MSI Press Blog

  March is Women's History Month. We celebrate by recommending the following books for women. Order from our webstore and get a 25% discount with coupon code FF25.             108 Yoga and Self-Care Practices for Busy Mamas (Julie Gentile) Are you too busy for self-care? From a one-minute meditation to building a routine you love to wake up to, this quick read and everyday self-care resource gives you the energy to live a mindful, more nourished life by taking good care of yourself. With Julie M. Gentile, award-winning author, yoga teacher and Millennial mom, as your guide, you'll give birth to your highest self through self-care.  Book Excellence Awards Finalist IPPY Living Now Bronze Medal Read more posts about this book HERE . A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing (Joanna Romer) A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing offers a new perspective on how to comfort yourself while bolstering self-esteem. Using Bible stories as well as creative techniques for self-nurturing, the b

  I wish I knew more about all the thinking and emotions that went into Joanna Romer's A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing . Unfortunately, after publishing ten books with us -- all of them respected and many of them beloved -- she passed away quite unexpectedly. One of her co-authors found her on the floor when she dropped by; Joanna had died of a heart attack, with no one else around to help. After producing two books on bereavement, which reflected both her personal experience and her research as a professor of journalism, Joanna asked if we would be interested in publishing a book that she felt compelled to write -- a book for women, focusing on their mental health and comfort, based on psychology and spirituality. It some ways, it seemed like she, not all that long ago divorced, was actually wanting to write a book for herself and then share it. Usually, we tell would-be authors to move their own needs aside and focus on the needs and interests of their readers. However, Joa

  I would so love to be able to reach through "the veil" and ask Joanna ro provide the back story to A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing . Alas, that is not possible. However, as her publisher, I do remember some conversations with her at the time she was planning and writing this book. It was a modest amount of time after we published her popular and award-winning book, Widow .  Widow grew out of her own experience at losing her husband and partner of many years; together, they had produced the 1972 feature film, Please Stand By.  As a result of her experience as a widow, she learned that she needed to take care of herself, first and foremost. She focused on a popular concept at the time: self-nurturing. A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing was her way, as a professor of journalism, of sharing what she experienced and learned with others. For more posts on Joanna and her books, click HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC Newsletter Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Bo

  Excerpt from A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing by Joanna Romer - How to Figure Out What Pleases You You know what your mother likes; ditto your daughter and your best friend. But do you really know what warms your soul? What single thing or combination of factors is necessary to soothe your inner being? Often we don’t know—a family reunion may bring tears of joy to your sister Gillian, but it leaves you cold. Your next door neighbor Amy thrives on frequent trips to the mall, but you’d rather drive to an out-of-the way antique store and shop for a “find.”  Every woman is different, and we make a mistake when we tag along on someone else’s pleasure jaunt thinking it’s ours too (unless of course our purpose is to give that person a treat). If our goal is to please ourselves, we need to plumb to the bottom of our consciousness and discover that special something that brings us joy. The good news is, the older we get the easier it is to figure this out, simply by the process of

    Today's excerpt comes from  A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing  by Joanna Romer. Mary and Martha “Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village, and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus’ feet, and heard his word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”                                                                             -Luke 10: 38-42 Reading this, we may become a bit irritated at first, in several different directions. If you’re like me, you might feel a stab of impatience: “C’mon, Martha, are you really going to tattle-tale

  Today's excerpt comes from  A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing  by Joanna Romer. What is Self-Nurturing? On a tray in the middle of your bed sits a pretty teapot, milk and sugar, a flowered teacup and, the piece de resistance , a frothy cream puff on a matching flowered plate. No, you’re not sick, and there is no one invited to this little tea party but you. You have gone out of your way to create a tempting display of yummy food and fine china solely for the purpose of pleasing yourself. “A waste of time,” I can hear you saying—but is it? Gazing at the tea tray and the cream puff, some inner part of your being is unaccountably soothed. It is the side of you that is, undeniably, female. Yes, men and women are equal, but sometimes their needs differ. Even Sheryl Sandberg, author of Lean In, the most feminist book in decades, declares, “…there are differences between men and women both in their behavior and the way their behavior is perceived” (Sandberg, p. 145). Sometimes wome