Author, Erica Miner along with the Ann Arbor Book Festival will join us today @ 5pm on Michigan Literary Network Radio Show!

You can call in to listen or ask questions at: 646-200-4444. Or visit the show's website and listen online at: http://blogtalkradio.com/michiganliterarynetwork  and download the podcast of present and past shows! That's 5pm today (Wednesday). If you miss it, you can always visit the website to listen to older shows.  http://blogtalkradio.com/michiganliterarynetwork Today we have lined up great literary talent of poets and authors to connect and educate you!       Erica Miner Author of Travels With My Lovers Fiction Prize Winner, Direct from the Author Book Awards http://www.ericaminer.com Author - Screenwriter - Lecturer Novelist, Screenwriter, Poet, Lecturer Erica Miner has a passion for writing! In a series of interviews and articles found in these web pages, she explains her writing process and how music, poetry and her life experiences have affected her writing. Her highly intuitive writing runs the gamut of emotions, reflecting her own life's experiences.             http://www.aabookfestival.org/   This year's festival! May 15-17, 2009 Our poster this year features four book quotes. Click any of the smaller images to see a larger representation or click here to visit our gift shop to order a full-size poster. This year's poster design was created by David Ryan Design. You can learn more by clicking here. This year's poster design was created by David Ryan Design, a growing design company based in Brighton, Michigan that creates everything from silkscreen to web design. David Ryan Design strives to produce professional looking yet still entertaining visual work. The 2009 Ann Arbor Book Festival was an exciting project for us and we wanted to create something a bit different than posters from past years. We hope you enjoy the humor and take home the message. Stay Connected Facebook Twitter Flickr YouTube Email Click on any of our links to stay connected or visit our Stay Connected page to learn more about our social networking presence. Message From the Director As we are working on the details now for our upcoming 6th annual event, it seemed fitting to look back over our first 5 years and put together some information to share with you. As we look forward to our next 5 years, it is critical to continue to have the support of our community, especially in these challenging economic times. Kathy Robenalt, Executive Director, Ann Arbor Book Festival Current Events Short Story Contest Our annual Short Story Contest has begun. Stories may be submitted following the guidelines - click here for details. Colson Whitehead Colson Whitehead is featured on this week's Sunday New York Times Book Review cover. Colson will be at our Festival with his book Sag Harbor. Upcoming Events Preview a schedule for the 2009 Festival including: - 2009 Literary Symposium - Breakfast with the Authors - 2009 Writer's Conference - "The Art of the Play" at the Arthur Miller Theater - Special Event - Fundraiser at the Michigan Theater Guest Authors TA Barron and Gary Schmidt will both be appearing on May 16 at this year's Festival. Please plan to come and meet them! Click here for a flyer. Festival Headliner - Special Event with Perri Klass Dr. Perri Klass, pediatrician and writer, will be interviewed on May 16 by Dr. Chris Elkins, Ann Arbor pediatrician, about her many interests: medicine, family, teaching, early literacy in children, and how writing has been a theme that connects all of these for her.   JOIN US!   And Don't forget: Learn the basics of blogging, draw traffic to site and how to write incredible blog posts. Each workshop comes with a resource disk and refreshments. Limited number of slots are available for only $20.00 For more information, go to: http://motownwriters.com/blogging101 _____________________   MOTOWN WRITERS NETWORK GOING GREEN ANTHOLOGY Over 2 million trees are destroyed every year to make paper for the over a quarter of million books that are made. In an effort to raise money for our upcoming conference and to support going green, Motown Writers Network invites twelve Michigan Writers to our first 2009 anthology. Our theme will be based on Fairy Tales of various genres. We do specify that the story takes place in Detroit and no more than 10,000 words. In lieu of royalties, each selected contributing author will receive: 1 e-blast for 2009 – 2010 $50 discount on their conference fee 1 page inside of book to market themselves various promotional opportunities that coincide with the marketing of the anthology. If you are interested, please contact: motownwriters@yahoo.com.  If you are an editor interested in donating your time, please email us also.

Introducing AmazonEncore--Unearthing Exceptional Books and Emerging Authors for More Readers to Enjoy

Introducing AmazonEncore--Unearthing Exceptional Books and Emerging Authors for More Readers to Enjoy Program Debuts with "Legacy," a Self-Published Novel by 16-Year-Old Cayla Kluver SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May. 13, 2009-- Even great books can be overlooked. Amazon customers raved over "Legacy," a self-published novel by 16-year-old Cayla Kluver, with customer review titles such as "loved it, loved it," "rich lyrical tapestry and story" and "breathtaking in scope and execution!" Despite winning several prizes from literary groups and accolades like this from readers, Kluver's debut novel achieved only modest sales. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) today announced a new program, "AmazonEncore," to help readers discover exceptional books from emerging authors, such as the program's first book, "Legacy." AmazonEncore is a new program whereby Amazon uses information such as customer reviews on Amazon websites to identify exceptional, overlooked books and authors that show potential for greater sales. Amazon then partners with the authors to re-introduce their books to readers through marketing support and distribution into multiple channels and formats, such as the Amazon Books Store, Amazon Kindle Store, Audible.com, and national and independent bookstores via third-party wholesalers. This summer "Legacy" will be revised by the author and re-issued as an AmazonEncore edition in print on Amazon websites around the world, in physical bookstores, as a digital download from the Kindle Store in less than 60 seconds, and via spoken-word audio download on Audible.com. "Sometimes exceptional books and new authors don't get the attention they deserve. We're fortunate at Amazon to have customers who know great books and aren't shy about telling us when they find one. We developed AmazonEncore to connect readers with great books that were overlooked the first time they were released," said Jeff Belle, Vice President of Books for Amazon. "Cayla Kluver is a gifted young writer who shows promise for the future. She exemplifies the kind of authors that AmazonEncore will support and we look forward to showcasing 'Legacy' and many more similarly talented, but undiscovered voices to our customers through this program." "'Legacy' is a rare find—an elegant and enthralling tale of love and duty, family and country—written by a teenager," said Amazon Books Managing Editor Daphne Durham. "With a talent for richly drawn characters and an understanding of the trappings of responsibility that belies her age, Cayla Kluver is a writer to watch." "I'm thrilled to be a part of this exciting new program, and am so grateful to Amazon for giving me, and readers across the world, the amazing opportunity that Encore represents," said Kluver. For more information on AmazonEncore, visit http://www.amazon.com/encore. About Cayla Kluver Cayla Kluver authored her first book at the age of 2 and has been writing ever since. Back then, she dictated her story to her mom and drew (scribbled) her own illustrations. Today, she uses a laptop and various drafting and drawing software. The tools may be different, but the need to put things on paper remains. She wrote the first draft of "Legacy" at the age of 14 while attending public school. That same year, she appeared in two school plays, received a first at the Wisconsin State Solo and Ensemble Vocal Competitions, and completed freshman English at her local university. In 2008, she and her mom formed their own publishing company and released "Legacy" to the public just one month before she graduated from high school at the age of 15. She has spent the past 10 months promoting "Legacy" and writing its sequel, "Allegiance," and is now at work on a third book in the series. She lives in Wisconsin, where she enjoys spending time with family, friends and her cat, Nina. About Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth's Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth's most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel; Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon's developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon's own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. Examples of the services offered by Amazon Web Services are Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2), Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3), Amazon SimpleDB, Amazon Simple Queue Service (Amazon SQS), Amazon Flexible Payments Service (Amazon FPS), Amazon Mechanical Turk and Amazon CloudFront. Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, and www.amazon.cn. As used herein, "Amazon.com," "we," "our" and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise. Forward-Looking Statements This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management's expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings. Source: Amazon.com, Inc.

Vibe Mag & Essence Tech News, plus how to video blog instantly

Black Web 2.0 Vibe Media Group Launches New Print and Online Properties Posted: 12 May 2009 11:21 AM PDT While some media companies are avoiding print, Vibe Media Group, parent company of Vibe Magazine,  is embracing it. Coming off the heels of Vibe's all-time best-selling cover featuring Chris Brown and Rihanna, Vibe announced today that they will launch a new entertainment and celebrity focused magazine entitled The Most!. The $4.99 magazine, slated to hit news stands July 16th, will be accompanied by a corresponding blog, themostmag.com, debuting two weeks early (June 1st). The Most! will feature celebrity fashion, lifestyle, red-carpet moments, travel, and news. The site will also review multiculturally-oriented television, DVDs, films, and book properties. According to the press release: The Most! will fill a void at the newsstand by reflecting Vibe's commitment to urban style, celebrity, beauty and culture through a more tabloid-themed publication. A purely lifestyle and celebrity magazine featuring some of the most trendsetting stars in the world, The Most! is "urban" with pride and mega style. "We are excited to launch a fun, innovative media vehicle — both online and on newsstands. We believe there is a sweet spot in the consumer and advertiser marketplace for THE MOST! Advertisers across many categories are anxious to see this debut and we are proud to have leading brands from automotive, telecom, personal grooming and fashion industries in our launch issue," says VIBE Publisher Edgar Hernandez. "THE MOST! has an adventurous, fun spirit. Our goal with THE MOST! is to give our readers 'the most' of what they crave," says Danyel Smith, Editor-in-Chief of VIBE/Vice President/Editorial Director of VIBE Media Group, and Founder of THE MOST! 3 Ways To Step Into Video Without A Camera Posted: 12 May 2009 11:19 AM PDT A while back, we gave you 7 Ways to Start Video Blogging Immediately. Although I gave you the low-down on how simple it is to start posting videos online, I didn't realize that some people might be a little camera shy. This new installment will give you a few ways to create original videos without actually putting your face on the web. You don't even need to own a camera of any kind. YtDub Have you ever been watching a YouTube video and thought it would be much more entertaining with a different background track? Well, now you can make your dreams come true with YtDub. It allows you to combine the visuals from one YouTube video with the audio from another. The interface is a littel rough around the edges, but the process is pretty simple and YtDub even provides a search feature to help you find videos to dub. Once you done, you can share the video with your friends so that they can rate it and comment on it. Check out this video for an example of what's possible. Animoto Animoto has been around for quite a while now, but recently caught my eye again when they gave procrastinators a last-minute Mothers's Day gift. It allows you to create a custom slideshow with background music and images of your choosing in just a few minutes. You can upload your own images or import them from another site (Flickr, Facebook, Photobucket, etc.). Once you have the photos you want, you upload your background music or simply pick a track from Animoto's extensive library. At this point, Animoto analyzes your music and creates pretty impressive video from your images. Creating a 30-second video with Animoto is free, which may be good for most uses. If you want to step your game up, you can purchase a full-length spot for $3 or get an all-access pass for $30 and create an unlimited number of full-length videos for the year. Animoto also makes it easy to post your videos to YouTube or simply download them to share on another service. Here is a quick demo I did using the service. Stupeflix At first, I thought Stupeflix was just another slideshow creation service, but on closer examination, I'm really impressed. It's not as easy to use as Animoto, but there is a much higher level of flexibility, since there is no algorithm putting the video together for you. The real power of Stupeflix is in the XML API. As one example of this power, they created over 1,000 videos from the contents of Wikipedia all in under 59 minutes. If you have no clue what XML is or have no interest in editing XML code, you can simply stick to the graphical editor to make your videos. Here is a quick example where I took an existing demo created from Wikipedia and added some background music by editing the XML. Video is a very powerful method of promotion. Whether your just trying to get the word out about your blog, selling a product, or promoting a cause, having a video can make the difference. Using Animoto or Stupeflix makes it that much easier to put a professional-looking video together  with minimal effort. Once again, technology lowers the bar for entry into rich media. If you're serious about your success, you now have one less excuse about why you don't do video. Essence Teams up with CNN and HLN to debut What Matters Posted: 11 May 2009 03:08 PM PDT Essence, the leading media and communications company dedicated to African-American women, announced a partnership with CNN and HLN to debut What Matters, a weekly series on issues of importance to the African-American community. The recurring segment, which debuted on CNN on Friday, May 8, will feature topics ranging from 401(k) strategies to elder-care issues to pop culture. What Matters is an extension of the regular news items and features in Essence magazine, as well as the ongoing multicultural programming on CNN and will be developed collaboratively. What Matters will be available both on on-air and online. The online segments will be hosted on CNN by Tony Harris and Don Lemon with contributions from Roland Martin, Fredricka Whitfield and T.J. Holmes. Online users can view the "What Matters" segments on-demand at CNN.com and on Mondays via CNN.com Live. This online content will be available beginning May 15. In addition, Essence.com will offer users related articles, additional commentary, blog discussions and the opportunity to view the "What Matters" segments. "Essence is proud to partner with CNN, HLN and CNN.com to launch What Matters as a platform to inform, educate and define the cultural discussion," said Angela Burt-Murray, Editor-in-Chief, Essence. "Last year's collaboration on the Essence/CNN co-production CNN & Essence: Reclaiming the Dream laid the groundwork for What Matters — a project that will combine our reach and expertise to further the development of quality programming for African-Americans." Source You are subscribed to email updates from Black Web 2.0 Sylvia Hubbard Author, Blogger and Founder of Motown Writers Network http://sylviahubbard.com http://loveablackwoman.com http://motownwriters.com http://michiganliterarynetwork.com http://aaeln.com (African American Electronic Literary Network) http://hubbooks.biz   Author of Romance & Suspense and Internet Marketing for Writers & Business   NOW AVAILABLE: Secrets, Lies and Family Ties order your copy now Coming Soon: Tanner's Devil www.redrosepublishing.com