By Vickie Edwards Smith



Each of us is given a gift—the gift of life. At times, some may wish they could exchange their gift for a different version. Since that’s not possible, we have to deal with what we are given. We have to learn how to play the game.

Developing you is huge in understanding the gift of life. In her book, The Checkerboard Game of Life, author Vickie Edwards Smith tells Eva’s story. Like most of us, she wants to get the most out of life. She’s always thought of life as a game of checkers. Life makes its move and then it’s her turn to make hers. Each move she makes is her choice. Life’s moves may make hers more difficult—and she’s certainly had trying times—but she manages to jump them and win.

The Checkerboard Game of Life takes you on Eva’s journey, which may be much like your own. Seeing how Eva handles her situations will give you a clearer understanding of how to develop inner peace and understand how you arrived where you are today. Learn how to create a map for living a balanced, more fulfilling life and see life as a gift. 

This book is available for purchase through Amazon or IUniverse

Vickie Edwards Smith graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a Bachelor of Science degree in information systems/systems analysis and also studied psychology. She is the founder of the Networking Secret. It has been her mission to help people understand the true meaning of living life as a gift. 

Click here to find out more!! thenetworkingsecret.net​

By Ed Blaze


World Peace is Comedy by Ed Blaze, A National touring stand-up Comedian and Designer of Bergin Watches. For some people, the universal language is music, for others it is dance or sport. For him, it’s comedy. Humor is his way of communicating and creating a bond with people from different cultures to learn and understand each other, building a sense of friendship from there. He used humor to settle into his new life in the United States when he moved here from Tanzania. This book is about his childhood in Africa, his life as a stand-up comedian in America, and his drive to reach out and help aspiring comics through his start-up company Metro Comedy Entertainment. The book also discusses his passion for championing local charities wherever he tours and his strong belief that comedy is a healing force for people of all races and backgrounds.

Find your own copy of this book on Amazon!

New Yorker, Christopher Holley, has been an elementary school educator for over 12 years. Through working closely with children he has developed and refined his voice, drawing inspiration from greats like Roald Dahl, David A. Adler and Jeff Kinney.

In his children's stories, Christopher tackles tough issues like water conservation, body image and acceptance. However, he has a whimsical side as well, telling tales of students being put in charge of their school, a fairy that grants moustaches and choosing super-duper super powers.

Moving forwards, Christopher's goals are to continue working closely with children as an educator, and to author many more fantastic, kid-friendly stories.

On a personal basis, Christopher is engaged and he simply loves dogs! In his spare time, he enjoys the Martial Arts, football and strategy games.

Find out more about Christopher Holley on his webpage- www.BooksByHolley.com!

Antwinette Scott makes her home in sunny Sacramento with her husband of 24 years and 5 beautiful children. Having penned random thoughts on paper for years, Scott finally decided to transform these scribbled ramblings into a children’s book.




This delightful read, Woobee’s Journey, is Scott’s newly published release while the author continues to work on other charming children’s books for young hearts and minds. With a love for children and God, it’s no surprise that Scott would eventually follow her calling to help children who are enduring pain and trials. She is committed to uplifting spirits of young children and illustrating the beauty of relationship and importance of memories that transcend time.

Love—profound, true love—is the main theme of her work, as she desires to write about real life and the truths that are hard to ignore. This may be her first book, but it certainly won’t be her last.




Antwinette Scott is a captivating new children’s book author with many ideas that are brewing until they’re ready to find their way to little hands – where they belong.

​Within the pages of Ms. Scott's book, Woobee's Journey readers will discover a boy's life path from boyhood to manhood.  Joining him on his journey is his Woobee, a blanket given to him by his grandmother when he was very young.  This is the story about the love of a grandmother, and the memories that never fade, prayers that never end and love that is passed on for a lifetime.

"I hope readers will gain a deeper appreciation for relationships in family, in particular, grandparents" states the author.  "Family, love, hope, prayers and tradition are longed for in the hearts of children and are alive in the hearts of grandparents.  Love is never forgotten, even in death"

​​​





​http://www.antwinettescott.org
​Follow Antwinette Scott on Twitter

"Helping people reach their potential."
Bold words from a former consultant of a fifty-five million dollar corporation.  

Leadership consultant turned author, Keith Johnston addressed the gap in the motivational- self- help industry by tackling the tough issues of teaching others HOW to lead.  
In his latest book, A Garage Full of Ferraris, he interviews others who have succeeded as leaders by taking their teams to new heights.  He shows the ins and outs of the journey.  We get to glimpse the inside of successes and failures, and most importantly, he shows you how to find and develop those leadership skills within yourself. 

Mr. Johnston is inspired by those who defeat the odds.  Those who are willing to go up against "impossible" and make things happen.  He uses his inspiration from the sports world with coaches such as Lou Holtz and Tony Dungy who take their teams to higher heights by setting goals and teaching each member of the team to believe in themselves. 

Characteristics like integrity and honesty are high priorities for Keith Johnston and he refers to those when he speaks of the people he admires most.  People that achieve their goals despite the odds.  People that have made an impact on him personally and from a distance. It is these people, everyone from CEO's to high placed executives to his former high school coach, that Mr. Johnson uses to teach leadership skills and values in the new book.  Real life people.  Real life experiences.  Real life training.  
When I asked about his real-life football coach, probably one of the first major influences of his young-adult life, he said, "Any football player, who has had a good football experience, remembers and respects their high school football coach.  Mine was special.  He took the time to instill pride in all of us and he was unwilling to compromise on his values to win a few more games.  In the second year of the five years I played for him he took me aside and told me that I was making a significant contribution to the team.  His words were extremely motivating and taught me that you could motivate someone by praising them not just by yelling at them.

"I have maintained my relationship with him over the years and have visited with him on many occasions.  He is now in his 80’s and in poor health.  I was with him in July on a visit to Texas to give him a copy of my book as he is featured in the book.

He left coaching after my senior year in high school and took a job in sales.  Using the same philosophy he used as a football coach catapulted him into a senior executive position with a large US company.

One of the things he told me that had always puzzled him, was that he could not understand why more coaches did not take the time to get to know their players on a personal level.  The fact that he did take the time is probably one of the characteristics that endeared us to him.

What's next for this leadership consultant- turned-author?  "I am currently working on a leadership program which I hope to deliver to promising young business leaders in the community where I live," he says. So you just might find him diligently working in the local coffee shop where he can turn off the phone and other distractions and concentrate on helping other achieve their goals.
When asked what is coming for the future, he replied, "If I wrote a book a year, I'd be busy for the next twenty years."  
It sounds like we will be seeing a lot more of Keith Johnston!  

If you find yourself in a leadership position and need that edge, or if you know there are leadership qualities deep inside of you whispering to be encouraged or if you just need some inspiration look to the genius of Keith Johnston.

By Lynley Buckley

One hundred and sixty words about me.  Country girl from New Zealand, who immigrated to Perth, WA, early 2000, with my husband and two beautiful daughters.  Jumped into working at local Trauma Hospital and got wonderful experience in Neurosurgery, Orthopaedics and Ortho geriatrics. At the same time completed two years of transformational life coaching which would change my life direction. Finding it hard to keep in touch with family, we then sold up in 2009 and after a wonderful trip overseas moved to the Sunshine Coast, Queensland.  Here I dived into Aged Care role with a great team of nurses.  Developing key skills, the next step was completing my Nurse Practitioner Masters.  Writing has been in my family with my sister writing a book when she was 20,  I have written  many anecdotal stories and decided that there was a gap with helping families deal with Dementia.  One published work on Amazon, but already its helping people make decisions and move forward.  I have always been a creative person but have struggled getting things lined up.  I think there will be more to come, just needing the time to write!




Find Ms. Buckley's book The Aging Game here on Amazon!

Marica Love’s passion for humanity, music, creativity, and living an abundant life is rivalled only by her love of children; motherhood is the root of her greatest successes.

 

Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, Marica is the eldest of four siblings. She moved to Europe in 1991 at the age of eighteen and stayed until the end of the Croatian War of Independence in 1995. Marica’s personal journey is candidly chronicled in her new book, Married to the War, the first in a series of books.

Once hailed by a newspaper photographer as “Nice, friendly, flamboyant and savvy”, Marica embraces those accolades and flourishes in every role she undertakes. She was the station manager, a member of the board of directors, on on-air presenter at WOWfm 100.7 for five years and was the producer of her television show ‘Unsigned & Inspiring’ on CH31 in Sydney. Music serves as an endless source of motivation and inspiration to her. As the owner of The Cake Pop Emporium Pty Ltd in 2013, she had the honor of serving political dignitaries, the Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard and MP David Bradbury in her store.

Marica is not influenced by other’s opinions and expectations. When the calling came to start over in life again, she embraced the opportunity. She is guided from within and will continue to bring her ideas to life with the influence of God and her Angels. A strong will, tenacity and compassion are virtues which enabled her to begin again and she is thriving.


She currently lives in Sydney with her beloved pup, Ellie Mae. When not writing or furthering her skills, Marica enjoys hanging out with her adult children, traveling, the beach, cooking, movies and pampering sessions.  

While she continuously grows as an individual, passing on the gift of creativity and self-discovery is important to her.  

 
Follow Marica on Facebook
or find out more about her here!

By Lizzie Morris

Before the medical industry became such a powerful force in our country, most folk would run to the kitchen instead of the doctor to treat many of the ailments that send us packing our kids off to be poked, probed and stuffed with harmful chemicals. Most folk don’t know that many of those prescriptions we get for our conditions do more harm to our bodies than help. Home remedies are not only natural and more beneficial but also treat many illnesses and conditions faster than any antibiotic. Every mother should have a copy in their kitchen.

Most of what I know has been passed down to me by my mother and to her by my granny. When my daughters left home early to find work, I decided I’d better get down to writing what I wanted to tell them. The result is this book: A collection of Granny’s home remedies.

Testimonial: As a work-at-home author and single mother of two very active kids, I found incredible value in Granny’s Big Ol’ Book O’ Home Remedies. The remedies are real, provide great results and I’m happy knowing that my kids aren’t getting pumped with harmful chemicals that will solve one problem and create more. I now have a cupboard in my kitchen for the ingredients I use most often and have quickly become a home remedy expert. Thank you so much.

Cindy Hanson, Author and Single Mom
Dallas TX

Find Granny's Big Ol' Book O' Home Remedies on Amazon!

By Antwinette Scott


Woobee, handmade with love, was gifted to Isaiah from his Grandmother when he was a little boy.  The rambunctious Isaiah took his Woobee everywhere he went.

But when Grandma passes away, Woobee becomes more than just a security blanket but a lasting memory of his Grandma.  Torn and battered, Woobee has seen it all.  What some may just throw away Woobee instead, evolves giving Isaiah the comfort he misses from his Grandma.

As Isaiah grows, Woobee transforms too, from a blanket to a cape, a pillow, a tie and finally a patch of a handkerchief.  Married with children and now grandchildren of his own Isaiah promises to hand down Grandma's tradition.  Stitching, Woobee's for his own, passing down the legacy.

Woobie's journey, is a sweet tale of a Grandma's touch of love, tenderly sewn into a seemingly ordinary blanket.  But not just any blanket, it's Isaiah's Woobee.  A special blanket that keeps the memory of his Grandma alive.

Such a relatable and honest tale that reminds readers that your loved ones are never forgotten.  As well as a considerable teaching tool for young children to know the ones we've cherished and lost will forever remain in our hearts.

Look for this adorable story on Amazon.