MSI Press Blog

As I was traveling to St, Louis from San Jose today, an elderly man and his wife sat in the row next to me. We got talking when we noticed that I was watching Angel Has Fallen, a great movie but lots of violent action. Somehow, the conversation passed on to the time he spent in the British Army and the time I spent in the American Army. He commented, "Looks are deceptive. I thought I was sitting beside an old lady in a cardigan. Figured you were a writer (I am -- and I was doing some on the plane as I watched the movie, so that did not take a big guess), working on some leisurely writings in retirement (well, I am retured, technically, since I get a pension, but nothing else about my life is "retired." Yeah, I suppose a dress and cardigan (the picture is not me -- I do not have one of me from the plane -- but is fairly approximate) might be deceptive. At the end of the flight, being short, I had trrouble reaching my luggage in those big cabinets on the bid plan...

When you’re knee deep in work in the office or at home, gratitude is probably not the first thing that crosses your mind. Instead, you might have racing thoughts about how much you still have to do today or about things that aren’t going your way. Enter gratitude practice. Gratitude is appreciating and recognizing the abundance already in your life. Among its many benefits, living in gratitude can enhance your optimism and expand your heart. Gratitude is always there, but practicing it is a choice. Every thought you think, every word you speak, every action you take can carry the vibration of gratitude. As I write this, I’m typing with one hand because my son is sitting on my lap, asking me how to spell different words. And do you know what? Instead of feeling like he is bothering me and redirecting his attention elsewhere, I’m grateful for his questions and his curiosity, and that he still wants to hang out with me. I know in a few moments, he’ll wonder off to play wit...

What MSI books are people talking about? Those that talk about those things that people find difficult to talk about but need to: He's a Porn Addict...Now What? (Overbay and Shea) available in hard cover, paperback, and e-book Healing from Incest (Henderson and Emerton) available in hard cover, parperback, and e-book Both are tastefully written but also frank and informative. Find them at the MSI press webtore at the MSI press website OR online sellers (Amazon, B&N, etc.) OR your local library or bookstore (if not there, ask).

January Magazine 2020 features Travels with Elly (Larry MacDonald).  Read about it HERE . Read posts by and about Larry, this book, and his other work  HERE . .

Too much holiday food? Gained some weight? Need to move on from overeating in general? New Year's Resolution weighing you down?  Take some advice from Christina Fisanick, author of The Optimistic Food Addict? Ending the Tyranny of Day One:  Stop Starting Over and Start Living Your Life in Recovery by Christina Fisanick “I will start day one again on Monday.”  “I blew it! It’s back to day one tomorrow.”  “I am ready to get back to eating healthy. Day one starts today!” I hear those words often in recovery circles, especially at this time of year when overeating during the holidays and then dieting in the new year are the “norm.” Even people without disordered eating struggle with guilt for eating too many high calories foods and abandoning their exercise routines. However, for people who suffer from an eating disorder (and people for whom dieting is a way of life) continuously starting over and over and over again can actually hamper recov...

Available as of today, on pre-order, at sale price!  Release date: June 15, 2020 Other books by Joanna: Living Well with Chronic Illness 100 Tips and Tools for Managing Chronic Illness Read posts by and about Joanna and her books on this blog: click HERE .

Adding yet another thing to your to-do list when you're already overwhelmed may be out of the question, but what if this extra thing could help bring more clarity and balance to the rest of your life? Enter journaling—one of my favorite self-care practices. Journaling helps me to continuously check in with myself, organizes my thoughts and brings laser focus to what areas of my life are in need of more attention. Journal every day to be well on your way to more clarity and balance. Journaling can help you: 1.      Articulate who you are and name what it is that you want. 2.      Become more aware of your habits and patterns so you can modify them if needed. 3.      Let go of stress, release emotions that no longer serve you and process experiences. 4.      Spark creativity, including helping to identify innovative solutions you may not have previously considered. 5.   ...

Congratulations to Julie Gentile for winning the bronze medal in the IPPY Living Now competition for her book, 108 Yoga and Self-Care Practices for Busy Mamas .

Bennett earned a journalism degree from University of Southern Mississippi and an MS in Business Administration. He worked as a Management Intern by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (TN), U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (MD), and as a staff advisor to then Congressman Trent Lott (with whom he is shown here), helping develop a national policy for nuclear waste disposal. The last ten years of his career was spent searching for a safe disposal site for high-level radioactive waste—much of this time was spent speaking to State and local governments, American Indian Tribes, and the public. He edited the  Jones County Junior College  newspaper, wrote for the University of Southern Mississippi  Student Printz  newspaper, and taught a freshman journalism course at USM. He served as sports copy editor for the  Bristol Herald Courier  (VA/TN). His professional career included writing speeches for Presidential appointees, congressional testimony, and public rel...

As we get ready to submit some of our great authors' works to the Eric Hoffer Book Award competition, we remember and celebrate those who have won in the past. Road to Damascus by Elaine Imady was the first runner-up in the legacy category last year. The Marriage Whisperer by Patt Pickett received an honorable mention. Both books, while quite different from each other, are very special, very good, and well worth the time invested in reading them.

"Get our of my room!"  "This is my money!"  "Those are my things!"  Such claims are heard daily in most families. What can we do about it?  A new blog  ( haimomer-nvr.com ) tells a story about this issue. Though the child is 5-years old, the story is probably relevant also for the parents of older children, adolescents, and even young adults who are still living at home. Book release planned for May 15m 2020. Book available on pre-order from MSI Press webstore and from online sellers. Ask at retailers.

The interfaith story of MSI Press author, Steven Greenebaum ( One Family: Indivisible ) was selected as one of the top stories of 2019 by the editors of Herald Net in Seattle. His book was also a finalist in the 2019 American Bookfest Best Books competition.

Maintaining motivation long-term can be quite challenging. One would like to think that one week of hard work would show up somewhere somehow in something, right? Alas, no. And age, equally alas, plays a role, even if we try to get around it or deny it. There is some evidence--factual, medicaal--that recovery time for muscles that have been worked hard increases with age. Personally, I have found that it takes 2-3 days, typically three days, to recover whereas the young ninjas need only a day, as I did during my Army time.  So, I do with myself what my trainer does with me: one day concentrate on upper body, the second day on abs, the third day on lower body, and most days also on cardio. Cardio is another challenge for me; it seems that I do run out of breath too quckly. Not energy. Just breath. But breathing is rather important. So, all of this can be disouraging. It is like reading one page of a book a day, It takes many days to finish the book, and a sense of the story wit...

Available on pre-order from online sellers today, as well as from our webstore ! As always, with our bookstore, code FF25 will prodice a 25% discount. Release date: May 15, 2020.

"With its strong, dedicated, and important message, Noah's New Puppy is an extraordinary, unique, impressively entertaining, thoroughly 'kid friendly', and unreservedly recommended addition to family, preschool, elementary school, and community library picture book collections." Read the full review at MidWest Book Review, Reviewer's Choice, January 2020 Children's Bookwatch .

Well, the title is the long and short of it. Dr. Susan Lewis, author of From Deep Within , is now writing a regular column for Psychology Today , called "Law and Disorder." Take a look--and if you like it, follow it! Here is the link to " Law and Disorder ." Congratulations to Dr. Lewis; we look forward to some very interesting posts from her.

Great coverage of Shawn & Brown's One Simple Text...The Liz Marks Story by Linda Stein of The Mercury. Take a gander and enjoy.

And, as the school year re-starts, reminding parents of Cindy McKinley's tips for a successfull school year seems to be quite in order -- these tips were publishing on the Finding Your Path Project website last fall, but they are every bit as good for the winter. Here they are: the 8 tips . For a whole year's worth of tips, see her book, 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents .

  The Quinelle series of books, based on  Understanding the People around You , focuses on individual personality types. The excerpt below is from  Understanding the Seeker: Socionics in Everday Life . Want more information? Read the books! Start with Filatova's book, then turn to Quinelle's books that break out the individual styles: Understanding the Analyst Understanding the Critic Understanding the Entrepreneur Understanding the Seeker ---- at least three more coming in 2022 (Romantic, Performer, Professional) Understanding the Seeker’s Approach to Life What is the Seeker? The Seeker is an Intuitive Thinking Extrovert (ITE). As such, he or she is a combination of the three expressed traits and the unexpressed trait, Irrationality (emphasis on the Jungian definition, not the English-language lay definition). Filatova describes the Seeker in the following way: The most attractive feature of Seekers (ITEs) is their enthusiastic look, as if they are oversized chil...