SPOTLIGHT ON....BOB MAYER!

Bob Mayer is a New York Times Best Selling Author with 40 books published. He is a West Point graduate, served in the Infantry and Special Forces (Green Berets) commanding an A-Team and as a Special Forces battalion operations officer, and was an instructor at the JFK Special Warfare Center & School at Fort Bragg.

His books have hit the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, USA Today and other bestseller lists. He has been published in many genres, including thriller, science fiction, suspense, romance and non-fiction. He has sold over 3 million books.

I had the pleasure of meeting Bob at a few conferences as well as taking his Writers Retreat. He is not only a gifted writer, but one of the best instructors I have ever worked with in any field. I recommend any of his workshops for anyone who wants to bring their writing to the next level. Please see his website for details regarding all of his workshops and presentations.

As an aside, if you are looking for the ultimate Father's Day gift, his latest book, WHO DARES WINS: The Green Beret Way to Conquer Fear and Succeed is a great choice as well as Bob's latest release.

Please welcome Bob Mayer to Murder, Mayhem and More.



On June 2, 2009 you have a new non-fiction book coming out. WHO DARES WINS: The Green Beret Way to Conquer Fear and Succeed. If I have counted correctly, this is your 39th book. That is incredible.

Tell us a little about the book and why you decided to write it.

I’ve been writing this book for almost 20 years. I’ve been living it for 32 years. It combines everything I learned about being a warrior and evolved that into being artist, starting in 1977 during Beast Barracks at West Point, through my time in the Infantry and most importantly, my time in the Special Forces, where I commanded an A-Team, was a battalion operations officer coordinating the deployment of 15 Special Forces Team world-wide, and was as an instructor at the J.F Kennedy Special Warfare Center & School at Ft. Bragg, where new Green Berets are trained. I added to the book every year. I actually have a much longer version covering individuals and team building, but I’ve decided to break that into two books and the one coming out now is the one for individuals. Later this year I will write one for team-building, based on the A-Team model, the most successful team in the world.

Why this book? Why now

Fear is ruling a lot of people’s lives. I was talking to a CEO several years ago in Maui and she mentioned that if there was one constant in business, it was fear. I started to integrate that then. Nowadays, I think it’s even more relevant than ever. Fear is crippling people. It can’t be ignored. It has to be faced and dealt with. In Special Forces we constantly dealt with fear, whether it be in training or combat. It is not normal to jump off the ramp of a perfectly good airplane in the pitch black with over 150 pounds of gear on. And that’s just the way we get to the mission to be accomplished.

How can WHO DARES WINS help the average person? The business person? The Writer?

It works strategically and tactically: ie big picture in changing your overall life and with specifics for improving day-to-day living. There are three areas: Who, Dares, Wins. In each area are three one-word Special “Forces”. To make it even easier to follow, the words in each area start with the same letter.

We begin with Wins and the three forces are:
WHAT do you want to achieve?
WHY do you want to achieve those goals?
WHERE will you be achieving those goals.

Then we move on to Who:
Assess your CHARACTER, both strengths and weaknesses.
Learn what real CHANGE is and how to achieve it.
Move out of your comfort zone and into your COURAGE zone.

Finally, we move into Dares:
COMMUNICATE your change to the world
Take COMMAND of your life.
COMPLETE the Circle of Success.
And then you start over again, building on what you’ve done. So it’s a circular program, not a linear one, which actually makes it more attractive to women as they tend to be less linear than men.

Who Dares Wins can help in business because it’s a combination of the Warrior-Writer: Discipline and Creativity.

For artist it gives you the Warrior’s Path to Creativity. Writers workshops tend to focus on the writing and not the writer. Maybe it’s not the writing that needs to change, but the writer. I’ve taught thousands of writers over the years, and the largest obstacle is not their writing, but their approach to writing. Who Dares Wins helps examine that in detail and learn how to change.

78% of American say they want to write a novel. Yet only a very few ever make it to the level of getting published. Because WDW focuses on the 5% of people who can achieve sustained action using their own motivation, learning it’s techniques can help writers achieve their goals.

Has writing this book changed the way you think? Or approach things?

I’ve published a lot of books, but I’ve changed over the years. I apply these principles to myself and even as recently as my latest manuscript, have gone back and am tearing it apart and making drastic changes based on feedback from people I’ve asked for help. I think if you’re not where you want to be, it’s you that has to change.

You do workshops across the country based on the principles in WHO DARES WINS. Who would benefit from taking this workshop and why? What would someone get out of the workshop?

As noted above, it forces you to examine everything about the way your approach writing. All the lessons learned in the workshop also work two ways: for you as the writer, and for the actual writing. For example, under WHAT we pinpoint what your goal is with your writing and we also pinpoint what exactly your book is about. Both in one sentence each.

You also do workshops based on your NOVEL WRITER’S TOOLKIT. How has writing WHO DARES WINS changed this workshop over the years?

I’m more interactive and more emotional. I always presented great content, but I’ve learned that people want to participate and also they want to be emotionally engaged. My Writers Presentation now has a workbook to go along with the Novel Writers Toolkit. I use examples from people participating. I put more of my passion into them because I’ve learned to open up more about how I feel about the subject matter. I care about what I teach but I was a bit reserved in the past.

You have written under your own name, and various pen names. Why?

Business reasons. Once you’re under contract, the publisher owns the option on your next book. To avoid that option, you can use a pen name. Also, most publishers want just one book a year and I was writing three a year.

You have written in many different genres. How did you decide which genre you wanted to write, and how or why did you move into other genres?

I started in military thrillers, slid over to science thrillers with my Area 51 and Atlantis series for many years. I actually call them techno-myth book. Technology and mythology mixed together. I wrote romantic suspense with Jennifer Crusie—WILD RIDE is coming out next year and that’s actually paranormal romance. I’m focusing now on thrillers and non-fiction.

You’re Area 51 series has done well over the years and all nine books are still in print. Staying power is hard in this business. What makes these books stand the test of time?

The series is intriguing. But, honestly, title. The original title for the first book was Dreamland and we changed it to Area 51. I believe the same book with that old title would not be in its 16th printing and sold over a quarter million copies, and the series a million copies overall. Title is very, very important. It has to invite readers into the book and give them an idea what the book is about.

How do you think your writing has changed over the years? From book to book.

I focus more and more on character. I’m actually toning down the plot of my current work-in-progress, THE JEFFERSON ALLEGIANCE, and focusing much more on character.

Do you have a favorite book or series that you have written?

I think for most writers, the next book is always the one they love. AREA 51 has been the most consistent and the best seller, but my collaborations with Jennifer Crusie are very fun books.

I’ve heard you say many times that it’s important to study the craft, learn and be open. How do you study and learn?

I talk to other writers. My friend Elizabeth George read my latest manuscript and gave me a lot of feedback. I think its important to be willing to listen to and accept feedback. I actually go to classes at conferences, rather than just teach. I just learned a lot in Dallas at a conference. One of the things I teach in Who Dares Wins is that when something you experience upsets you, to focus on it. Because it’s telling you a truth that you are resisting.

What advice do you have for the new unpublished writer?

Write a lot. Read a lot. Learn the craft. Too many people spend too much time on marketing rather than writing. The only thing we writers truly control is the quality of the writing.

What advice do you have the newly published author?

Find a mentor who is published in your field. Ask for help. There is so much agents and editors won’t tell you. Most writers are pretty open to answering questions. Don’t expect anyone else to give you your career. You have to make it yourself. Thus the first Force in WDW is WHAT—you have to specify your goals right up front and then use the other Forces to pursue them.

What is next for Bob Mayer? What are you working on now?

Rewriting The Jefferson Allegiance and starting a new dual book concept—where one is a novel and the other is non-fiction but connected to the novel.

Where can people interested in what is going on in your world, specifically Cool Gus, find you? For those interested in any of the above mentioned workshops, or hearing you speak, how can they find out more information, or where you will be over the next year?

Everything is on my web site: http://www.bobmayer.org/ I also twitter at IWhoDaresWins

One final question – Did Cool Gus take to kayaking?

Cool Gus likes the water. He’s got his life jacket now and I’ll be taking him down to the Sound shortly.

(Side note: Since I interviewed Bob for this blog, Cool Gus did go Kayaking. Click here to see the results!)

Thank you, Bob, for joining us.

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MAKING THINGS HABIT

Habits seem to be easier to break than to make. However, I am a firm believer in routine. I like schedules. I like my color coded calendar. I like to know what I need to do and when. I do get picked on for this endlessly. I wasn't always like this. Way back when... a long time ago... people might have considered me to be spontaneous. A fly by the seat of her pants kind of girl. Couldn't do that now.

It started when I got married and had kids. It really was a gradual kind of thing. My husband has always been very organized. When you have your own business, you have to be. It wasn't too bad. Just the "honey do list". Yeah, he left me those like every morning before he went to work. Made me laugh. Now I get e-mails, text messages and the color coded calendar.... but it works. I think I would be lost without them.

The kids really tossed me into the rigid schedule thing when they started playing sports. And they didn't just pick any sport, they picked hockey. All three of them. Well, my daughter started with competitive dance (following in her mother's footsteps) for a short time anyway. She used to hate hockey. Hated going to the rink to watch her little brothers play. Although, it's not like watching youth baseball at age 4, which is like watching paint dry. This is more like watching Webbles that wobble and do fall down. But by the time she was in middle school, she decided hang up the toe shoes and join her brothers. Next year she goes to college to play Division 3 hockey. Amazing what a little drive and determination will take you.

Anyway, with 3 kids playing travel hockey, we average about 170 games a year. Add one boy who plays lacrosse and the other boy who plays HS Golf, well, it gets interesting. I once drove the wrong kid to the wrong rink at the wrong time... he wasn't very happy. Hence, the color coded calendar.

I do think I have taken the routine to the extreme at times. I wake every day at about the same time, whether I want to or not. I follow the same routine. Do the morning chores while getting kids off to school. Once the house is in order. I like to sit and write. I write everyday. That is a must. I feel stressed when I don't. I write until the kids get home from school and then depending on the calendar, I will either write some more, do other work, or follow the damn color coded calendar. Haven't figured out how to make the colors work on my blackberry, but I will.

When my schedule goes to shit, well, then I really stress. This is where I do have to go back to my roots and learn to go with the flow.

However, if you want to make something a habit, like writing everyday, or exercise, or reading, or whatever it is, you have to just do it, everyday. I find doing the activity I want to make a habit at the same time everyday works best. The key here is doing it. Then doing it again. And again, till the action becomes habit.

We need to make this blog more of a habit. We start out with good intentions, but if we don't do it on schedule, then the habit is broken. Easy to break habits than it is to make something a habit. Well, most habits anyway. Hence, I make a list (on the calendar) and I try to follow it. Key for me is not to beat myself up when I the plan goes to shit. Cause, things, well, they go to the crapper every once in a while. Just life.

OK - we've got a great interview coming up at the end of the month with a New York Times best selling author. It's going to be great!

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Romance and the Recession

Have you heard? Apparently, romances are recession-proof. It's true, the New York Times reports that romance sales are climbing. Even in this recession.

Personally, while cutting back on things like dinners out, vacations, movie rentals, I have not cut back on book buying. No sir. No way. And it appears that I am not the only one. Great news for those of us who write romance.

I love a good romance novel. The escapism, the happily-ever-after, the murder...what, you're romance novels don't include dead bodies? Say it isn't so. Don't get me wrong, I love a good contemporary romance. However, I'll admit that most of what I read includes a little something extra mixed in with the romance. Thrills and chills, and even a dead body or two.

I recently placed an order with Amazon. I like them for two reasons, one because they ship for free if you spend more than $25, which is quite easy for me. And second because I no longer need to pay the high price for hardcovers, when I can download the new releases to my Kindle for much less than the price of the hardcover. No shipping on those purchases, either.

I thought it would be fun to share with you what I've purchased recently. Some of them I have finished already, and some are still waiting for me. A couple haven't even arrived yet!



REKINDLED by Jenni Holbrook
Kindle Edition
Yup, when I discovered that my friend Jenni Holbrook's book was available on Kindle, I had to have it.
This is one of the books I have yet to read, but I've read a couple of her upcoming releases and loved them!



KILLER CHARMS by Marianne Stillings
This one is a paranormal romantic suspense that I have yet to read. I read Arrousing Suspicions after seeing a review of the book and really enjoyed it. I look forward to this book.






KILL FOR ME by Karen Rose
This is book three of her trilogy. All three were fantastic books and I highly recommend them.




MURDER GAME by Beverly Barton
I read this book in one sitting then immediately got online to order COLD HEARTED.
Definately one of the creepiest serial killers I've read about in a while.


MALICE by Lisa Jackson
Kindle Edition
Eager for this one, I purchased the Kindle edition on its release day.
Unfortunately, I got too busy with work to read it yet. This week, I'll make the time. Who needs sleep, anyway?


So tell me, have your book purchases increased, decreased or stayed the same in this economy? Do you still buy as many hardcovers as before, or do you find yourself downloading those books to your Kindle? What are your most recent purchases? Where they romance/romantic suspense or a different genre altogether?

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A TISKET A TASKET, PUT ROMANCE IN YOUR BASKET - UPDATE!

We all make mistakes. Sometimes big ones, sometimes small ones. I think this can go in the middle size arena as far as mistakes goes. Anyway, I apologize for any confusion this may have caused. Here is the post that should have gone up here.

First - I hope everyone is having fun blog hopping (picturing a bunch of cute little pink bunnies) while on a scavenger hunt! Always fun, except for maybe here in Western NY....

OK - Spring. Here in Western NY consist of freshly fallen snow. About an inch. Kid you not. Snow. Yeah, got to love it here. Of course, a few days ago it was close to 70 degrees and the boys were out golfing while the daughter was sun bathing. Although, sunbathing temperature here is about 55, so 70 was a real treat for us!

I'm not much of a spring cleaner. More like a September cleaner. We don't really have spring, so September is nice. Kids are at school. Husband is traveling. It's not snowing. Generally.

Easter holds many snow filled memories. Once, when I was about 10, we had a huge snow storm. Like two feet of snow. A six foot snow bunny showed up in our yard. It was totally cool. We had a snow bunny filled with Easter eggs. I really loved it. Of course, I still live here because the snow doesn't bother me. Actually, the two weeks in July when it's like 90 - I want to go to Alaska! I really don't like warm weather. Should explain a lot about me.

So, thanks for stopping by. Anyone who posts will get put into a drawing and will receive a few special items needed to survive "spring" in Western NY. It will consist of a pdf copy of REKINDLED, a mug, some hot chocolate, and of course, chocolate.

For everyone who wants to continue on the eater egg hunt, here is the contest info:



A TISKET A TISKET, PUT ROMANCE IN YOUR BASKET Grand Prize:
To enter to win prizes from the authors donating treasures to the grand prize (see each day's post for what an author is donating to the grand prize), find the four Easter eggs in the A TISKET A TISKET, PUT ROMANCE IN YOUR BASKET blog event.

You will be searching for the above egg. Just visit all of the authors' websites, locate the 4 eggs, make a list of their locations by pasting the urls to the website pages in an e-mail, then send the entry to happyendings2007@aol.com by midnight CST on May 1st, 2009. The winner will be randomly drawn and announced May 2nd at http://blog.skhyemoncrief.com. Tip #1, subscribe to http://blog.skhyemoncrief.com to learn if you're the winner! And don't worry. If you start in on the blog event late, just head back to Silver James' blog on April 1st at http://www.silverjames.com/ to begin your website search for the Easter eggs. Don't miss the fun!

Yesterday's blog was at Ann Campbell's blog. Tomorrow is Debra St.John.

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