MSI Press Blog

  The Humble Pencil: A Writer’s Timeless Companion On this day in 1857, Hyman Lipman changed the way we write and revise by patenting the first pencil with an attached eraser. Nearly 200 years later, in an era of digital tools, voice-to-text software, and AI-generated prose, the simple pencil remains a steadfast ally for writers, editors, and creative minds. Despite the convenience of modern technology, there’s something uniquely satisfying about the tactile experience of a pencil gliding across a page. Unlike the unyielding permanence of ink or the cold efficiency of a keyboard, a pencil embodies the creative process itself—imperfect, adaptable, and always open to revision. For writers, a pencil isn’t just a tool—it’s a philosophy. It reminds us that mistakes aren’t failures but stepping stones. It gives us permission to erase, rethink, and refine. The whisper of graphite against paper is a quiet act of creation, a tangible connection between thought and expression. Editors, too, ...

  Recently Arthur Yavelberg, author of the multi-award-winning book,  A Theology for the Rest of Us ,  published a column in the Arizona Star, called "A Pencil by Any Other Name;" it talks about how objects can be defined in multiple ways, depending upon situation, logic, point of view, religious philosophy, etc. You can read the article right here: A Theology for the Rest of Us  has earned the following awards: Best Indie Book Award Literary Titan Silver Aware American BookFest Best Books Award finalist For more posts about Arthur and his book, 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 . Planning on self-publishing and don't know where to start? Our  author au pair  services will mentor you through the process. Interested in receiving a free copy of this or ...

On October 8, MSI Press author, Arthur Yavelberg, author of A Thoelogy for the Rest of Us,   contributed an article to the Tucson Daily Star about...well, you can read it here and see what it is about: "A Rose by Any Other Name" by Arthur Yavelberg While I am not a Catholic, I've never had a problem with the Trinity. The idea that there is one essence that manifests itself in different forms in different contexts was no challenge to me. The same is true of Krishna in Hinduism, by the way. Depending on the seeker--the nature of the seeker and the surrounding culture--Krishna could take any form that would be positively received. When I was teaching in Chicago, it was not false humility to recognize, for example, that basketball great Michael Jordan and I could say exactly the same thing, but Jordan would get rapt attention while I would be lucky if there was a drowsy yawn. In the Bible, when Moses wants to know the name of God he should use when addressing the Israelites i...

  Poop is one of the body’s earliest alarm systems, and different cancers can alter stool in different ways. Pencil‑thin stool is the classic red flag for colon cancer, but it’s far from the only pattern worth knowing about. The changes below come from how tumors block, bleed, or interfere with digestion and bile flow. 1. Colon & Rectal Cancer Why stool changes: Tumors narrow the passageway, bleed easily, or disrupt water absorption. Key stool patterns: Pencil‑thin or ribbon‑thin stool — narrowing from a tumor blocking the lumen. Pebble‑like hard pellets — obstruction causing excess water absorption. Blood in stool Bright red → lower colon or rectum. Black/tarry → bleeding higher up. Mucus in stool — especially with mucinous tumors. Alternating constipation and diarrhea — partial obstruction. 2. Pancreatic Cancer Why stool changes: Blocked bile duct → no bile reaching the intestine; lack of pancreatic enzymes → fat malabsorption. Key stool patterns: P...

  Today's tip for parents from two talented teachers comes from  365 Teacher Secrets for Parents  by Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly. #103 Notes on Note Taking   Learning is like rowing upstream; not to advance is to drop back. ~ Chinese proverb   In Idea #95, you read about SQ3R. During reading, this method suggests that your child take notes in some way while she is reading. There are several good strategies for doing this so that she can later look back and easily see the most important parts of what she read. It is nice to show your child a wide variety of options and then let her choose what she prefers. We don’t all take notes in the same way. We also do not take notes the same way each time we do it ourselves. However, if we have lots of options we know about, we can pull from them and decide which would work best for us in any given situation. Here are two very helpful strategies. HIGHLIGHTING : One terrific way to mark important information is to...