University. David lives with his wife, Suzan, outside Providence, Rhode Island USA.

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About the book:

Title: Hire Train Monitor Motivate By David J Waldron

Paperback, First Edition, 86 pages
Published May 31st 2016 by Country View

Rating: 4.5/5

Blurb: The transformational workplace of the twenty-first century is front and center. Are you ready to navigate its twists and turns toward reaching your career goals and dreams? In Hire Train Monitor Motivate, author and veteran organizational leader, David J. Waldron, offers powerful, yet simple techniques that can dramatically improve your organization, team, or individual career achievements in today’s hyper-competitive local and global marketplaces.

This practical book will teach you how to master the art of workplace effectiveness by first making a lasting commitment to placing people first, whether a customer, recruit, staff member, or coworker. Then hire, or get hired for an optimistic mindset; train, or be trained for delivering quality products and services; monitor, or allow monitoring for regulatory compliance; and motivate, or stay motivated for enduring performance.

As a practitioner more so than an academic, Waldron, presents unpretentious, everyday workplace rules that when implemented, or followed, can transform your organization, team, or individual career to one of lasting distinction. Master the proven techniques for playing the game the right way and learn how to practice leadership or teamwork by inclusion toward making your workplace a great place to learn, earn, and grow.

Hire Train Monitor Motivate guides the reader toward recognizing his or her essential role in today’s transformational workplace. A work environment—whether for-profit, nonprofit, or in the public service—that requires an understanding and buy-in to the Millennial Model, the cultural transition of the now predominant generation that, according to Waldron, is fast becoming the new standard in organizational behavior, group dynamics, and individual effectiveness. This horizontal hierarchical model will likely drive the influential organizations, teams, and careers of the twenty-first century as the vertical hierarchy of the Baby Boomer generation did in the twentieth century.

Waldron guides the reader in embracing crucial areas of the modern workplace. Join him as he explores the emerging dominance of the expert economy; the importance of lifelong learning and perpetual career development; and how to be an active participant—as opposed to the spectator—on the precipice of reinventing compensation and worker equality. Plus, why accepting the significance of work/life balance will remain necessary to sustainable career success.

Whether an owner, donor, leader, manager, supervisor, or staff member, make a commitment to your essential role in the transformational workplace. Read Hire Train Monitor Motivate, today, and make your workplace a great place tomorrow. Your organization, team, and career are counting on you.

Interview:

Kritika: How is the publishing process like for a non-fiction? 

David: I have only written non-fiction since I wrote a two act play in 9th grade English that my teacher adored and encouraged me to write more. So I can’t compare but what I enjoy about non-fiction is I get to write what I know. It is a culmination of life’s experiences. The publishing process is simple (but certainly not easy): plan, research, write, edit, format, publish, and market.

Kritika: What is it about writing a non-fiction that people do not know? 
David: Fiction certainly dominates the overall book market, but non-fiction plays an essential role in assuring that our personal and professional lives are balanced between reality and entertainment. I think both genres are necessary for a rich reading experience.

Kritika: What challenges does a non-fiction writer face? 
David: Publishers prefer lots of pages and words to justify book prices. Most non-fiction books I read (and enjoy) are about 250-400 pages but I typically can highlight the key concepts down to about 100 pages. The other 150-300 pages are mostly filler to satisfy publishers and reference material to satisfy academia. I write what I know with no filler (I think) and limited reference material which is why my books are all around 100 pages.

Kritika: One thing about writing you absolutely love? 
David: Creating something from mind to screen, then to paper or online, and sharing it with the world for better or worse.

Kritika: One thing about writing you kind of hate? 
David: The process is very time consuming. A month as writer seems to go much quicker than a month as an education executive (my former career).

Kritika: How would you describe your relationship with deadlines? 
David: Assigned deadlines are non-negotiable – so you just meet them. Self-imposed deadlines are the most challenging as they are negotiable and therefore can lead to unintended procrastination.

Kritika: When did you decide you write this book? 
David: My first book, A Great Place to Learn & Earn was a memoir of my career in post-secondary education. Hire Train Monitor Motivate is based on the workplace concepts and principles of the original book but is targeted to all careers and industries.

Kritika: What was the trigger for you to write a book dealing with HR topics? 
David: Thirty plus years as a leader, manager, supervisor and staff member in the workplace. I combined my professional experience with my passion for writing into a new career as a non-fiction author. HR topics are varied and controversial which makes them fun to write about. I am a frequent contributing writer to HR.com: the Human Resources Social Network (free, registration required.)

Kritika: What was it like to assimilate all HR wisdom in one concise book? 
David: Some authors prefer to separate related concepts into several books. For example, I could have written perhaps three books on Hire Train Monitor Motivate: one about hiring, one on training, and one on motivating. But I have several books in the works as part of the Books for Main Street℠ series at my publisher, Country View. Therefore, I decided to put all these HR concepts into one book and still keep it at a readable at 100 pages. I like to think of the book as more of a handbook for career motivated millennials.

Kritika: How do you plan for a non-fiction like this, do you write the broad headlines and then work on it, or do you gather all the pointers and then club them together? 
David: Great question, Kritika! I start with a working title which will often change as the book is written. For example, Hire Train Monitor Motivate was originally titled, Make Your Workplace a Great Place, which ended up as a chapter title. I then outline the book based on notes and research of the principles and concepts. Then organize the outline into a table of contents and begin writing. And writing. And writing. I will skip around and write a chapter or section based on what is flowing from my mind on that particular day. It is kind of like making a movie, where scenes are shot from a storyboard but rarely in order of the script. The editing process then puts the scenes together in sequence. The same with a non-fiction book as it is ultimately edited into a hopefully seamless and orderly flow. Like fiction, repetitiveness is common in non-fiction to insure the reader is given ample opportunity to grasp the concept (or plot development in fiction) so the transition to the next concept (or plot twist) is seamless.

Kritika: Are you currently working on another non-fiction book? 
David: I am currently writing the next book in my series, “Books for Main Street℠,” about personal investing, an adult life-long passion of mine. The working title (which I think will stick) is Value Investing for Main Street. It is a primer on how to invest with limited capital, lower costs, and less risk than the titans of Wall Street. The book is based on my article series of the same title on Seeking Alpha, the most read online investment platform on the web.


Nothing elates me more than the fact that there's more wisdom coming from this person in his next books!
Thank you so much for an amazing interview!

For a limited time, the eBook edition of Hire Train Monitor Motivate is being offered in a free promotion on Kindle, iBooks, Nook, Kobo, Inktera, and Smashwords. 

He is also generous so as to give away a paperback copy of his book, and the giveaway is open worldwide. All you have to do is follow the instructions on the rafflecopter below.
This giveaway is being run by the blog SO Many Books, SO Little Time in collaboration with the author, and has no affiliation to any other entity.

It is open for a week, so do not wait and participate right away!
The only condition is to have an amazon deliverable address!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Author Interview and spotlight: Tania Joyce

Tania has penned Propositions. It is an erotic romance, and she is so happy and cheerful about what she writes, it rubs off on the reader. Probably, this is why her first book has received positive response in abundance. She has more surprises for her readers in the same genre. And it only gets HOTTER!

Interview:

     Kritika:  Congratulations on getting published. Tell us about the beginning of the beginning! When did you decide to write the book? when was the idea conceived? Was this the only idea on your mind, or did you have to choose?

Tania: It was never a lifelong dream of mine to become a writer. I only had the urge to start after I gave birth to my second son.  I started writing my first manuscript in August 2011.  Since then, my mind is constantly being bombarded with ideas for stories. I just can’t write fast enough.

The idea for Propositions has been a combination of events – dreams, attending high school and college reunions and travel.

 Kritika:  How long did it take you to write the novel?

Tania: For Propositions - from first word to being published took two years.  Writing the first draft actually only took about 3 months, but then it’s all the rework, edits, submissions and working with the publisher before it’s released.

 I am still on a very big learning curve, so it is taking me a while to turn around a completed manuscript.  Propositions was actually my second manuscript.  My first, Distractions, is in the final stages of editing. I am working on the sequel to Propositions (I should be writing it now!)

     Kritika:  How distracted are you when you're writing? Do you have certain rules? 

Tania: It varies day to day. The majority of the time though, when I get the chance to sit and write, a bomb would have to go off to pull me away from the computer.

I do not have certain rules about writing. I am not one to set word counts or time limits.  I have a young family and they will always come first. I also have a part-time job as a marketing consultant. When I have the time, I write, which is about 2-3 days a week.

     Kritika:   Was writing always the plan? If so, was this how you has envisaged it?

Tania: No, writing was not always part of the plan.  Up until a few years ago, I was very career focused and have quite a successful career in corporate marketing. But now I have unleashed this creativity in me, I don’t want to stop. All I want to do it write.  I have learned so much about the industry, guidelines, editing, and how to develop a strong well-structured story with strong characters. It’s amazing. But it is a tough business. You have to be committed and prepared to work hard.

     Kritika: Usually, some genres like YA or Sci-fi have fandoms and proponents- it makes their promotion so much easier- do you think it is challenging to make a mark as an author in the erotica/adult romance category?

Tania: The world of electronic media and digital marketing has certainly changed the way authors promote their books to the world.  I think you can find fandom etc in all genres.  Romance is the largest genre on the planet, it’s just an effort to make sure you stand out among the crowd!

If you have a good story, word of mouth will help it succeed.

    Kritika: Will you write in the same genre or would you like to experiment?

Tania: Yes – I like to write steamy sex scenes! They’re fun. So I’ll be sticking to the erotic romance genre.  However, my book, Distractions, is a college romance so will probably be listed under the New Adult genre – purely based on the age group, but it’s still HOT!

     Kritika: What do you have in the pipeline for the readers?

Tania: I have quite a few things in the pipeline.

Distractions – my New Adult college romance is due out towards the end of this year.

Acquisitions (working title) – is the sequel to Propositions and is due out early next year.

Then, I have three other works-in-progress already plotted out and ready to write.

There’s a lot in the pipeline.

     Kritika: Do you think adult romance gets repetitive? Is it hard to find a fresh plot which is original, despite the theme being "no-strings-attached"?

Tania: No – you read Romance for a happy ending. You read Crime to solve a mystery. You read Sci-Fi /Fantasy to go on a quest and save the world.

There is actually only a limited number of plot lines that stories are categorized into. It’s just your matter of interpretation and making your own story around them.

Romance is never boring and repetitive in my opinion – and I read a lot of romance!

     Kritika: How real or fictional are the characters that you wrote? 

      Tania: It’s all fiction.  Often I may reflect on something that happened in my life, overheard, witnessed or experienced to help convey the emotions into my characters.  I have a lot of vivid dreams as well, so I piece these together to come up with my storylines. It’s a lot of fun.

Kritika: Anything you read recently and enjoyed?

Tania: Hot Rock and Roll Romance - Kylie Scott’s – Stage Dive Series – Lick, Play, Lead and Deep.

            Romantic Suspense - Kendall Talbot’s – Treasured Secrets

            Contemporary Romance - Noelle Clark’s – Honor’s Debt

Read my review of propositions here.

You can connect with the author here:

          

I thank Tania Joyce for being such a wonderful writer, and letting me interview her.

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Author Spotlight and Interview: Olivier Lafont

About the author

Read my review of Warrior (4.5/5) here


Interview:

Kritika: Congratulations on the book. Warrior is a mythological fiction. This genre is still in its infancy stage in India. What made you venture into this genre specifically for a debut novel?

Olivier: The first incarnation of ‘Warrior’ was actually a feature film script I wrote more than a dozen years ago, before I moved to Mumbai, so the story has existed since then. I have read and written in the genres of fantasy and science fiction for a long time before, so writing ‘Warrior’ was a natural development. I originally wanted to create an Indian film that would be on the same scale as big Hollywood special effects blockbusters of the time like ‘The Matrix’ and ‘Lord of the Rings’. 

Kritika: What came first: the plot or the urge to write? Was writing always the plan, & the idea was what you were waiting for? 

Olivier: The urge to write is, for me, overarching and fairly constant, so that would come first. I wanted to write from a very young age, around the same time that ideas for stories started coming to me.

Kritika: How has your experience on getting published been till now? Any insights you'd like to share with our readers?

 Olivier: The experience has been straightforward, and of course seeing my book in print was fun and satisfying.

Kritika: Saam, the protagonist of the novel has endeared himself as a demigod. Although he is divine, his fallibility appeals to the reader. Was there any point in the story that you struggled etching Saam? 

 Olivier: I don’t recall having any trouble creating the character of Saam. Once I knew who he was and what it was he had to go through it just developed quite naturally.

Kritika: Writing fiction requires imagination. Add a slice of mythology to it, and we have fiction and fact intersecting at another level altogether. How difficult was the process of laying down the plot? Do you have some work process/pattern?

 Olivier: I was particularly careful about the intersection of fact and fiction, mainly because I wanted the reader to be able to believe that this could and would happen. The structuring of the many elements happened organically and with a fair degree of ease, actually. In this respect it wasn’t difficult, and I don’t have a particular process I follow. Generally I have a sense of the story and the main characters and I know the broad strokes of where it’s all going, but I leave it somewhat open-ended to allow space for invention.

Kritika: We have no doubt you went under the skin of the characters to make them who they are.  Was there any character you especially love or relate to? 

Olivier:  I really love the character of Saam, my hero. I wanted to create an epic, classic hero, someone who is powerful but struggles with his identity, with his life, for me that made for a compelling and relatable character.

Kritika: What do we have in the pipeline? More from the same genre?

Olivier:  There should be more coming in perhaps several genres, but for now I’m busy with a new film script I’ve written, for the first time with myself as the main character. I’m actually looking for a producer to partner with on it. The film is a really fun comedy, and could be an Indian film or an international one, so the producer could also be Indian or international.

Kritika: Any special moment from the time you were writing the book that you'd like to share? 

Olivier:  Actually every moment of the book was a special moment for me, since I was enacting it in my mind throughout. The thrill of the fights, the fun of the adventure, the threat of danger… all these were moments I felt and experienced intensely, and I hope my readers will as well.

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Quotes from the book:

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Source of the review copy: Freebase Studio (Gina Lafont)

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Author spotlight and Interview: Shama Patel

By the number of smiles in the interview, you can tell how positive a person the author is. True to her personality, she has written her debut work, "21 ways of being happy" which has been published by Grapevine Publishers. It received a 5* rating from our blog  here.

Today, she joins us for an insightful, cheerful and lovely chat!

Kritika: What triggered the writing bug in your case? Was there some moment of epiphany?

Shama: The writing bug was triggered in 2009 when I was all geared up to write a fiction script. I did complete the script, co-authored by a close friend (Asif Sayani). We managed to circulate the script to 12-15 publishers and got a ‘No’ from most of them. The rest never got back. Though I did enjoy working on that script, I was not drawn to writing as passionately as I am today. While I continued to work as an editor and take up various writing projects, the real breakthrough happened when I developed a sincere urge to write about my thoughts, feelings and experiences (sometime around 2012). I started maintaining a blog where I began writing about everyday human struggle and ending each post with something positive to take home. I maintained that while continuing my work as a Psychologist. It all started then and the passion was patiently transformed into '21 Ways of Being Happy' when Grapevine India identified my strength as a writer and a Counselor:-)

On her journey with the book:
This book has been a cathartic journey for me. There were time where I found my creative genius leading the entire process while I felt like a mere channel through which the words were spoken. There were moments when I was so involved into writing a part that I would begin writing at 1 am and be in the literary trance till 5-6 in the morning. So this whole journey has been mystically creative for me.

Kritika: How was writing the book a different experience than the sessions you have with your clients?
Shama: Haha. I like this question:) Well, when I take sessions, it is the client who does the talking and I play the role of a listener. In therapy, the clients speak out their dilemmas, unanswered questions, doubts, confusions etc. and it is during these conversations that they begin to see their life in a better and much healthier perspective.

However, in writing, it was left for me to do the talking and I had the entire Universe as my imaginary readers! So, I began to play dual role of both client and a Psychologist and began this beautiful journey towards happiness. Since I have gone through (and I still go through) day-to-day human challenges, I started sharing my own challenges (from a client perspective) so that the readers can relate to the feelings, behavior and emotions that we all experience. Then I would role reverse and see things from a Counselor's perspective and add ways that I personally practiced in my life. While in therapy, the clients bring in a problem situation, I had to come up with my own list of challenges that I would simplify through this book. The common thread that runs in both therapy and my book is my desire to touch lives. So, even though the process differ, my purpose of healing remains same in both the situations:-)

Kritika: How do you think does the genre of self-help ease the pain of those in distress?

Shama: I believe that each of us has a special gift. Some are gifted techies, some are gifted artists, some gifted dancers and similarly, there are people who are gifted with the ability to ease out the stress in people's lives. Psychologists and Counselors are some of those gifted individuals who, by nature, posses the art of healing which is further enhanced through studying the subject matter and learning various tools to overcome stress. In my opinion, any human being who has gone through problems in life and have managed to overcome them becomes compelled to share this learning with fellow human beings. This is how we have people write volumes of books on self-help. Since we all are human beings and most of us receive the same conditioning throughout our lives, we tend to have (almost) similar problem pattern and when we hear a person (aka self-help guru) talk about a problem and solution, we begin to relate to it with all our heart and mind. Since the self-help writers are human beings, their (hopefully) tried and tested ways do help in easing out the stress that a common human being experiences in his/her life. It works because when in distress, we refuse to see another perspective or fail to cross the fence and get on the other side of life. In that helplessness and hesitation, a self-help expert becomes the one who stands in front of you to say "Dude! life is difficult. It is painful. But you know what, I am here to be by your side. I am here if you need a hand or a light to assist you get on the other side of this fence. I know you can cross it because I have. If I as a human being can, then you as a human being definitely can". So, while you get comfortable relishing the role of a victim (the poor me), a self-help book/speaker can kick your butt and get you connected to the lost strength that lies within you.

What I do wish to highlight here is, self-help books are to be read with an intention of beginning your journey towards easing the stress in life and not used as a bible to refer to, each time you are in distress. While you continue to treat a particular book/author as a self-help guru, do not limit your search. Make your own self your own self-help guru (No one else but you). When you do that, you automatically begin to see how one book or one video or one self-help talk begins to transform your being in a positive manner, opening several healing channels within and around you. Get in touch with that self-help Guru within you, while you continue to explore this genre to broaden your knowledge and wisdom about human life:)

Kritika: What are the future plans? Can your readers expect more in the same genre, or is there a surprise?
Shama: Well I have signed a contract of seven books so, I have six more to go! For now, I hope the readers enjoy the journey into '21 Ways of Being Happy' :-) I am determined to write a book on Relationships so hopefully that would be my second writing venture:)
Future plans! To continue spreading happiness and healing through my work, be it writing, art, counseling or by simply being a human being! :)

Kritika: Any comments/experiences you'd like to share pertaining to getting published?

Shama: Now that I have a book published, I realize that it is easier to get a book published than to promote and market it in the literary world. Since first time authors are still looked at as wearing an 'L' board around their neck, not many people/bookstores are open to giving them bhav and promoting their work. Especially with the self-help tag, people develop a presumed notion that 'yeh toh badi boring and pakaau book hogi'. So, it is a real challenge for me to break that myth and pass this message of happiness to as many people as I can. Even though it is a challenge, I have been fortunate enough to come across blessed and wonderful souls like you who have been generous to join me on this journey of spreading happiness. I keep talking about the book/concept to whoever I meet and in that determination of promoting my work, I do encounter people who are willing to help me spread the word. What keeps me going on this journey is my faith on my work and the belief that it will touch numerous lives, sooner or later:)

This was such a great interview.
I am so happy to know that there are more books in the pipeline, I can't wait! And this author certainly endears herself to her readers! I adore the optimism and candour! It is at times like these that I find myself immensely lucky to be a book blogger.
Thanks for hopping on to my blog!
Find her book here: