1. What inspired you to write this book? I’d been thinking of writing some sort of
self-help book for a while, but what pushed me to start writing it was a few
life-threatening experienced that reminded me about my mortality. One of these
was a cardiac arrest that left me clinically dead for nearly 10 minutes.
Another was going into heart and respiratory failure following an operation to
amputate my left foot because of a vascular blockage. Following such close
brushes with death, I was gripped with a sense of urgency to put my words down
so that others might benefit from what I’ve learned over the years.
2. What exactly is it about — and who
is it written for? The book, Life Lessons—How I’ve Learned
to Embrace Gratitude, Positivity, Resilience, and Joy, includes 25 valuable
lessons for life. Topics such as gratitude, positivity, resilience, living in
the moment, patience, overcoming fear, setting goals—to name a few. Each
“lesson” includes relevant, in many cases deeply heartfelt, anecdotes from my
life. Many of the lessons also include science-based facts to back up concepts.
I write this book for anyone who is feeling overwhelmed by life events, for
those looking for inspiration during a touch time, or really for people who are
looking to read about someone who has lived through some difficult experiences
and taken away some vital insights. There are some serious topics, but I try to
inject warmth and humor throughout,
3. What do you hope readers will get out of
reading your book? Maybe a new perspective on their own lives and
what they are facing in the way of challenges or disappointments, and how to
better cope. Many readers and reviewers have commented on the book being
“transformative”, “powerful”, and “heartfelt”. Some have told me the book is on
their nightstand so they can read a chapter now and then for some inspiration.
Others have said the book fell into their hands exactly when they needed it.
These comments make me feel like all the hard work of writing, producing, and publishing
the book was well worth it.
4. How did you decide on your book’s title and
cover design? I wanted the title to be brief and work off the
subtitle. The cover design is meant to convey positive, upbeat feelings as well
as the idea of a life journey—reflecting the content within the book. I hired a
professional book designer to create the cover. It was a collaborative effort.
5. What advice or words of wisdom do you have
for fellow writers – other than run!? Be persistent. Whether it’s writing, editing,
publishing, decision making, marketing, etc., you have to stick with it. It’s
easy to want to quit at every stage of producing a book. But if you do, you
might regret for the rest of your life that you didn’t share your story.
6. What trends in the book world do you see --
and where do you think the book publishing industry is heading? Clearly self-publishing continues to rise, as it
should be. If traditional publishers have made it so difficult to publish a
book, many writers have no choice but to self-publish. Fortunately, technology
has made this much easier to do than it was even a few years ago. Another big
trend is the ongoing growth and development of AI, and how that impacts
publishing in various ways.
7. Were there experiences in your
personal life or career that came in handy when writing this book? Yes! The book is filled with personal and
professional experiences from throughout my life. It’s really part self-help
and part memoir. In every chapter I try to include personal events to make the
points. As for career, I’ve been a business and technology journalist for
more than 40 years and I had written two previous books, so I’m accustomed to
writing.
8. How would you describe your writing style?
Which writers or books is your writing similar to? I would describe it as conversational and
personal, as well as straightforward in terms of offering actionable insights.
A few readers have said they felt as if they were chatting with me in a coffee
shop, offering friendly advice or support. I include humor in the book because
we should never take ourselves too seriously, and having a sense of humor is
extremely important. I would like to think the style is similar to that of
James Clear, Brené Brown, and Wayne Dyer.
9. What challenges did you overcome in the
writing of this book? The challenges related to being a self-published
author: handling not just the writing but also the decision making in hiring a
skilled copy editor, designer, proofreader, and marketing specialist. The
marketing part is by far the hardest. It requires skills that I didn’t
necessarily have to begin with, but have had to learn in a hurry. It takes a
lot of persistence.
10. If people can buy or read one book this week
or month, why should it be yours? Because it will deliver some insights they might
not have been expecting in areas they might not give a lot of thought to. The
book is honest; sometimes brutally so. One of the reviewers said she normally
doesn’t read self-help books, but that this one is different. I’m not writing
from the perspective of someone who is describing hypothetical things. I’ve
actually experienced them. Even if someone thinks the book is not for them, it
most certainly could be for someone they love who needs a burst of positive
energy.
About The Author: Bob Violino has covered some the most momentous
events in the information technology field, including the emergence of the
personal computer, the growth of mobile communications, and the rise of
artificial intelligence, over a career spanning more than 40 years. Since 2002,
he has worked as a freelance writer, producing articles, newsletters, and other
content for print and online publications and clients in a variety of
industries. His writings have appeared in CIO magazine, CNBC, ComputerWorld, Forbes,
Fortune, CBS Interactive, InfoWorld, Newsday, and Business Insider. In addition
to his personal blog, Embracing Gratitude and Positivity, Violino
has authored the books, New Life: Lessons in Faith and Courage from
Transplant Recipients and Children of the Light. He
lives in Massapequa Park, New York, with his wife Reneé, and enjoys reading,
blogging, travel, painting, and experiencing the wonders of nature.
About Brian Feinblum
This award-winning blog has generated over
5,850,000 page views. With 5,600+ posts over the past 14 years, it was named
one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and recognized by Feedspot in 2021
and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” Copyright 2026.
For
the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He
formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the
head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the
director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many
first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with
best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen,
Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard,
Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C.
Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.
His
writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s
The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully). He was recently interviewed by the IBPA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0BhO9m8jbs
He
hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and
has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah
Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association,
Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and
Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the
2024 IBPA Book Awards.
His
letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal,
USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester)
and The Washington Post. His first published book was The
Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook. It
was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.
Born
and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids,
and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.
You
can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum
