To Horoscope or not this New Year, that is the question?

Since the beginning of time man has been fascinated about learning what will happen in the future. Many different methods have been used in this endeavour such as crystal balls, palm reading – the list goes on. One of the most popular is the use of horoscopes, but is it the best?

Predicting the future or determining the meaning of current, future or past events has long been in use. Records show its existence over 3,000 years ago and it can be found in history books of ancient rulers from the King's sorcerer, in ancient times, to the educated person of today.  In all instances it was and is all about trying to determine things which one desires to know but is not readily apparent.

Everyone would like to know what is going to happen in the future regarding love, employment, money and many other things. Even if it is unfavourable warnings can be given to avoid certain things that might be harmful. Time, as well as planet locations, the date of a person's birth and many other things go into a horoscope reading. I ask again but is it the best and most reliable method of finding out?

In a nutshell what makes up a horoscope?

Technically, a horoscope is a diagram in astrology that shows the different positions of all the astrological elements known to man. These include the sun, moon, planets as well as the angles during the moment when a specific thing takes place. A good example of which is the exact point in time of one's birth.

The horoscope chart is also referred to as an astrological chart, a celestial map, a cosmogram, a radical chart or a vitasphere. Whatever it ends up being called, it is generally designed to guide an individual in the divination of events related to the points in time when they take place. It is also the basis for all horoscopic traditions in the world of astrology.

Where is the most common place to see a horoscope chart?

One will often see a horoscope chart in the newspaper with special significance given to one whose birthday is the same date. These signs are indicated by various names such as Taurus, Gemini, Leo, etc.

The signs which appear in the newspaper indicate certain predictions based on people's birthdays. Following the sign and the date, events will be related that are supposed to occur in one's life. Time, the position of the planets and dates all are part of the calculation.

Can you trust horoscopes?

This is just one example but I am sure you can relate to it with your own experience. My father in law, Gordon, has the star sign Sagittarius.  He was born on the 12^th of December and he is 87 years old.  The essence of today's reading from a local paper states

"Romance is in the air…promotion at work is waiting for you so step forward and take it…" Whilst Gordon leads a very full life I don't feel this really applies to him.

The first level of "reliability" of a horoscope.

This is the wide sweeping prediction (found in those newspapers/magazines or horoscope books - always in glut supply around Christmas and New Year) that covers everyone born under that sign. Surely no one could possibly believe that this is accurate and will cover every person sharing the same sign. You may be one of the enlighten ones who read it for a laugh…many others don't.

The second level of "reliability" of a horoscopes.

Extensive introduction of computers has made it possible to create an astrological computer program. It is technology that depends on a type of interpreter software to gather information provided to it to produce an astrological chart followed by a horoscope.  Unfortunately this method of providing horoscopes presents a few issues. The program does not care how accurate the data is you enter. In a lot of instances it is a requirement that you provide the time of your birth up to 4 minutes. If you enter an incorrect value, mistaken for 5 or 10 minutes, then you obtain a horoscope for another person.  A major issue with this method is that computers have no "soul" and therefore will not be able to answer your questions.

The third level of "reliability" of a horoscope.

At this level there is an approach to a professional astrologer. This person will personally analyse your horoscope, describe and answer any questions you may have. The astrologer will examine the horoscope as a whole, rather than individual elements. The accuracy of your personal horoscope drawn up this way is questionable.  Who believes that the star signs can foretell the future?  Where is the spirituality, the insight given by the Creator in mediation to a clairvoyant?  Also there is one major drawback – price. Since the work on one horoscope takes several hours to several days the price of a horoscope from this method is significantly high.

Psychic Detectives or Psychic Investigators Television Program.  

The above show is just one of many television programs showcasing the talents of Psychics. The program documents real-life cases of situations in which Police Departments have enlisted the aid of psychics to help solve difficult cases. Some are Cold Cases still open on their books many years after the crime has been committed.  I am not aware of any astrologer, professional or otherwise, that has ever been involved in assisting in this type of psychic work. If any of my readers are aware of an astrologer that has been involved in this type of work please enlighten me.  

Astrologers may say not all who claim to be Psychics are the real thing. I have been involved in the area of utilising "insight" for over 30 years. The best way to ascertain if you are dealing with a genuine psychic is to request the psychic to tell you, in some detail, about your past. If they can't convince you of that then what belief can you have in any information they give you?

I am a third generation Clairvoyant.

Whilst living in England, I studied under the well known British Medium, Brenda Towers and on my return to Australia spent time working with leading South Australian Medium, Margaret Morris.

I have worked under the guidance of Eric Harrison (One of the few Zen Masters in Australia), concentrating on refining my insight skills even further.

Within the area of Clairvoyance, my particular expertise lies with psychometry, Egyptian Tarot Card reading and insights via the use of crystal like substances. Over 30 years experience in these fields places me in the "masters group". Over the past 15 years, I have been busy giving both personal and business readings. I have also built up a strong client base through referrals.

So rather than rush out and get that horoscope book this New Year why not purchase Butterfly in a Glass Bottle and experience an "insight reading" as well?  By doing this you will have a romantic, psychic love adventure novel to read over the holidays plus an "insight reading" of what's ahead for you.

My unique offer to you is unbeatable and great value. You will receive the most romantic, psychic love adventure story of the century, Butterfly in a Glass Bottle by Thomas H Green at under $30. By purchasing this book from your local bookstore or your favourite online service and making contact through the author's web site, following the details when you click on the book Butterfly in a Glass Bottle, you will receive the special unique offer, free, valued at over $100.

 

For full details check out this very special limited offer at Thomas's website. www.thomashgreenauthor.com.

 

What better time than now to do it?  …   Just do it….   Now!

The most Romantic, Insightful and Spiritual Christmas present on the market!

Are you looking for that special gift for a lover or a best friend that is truly unique, has a spiritual value, will always be treasured and at the same time keep your bank balance in the black?

Here are my top reasons why books are that great gift:

With a book…

1. Someone can plan their ultimate vacation  -  find them a beautiful picture book about Africa, Hawaii, Australia… pair it with a Guide book and let them dream.
2. A child can learn to read - see the excitement in their eyes as they sound out that first word in the phonic book(s) you gave them. That's joy right there.
3. You can help a cook diversify their menu or learn to boil water. They can make fabulous chocolate treats for you from that cook book. And that makes it a gift for you too!
4. A friend can find their roots (that'd be ancestors, not hair although you can probably find a book about hair roots too!) This may take more than one book, but all the better.
5. You can give the gift of an exotic pet without the mess, breaking any laws or putting them in danger. Lions and tigers and bears, Wow!
6. Your price point goes from fairly little to extremely high and you can generally always find something to fit your budget.
7. There is love, heartbreak, thrills, chases, romance and knowing that in the end the bad guy will be caught and love will be found. Give a romance and guarantee a happy ending.

There are likely as many reasons that books are great gifts, as there are genres of romance.  For me, I always give books.  Books are versatile and can take you to worlds you've never seen and may never see.  They can transport you. They can teach you. They can heal you.

My unique offer to you is unbeatable and great value. You will receive the most romantic psychic love adventure story of the century, Butterfly in a Glass Bottle by Thomas H Green at under $30. By purchasing this book from your local bookstore or your favourite online service and making contact through the author's web site, following the details when you click on the book Butterfly in a Glass Bottle, you will receive the special unique offer, free, valued at over $100.

 

For full details check out this very special limited offer at Thomas's website. www.thomashgreenauthor.com.

 

What better time than now to do it? Just do it. Now!

 

It is a unique gift that your lover, friend or you will be truly thankful for. Plus a great psychic romantic love story. The unique gift could change lives for the better.

The perfect environment to write your first novel - Princess Cruises

So, what does it take to write a novel? While I may not be an expert I can at least share the experience from the perspective of someone who has done it before. I can't promise these tips will work for you, but they might.

Since a young boy I have always wanted to write but as we all know things during your life seem to get put in your way. In a large majority of cases the biggest need in life is to make a living to support a lifestyle that usually entails marriage, mortgage then children, not necessarily in that order.  In my life, so far, there has never seemed to be the right moment to realise my dream, this may be the case for you too. Spare time outside our working hours is greedily taken up by what we generally call maintenance of our family and home which usually entails; taking our kids to their sporting actives on the weekend, helping our partner with the house cleaning and shopping plus the garden is always crying out for more attention.  This maintenance often appears to be a bottomless pit!

It wasn't until I decided to take a cruise sailing out of Fremantle on Princess Cruises Sun Princess with my beautiful wife Christine, some 3 years ago, that it became obvious, after the first day onboard, that this would be the perfect place to start my writing.

Why is a Princes Cruise the right environment, you may ask?

Once you step onboard a Princess Cruise voyage, to coin the phrase used in Princess Cruises promotional material, you escape completely. It is a promise they don't fail to deliver.  You have a well appointed Stateroom with first class service from your friendly and knowable steward who keeps your cabin in tip top shape. You are free from all the day to day demands of life. On board your Princess cruise life is made so very easy for you. The Horizon Court buffet will welcome you 24 hours of the day and is a haven for all tastes. There are four set meal times for you - breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and of course dinner.  Even the fussiest eater will find a wide range of food to their taste.  When it comes to washing clothes, not a problem – just give them to your cabin steward and the next day you will have them back sparkling clean and pressed. No meals to think about or prepare no washing to do – what to do with this spare time, indulge in your passion and start writing!

There are many places onboard to start your writing. You can sit out on your balcony, head off to the library, a public room, or onto the Promenade deck and grab a deck chair. There are many places onboard where you can find a quiet corner to sit and contemplate where to start the process of writing your first novel. Here are a few tips.

Plotting – What better place to begin than incorporating your story line around the cruise you are on. Some writers plot out every twist and turn beforehand and some people just write. Although I've always been a 'write first and think later' kind of author, I'm slowly coming to appreciate having a detailed outline to work from. One reason is because I now write to deadlines. Writing to a plot keeps me on track.

Characters – Again cruising is a great place to just sit and 'people watch'.  Building your story through the use of many interesting characters you see from the crew and of course the passenger list can be the beginnings of a good read.  I have 'good' and 'evil' characters in my novels. The conflict this generates is more than enough to escalate things to a satisfactory climax and conclusion. I don't spend too much time developing bit players, unless they become more important during the writing. If someone's only going to appear in your book for one paragraph, treat them like a piece of furniture. Also, try and limit the number of characters.

Scenes -  Are the story units, and there are one or more of these per chapter. Again what is happing around you every day will help you. Take the many interesting ports of call. In my case South East Asia. Your Scenes can be built around your characters activities in these exotic ports.  

Bangkok. Temples with gold leaf spires harbor priceless Buddha's. Riverboat trips down a maze of canals.

Ho Chi Minh City. Clouded in history.  Over three decades have passed since the fall of Saigon. Now it is a bustling metropolis on the Mekong River. The air is filled with the cries of street hawkers and honking horns.

Kuala Lumpur. Is a melting pot of Malays, Chinese, Arabs, Hindus, Eurasians and Europeans.  A place where steel and glass towers stand side by side with graceful stone colonial buildings and mosques adorned with slender minarets.

Sihanoukville, Cambodia. Pristine beaches and crystalline waters with some of the finest big game fishing in the world.

Singapore. The very name summons visions of the mysterious East. Buddhist temples and Arab bazaars await you with some of the finest duty free shopping in the world.

I can go on and on. These ports will make a wonderful backdrop for your story as you will experience them yourself first hand. You also have the facility of the internet on board to do any further research for your book.

Revisions - Don't bother…finish writing the book. You will have plenty of time for improvements later, and it's easy to kill a book by being too critical during the writing process. You're not trying to produce finished work at this stage - remember, by the time a major publisher releases a book it's been through several drafts and has also had input from a professional editor and a proof reader. Think of your first draft as a block of raw material, from which you will chip your finished work. Throw everything into it! Don't worry about inconsistencies and dead ends they can be trimmed out afterwards.

A Princess cruise has everything in place for you to write your first novel whether you use the cruise as a backdrop or not.  If you look around you onboard you will see nearly everyone has a book in their hands and during the daylight hours are buried in it.

What a thrill I got on our last cruise when Christine, who had been watching the city skyline of Singapore pass by, caught a passenger more interested in reading their book. On closer inspection she found it was my novel Butterfly in a Glass Bottle being read!

Why not book a cruise and follow in my footsteps and start writing.  I am onto my second book and yes I am using all the characters and experiences I gathered from my previous cruises.   

Lady Gaga's Ghostly Solution

I was somewhat shocked then intrigued when I read an article in an Australian Newspaper (The Adelaide Advertiser 07^th October 2010) featuring a story on one of the sublime entertainers of our time, Lady Gaga, and her obsession with ghosts.

 

The news item went on and I quote:

            "The eccentric singer is terrified of evil spirits and reportedly has every hotel and tour venue scanned by a team of paranormal investigators before she will agree to stay there, according to Britain's Grazia magazine."

            "The 24-year-old pop star – who has previously said she believes she is the reincarnated spirit of her dead aunt – has also allegedly splashed out £30,000 on state of the art Electro Magnetic Field meters to detect spectres."

            "A source said: "She believes in paranormal activity and won't take any risks when she is on the road. It's important to her to be safe from spirits."

 

My first response to Lady Gaga's plight was one of surprise for I truly believe that no one in today's world should ever be terrified by spirits from the Other Side. It is purely an emotional reaction to the situation.  My second response was to ask myself if Lady Gaga had sought the guidance of a Medium of the calibre of a John Edward or the prominent British Medium John Myers. Both these men are well respected on the world stage and if allowed would counsel Lady Gaga and set her free from her misconceptions.

 

I have no doubt that Mediums of the quality that I have just listed would be able to get in contact with Lady Gaga's dead aunt thus demonstrating to the singer that she is truly a unique individual in her own right. In time they would be able to free this fabulous entertainer from her crippling fears.

 

A meeting with a prominent medium could be done in private but I would look to do it in a more open manner. I would incorporate it in Lady Gaga's concerts at the half way point of the show. It would take the format of an arm chair chat, centre stage, with both parties.

 

This would have two major benefits. The first one being that Lady Gaga would be surrounded by her adoring fans and the singer may feel more comfortable in a large gathering confronting her fears of the spirit world.  

 

The second point is more vital it would allow the fans to feel that they have been taken into Lady Gaga's confidence and are a vital part of her world in sharing with her this experience, instead of just being donators of cash through buying merchandise of the singer. It would also help any of Lady Gaga's fans who have the same misconceptions as she currently has by allowing those fans also to shed their fears of the Other Side and its occupants.

 

Lady Gaga leads the music industry in so many ways with sublime talent, if only she could find the same internal strength to face this problem and conquer it who knows where it may lead her. A new direction in her song writing? A more spiritual "voice" in the world? - boy do we need it.

 

I would be interested in any of your thoughts just drop me a line and I promise I will return your message.

FREE PSYCHIC READING

The first one hundred lucky purchasers will be entitled to a free a psychic reading.

As well a writer I am a third generation Clairvoyant. Whilst living in England, I studied under well known British Medium, Brenda Towers and on my return to Australia spent time working with leading South Australian Medium, Margaret Morris.

I have worked under the guidance of Eric Harrison (One of the few Zen Masters in Australia), concentrating on refining my insight skills even further.

Within the area of Clairvoyance, my particular expertise lies with psychometry, Egyptian Tarot Card reading and insights via the use of crystal like substances. Having over 30 years experience in these fields places me in the "masters group". Over the past 15 years, I have been busy giving both personal and business readings. I have also built up a strong client base through referrals.

How does reading a photograph work?

From your photograph, I will be able to pick up insights from your life to date and/or events yet to unfold. This may enable the person receiving the reading to move on from a situation or to warn them of a forthcoming event in their life.

 

What is included in your reading?

 

• The essence of the reading
• The past
• The present
• The future

 How do I get my reading?

Simply purchase "Butterfly in a Glass Bottle" then send an email containing a photograph of yourself or loved one to akeh@iinet.net.au  When emailing your photograph please include the receipt number you were given when you purchased "Butterfly in a Glass Bottle" in the subject line of your email.

"Butterfly" in the 2010 London Book Fair - now on Ebook.

By now the worldwide financial damage caused by a cloud of volcanic ash that began closing down European air space on May 15th, 2010 is well-known. The publishing industry was greatly affected when the plans of numerous publishers, booksellers, literary agents, librarians, media and industry suppliers from over 100 countries to attend the London Book Fair were disrupted.

Strategic Book Group’s American staff wasn’t able to attend the London Book Fair because of airspace closures over Europe. Fortunately we had two contacts from the London area scheduled to assist us during the Fair. Annie Nicholas, joined by Linda Edwards and Deanne Dagley, carried on beautifully serving our authors who managed to get to the Fair and represent their books. These three women did a fantastic job making sure the scheduled authors were able to carry though with their plans in spite of travel problems caused the volcano.

What makes their efforts even more special is that Annie and Linda are authors, and Deanne is the very supportive wife of author David Dagley. Annie and Strategic’s exposition manager Nancie Liles stayed in contact by phone and email in an effort to keep prior plans and arrangements on schedule. We are grateful for the professional way they represented Strategic Book Group and its authors in London.

How did the London Book Fair 2010 turn out as a whole? On the second day of the Fair The Bookseller News Team for The Bookseller Daily reported ‘Travel chaos will not stop publisher and agents from conducting business...’. However it was estimated that about half of the meetings set for international publishers didn’t take place because of travel difficulties.

Having a reduced number of Fair attendees meant that getting attention to our booth was imperative. Strategic Book Marketing’s team of publicists work with authors who sign up to appear with us during expositions and instruct them on how to promote themselves. The authors who managed to make it to the London Book Fair 2010 took those instructions to heart.

For starters, David Weakly turned his car into a billboard and drove it about before finally parking it in a promant spot outside the center.

Thomas Green's "Butterfly in a Glass Bottle" proudly on display.

Likewise Jacqui Vittles (author of
Dyslexia - An Amazing Discovery)
sparkled in her corner spot, what a
fantastic lady.

Igor Ferluga (author of Shadows of the
Nephilim) displayed an absolutely fabulous
attitude and no fear, masses of interest in
his book and he did exactly the right thing
after we talked things through.

Lynda Cookson (author of Tea 'n Turps),
was wonderfully upbeat, again lots of
interest; her work has a broad appeal --
and she brought masses of goodies to give
away, mugs, tees etc.

Alexander Jackman (author of I Am) had quite a
presence and garnered a lot of attention for his
novel.

There were far too many things going on in Strategic Book Group’s booth at K-175 for us to describe here. To see photographs of the books on display and our wonderful authors in action, visit the photo album HERE.

Once the London Book Fair 2010 officially ended, Strategic’s exposition staff began the tasks of following up on leads obtained during the Book Fair as well as making contacts with those we were in contact with before the event who were not keep scheduled meeting appointments because of travel cancellations.

We are now moving forward with BookExpo America to be held in New York City beginning May 25th, and we’ve been told that much of the business that did not happen in London is expected to take place in New York. There’s also a lot of talk about the foreign markets who had invested so much in this year’s LBF are taking additional resources to Germany for the Frankfurt Book Fair scheduled for October. Strategic Book Group will be there, and we hope you can join us.


Please contact us at bookexpoLori@strategicbookmarketing.com with inquiries about book expositions Strategic Book Group will participate in.

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