Pleased to announce Los Angeles-based independent book publisher Rare Bird Books will be publishing Doug‘s new novel The Investment Club along with the paperback release of his award-winning debut novel, Outside In in October 2016. Stay tuned for pre-order and event information.
Rare Bird is the parent company of Rare Bird Lit and Rare Bird Books, two Los Angeles-based book industry firms founded by former Book Soup marketing and publicity director Tyson Cornell. Rare Bird Lit, the marketing wing, is a boutique marketing and promotions firm specializing in book promotions for major and independent publishers, authors big and small, and other organizations. Rare Bird Books, the publishing wing, is a PGW-distributed independent publisher of approximately twenty-five books a year in multiple formats, including print, ebook, audio, and limited edition.
We often know immediately when we make mistakes. With more experience we begin noticing the poor choices as they occur. Eventually as we mature, we recognize the bad decisions before they happen. Experiencing this gap between action and reaction allows us to choose a different response and hopefully create a more positive outcome. Unfortunately when we voice our cynical instincts to others, we are often accused of being pessimists. But recognizing negative outcomes before they occur does not make us party poopers or defeatists. It really just shows we are learning and becoming more self-aware.
We all wear masks to hide our true feelings. On occasion it’s to show support for others, sometimes it’s to deceive, and others it’s simply to protect ourselves. With the latter, when what we are feeling is so strong and personal that we can’t share our real reaction, the mask shields us by insulating our vulnerability and tenderness. But this pretend face is an illusion and doesn’t change what we really feel. Only when we have the strength and courage to align our inner and outer lives will the mask dissolve, and we stop pretending.
Evaluating our past efforts and planning for the future are important activities for growth and change, but we must not become so focused on looking back and planning forward that we are not seeing and appreciating the present. Each moment is a gift that we cannot relive. Centering our attention on what is happening now and being aware of how we feel and are impacting others will deepen our connection and enrich our experience in this world. We must avoid the urge to mentally time travel to escape our restless minds. Everything we need to move forward is always with us.
While our lives are very different, one common experience we share is the precious time in the morning when we transition from unconscious sleep to conscious awareness. Sometimes we want to pull the covers over our heads and retreat back into dreamy oblivion and others we fling our feet on the floor and charge off excited to tackle the challenges of the day. But, if rather than reacting to these early inclinations, we pause and consider what we are feeling, we will better understand and appreciate ourselves and the choices we have made and need to make to achieve our goals.
