MSI Press Blog

  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 author Bertha Cooper.  Bertha earned a BSN degree in nursing (University of Washington) and entered the profession the same year as Medicare, a coincidence destined to define her career in non-traditional ways. She began her career in public health and moved into a management position early in her career - the beginning of a long career in management and administrati

  Happy International Women's Day ! We are taking a different approach today because it is International Women's Day. So, it seems natural to look at the process of women writing books for women, using some examples from our onw publications. Of course, there are no limits to the topics that women are interested in. The range really is as broad as for men. However, there are some books that zone in on areas experienced principally or exclusively by women and sell nearly exclusively to women. Is it worth writing such narrow-niche books? Based on sales, the answer appears to be yes, and don't forget that women make up over half of the world's population, so the unanalyzed market is large. While the topics that women can and do write about for each other are many, the ones we have focused on at our press and that seem to resonate with a large enough part of the population are: aging, health & fitness, and life events. AGING Aging happens to all of us, and it would seem

  What is a book jewel? A sometimes-overlooked book with remarkable insight and potential significance. Starting in August, we will share near-daily, as possible, reviews of the monthly book jewel - short, succinct reviews that can be read in 1-2 minutes with links to the reviewer by reviewers whose words are worthy of being heard and whose opinions are worthy of being considered. Sometimes a couple of minutes contains more impressive thought than ten times that many. We will let you decide that. This month's book jewel is  Women, We're Only Old Once  by Bertha Cooper. Amazon review by CK - Active aging travelogue! As the author states "we begin aging the moment we are born"...so why not be an active participant? Aging IS normal, and Ms. Cooper presents descriptions and footsteps on a path to follow. People steer clear of aging conversations (except when we complain about our health) because it's not usually an encouraging or exciting topic, and most of us dread t

  The following is an excerpt from the award-winning book, Women. We're Only Old Once (Bertha Cooper) that seems particularly appropriate as the new year begins:  I have been frankly humbled by this experience of entering the last phase of my life. I, so far, have humble thoughts, the most important include being honest about my grief and, in the end, letting go of it. I try to honor the important losses of friends, accept the devaluation of my work, shrug off the newest arthritic finger bump, and pay attention to new thoughts and aspirations that never before had room in my life. Quite important, as you will see in later chapters, I encourage investment in well-being. Among my hopes in sharing this journey with you is that we will honor our bodies, which are changing daily, by taking care of them and will cherish our remaining relationships. We can anticipate that new thoughts and aspirations will begin entering from unexpected places as we clear out denial and grieving. Welcomin

  Women, We're Only Old Once  is  a 2023 Independent Press Award WINNER   in the category of Aging/Midlife.  Congratulations to MSI Press author, Bertha Coope Book description: With over ten years of growing into an old woman with the help of her friends, Bertha Cooper knows whereof she writes. In this book you will learn that growing old is not the slow death of our personalities, our bodies, or our relevance to the world. Someday, it will happen, but not yet! Feel the wisdom below the years we've lived and the power that comes with making our own choices about our aging selves.  Women, We're Only Old Once  offers explanations for natural changes that occur while aging and transitions we must make as we age. Women can be relieved to learn that having less endurance or word-finding problems are not signs of disease. Women are empowered to put their energy and spirit where it counts on their journey in this important phase of life. Bertha Cooper also earned the Kops-Fetherli

  From Cheryl Vassiliadis - Creative Aging:A Baby Boomer’s Guide to Successful Living  came about as a collaboration of two friends who discussed what the future would look like as we stepped into the troisième age. Joanna Romer, my co-author, was my Communications professor when I started college as a non-conventional student at 45. We were so like-minded that we hit it off in class and then as we became good friends outside of class.  She introduced me to other women engaged in artful endeavors, and I introduced her to a special dance class I launched in my local community for ladies over the age of 50 called Flowing Rhythm. Later, when I moved to an over 55, active adult community in Georgia, I began that dance class in my clubhouse, and it had one of the most rewarding outcomes of my life. Joanna and I stayed in touch and wrote each other back and forth, and when she authored her first book  Widow: A Survival Guide for the First Year  in 2012, she told me I should try writing a boo

  I have a one-word description after reading Women, We’re Only Old Once! by Bertha D. Cooper…Wowza! Recently, Readers' favorite posted three reviews of Women, We're Only Old Once. All were 5 stars. Here is a peek: by Tammy Ruggles ...  This isn't a book to make you feel down, it's actually very uplifting and validating. Besides the positive side, Cooper also delves into the harder parts of getting older--rites of passage we all go through if we're fortunate enough to live that long, like losing loved ones, how to deal with changes in body and mind, and illness, as well as what to do about the practical things in life, like preparations, paperwork, and important decisions. Women can be a tremendous support system for one another. Women, We're Only Old Once by Bertha D. Cooper should be your go-to resource for yourself or a friend if you want to make the most out of aging and make peace with it. by Edith Wairimu Women, We're Only Old Once by Bertha D Cooper e

  What is a book jewel? A sometimes-overlooked book with remarkable insight and potential significance. Starting in August, we will share near-daily, as possible, reviews of the monthly book jewel - short, succinct reviews that can be read in 1-2 minutes with links to the reviewer by reviewers whose words are worthy of being heard and whose opinions are worthy of being considered. Sometimes a couple of minutes contains more impressive thought than ten times that many. We will let you decide that. This month's book jewel is  Women, We're Only Old Once  by Bertha Cooper. Amazon review by Dinah from Sequim - Perspectives on Aging Mrs. Cooper has written a very practical book for anyone interested in the aging process. She covers all aspects of growing older snd what to expect. As a nurse, she is very factual. This is good for anyone who is older, like me, or for younger people to get a perspective of aging family members/friends. Awards Kops-Fetherling International Book Awards/Ph

  Today's shared blog post comes from Joshua Shea, author of He's a Porn Addict...Now What? and Porn and the Pandemic . In his post, he comments on his son turning 18 and how that caused him to reflect on aging. You can read it HERE . For more posts about Joshua and his books, click HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .   Interested in publishing with MSI Press LLC? Check out information on  how to submit a proposal . Interested in receiving a free copy of this or any MSI Press LLC book  in exchange for  reviewing  a current or forthcoming MSI Press LLC book? Contact editor@msipress.com. Want an  author-signed copy  of this book? Purchase the book at 25% discount (use coupon code FF25) and concurrently send a written request to orders@msipress.com. Want to communicate with one of our authors? You can! Find their contact information on our  Authors' Pages .

  MSI Press books have, historically, won many awards from a wide range of competitions. This is the first in a series of sharing the various awards that our books have earned. The first category is Best Indie Book Award. The following MSI Press books have been Best Indie Book Award Winners to date: A Theology for the Rest of Us (Arthur Yavelberg).  If God exists and is good, why is there evil? Avoiding such questions underlies the spiritual emptiness and anxiety in today's world. A Theology for the Rest of Us explores how to approach the divine through Eastern and Western religious traditions without dogma, challenging readers to "be you lamps unto yourselves."  This book also won the Literary Titan Silver Award. Read more about this book and its author  HERE . Andrew's Awesome Adventures with His ADHD Brai n (Kristin Wilcox & Andrew Wilcox).  T his book provides unique insights into ADHD behaviors and suggests highly pragmatic and successfully implemented stra

  We just released an incomparable and comprehensive book on growing old with grace and smarts.  With over ten years of growing into an old woman with the help of her friends, Bertha Cooper knows whereof she writes. In this book you will learn that growing old is not the slow death of our personalities, our bodies, or our relevance to the world. Someday, it will happen, but not yet! Feel the wisdom below the years we've lived and the power that comes with making our own choices about our aging selves.  Women, We're Only Old Once  offers explanations for natural changes that occur while aging and transitions we must make as we age. Women can be relieved to learn that having less endurance or word-finding problems are not signs of disease. Women are empowered to put their energy and spirit where it counts on their journey in this important phase of life. More information about the book can be found HERE .  Bertha was born and raised in Seattle WA long before Microsoft and Amazon.