MSI Press Blog

  Today's book back story provides inside information about  One Simple Text.. . (Shaw & Brown).  From the publisher -  Betty Shaw and Dave Brown brought to the press a great story. One of tragedy that through patient fortitude, medical skill, and great faith turned into triumph. Of a life almost lost because of one simple text while driving. The what and who of that text I will leave readers to discover. A story that had propelled the author and the protagonist of the story, her daughter, to Oprah Winfrey's TV show. They had, however, not yet written a book. (Advice here: if you have the opportunity for world-class publicity, get your book done in advance; it is so  helpful for book promotion to have the publicity come after the book and not afterward.) They needed some help in refining the story into a book that works. That is where MSI Press came in. We do this all the time with first-time authors. We help turn their wonderful but seemingly unmanageable stories into wann

  The following excerpt comes from One Simple Text.. . (Shaw & Brown) - Preface   I was in a near death car accident on April 7, 2012.   My face was shattered, and I suffered a traumatic brain injury. I was not expected to live, but by some miracle I did.             My journey to recovery and acceptance of the new me was far more difficult than I imagined.             I questioned why God let me live. Begging Him to let me die, I went into a deep depression.             I had more than 16 operations to repair the damage caused to my face, ears, and eyes.   I felt left out and lonely because I lost my friends on my way to recovery.             This all happened to me because I chose to text and drive.             This is my story.   Liz Marks Liz Marks and her mom, Betty Shaw Eric Hoffer Award finalist American Bookfest Best Books Award finalist For more posts about Betty and Dave and their books, click HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsle

  Excerpt from One Simple Text: The Liz Marks Story (Shaw & Brown) GETTING TO ELIZABETH I careened around Elizabeth’s room, looking for something, anything, that felt like her that I could hold onto. Then, I saw it: her pillow—her favorite, the one she slept on every night, the one with the pizza stains, blotches of makeup, and the fruity scent of her perfume. I clutched that pillow to my chest for the whole ride to Shock Trauma. The drive had taken more than an hour, a span that people tend to think must have felt like an eternity. But it didn’t. I wanted that drive to last forever. I feared that once we arrived at Shock Trauma, they would tell us Elizabeth was dead. As long as the car rolled along the road, Elizabeth was alive. Paramedics had flown Elizabeth in a medevac helicopter from a cleared crop field a half-mile from the accident scene to the roof of the R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, part of the University of Maryland Medical Center—Shock Trauma for short. There, s

  San Juan Books is the hybrid division of MSI Press LLC. It allows first-time writers to become published in a traditional way through the reduction of risk by sharing publication costs. All other publishing features are traditional in nature, and most SJB authors go on to be offered traditional contracts for their subsequent books. SJB publications are available as paperback, hard cover, and e-book versions. SJB authors' books very much hold their own against their contemporaries in the traditional publishing division. Indeed, a number of them have outsold their traditional compatriots. Today, San Juan Books presents authors Betty Shaw and Dave Brown. Betty and Dave published One Simple Text... . Their book has earned many (and only) 5-star ratings as well as the Kops-Fetherling International Book Award for Legacy Inspiration/Motivation. The book itself follows an appearance by Liz Marks and her mother, Betty Shaw, on the Oprah Winfrey Show. To see more posts about these authors

  Congratulations to MSI Press authors whose books placed in the Hollywood Book Festival. Irit Schaffer ( Good Blood ) earned the silver medal in the spiritual category and an honorable mention in the historical category. Andrew Harvey ( Tucker and Me ) earned an honorable mention in the autobiography/biography/memoir category.  MSI Press Blog Joanna Charnas ( A Movie Lover’s Search for Romance )    earned an honorable mention in the autobiography/biography/memoir category.  Betty Sha w and Dave Brown ( One Simple Text… ) earned an honorable mention in the general nonfiction category.

  Congratulations to Betty Shaw and Dave Brown on her book, One Simple Text... , being selected as the  Kops-Fetherling International Book Awards  legacy award in the category of inspiration/motivation.   “ In One Simple Text , Betty Shaw recounts her daughter’s frightening and arduous but ultimately uplifting and inspirational journey. Betty chronicles Liz’s ordeal from the day of the accident and provides a glimpse of their life on the speaking and television circuit. This is a poignant memoir about a young woman who triumphed over tragedy; a mother and daughter’s love; and the indomitable power of the human spirit .” Read more posts about Betty and Dave and this book  HERE .

photo: https://calstar.org/contact-us/              A nurse named Ally carried a big, white binder into Elizabeth’s room. It contained, according to Ally, all the information I would need to help me understand what to expect in the coming days and weeks. As Ally guided me through the binder, the truth that Elizabeth was not yet out of the woods—not even close—began to sink in. My heart pounded in my throat, and tears gathered at the corners of my eyes. “Just take it hour by hour,” Ally told me, just as the TRU nurse had.   I learned about the two critical periods in the early recovery for a person with a brain injury. The initial critical period when injuries may be so bad that they cause death, even with the best care, occurs the first day or two after the injury. Those who survive this period face another critical period a few days later, lasting for approximately two more weeks during which time the brain may swell and complications occur at any time. Elizabeth had now entered i

Betty Shaw and her daughter, Liz, travel throughout the United States to bring awareness about the dangers of distracted driving.  She lives in Easton, Maryland with her family and their dog, Quintin. Her book with Dave Brown,  One Simple Text…The Liz Marks Story ,  is a poignant tale of the drama that Liz and her family suffered as a result of her nearly dying from an accident that resulted from texting while driving. For more information about Betty's book, click HERE .

  Just in this week -- a new (great) review on Amazon on One Simple Text .  five stars:  This book was a great read and definitely Liz’s story is an inspiration to me and I’m sure everyone else who reads it!! Joining an earlier 5-star review: MUST READ Check them out HERE . Read more posts about this book and its authors HERE .

Saturday, April 7, 2012 The morning before Easter I stood in front of the kitchen window in my pajamas with a cup of hot coffee in my hand, gazing at the cloudless sky and watching the pesky squirrels in the backyard eat all of the birdseed out of the birdfeeder. No matter how many times I chased them off, they came back. I loved watching the birds so I put up with the thieves. Such a perfect day—except for one thing: my daughter Elizabeth still wasn’t home. She had spent the night at a friend’s house, and I had expected her to return before now. She knew the rules—she had to check in with us in person the next morning after staying the night away from home—but she hated to follow them. A typical teenager, rebellious and stubborn, she thought her parents didn’t understand her, that we had no idea what it was like to be a teenager. Lord knows, I was well aware of the trouble a teenager could get into by spending the night away from home, not only from her older half-brother