The Surrender Kickstarter – 24 days to go!

SURRENDER!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/941940706/surrender

Be inspired to shift life purpose and meaning by focusing on empowering photographic and word images that take you beyond the norm.

Surrender is a provocative and visually striking photographic essay that primarily honors women, while also honoring the dignity of life altogether.

Surrender honors women by stimulating the surrender of our outdated views and attitudes towards women; views and attitudes of both men and women. It honors the dignity of life by clarifying life purpose and meaning through a spiritual narrative, releasing the stunning inner images that speak through spiritual awareness. Through the photographic and word images alike, it celebrates the innate beauty of the human figure and soul, as we stand naked before God in all our innocence. Some even say that Surrender is about Mary Magdalene’s empathic experiencing of the Jesus’ last days.

However, this book is not about religion, or even spirituality. Surrender is a book aboutyou! Surely, it will have its very own profound impact on you—and it could well empower you beyond measure.

Surrender will be printed in a 9” X 9” format, using a tri-tone process to make these exquisite black and white images look as close as possible to their archival print counterparts.

Some background: Although I have authored and published 16 spiritual books with three different publishers in the past 7-8 years, photograph books are exceptionally expensive and thus difficult to publish. When combined with the nature of these photographs, publishers have been reluctant to address spiritual issues using such powerful images.

Even so, I’ve worked diligently to see that Surrender has as least found its way into many individual collections through the Amazon/Kindle digital publishing program. (See this version on my website: www.creationspirit.net.) Since its release a little over a year ago, readers continue to clamor for a first rate tabletop hard copy, as well as wanting to obtain prints of the images themselves.

Recently, two artist friends who also happen to be gallery owners—both of whom have contributed commentary to this book—suggested that rather than trying to get galleries to make all the images available at once, perhaps publishing the collection in book form would do the trick—thus putting the entire collection and related perks into the hands of artistically and spiritually motivated patrons at much less expense. Eureka!

Archival limited edition perk to you!

So here it is. Surrender is fully designed and ready to go. It’s up to us now. Let’s show the world what it really means to collaborate!

Why you should participate?

• Because you’d be the proud owners, not only of an autographed, limited edition classic photo book of black and white images and sterling commentary, but also—depending on the level of support provided—the possessor of a signed, limited edition archival gelatin silver photograph for your collection.


• Because you’re a good friend, a loving family member, a treasured member of my computer-based social family or simply interested in fine art photography and/or spiritual issues.


• Because you’re interested in issues of the heart and being empowered by deeper meaning gained from a variety of sources.


• Because you would like to share this abundance with other loved ones, those who also appreciate such approaches to deeper meaning and clearer purpose.


• Because you’d like a book on your coffee table that could spark interesting conversations with neighbors, visitors, friends, colleagues and family.


• Because you think the body of work deserves to be published, and are moved to be part of bringing this creative venture to fruition.

Whatever your reason(s), I invite you to join me in making this project a reality by making finances available pertinent to your level of desire and interest.

The cost for publishing a limited edition of Surrender is $8500. This is not inexpensive, but this is what it takes to make a great book—a book you can give for a special occasion, and get lost in for a change of inner scenery, which is sure to also transform how you see life—from the inside, out.

Over the years, I’ve invested far more than this amount of money, plus immeasurable time and energy, to bring the images and the Amazon/Kindle version of Surrender to fruition. And I’ve contributed hundreds of books from my collection to others, simply to help “seed” the spiritual development of interested persons. Now, at this point, I’m asking for your help to make this single printed version a reality.

For all these reasons, I would greatly appreciate your generosity of spirit, both financially and by telling your friends about this opportunity, so they, too, can join in.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/941940706/surrender

Thank you!

Jim Young

The Sugarcane Hitchhiker Kickstarter – A daughter’s attempt to complete the story her father left behind.

The Sugarcane Hitchhiker

by Jacqueline Burt

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1151264913/the-sugarcane-hitchhiker

A daughter’s attempt, in words and original artwork, to complete the untold story her father left behind.

The TV was still onwhen I walked into my father’s bedroom at the top of that narrow, creaking staircase. The bedroom he shared with his brother as a kid, the bedroom he shared with my mother years later. I was conceived in that bedroom. And when I saw my father’s empty bed I collapsed on it and cried and wished I’d never been born.

They were already carrying his body out on a stretcher when I got there. Zipped up in a bag. I begged the police officer to let me see him. “I’m sorry honey, we can’t do that. We can’t do that.”

But the TV was still on, and the ashtrays overflowing. Glass jars filled with paintbrushes lining the windowsills. Piles of magazines and sketchbooks and journals everywhere. The smell of cigarettes was still thick in the air, the fine residue of crushed pills still visible on his desk. My father had been a mess, like me. And now this mess was all I had left of him.

It’s been nearly three yearssince my father died. I’ve managed to hold on to almost everything he left in that room, every unfinished watercolor and half-written essay…every faded photograph. He was telling a story, my father, in images and words…the story of his adolescence, of running away with Timothy Leary and drinking with Janis Joplin. He was telling the story of the years we spent apart…my childhood. It was better that way, he told me later — better that the darkest and most self-destructive moments of his life happened far away in the booze-soaked bayou. As a kid, whenever people asked me about my dad, I always said he was in New Orleans. It was true, but I didn’t know what it meant at the time. I would find out eventually.

I am my father’s daughter, down to the brittle bone. I am the only person alive who can finish his story. Through a combination of his artwork and writing and my own, The Sugarcane Hitchhikeris my attempt to do just that.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1151264913/the-sugarcane-hitchhiker

Tweet Stalker – Free Twitter Marketing Software!

Allow me to introduce Tweet Stalker!















You simply enter your account information and an account whose followers you would like to follow. Tweet Stalker works off the follow back system in that every time you follow someone there is a chance they will follow you back. Tweet Stalker is great if you’re trying to interact with your completions followers. Simply enter their Twitter account name and Tweet Stalker will follow one of their followers every 5-30 seconds. The reason why it’s 5-30 seconds is to ensure your account doesn’t get in trouble for following accounts too quickly.







Your password is 100% safe and I will never have access to your account information. I’m sure there are a lot of programs that can do what Tweet Stalker does but Tweet Stalker is 100% FREE







Just click on this link and a zip file with Tweet Stalker will download







www.givemeattention.net/TweetStalker.zip







Then enter the below information when asked. You will only have to enter this information once.







ScreamingEagleSoftware@yahoo.com







D8F8-F84E-282B







And that’s it. Tweet Stalker is now yours forever to do with whatever you like.

Remember not to follow more than 100 users within a 24 hour period and if you are going to follow a large amount of users DO NOT UNFOLLOW A LARGE AMOUNT OF USERS WITHIN THAT SAME DAY. THIS COULD GET YOUR ACCOUNT IN TROUBLE!

The monster is within.

Steve Santiago – Artist and Desktop Publisher

A friend of mine who is a very talented artist and desktop publisher recently lost his 9 to 5. Please visit his Facebook and give him a “like”. And if you know anyone that needs some sick art or great desktop publishing work please be sure and mention his name. https://www.facebook.com/stevesantiago.artist

And here is his website- http://www.illustrator-steve.com/

Writers and Artists that failed at first

Writers and Artists

We’ve all heard about starving artists and struggling writers, but these stories show that sometimes all that work really does pay off with success in the long run.

1. Vincent Van Gogh:During his lifetime, Van Gogh sold only one painting, and this was to a friend and only for a very small amount of money. While Van Gogh was never a success during his life, he plugged on with painting, sometimes starving to complete his over 800 known works. Today, they bring in hundreds of millions.


2. Emily Dickinson:Recluse and poet Emily Dickinson is a commonly read and loved writer. Yet in her lifetime she was all but ignored, having fewer than a dozen poems published out of her almost 1,800 completed works.


3. Theodor Seuss Giesel:Today nearly every child has read The Cat in the HatorGreen Eggs and Ham, yet 27 different publishers rejected Dr. Seuss’s first book To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street.


4. Charles Schultz:Schultz’s Peanuts comic strip has had enduring fame, yet this cartoonist had every cartoon he submitted rejected by his high school yearbook staff. Even after high school, Schultz didn’t have it easy, applying and being rejected for a position working with Walt Disney.


5. Steven Spielberg: While today Spielberg’s name is synonymous with big budget, he was rejected from the University of Southern California School of Theater, Film and Television three times. He eventually attended school at another location, only to drop out to become a director before finishing. Thirty-five years after starting his degree, Spielberg returned to school in 2002 to finally complete his work and earn his BA.


6. Stephen King: The first book by this author, the iconic thriller Carrie,received 30 rejections, finally causing King to give up and throw it in the trash. His wife fished it out and encouraged him to resubmit it, and the rest is history, with King now having hundreds of books published the distinction of being one of the best-selling authors of all time.


7. Zane Grey:Incredibly popular in the early 20th century, this adventure book writer began his career as a dentist, something he quickly began to hate. So, he began to write, only to see rejection after rejection for his works, being told eventually that he had no business being a writer and should given up. It took him years, but at 40, Zane finally got his first work published, leaving him with almost 90 books to his name and selling over 50 million copies worldwide.


8. J. K. Rowling: Rowling may be rolling in a lot of Harry Potter dough today, but before she published the series of novels she was nearly penniless, severely depressed, divorced, trying to raise a child on her own while attending school and writing a novel. Rowling went from depending on welfare to survive to being one of the richest women in the world in a span of only five years through her hard work and determination.


9. Monet:Today Monet’s work sells for millions of dollars and hangs in some of the most prestigious institutions in the world. Yet during his own time, it was mocked and rejected by the artistic elite, the Paris Salon. Monet kept at his impressionist style, which caught on and in many ways was a starting point for some major changes to art that ushered in the modern era.


10. Jack London: This well-known American author wasn’t always such a success. While he would go on to publish popular novels like White Fangand The Call of the Wild, his first story received six hundred rejection slips before finally being accepted.


11. Louisa May Alcott: Most people are familiar with Alcott’s most famous work, Little Women. Yet Alcott faced a bit of a battle to get her work out there and was was encouraged to find work as a servant by her family to make ends meet. It was her letters back home during her experience as a nurse in the Civil War that gave her the first big break she needed.

Hollywood Types that failed at first

Hollywood Types

These faces ought to be familiar from the big screen, but these actors, actresses and directors saw their fair share of rejection and failure before they made it big.

1. Jerry Seinfeld: Just about everybody knows who Seinfeld is, but the first time the young comedian walked on stage at a comedy club, he looked out at the audience, froze and was eventually jeered and booed off of the stage. Seinfeld knew he could do it, so he went back the next night, completed his set to laughter and applause, and the rest is history.


2. Fred Astaire: In his first screen test, the testing director of MGM noted that Astaire, “Can’t act. Can’t sing. Slightly bald. Can dance a little.” Astaire went on to become an incredibly successful actor, singer and dancer and kept that note in his Beverly Hills home to remind him of where he came from.


3. Sidney Poitier: After his first audition, Poitier was told by the casting director, “Why don’t you stop wasting people’s time and go out and become a dishwasher or something?” Poitier vowed to show him that he could make it, going on to win an Oscar and become one of the most well-regarded actors in the business.


4. Jeanne Moreau: As a young actress just starting out, this French actress was told by a casting director that she was simply not pretty enough to make it in films. He couldn’t have been more wrong as Moreau when on to star in nearly 100 films and win numerous awards for her performances.


5. Charlie Chaplin: It’s hard to imagine film without the iconic Charlie Chaplin, but his act was initially rejected by Hollywood studio chiefs because they felt it was a little too nonsensical to ever sell.


6. Lucille Ball: During her career, Ball had thirteen Emmy nominations and four wins, also earning the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kennedy Center Honors. Before starring in I Love Lucy,Ball was widely regarded as a failed actress and a B movie star. Even her drama instructors didn’t feel she could make it, telling her to try another profession. She, of course, proved them all wrong.


7. Harrison Ford:In his first film, Ford was told by the movie execs that he simply didn’t have what it takes to be a star. Today, with numerous hits under his belt, iconic portrayals of characters like Han Solo and Indiana Jones, and a career that stretches decades, Ford can proudly show that he does, in fact, have what it takes.


8. Marilyn Monroe: While Monroe’s star burned out early, she did have a period of great success in her life. Despite a rough upbringing and being told by modeling agents that she should instead consider being a secretary, Monroe became a pin-up, model and actress that still strikes a chord with people today.


9. Oliver Stone:This Oscar-winning filmmaker began his first novel while at Yale, a project that eventually caused him to fail out of school. This would turn out to be a poor decision as the the text was rejected by publishers and was not published until 1998, at which time it was not well-received. After dropping out of school, Stone moved to Vietnam to teach English, later enlisting in the army and fighting in the war, a battle that earning two Purple Hearts and helped him find the inspiration for his later work that often center around war.