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Archive for the ‘writing’ Category

Write a Book – Change the World

September 4, 2013

l-r: Deborah Schwartz Griffin, host Dr. Tim Morrison, host Vanessa Lowry, Essie Escobedo, and Linda Zuk

I was honored to be the permanent guest host of my friend Dr. Tim Morrison’s radio show Write Here, Write Now. During the two years the show aired, we interviewed 250 people — primarily authors or business professionals — about the book they had written or hoped to write someday. Topics discussed on the show ranged from writing challenges, the benefits and joys of writing, collaboration, publishing, marketing, and the impact a published book had on the author’s business or career. We also delved in the motivation that spur authors to write, some of which included: to inform, to educate, to share family stories, to examine faith and spirituality, to deal with pain or trauma, and to inspire.

At the end of 2011, Tim and I chose ten of our best interviews from the year and published them in Write a Book – Change the World, Volume I. In the introduction Tim says, “Think of the books you have read that have led to a change or shift in your life: how you approach your job, your belief system, relationships, etc. A change within you impacts all of your relationships — your world.”

Write a Book – Change the World can be purchased from the bookstore on this website and from Amazon.

The archives of the Write Here, Write Now shows are free to download or you can listen online at Business RadioX. Here are several interviews I hosted where guests discuss marketing and promotion for authors.

Let me know if I can help you bring your book from concept to creation! Or, let’s talk about your marketing and graphic needs. Contact me at 678-521-8820. Find out more about me by visiting my LinkedIn profile.

Posted in books, business, communication, self publishing, writing | Leave a Comment »

The Joy Factor Recipe Book

September 2, 2013

It is a joy for me to help an author bring her vision to life. And working with Wendy Watkins on her book, The Joy Factor Recipe Book, was one of the best ever! In addition to illustrating the cover art, designing the cover, and formatting the interior of Wendy’s book, I was also a contributor with both a recipe and a joy-filled doodle.

Here is what Wendy said about working with me:

“I love the cover and inside layout that Vanessa created for my book, The Joy Factor Recipe Book – A Common Sense Approach to a Delicious Life. From the beginning to the end of the project, Vanessa was an excellent guide, providing me with wonderful ideas and honest feedback on my concepts. She was very open to the adjustments that I wanted to make to her designs and did them in a timely manner. I would highly recommend her if you are looking for an innovative designer, who does what she says she will do in a timely manner. You will also have to be prepared to have fun with Vanessa. She has a wonderful way of making what could be a stressful process, quite enjoyable. Thank you Vanessa for raising my Joy Factor and creating the beautiful vision I had for my book.”

Wendy was my guest on Write Here, Write Now radio sharing ideas for raising your joy factor before you write. Hear about Wendy’s process of writing and her journey to publishing The Joy Factor Recipe Book.

Download a tasty sample of Wendy’s book here.

You can also order flip flops featuring the Joy art that I contributed to Wendy’s book.

Posted in art, books, business, inspiration, self publishing, spirituality, writing | Leave a Comment »

Publishing as a Marketing Strategy

September 2, 2013

Publishing a book is becoming an increasingly popular way for business professionals to position themselves as an expert in a particular industry or niche. According to R.R. Bowker, the number of non-traditional titles published since 2002 has increased 8,460%!

Publishing as a Marketing Strategy provides the reader with a practical guide for their own publishing journey along with stories of how other business professionals have used a published book as a successful marketing tool.

I love collaborating with others so after envisioning this book concept, I invited collaborators Joan Boneberg, Bonnie Daneker, Robin Hensley, Ahmad Meradji, and Anita Paul to join me in sharing their personal stories of publishing and describing business benefits they have seen as a result. I also designed and formatted the interior of the book.

Listen to the Write Here, Write Now interview where five of the co-authors talked about this book and the process of publishing in collaboration.

Here is what one of my co-authors said after being part of this book project:

Joan Boneberg said, “Vanessa Lowry is not only an incredibly talented graphic artist, writer and writing coach, she is a class person. I had the privilege of being a co-author on her recently published book, Publishing as a Marketing Strategy. Working with Vanessa was a joy because she was an excellent project manager and she set a tone that was absolutely stress free. If you have a project that she maybe able to assist you with and want to work with a talented person, contact Vanessa.”

Here is an article I wrote outlining 5 Whys and 10 How-Tos for publishing a collaborative book. If you would like to be part of a collaborative book project, contact me to see what book is in the works or to suggest a topic.

Publishing as a Marketing Strategy is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble online, and through the Connect 4 Leverage bookstore. Also available in e-reader formats for Kindle, Nook, iPad.

Posted in books, business, marketing, self publishing, writing | Leave a Comment »

The Chattahoochee Review

September 27, 2011

Friends sometimes become clients and my clients often become friends. And best of all is when a client becomes a friend and then becomes a client again!

I worked with Anna Schachner more than 10 years ago to create a logo and business card for her side business as a designer of beautiful bead jewelry. As long as I’ve known her, she has been a talented writer and a professor teaching creative writing at Georgia Perimeter College.

Anna was named editor of The Chattahoochee Review, GPC’s literary journal, a few months ago. This respected literary journal is celebrating thirty years in publication and is known for publishing new and established authors from the South and around the world. They even have an annual contest, the Lamar York Nonfiction Prize, that awards $1000 every year. (Submission guidelines are here.)

I was excited when Anna contacted me about helping design and format the first issue of The Chattahoochee Review published under her editorship. It has been great fun to reconnect and have a chance to work with her and her team, including Lydia Ship, the Review managing editor.

In addition to this issue of the Review, I helped them update their logo and designed bookmarks, signage & ads.

This is what Anna said about working with me, “When we hired Vanessa Lowry to do the layout and graphic design of The Chattahoochee Review, a literary journal whose editorship was given to me just a few months before, I already knew that Vanessa was a great designer. What I would learn, however, was that in addition to her design skills — the logo she did for us is so perfect — she brings a kind of intuition that we desperately needed. In other words, being new editors and new to the publishing business, we didn’t know what we needed, but she did! She was patient, insightful, and always very quick to remind us of how changing one element of a design changes the entire thing. She even caught some typos that we didn’t. Her ability to be accommodating under our very tight deadline also meant the world to us. I can’t say enough good things about her.

All you have to do is look at the cover of the latest issue to see what I mean. All the other literary journals are jealous. Enough said.”

This issue of The Chattahoochee Review launched over Labor Day weekend at the Decatur Book Festival. Anna was interviewed at the Write Here, Write Now radio remote on Saturday of the festival. Listen to interview number 5 to hear more about the writers featured in this double issue.

Subscribe to The Chattahoochee Review for only $19 for one year or $36 for two years. They accept submissions of poetry, fiction and nonfiction. Check out their website for full details.

Tags:Anna Schachner, Business RadioX, Decatur Book Festival, Georgia Perimeter College, Lydia Ship, The Chattahoochee Review, vanessa lowry, Write Here Write Now
Posted in award, books, fiction, graphic design, nonfiction, poetry, writing | Leave a Comment »

Recipes for Life

September 26, 2011

I love collaborating and it’s fun to work with others who also embrace that idea. Cathy Horvath gathered stories and recipes from over 100 contributors to create her book.

Recipes for Life: Food for the Body and Nourishment for the Soul features stories about overcoming depression, grief and financial ruin, navigating change and returning to joy. Special recipes from many contributors are scattered through the book, along with stories of why these foods and memories are important. After reading Cathy’s book, you are likely to feel more hopeful, more thankful, more passionate, better about life and possibly a little hungry.

I interviewed Cathy on the Write Here, Write Now radio show that I guest host once a month. Our show topic was about writing and publishing after retiring. Hear what Cathy has to say about this NEW career she has embarked upon.

Recipes for Life is available on Amazon or you can purchase multi-packs of books at a reduced price on Cathy’s website. This book makes a perfect gift… I even gave one to my mom.

This is what Cathy said about working with me, “If it weren’t for Vanessa Lowry, my book would not have taken form as the beautiful presentation that it is. It was her creativity and skills that have impressed me from the first proof for a cover and interior design that she offered. She listens, she has patience, and most importantly…she cares for her clients.”

In addition to her book cover and the interior book design, I also designed Cathy’s business cards, bookmarks, a speaker one-sheet and her website.

Tags:Business RadioX, Cathy Horvath, Recipes for Life, vanessa lowry, Write Here Write Now
Posted in books, business, graphic design, inspiration, marketing, nonfiction, self publishing, spirituality, writing | Leave a Comment »

Mama Always Says…

September 5, 2011

This books of quotes published by Myra McElhaney are straight out of MY childhood. And that is really the point. These quotes are familiar because MY Mama, YOUR Mama and MYRA’s Mama said them… or something very similar.

I love working with Myra. She always makes collaborating fun and we laugh often. Myra has also started calling me her Gifted Graphic Design Goddess. I’m taking it a step further and adding the letters GGDG after my name. Vanessa Lowry, GGDG!

In the past year, I’ve helped Myra publish Mama Always Says as well as her newest book, Musings on Major and Minor Matters that May or May Not Matter.

This is what Myra says about working with me: “I love working with Vanessa! She’s a gifted graphic designer who delivers inspired designs with professionalism. She’s also marketing savvy and shares many ideas on how to build my brand and expand the impact of my projects. Plus she’s fun to work with! That’s why I call her the Graphic Design Goddess Extraordinaire! Vanessa not only designs my business cards, marketing materials and books; she helps me take my ideas to a higher level.”

You can purchase your own copy of Mama Always Says from Amazon.

Myra and I also created a t-shirt commemorating McElhaney’s Pub. Myra’s husband, Phil McElhaney, died a few years ago as a result of a brain tumor. Proceeds from the sale of these t-shirts go to brain cancer research. You can contact Myra through her website and find out more about purchasing the t-shirts.

Tags:Mama Always Says, McElhaney Pub, Myra McElhaney, Phil McElhaney, vanessa lowry
Posted in graphic design, inspiration, marketing, Uncategorized, writing | 1 Comment »

Setting God Free

September 5, 2011

Sherri Lane and I connected initially through my book, 30 Days of Gratitude. She became a fan of our Days of Gratitude Facebook page and began to regularly comment on our posts. We became friends on FB through our personal pages as well.

While she was still writing her manuscript, Sherri called me to discuss her book cover. She believes in the power of visualization and wanted to have a compelling cover to encourage her as she was writing… to help her envision the book as completed. She even had the illustration she wanted to use, so it was a quick collaboration to create the cover. Writing can be a very solitary practice and it was an honor to assist her in bringing her book to the world.

Sherri is an author who seeks to bring out the best in others by recognizing the good in the world. Through her own powerful spiritual experiences, she has felt led to share healing and glimpses of enlightenment to others, helping them walk in faith to a brighter place.

Here is what Sherri said about working with me:

“Vanessa produced the cover for my book Setting God Free: Awakening to Miracles. It was important to me that I have that done by someone with the right energy and feel – and I sensed that immediately in her. She grasped the vision that I had and ran with it, producing something that had just the right feel for the message of the book. Every step of dealing with Vanessa was not only professional, but also pleasant and easy. She brings a wonderful presence to a project and I would highly recommend her! ”

Find out more about Sherri’s book at www.SherriLane.com. If you are in the Asheville, NC area, you may see Setting God Free in many of the area shops. You can also listen to an interview on Awakening Zone where Sherri talks about her book. Sherri also hosts her own radio show every Tuesday. You can listen here.

Let me know if I can help you bring your book from concept to creation! Contact me at 678-521-8820. Find out more about me by visiting my LinkedIn profile or watching my video profile.

Tags:Setting God Free, Sherri Lane, vanessa lowry
Posted in books, graphic design, inspiration, spirituality, writing | Leave a Comment »

Improv Co-Author Rob Duncan

March 16, 2011

It was so exciting to meet Rob (via my LinkedIn network) and have him become a co-author of this collaborative book. While we were putting the book together, he was defending his dissertation for his doctorate— all about how businesses are using social media for business. He actually gathered all his data for his dissertation from his connections on LinkedIn.

Rob’s chapter in our book talks extensively about using the principles of improv to expand your social network. His involvement in Improv to Improve Your Business made our book an international project. How cool is that!

This is what Rob had to say about working with me on the book:

“I was one of the contributing authors of the book ‘Improv to Improve your Business’ which was developed by Vanessa. I was completely impressed by her ability to conceive of the project, find a great group of collaborating authors, and deliver a fantastic product with lightning speed. As an author, the process was completely painless for me, as Vanessa took the lead on all the necessary tasks to be completed, allowing me to focus my time on my strengths. I recommend Vanessa most highly, and would enjoy doing another project with her in the future.”

Rob is in demand as as trainer and keynote speaker. Check out his website to learn more about his programs and his other books. He has made it easy … just click on www.RobDuncan.com.

Other co-authors of this collaborative book include: Brent Brooks, Rick Crain, Leah Henderson, Jim Hogan, Deborah Thomas, Scott Williford, Mark Wyssbrod, Rob and myself.

Have an idea for a collaborative book? I can help you bring it from concept to creation! Contact me at 678-521-8820. Find out more about me by visiting my LinkedIn profile or watching my video profile.

Tags:Brent Brooks, Deborah Thomas, Jim Hogan, Leah Henderson, LinkedIn, Mark Wyssbrod, Rick Crain, Rob Duncan, Scott Williford, vanessa lowry
Posted in books, business, communication, graphic design, innovation, nonfiction, self publishing, social media, writing | 2 Comments »

Improv Co-Author Brent Brooks

February 12, 2011

Brent Brooks is a man of many talents including film director/producer and improv instructor. The Art of Suicide, winner of Best Underground film at INDIEfest in 2007, was produced by Blank Stage Productions and directed by Brent.

Join Brent and other improv players every Monday night from 7pm – 9pm at Blank Stage in Marietta, GA for Improv Dojo … learn, laugh and have fun! Beginners are welcome.

Here is a comment from Brent Brooks about working with me on our book, Improv to Improve Your Business.

“Vanessa is a joy to work with and a great improviser! She was able to work with me and several of my students in the successful creation and now distribution of the book, Improv to Improve Your Business. Doing the book really allowed me to appreciate all that Vanessa did and what the work is now doing for my career. Vanessa worked with me in pulling out the best ideas rumbling in my head about my past experiences and current philosophies of improv. She has since then looked for more opportunities for all of us to leverage the success of the book in various and positive ways.”

Other co-authors of this collaborative book include: Rick Crain, Rob Duncan, Leah Henderson, Jim Hogan, Deborah Thomas, Scott Williford, Mark Wyssbrod, Brent and myself.

Tags:Brent Brooks, Deborah Thomas, Jim Hogan, Leah Henderson, Mark Wyssbrod, Rick Crain, Rob Duncan, Scott Williford, vanessa lowry
Posted in books, business, communication, graphic design, innovation, marketing, nonfiction, self publishing, writing | 1 Comment »

Improv to Improve Your Business

February 12, 2011

I’m fascinated by what helps entrepreneurs become successful. How they generate and implement innovative ideas, how they communicate with their teams AND customers, as well as what keeps them going in the good and bad times.

When I heard a presentation about using the principles of improvisation in business, I was immediately intrigued. After taking an improv class with other business owners, I knew the principles I learned would help me develop better relationships, generate more ideas and have more fun along the way. Rockin’ cool!

Toward the end of 2010, I approached entrepreneurs and business professionals about sharing stories of how they use the principles of improv in their business. The resulting book, Improv to Improve Your Business: Using the principles of improvisation to foster communication, creativity & innovation, was launched in January 2011.

Who would have thought a film producer, CPA, game developer, marketing consultant, sales professional, actor, business coach and serial entrepreneur would have so much in common? Listen to our 2/2/11 radio interview on Atlanta Business Radio with five of our co-authors. (Scroll down to the Feb 2, 2011 interview in the archives.)

Check out what co-authors Rob Duncan, Deborah Thomas, and Brent Brooks had to say about working with me on this book.

Read a complimentary chapter of the book to find out how I use improv in my work as a marketing consultant and graphic designer.

at ABWA

I’m often asked to make presentations to business groups on the topic of using improv to improve your business. Here is an Improv Handout that I distribute at these presentations. Organizations that have invited me as a featured speaker on this topic include: ProWin, North Fulton Chamber of Commerce, American Business Women’s Association (ABWA), WOMTEC, Compelling Creations (for their annual conference), and more.

at ProWin

Have an idea for a book? I can help you bring it from concept to creation! Contact me at 678-521-8820. Find out more about me by visiting my LinkedIn profile or watching my video profile.

Tags:Brent Brooks, Deborah Thomas, Jim Hogan, Leah Henderson, Mark Wyssbrod, Rick Crain, Rob Duncan, Scott Williford, vanessa lowry
Posted in books, business, communication, graphic design, innovation, inspiration, marketing, nonfiction, self publishing, writing | Leave a Comment »

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