I will be posting under four categories:

1. My journey from idea to published author.
2. Inspiration and where I find it.
3. Tidbits, tips, and tricks from fellow writers.
4. What I’m reading now.

So after this I will be taking you on an adventure. NaNoWriMo is in a few days and though I don’t expect to really reach the goal of 50,000 words on a brand new story I will be some what involved in the whole process. I’ve been inspired lately and have a stack of ideas that need stretching. My goal is to write freely each day on one of those new projects in order to cleanse the palette for the publishing endeavor I’m working on now. The Big Novel will be my main project, no question. But NaNoWriMo is the perfect excuse to stretch the imagination and get the creative juices flowing. There is nothing worse than stagnation!

That’s this blog in a nutshell. I hope you enjoy it.

Through my research, I’ve discovered that to focus on the different forms of optimism would be too narrow of a focus. Optimism is just a portion of a broader worldview and do understand the different forms of optimism, you must understand the worldviews. To understand the worldviews, I go back to their origins and trace their progressions through history. Every worldview is built upon built upon previous views of the world, even if those who subscribe to the worldview are unaware of where the aspects of their belief system originated.

This book concentrates on the mental outlooks of Americans. To cover the mental outlooks around the world is outside the scope of this book and the American experience so greatly influences an American’s outlook on life. This will become more apparent as I go through the history of these mental outlooks.

The book will cover the worldview of the Puritans and how they left a cultural residue upon America. Cultural residue refers to values and beliefs that persist when the worldview that the values originated the values disappears.

The book will discuss the changing and increasing variation of religious belief through the progression of American history. It will discuss the New Thought movement and its influence upon American culture. It will progress up to the present day and show the belief foundations behind the empowerment industry (for example, Tony Robbins). It will discuss the influence of philosophies upon worldviews.

The book will discuss the influence of these various outlooks on life in the field of psychology (primarily positive psychology and humanistic psychology) and the resulting treatments developed. It will also cover results of tests and surveys done by psychologists and compare the findings and interpretations of the results to the various mental outlooks.

The book will examine the various outlooks to find how each outlook answers all or some of  the following questions:

• In what should a person base their hope?
• What should a person want to accomplish?
• What should be his priorities?
• How does a person mentally hope to accomplish their goal?
• How should a person define success?
• How should a person handle success mentally?
• How should a person position themselves for success mentally?
• How should a person handle disappointment mentally?
• How should a person handle adversity mentally?
• How should a person view humanity?
• The meaning of this question will become more apparent as you read the book.
• What should a person believe concerning the spiritual realm?
• How does this affect the person’s mental outlook?
• How should a person handle the emotion of guilt?
• What should a person’s views be on work and vocation and on money?
• What should a person’s views be on health and healing?
• How should a person mentally handle grief?
• How should a person view the future?
• How should a person handle prosecution mentally?
• What should be a person’s feeling of obligation toward other people?
• What should be a person’s view toward forgiveness?
• How should a person mourn?
• How should a person obtain and handle contentment?
• What should be a person’s view toward sacrifice?
• How should a person handle fear and anger?

This post will better guide me in writing the book. After tweaking, it will also serve as an introduction to the book.

Thank you for reading!

I’ve also found that this narrative is incomplete and needs more work because it does not yet include topics that I know I want in the book. Therefore, this page will be updated frequently. Anyway, below is my narrative outline to date.

Under the Catholic church, when someone sinned, they went to confession and the priest proscribed penance and granted absolution. Luther came alone and said that people could ask for forgiveness directly from God and that they did not need to confess to a priest to be forgiven. He also introduced the idea of predestination and  of a calling. John Calvin took the idea of predestination and emphasized that people have no choice in the matter, God has decided on who will be saved and who will not and there is nothing that anyone can do about it.

Explain predestination theology and use scripture to explain where it came from. Show scripture that may have been ignored or de-emphasized in the theology.

People wanted to be reassured that they were one of the elect. If they were successful in their work and conducted it ethically, it demonstrated that God had given them the grace, that God was supporting them and that they were one of the elect. This was the origin of the Protestant Work Ethic.  Some people were not reassured, they thought they were not one of the elect and were doomed to go to hell. In many people, this manifested itself in something called neurasthenia (a disorder related to depression). The cause of this depression stemmed from a pessimistic explanatory style accompanied by rumination.

Show scripture and sermons that would motivate adherents to incorporate the Protestant work ethic into their lives. Explain the values that the adherents passed down to their children, even those values that persisted after the religious beliefs that were the source of the ethic were abandoned. Explain the ways that the Protestant work ethic could contribute to an explanatory style. Write about how work affected an adherent’s feeling of self-worth. Explain how values produced from the work ethic produced  personal world views that contradict the correct Christian worldview and show scripture that illuminates the contrast.

People were turning themselves into invalids from worry. In the 19th century, there began a backlash to Calvinism called the New Thought movement. Phineas Parkhurst Quimby accepted patients and told them that God was benevolent and introduced a  “talking cure” that took away their worry and therefore took away their  neurasthenia. One of his patients was Mary Baker Eddy.  She hid away for three years and read the Gospels and came out with her own interpretation. This was the beginning of Christian Science. Christian Science took off in popularity because people who engaged in it recovered from neurasthenia.

Explain how Phineas Quimby’s “talking cure” and the beliefs of Christian Science were effective against neurasthenia because of how they changed the explanatory style of the patients to a more optimistic style. Show how the same results could have been obtained through a valid correction of their Christian beliefs (use scripture and other Christian theological beliefs). Explain learned helplessness and explanatory style. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of optimism and pessimism discovered from positive psychology. Compare these results to scripture and the Christian point-of-view. Take into account the value systems and points of view of the research psychologists. Express the explanatory style that Christians should have using scripture. Write about how the proper Christian explanatory style is optimistic in spite of aspects of their explanatory style being classified by the secular world as a pessimistic explanatory style

There were other sources to the New Thought movement besides Christian Science – other origins from Unitarian ministers and philosophers. Ernest Holmes published “Science of the Mind” which was an influence on Norman Vincent Peale. The development of the positive thinking movement owes much of its belief to the New Thought movement.

Three books are usually mentioned as being influential to the popularization of the positive thinking movement. They are “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie,  “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill, and “The Power of Positive Thinking” by Norman Vincent Peale.

The Bible talks about faith and hope. Much of the New Thought and positive thinking ideology used scripture from the Bible to explain their beliefs. Different Christian theologies (Calvinism, Lutheranism, Catholicism) have different interpretations on these subjects. I plan on looking at scriptures in context and try to sort out the valid beliefs and interpretations of these different ideologies from the erroneous beliefs and interpretations. Also, contrast the similarities and differences between having faith in God and having faith in oneself.

Because of the failure of “mind-cure” to fix most health problems and a culture that grew out of the Protestant work ethic  that associated success with personal value, the positive thinking movement started to emphasize getting rich more than medical healing. Some of this has seeped into some areas of Christian theology (i.e. the prosperity gospel). Also, different Christian theologies (Calvinism, Lutheranism, Catholicism) have different views on money. Once again, I plan on looking at scriptures in context and try to sort out the valid beliefs and interpretations of these different ideologies from the erroneous beliefs and interpretations.

Having seen the success that positive thinking did have on some ills, psychology took notice and started to interpret and absorb certain aspects of the positive thinking movement.  Psychology is not a field where every mental health professional is in agreement on what beliefs and methods of treatment are valid.  Psychologists refer to their toolbox (which is the assortment of treatments that they use) when treating patients. One tool widely used that is influenced by positive thinking is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Humanistic psychology used ideas from the positive thinking ideology. Positive psychology has emerged as a field of study which concentrates how to increase positive attributes in people rather than just concentrating on mental illness. How does the Bible and the different Christian theologies match (and not match) the discoveries made in positive psychology?

This is my narrative outline to date. I’ll be updating it regularly.

I am thrilled to announce the release of Competing for Global Dominance now available thru Amazon.com in the US, http://amzn.to/dtG1L2 Canada, Germany, France and Japan. The book is also available through Barnes&Noble.com, Ingram and Baker & Taylor for worldwide distribution.

Competing for Global Dominance presents a new way of thinking in competing for international business. While most companies are still focusing on traditional markets using outdated business practices instead of exploring what works in today’s environment.

Competing for Global Dominance brings to business executives vital information for global trade, offering serious and refreshing insights for business transformation.

“In this powerful book, Jack Katz takes aim at the fundamental

concern of all business in the new interconnected world. No one who

cares about the future of their company’s growth and economic

sustainability can afford to ignore this book.”

Frederic Delbart,

Conseiller Économique et Commercial, Consulate General of Belgium

Competing for Global Dominance is the culmination of my 25 years working with hundreds of U.S. and international companies effectively launching profitable new products and services.

Competing for Global Dominance provides strategies that have guided executives from high technology, consumer goods, government, media, green technology, and a host of other industries to compete in the world marketplace.

I have attached the book excerpt for your perusal and enjoyment.  To learn more, please visit jackkatz.com.

I hope you enjoy reading my book and will let your friends and associates know about it.

Jack

2855. The real end of acquiring a polite manner is to make yourself pleasing and your company acceptable to all.  This must be done by little sacrifices — by curbing, if you be plagued with it, your desire to engross the conversation, or, on the contrary, breaking through your habitual taciturnity.

I’m On a Blog Jog

Thanks for stopping by!  Here at this blog I explore history, writing historical fiction and non-fiction, and research.  History is more than a passion.  It’s an avocation.  But I especially love writing  historical fiction.  As part of each post, I quote from my great-grandmother’s receipt book published in 1857 — Mrs. Hale’s Receipts for the Million.  She has thousands of ideas on how to run a home and family.

Look around at past blog posts (I just started writing about Norway in WW II) and then check  out Elaine Hopper‘s blog, next on the blog jog line.  If you want to visit a different blog on the jog, go to http://blogjogday.blogspot.com.

Author Stephanie Cowell to Visit

I very excited that Author Stephanie Cowell will be visiting here on May 12th, but be sure to check out my review of her new novel Claude & Camille on May 11th.  It’s already been selected by People Magazine as a gift for Mother’s Day.   The story of impressionist artist Claude Monet and his muse, Camille Léonie Doncieux, it’s  a very good read.  The historical detail and story line will keep you turning the page. You may know Monet’s paintings, but you may not know about Monet and Camille.

4088.  Answer. — At first two wives cross the river, then one returns and takes over the remaining wife; after which she recrosses, and stays with her husband, and the two husbands cross over. Then a husband and wife come back, and the two husbands cross.  Then the wife returns and takes over one of the others, and lastly the husband of the remaining one comes back for this wife.

Here is the last answer to the last riddle in Mrs. Hale’s… Reminds of the one about chickens, a dog and cat and a canoe.  No one can be left alone.

No excuse here. I decided to submit to the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest and having been hanging around the forums. I wondered what Mrs. Hale would think? Not being focused? I made a run for it and though I didn’t get past the pitch, I am glad for every time you prepare for something like the contest you learn more about your craft of writing and submitting.  Last year I made it  to the two reviews. It’s just how it is.

Submitting is totally different from writing your piece. You have to be able to summarize what your book is about, explore your audience, then pitch it in such a way that it will catch the eye of the reader albeit first reader at an lit agency or contest judge.

For my Depression era novel THE TREE SOLDIER, searching for the right tag line led to this:

Thoreau once wrote that he went to the woods to learn. Park Hardesty goes there to hide.

I’m done with the revising and I’m submitting.  Gotta go!

Crafting a life with intention.

A teenager learns to act with personal responsibility and release the need to be the martyr.

Wondering if anna can help me with this? hmmm.

With “Competing for Global Dominance”, Jack Katz brings to the business world
some of the most vital keys for global trade, offering a serious and refreshing insight into
market entry options, worldwide sales and global advantage.

When most companies are still focusing on traditional markets and business practices,
Katz is uncovering new marketing techniques and international trade perspectives for the 21st Century. This very factual and practical book is a “must read” for all of us in international business looking at the future for new opportunities and global strength.

Jean-Jacques C. Vitrac
International Business & Political Consultant

Aviad Kamara, President, Israel Operations: Sagent Management and Founder of HiTechCare

Two days later, I am working on the third section now, since I am dividing the chapters into separate headings for different topics or events. Several pages written, and they are written very well too if I may say so. I am using a two-column format, since I consider this most professional-looking for history books. Hopefully, when ready for publishing I can just send a PDF file and the publishers will print from that. (I will probably be publishing with the News-Item, since they seem to be doing the publication of most history works lately, and they will likely be willing to publish this biography as well.)

So, although I still haven’t devised a perfect way to organize my digital images and docs (this is on my long to-do list), progress has been made in my research project. I just hope I can stick to this excellent pace!