03-04-2012 03:10 AM
Hey all Lulus!
How are you all doing? I am a new author with a book of political poetry that I would like to share with you.
Here are the "Abouts" for the book:
About the Author…
As a person of great spirit, Cody Weinmann is a freelance poet, lyricist, aspiring musician and songwriter, whose longing purpose is to lift people’s spirits, and inspire them to be the very best they can be. A native of Reno Nevada, though now residing in Southern California, Weinmann has grown up with a passion for human expression. Despite facing such adversities, such as Cerebral Palsy that has crippled some of his physical and mental abilities throughout much of his young life, Weinmann has gone on to prove himself an outstanding scholar of great reward throughout high school and in college, where he currently resides as a major of music composition and technology. A strong advocator of poetry and equality, Weinmann strives to encourage the best of everyone.
About the Script…
With the beauty of a nation, struggling in the midst of a ravished economy, Weinmann attempts to unify the breadths of patriotism within all Americans, with the more than utter distaste for the current political system, and some solutions, lavishly written for real change. Weinmann seeks to blend self-sufficiency, and lowering bureaucracy in the lines of fifty-two eloquently, bluntly written poems that do more than hint at our recession of lost wages, inflation, outrageous devastation, apparently lost hope, and yet, a shining eagerness that the author says will change our society for the better—that is, if we decide to trust our own minds for the creation and delivery of value, and have the consistency to govern our own needs—the definition of our rights. America vs. America is a poetry anthology like no other. While most other books in this genre focus on the politics and who's right and who's wrong. This book takes a twist and encourages individual strength and prosperity while in the grips of an ever-tightening political and social regime that seems to be sweeping the nation at this current time. As the book's cover suggests, it is a head to head battle--America the beautiful versus America the Ugly. Prosperous, theoretical and even past America versus a cold, bureaucracy-washed, hard-nosed America whose role in the world is diminishing. This book is meant to inspire as much as it is meant to criticize, to give as well as to take, to inform as well as to disprove, and to make as well as to break some of the varying social standards that we have put into place that are running us into the ground. We could have beauty and grace, as long as we don't disgrace ourselves to helplessness. There is always a wing and a leg to stand on, despite the pegs that try to prove we the people wrong. We are the creation of God; We are the product; We are the creation of the life we make.
If you wanted to check out this book: go ahead and get it here
To give you a little preview of the book, take a look here.
Feel free to visit my author page on Facebook here.
I am working on a new book: Reasons Not To Trust Another Election.
I am hoping to keep posting here on the forum about my upcoming books in music, politics, and fiction.
I hope you all are doing well.
Best wishes,
Cody Weinmann, Author of America vs. America.
03-04-2012 06:00 AM
You might like to edit the link to you book, which doesn't work - link is http//www.lulu.com/spotlight/musiciansfantasy
The cover is striking.
The introduction at the front of a book is a Foreword (fore as in front, word as in speak) rather than Forward
All thebest with it, tho' the contents aren't for me.
03-04-2012 06:16 AM
03-04-2012 09:48 AM
Lol Ron.
Well Cody, your 'Forward' is a little confusing. I appreciate the word 'epitaph' can be used figuratively, which you have done, but how can it be an epitaph of something that has not ended yet ? i.e 'America's political, social and economic structure', which encompasses a huge, sweeping array of ongoing complex political ideas. It would be odd to write an 'epitaph' just yet, wouldnt it?
I always hate it when an author uses an expression that "I hope you can be enlightened by this work". It's nice to hope for that, but it can sound patronising to some ears. I love poetry - some poems have made me cry. Some have made me laugh. Some have made me thoughtful. I've yet to read one yet that has enlightened me (although 'Hoppity' by A.A.Milne, nearly did).
The sole poem you offer in your preview mixes tenses. I don't understand what you mean by 'and the flights be sworn'.
Also, referring to your last verse, why should 'God seize the day to keep the statue of liberty from the bay'? Has it become detached from its plinth and is drifting dangerously towards the golf course?
03-04-2012 01:34 PM
Apart from what has already been said, I don't get the cover and the text is messy.
You seem to have no page with just the title on.
Every page has the copyright on. Why? And you only really need one copyright date.
Ditto, page numbers and headers.
Printed in America? Will is be though?
Copyright page should not also have 'Also by' addresses on it.
Is there any need to use Bold throughout?
Your line splits are strange. What size margins are you using?
There's only one sample poem, and ... Not 'Bob Dylan' is it? He who already has the T-shirt.
03-04-2012 04:09 PM
I do thank you for your critique. I can see from all the responses here that I have A LOT of work to do. I may take the book off to edit or take it off entirely. But thank you for your comments.
Cody
03-04-2012 04:26 PM
I may want to take out that word. On the enlightening, I didn't mean to come out sounding arrogant. But now, that I read it twice, and a third time, it did sound arrogant. I apologize. I'll look over the lines that you quoted. I will edit them. I may or may not put out a second edition of this that is a bit cleaner and more understandable. Thank you for your honest opinions. I will keep these in mind when I write another book.
Cody
03-04-2012 08:32 PM
03-04-2012 11:04 PM
Okay. I thought you could just create a new revision to the existing title. I have already been reworking it somewhat today. I may not have the new version out for a while. But at least with the new one I could have peace with it. This project in all has been a tremendous labor of love and also madness for the past two years. I'd really like it to be close to perfect this time so that I could start selling it. I also have other books coming that I would like to finish and sell as well.
I'm not going to give up on being an author. I've taken all drafts of this book off the site for now.
Cody
03-05-2012 05:30 AM
kevinlomas wrote:
when you redo the book via the Wizard it will need to be a new one with a new ISBN anyway.
Not unless it has already been approved for distribution. If its still in pre-approval stage then you can change anything

