Jennie S. Bev

Dzanc Books International Literary Program

The ILP International Literature Award

via www.dzancbooks.org

Cited from Dzanc Books International Literary Program's scholarship site:

The charge went that American literature is too insular, that it’s neither concerned with nor does it engage the outside world. The critic was the Secretary of the Swedish Academy that decides the Nobel Prize. You can be sure that Canadian literature was lumped in there as well. We’re afraid that, to a degree, he was right.

Also, of course, in many ways he was wrong. Maybe a certain stripe of North American literature is too insular. Maybe a certain stripe does not engage the outside world. But the rivulets of work that do engage and which are anything but insular—these rivulets run deep.

Peaches in backyard

Peaches in my backyard. Lotta fruits now: pears, lemons, grapefruits, grapes, tomatoes, limes, and a whole bunches of flowers: roses, calla lily, and others. Sometimes I think my backyard is too crowded, considering it's not that big.

I'd love to have a backyard that's totally low maintenance and paved with pretty stones. 

Marvelous decorating

I received an invite from the above resort and hotel, which happened only once in a blue moon. As you know, I'm so into interior decorating lately, so perhaps I can learn new tricks in making a bedroom, a bathroom or even a living room looking so marvelous.

The question is: when is a good time to go? I'd prefer when it's not too crowded, so they provide better service and I can enjoy all amenities freely.

Corporate

Corporate look, as the photographer wanted. :)

Brooklyn bridge

Smart casual look.

Writing novel, everyone?

I have no vivid imagination, but I have life experiences and lessons to share for being raised by a single mom, being a triple minority in Indonesia suffering from multiple traumatic discrimination incidents, and being an immigrant in USA who came with two pieces of luggage and started out with $600 in bank account.

Many things to share, many life lessons to cherish and immortalized on paper.

I'm not sure still about writing a novel, but a memoir is currently brewed, slowly. Very slowly. :)

How authors really make money

What do the economics of publishing look like… really?

via www.fourhourworkweek.com

The best brief article on how publishing world works and how authors really make money. The fastest path (to financial independence and "relative" fame) is by publishing electronically. One author is known to earn $5,000,000 to $10,000,000 per month from selling one electronic book. The competition, however, is fierce.

Yet I still believe in traditional publishing with New York-based publishing houses, which can't be substituted for quality, literary prestige, peer acknowledgment, and worldwide fame. The pride for breaking into this tough industry is priceless. For everything else, we have.. the Internet (not Mastercard).

Welcome

An image speaks a thousand words.

Provoking similar titles

• How to Read about Books You Haven't Read by Pierre Bayard
• How to (Really) Read about Books You Haven't Read by Henry Hitchings

   

• Why Good People Do Bad Things: Understanding Our Darker Selves by James Hollis, PhD
• Why Good People Do Bad Things: How to Stop Being Your Own Worst Enemy by Debbie Ford
• Everyday Survival: Why Smart People Do Stupid Things by Laurence Gonzales
• Why Smart People Do Dumb Things: The Greatest Business Blunders --How They Happened, and How They Could Have Been Prevented by Mortimer Feinberg, PhD and John J. Tarrant

Our dogs

Our dogs as painted by hubby. It was exhibited at wine and jazz festival in our hometown.

Infinity pool

Ah, this is the infinity pool I was talking about. Gorgeous. :)

San Francisco Market Street

One of hubby's paintings exhibited at wine and jazz festival in our hometown. It's San Francisco's Market Street. The world famous street. :)

Not a distant dream

Owning and managing 10 companies isn't a distant dream. I'm halfway there already. It just takes a lot of preparation, extra mind capacity and a lot of funding.

Good thing is, I'm a contrarian. In this downward economy, prices are low, so I buy. Acquire while I can and wait for the economy to go upswing again.

Everything goes down will eventually comes up. It's just that simple.

Hobbies

I have adopted 3 new hobbies: cooking, interior decorating and swimsuit designing. They are all related to beauty and practicality. The best meals are practical and taste good. The best interior designs are practical and look good. The best swimsuits are practical, comfortable and hide your flaws.

I have done many things in the past, but I haven't tried my hands on beauty, deliciousness, and wearability. These are hard hands-on skills to master. I'm just having fun now. Nothing to lose, everything to gain from having a few new skills.

Black top

 

Publications have been requesting my photo for article illustration purpose, thus I asked a good friend who is also a great photographer to take some shots. Here are two of them.

Profile photo for business column

As requested by the editor, here is the profile photo for my forthcoming business column in Forum Manajemen Prasetiya Mulya (translation: Prasetiya Mulya Management Forum) business and management magazine. I seldom take corporate-looking pictures, so it is a rare one.

New home wishes

Foreclosure crisis will reach its peak in 2011 and 2012, so I'm getting ready to acquire a few pieces of prime real estate with a big chunk of discount. I'm looking forward to acquire one piece of property that is large enough to accommodate my ever-expanding print book library.

Sure, I've stopped buying print books incessantly, thanks to those e-book reading devices (iPhone, iPad and Kindle). But still, a good-sized home library is badly needed to accommodate approximately 2,000+ print books (maybe even 3,000ish, I don't count).

Contrary to many women, I don't have a large collection of clothes, shoes and purses. I only have one LV, a couple of Coach and Kate Spade purses. I also only have 5 good pairs of wearable shoes at any given time. I throw out worn shoes and buy new ones. I do have quite a few bebe clothes and tons of T-shirts. So I'm good at packing my walk-in closet for moving.

Another amenity I'm seriously looking for in the new house is a lap pool. Yup, a lap pool, not a curvy hot dog or kidney-styled pool. A lap pool is for a serious swimmer, fancy-looking pool is just for summer simmers. 

Dual staircases would be nice too. Why do I suddenly like something so grandeur instead of simplicity? I'm not sure why. I guess getting one day older every day has something to do with wanting to enjoy life to the fullest. I may not have many shoes or purses, but I'd like to live a pampered life and to be surrounded by beauty.

Dual staircases are also attractive to buyers as they are likely to be incorporated in high-end luxury homes. This translates to higher-priced piece of property. Businesswise, thus, it's more favorable.

 

Now it's time for shopping around. Acquiring would be best when foreclosure crisis has reached its peak. When prices have just started moving upward, we know we have reached the pit. It's all about timing.

Reputable sites to download free e-books

E-books for iPhone, iPad or whatever-it-is-you-call-your-reading devices.

• Daily Lit (http://www.dailylit.com)
• Archive (http://www.archive.org)
• Many Books (http://manybooks.net)
• Gutenberg (http://www.gutenberg.org)

Great business ladies

Surrounded by flowers