With limited time to see the sites, I negotiated my way through the warren of cobbled streets of this ancient city. Side-stepping tea carrying waiters, I window shopped past rows of curio displays and fended off enthusiastic carpet salesmen, before my interest was suddenly arrested by the most succulent, vivid and artistic display imaginable. I…
YOU! have the recipe for your success! A version of this talk given at The Red and Yellow Creative School of Business and can be viewed here. Ever since becoming a professional photographer my dream has been to have a coffee-table book with my name on it. I now have 2 – the only books on their subjects….
It’s one thing having a vision but that usually will come to nothing if no one is prepared to buy into that vision. Securing Corporate Sponsorship happens if either; you can by into the Corporates vision, whether it’s their mission statement, or Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative policy. The alternative is for them to buy into…
For quite a while now I haven’t posted about Corporate Sponsorship as I was busy finishing up my two latest books. The Journey that’s Ours – the follow on from The Power that’s Ours and Down The Linea photographic coffee-table book about the train line that runs between Cape Town and Simonstown, commuting over 3.5 million people…
This morning I attended the official opening of the Cape Town book Fair which will run until Sunday afternoon – 17th June. I went to the book fair for 2 specific reasons. As I’m only the independent publisher of , The Magic that’s Ours and The Power that’s Ours, 2 interactive, motivational books for children, I didn’t…
Growing up in Gauteng, the Karoo was nothing more to me than a flat wasteland to be endured while driving towards Cape Town for the summer holidays. From the still furnace of the car, dreams of lying on one of the Mother City’s beaches seemed as much an illusion as the mirages of heat rising…
I just don’t get hiking. What is it about carrying a chafing rucksack loaded with dehydrated food, being harassed by mosquitoes, and sweating profusely in the midday heat while plodding from point A to point B. I mean come on, we live in an age where we have TV to watch sport – usually just…
“What to do today?” I pondered upon opening my curtains and taking in a perfect early morning Sunday. My energy levels jumped a gear as rising in front of me and seemingly suspended from the rich blue sky, stood the most colossal sandstone sculptor overlooking and guarding the city. I would have loved to be…
When I’m depressed I need to eat! So after visiting the “Killing Fields” and Prison S21 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the two of the many places where Pol Pot interrogated, tortured and murdered anyone that he and his party, the Khmer Rouge, thought were counter revolutionary, I really needed to eat. I’d heard of a…
As the first spring days stretch out like a purring cat the more active Capetonian ready themselves in anticipation for the energetic feast that lies ahead. As the spring turns to summer and the rising sun encroaches more boldly into the very early morning night-time, the winter woollies are discarded and replaced with lighter more…
Baboons for me have always been the animals that taught Tarzan to swing heroically while yodelling, through the dense jungles of Africa. As I’m ignorant about primates, I could be mistaken, and it could’ve been Monkeys, Gorillas or Apes who were Tarzan’s tutors. Baboons, according to me, are dangerous, just sit in trees and steal…
For the third time in 3 weeks I’d noticed that my recycling garbage bag had been ripped open and all the recyclables had been mixed with the non- recyclables. I’d spent the whole week separating my recyclable, consumable waste, placing it in the special plastic bags supplied by the garbage collectors. I felt I was…
In the world of creatives, whoever they may be, one has to continuously put themselves out there. And to do that one needs quite an ego. But the ego can be quite a fragile thing- flying very high and screaming from the rooftops when complimented and sinking to very murky, depressing depths when criticized. So…
After receiving all the very kindly, positive and eloquently written rejection letters, I can be forgiven for expecting a boisterous, back slapping announcement- with all the bells and whistles- when the news that my sponsorship had finally come through. But this was not to be the case…but at that point in time I didn’t really…
And back to the Corporate sponsorship. I very quickly realised that patience is the key as the decision making process within the Corporate world grinds ever so slowly- at times it seems in reverse. Another thing I quickly realised after receiving the umpteenth rejection letter is not to take it personally and to just carry…
A while ago I posted the details of Edulis the Education Library and Information Service of the Western Cape Education Department. Among other things they recommend books to be part of the school libraries in the Western Cape. I also mentioned that both The Magic that’s Ours and The Power that’s Ours was put onto…
In the previous post it was mentioned the importance of having a distributor, which helps with registering with online bookstores. Deciding on a distributor can be affected by pricing, structure, distributorship area, as well as a personal feeling of who to work with, Besides the name mentioned in the previous post here are two more…
Very recently I received an email about Red Pepper Books, which is a South African online bookstore – “South Africa’s friendliest online bookstore” they advertise. Both The Magic that’s Ours and The Power that’s Ours were registered with Kalahari. net over a year ago but I couldn’t remember what was required to register books on…
A while ago I had to visit the dentist- which I hadn’t done previously in a very long time. They scare me tremendously as I can’t bear the prodding, filing, and especially the injections- the pain in my mind is unbearable. But I’ve now discovered that they’ve met their match… My proposal had been approved…
I suppose it’s true to say that we all love winning? But writing and publishing a book is definitely not a race to won. Saying that, it does leave one feeling a little proud when they’re told that their book is still number #1. With over 1700 chapters sold in August The Power that’s Ours…
Because I’m on the mailing list of the Society of Children’s Books Writers And Illustrators -SCWBI, late last week I received an email from them inviting me to attend a self-publishing workshop. I’ve been to quite a few similar workshops and for the first time I was completely blown away. Instead of the usual sole…
Throughout all the sponsorship tracking, hunting and cornering,I continued to write the third book of the series as I wanted it available two years after the launch of The Power that’s Ours As I begin with chapter 12 it seems that the closer the end the further away it seems. I’ve come to realise that…
The reason my publisher went out of business in 2005 -I think- is because they were slightly ahead of their time. Back then they were one of the first e book publishers that I’d heard of in South Africa, concentrating solely on on-line publishing. A few years ago I remember speaking to someone very involved…
As I’ve discovered sponsorship deals can take a while to be confirmed and as I couldn’t sit idly by, as I had bills to pay, I had to earn money from other sources. I’ve always considered myself a photographer that writes and having two means that sit so comfortably together I had to put both…
So back to the Corporate sponsorship. Starting in March 0f 210 I started on my drive to seek sponsorship for an initiative that I thought would be an instant hit. I thought I’d have sponsors beating down the door to become involved. Looking back now I reckon that everyone else out there seeking sponsorship has…
Word of mouth and recommendations are an amazing promoter and advertiser, and when word of mouth comes from a an influential, unquestionable source more so the better. In April of 2009 I submitted- according to the requirements- copies of The Magic that’s Ours to the Western Cape Education department. The copies were submitted for…
Most of my talks at school have been at Private schools as they have the time, facilities and foresight to accomodate speakers. The other day I had a conversation with a decision maker at the Western Cape Education department. I was suggesting that somehow we work together with me speaking at government schools to promote…
So after countless, calls, emails and rejections those decision makers are still not getting what you’re trying to sell- or worse yet have barricaded themselves against your barrage of inquiries seeking a response to your proposal. You become, despondent, frustrated, depressed and feeling like everyone and everything is against you. You think to yourself, when is…
I’ve always said that seeking sponsorship is a numbers game. There are so many people out there looking for sponsorship that it’s crucial to: a) Contact as many companies as possible and, b) Once you have the right person don’t give up contacting them until they either accept or reject the proposal outright. So much…
In celebration of such a successfully-hosted Soccer World Cup we are offering 210 signed copies of The Power that’s Ours at a greatly reduced price. Living our dreams, with a smattering on football in a few of the chapters- The Power that’s Ours introduces readers to the idea that we are able to realise our dreams…
I always find it amazing that when things are getting really rough- with sponsorship rejections coming like Pigeon crap from above, another angle opens up or is suggested. I remember being so engrossed in the idea that contacting Corporates was the only way to go that the blinkers I had on just shut out any…
Getting to speak to the correct person with regards to sponsorship is always key. The two departments that are responsible for for sponsorship are the Marketing Department and the Corporate Social Investment/ Responsibility Department. (CSRI) Finding these people either takes many hours trawling the company websites or phoning directly and asking the receptionist-whichever works for…
Corporate sponsorship- the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow! Cap in hand asking for money can take quite a bit of trial and error, a marketing and strategic plan and an eye catching proposal included-so it will be the topic of this blog for the next while. The corporates seemingly have loads…
A couple of posts ago I spoke about the workshops that I was planning to give to high school students. It’s one thing declaring that workshops will be on offer but it’s another thing putting together a professional package. There is logistics involved like: Course content, trial runs, duration, times, numbers of attendees, venues, marketing,…
You’ve just got to love technology… Very recently The Power that’s Ours was loaded onto MXit which is a mobile instant messenger and social networking software application that allows you to chat anywhere on earth from your mobile or PC for free. Among other things they also have books on their site that one can…
I need your help please. Due to my involvement with schools I discovered an aspect of education that I never knew existed. Within South Africa there are approximately 20 schools that are on site in hospitals. These schools are run by teachers that not only teach according to the standard curriculum, but they’re also teaching…
I need your help please. Due to my involvement with schools I discovered an aspect of education that I never knew existed. Within South Africa there are approximately 20 schools that are on site in hospitals. These schools are run by teachers that not only teach according to the standard curriculum, but they’re also teaching…
So my talks were running along very smoothly and every six weeks or so I would fly up to Johannesburg where I’d spend a week doing talks. After a week of talking up there I realised that I could now advertise that I was speaking nationally.Funny what a difference one word “nationally” can make to…
My talks were the way that I wanted to go as far as promoting reading in schools as well the ideas written about in my books- our imagination, positive thinking, goal setting, visualisation and affirmation. Before I had any reviews related to my talks the only way I could convince schools to book me was…
So now to promoting the books. After many a thursday night listening to Steve Harrison’s teleseminars- which passed on some very worthwhile information I decided that one of the way to promote my books was to become a speaker. The other options didn’t seem to work for me-not that I tried too hard- but as…
In 2008 I attended a two day symposium that was organised by IBBY or SCWIBI South Africa where international literary agents and publishers were flown out to discuss market trends and meet local children book authors. A question was posed to a UK based publisher asking who dictates the market, the market or the publisher?…
This is an email from my Spanish agent who was to attend the London Book Fair. “Dear Colleagues, The best-laid plans have no chance in the face of nature on a rampage. After 24 hours of searching for alternative routes and checking updates in the volcanic activity over Northern Europe, we have decided that the…
Back from London shortly after the launch of The Power that’s Ours I knew that I had to get the book out there, reviewed and into the public eye. As I’d already published 1 book The magic that’s Ours I already had contacts who’d reviewed The Magic that’s Ours so the initial work of finding…
I previously mentioned how devastated I was when my publisher informed me that they were going of business and couldn’t publish my first book The Magic that’s Ours. The upside to that is that I now owned 100% rights to that book as well as my second book which I published. Even though all the…
So here I was pretty broke,on a scooter and losing weight quite rapidly from all the rice aqnd only rice I was eating. It was quite bleak especially as I was writing books about setting goals, positive thinking, visualization and affirmation. I suppose the lesson was that if I wanted to preach then I had…
Here’s screwed for you. I’d had the book designed, illustrated, edited, proof-read, e-booked, printed and distributed. I should have been ecstatic but I wasn’t. I was actually left awake, again, at 3am sweating and the reason being was this… In 2001 I started a transport company that was primarily involved with the film industry in…
If you have time and are writing a book that will be printed in full colour then India, China, Malaysia and certain Se Asian countries are an option for dong the printing. You need time because even though full colour printing is much cheaper than printing in South Africa, there is time needed for the…
Initially I had a website for my first book going by the same name as the title www.themagicthatsours.com, but now that the second book-The Power that’s Ours was on it’s way with a possible third in the pipeline I wanted to start creating a brand under which all further books would fall. The name of…
With the negative thoughts out of the way a designer was what I needed. While I was travelling in SE Asia a friend of mine- who knew when I was returning home- emailed me details of an upcoming workshop which was about self publishing. It included topics like production, marketing and distribution. The two hour…
Arriving back in Cape Town many Kilogrammes lighter- due to travelling through SE Asia during summer and living on water, water, water and the tiniest bit of rice I was confronted with two things. 1. Boxes of unsold books still sitting in my bedroom, and 2. My editor and friend (soon to be erased from…
The journey about publishing my 2nd book, The Power that’s Ours, differs to that of the first book, The Magic that’s Ours. I thought that I’d post some of the reviews from my first book to end off on that chapter-even though it will be mentioned again throughout the blog. Gary Hirson, the author of…
The Magic that’s Ours was launched in June of 2007 and as mentioned previously, when I did have a publisher they requested that I write more chapters, which I did. When I decided to self-publish I cut the book back to its original length with the idea that if all went well I’d use those…
I remember thinking to myself, shortly after my book launch, that sooner rather than later I’d be owning the car of my dreams, women would be throwing themselves at me, Oprah would definitely be calling and I’d soon be summiting the the New York best seller list. Why not, I was now a published author?…
According to a report published in 2008 by PIRLS-Progress in International Literacy Studies – 14 657 Grade 5 children in South Africa were assessed on their literary levels. Grade 5 children were used as it is the year after which many schools switch to English as the language of instruction. Unfortunately the findings weren’t positive…
When I initially had a publisher they requested that I add a few more chapters to the original story as they thought it was a bit “thin” Seeing that the book- The Magic that’s Ours was all about introducing children to the wonders of their imaginations, the four extra chapters that I wrote touched on…
Self publishing is going to cost you. One of the main costs is time. You’re going to be writing, re writing and at the same time looking for all the relevent people like editors, illustrators, designers, printers, PR agency who will help you get your dream out. These people unfortunately don’t work for free so…
Reading “Successful Self-Publishing in South Africa”really shed light on how much I didn’t know about this impending journey of self publishing. As it’s a very easy book to read, it was very simple to highlight the necassary areas of relevant information. Besides the obvious on what I had to do I also came to learn…
17 July 2008. Heya All I hope you’re all fine and dandy, especially after the Springboks finally beat the All Blacks and South Pacific Islanders on their home soil. Schweeeet. Since my last e mail I’ve left Hanoi and I started heading south towards Saigon. My first stop was about 90 km south but took…
12 June 2008. Hi Guys. I hope you’re all well. I’ve crossed the border into Laos and following is the story of my trip down the Mekong. I hope you enjoy. Gary Growing up watching Vietnam movies like Apocalypse Now, Deer Hunter and Platoon had left me a deep fascination of the Mekong River, and…
After wandering around Chiang Mai for a few days I picked up a flyer that advertised – Come and visit “Second home”. A place where you can come and stay for as long as you like, learn about and practice Buddhism, meditation, organic farming and authentic Thai vegetarian cooking. All meals included. Don’t pay, donations…
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