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In Rose of the Adriatic, author K.M. Daughters takes us back to the setting of her debut novel, Jewel of the Adriatic. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of pilgrims each year journey to the village of Valselo, Croatia where three visionaries have daily visits with Mary, Mother of God. Anna Babic is one of the Visionaries. Young, beautiful and fully devoted to Our Lady and to serving God; Anna is treated like a celebrity by villagers and visitors alike. Matt Robins is a non-believer whose faith was shattered as a child. He has traveled from the U.S. for one reason; to prove the daily conversations are nothing more than pure nonsense. Matt is a doctor, a scientist and stem cell researcher. Rumours of miracle cures do nothing to convince him to call off his testing of Anna in hopes of finding scientific proof of a hoax. From the first meeting with Anna, Matt cannot help but be mesmerized by her beauty and her honest soul. His attraction to her is immediate and he endeavors to shake off his reaction to her in order to carry out his work. Anna is certain that Our Lady has called Matt to Valselo to find his lost faith. Anna wants nothing more than to serve God and to one day have a family of her own. She begins to believe that Matt may be the man meant for her. Day by day, Matt works harder to finish his work, and to ignore his growing feelings for Anna. Can Matt continue to disregard all that he sees and feels? Can he keep up his conviction to finding a fraud? Is this skeptical American the answer to Anna’s prayers for a husband and family? Can she help him to open his heart and mind to his faith? Rose of the Adriatic is a wonderful story of lost and regained faith and of a love created. I highly recommend it to those who loved Jewel and to anyone who enjoys faith-inspired fiction. White Rose Publishing July 2009 Print ISBN: 1-60154-639-4 Visit K.M. Daughters.com

Warez often originates from hackers that crack a code for the thrill of the challenge. But “crackers,” those in the hacker world who crack and profit from software piracy, have capitalized on the efforts of hackers and their cracked codes - successfully building a billion dollar international underground economy. This underground community of “cracker” pirates thrives on international software and Internet piracy. Litigators, copyright holders, and media giants are working together with law enforcement agencies to beat down the doors of the pirates’ virtual underground warehouses. New copyright laws and international piracy treaties are on the table at nations across the world, awaiting rewritten code to revitalize current piracy laws and keep up with the swift currents of Internet technology. FBI operations go undercover by names such as the 2001 Operation Buccaneer, Operation Bandwidth, and Digital Piratez, and the more recent Operation Site Down, Operation Copycat, Operation Jolly Roger and Operation Fast Link. Warez Operation Buccaneer resulted in 58 search warrants worldwide - which was the “largest” crackdown of 2001. Operation Bandwidth corralled the pirates by setting up a fake warez software piracy website. The Digital Piratez operation resulted in only 9 warrants. This was just the beginning of the Warez crackdown and the FBI’s foray into the world of crack addiction. The warez pirates continue to circumvent the piracy laws that are on the verge of crumbling down their underground economy. As they continue their overseas pirating escapades - so to does the FBI continue their undercover operations. A 2008 United States Department of Justice report summarizes the statistics of the warez operations Sitedown and Fastlink - which resulted in 108 felony convictions, confiscation of over one-hundred million dollars worth of pirated software, and 200 search warrants that traveled to over 15 countries. Far more than the 58 search warrants that served the pirates of 2001. In 2007, there were 217 intellectual property cases filed. Letters from hackers under investigation litter the Internet - warning their co-conspirators to “get out” before it’s too late. The FBI wasn’t alone in the warez crackdown operations. Fifteen countries assisted the US in their search for warez piracy. Suppliers who supply the hardware to a warez website, Scripters who help build a website, Brokers who develop active groups, and Encoders who overwrite the copyright protection, have all been held liable in federal court. Charges included not only copyright infringement, but also conspiracy to commit copyright infringement, circumventing copyright infringement and trafficking illegal goods. Piracy law will continue to gain attention by law enforcement agencies and warez pirates. The US House unanimously approved the Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act which allows for current federal law to be rewritten for liberal seizure procedures and the creation of a position for a presidentially appointed U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement Representative. It also creates a new division in the Department of Justice for intellectual property enforcement and ten positions within embassies. Internet piracy is being tracked daily by the feds. But the heat won’t be putting out the pirates completely anytime soon. The warez scene is addictive. Hackers live for the challenge of cracking a code - even if there isn’t any financial gain. Warez groupies get a rush from seeing how fast a cracked file can start spreading like wildfire. Pirates that serve international traffickers prey on these addictions - offering slick trades of expensive hardware and digital ware that feeds the warez scene. Piracy laws are building up strength to fight billions of dollars of intellectual property theft and copyright infringement. But they are also fighting an addiction. And addictions can skew perceptions. The hackers and crackers of the warez scene might not see the reality of piracy law until the Feds come knocking at their door. Reality will then strike as hard as the clang of iron bars. freeforallsoftwares.blogspot.com

If you are new to writing article, these tips may be just what you need to jump-start your business. If you’ve been around the block a few times, it might not hurt to review the article information below: Article marketing is a very time consuming process, but it can be incredibly profitable. When writing an article, always have your reader in mind. Don’t think of it as an article, think of it as a sales piece. It is imperative that you develop a goal for each article you write. In order to see a substantial profit, you need to put in a substantial amount of work. Write and submit at least one a day to achieve any meaningful success. Write three a day if you want to be really successful! Make an emotional appeal so that viewers can actually see themselves benefiting. Your title is the most important part of your article. Select 2 or 3 of the strongest features and benefits of whatever you are promoting and write them into your article. It is not necessary to go into great detail in your article; you will do that after they click on your link. Always offer readers more detailed information if they click the link in your Resource Box. A good article can generate income for as long as it is available online. You can easily create an extra revenue stream with your written content. Upload your articles onto separate pages of your website and include ads on each page. Link some of the ads to your own products and some of them to affiliate products. Include text ads within each article. After you’ve written your first 25 articles, business and traffic to your website MAY begin to trickle in. By the time you write your 100th, business should now be coming in on a regular basis. After writing 300, business is pretty good, but you still aren’t making a livable wage. By the time you have 1000 articles out there, business is unstoppable and is flowing through in torrents. Display your expert status prominently on your site, it will give you added credibility. Put 5

The number of new cars sold has fallen by more than 30 percent in a year, it was announced today. A total of 313,912 new vehicles were registered in March 2009 - a 30.5 per cent fall on the March 2008 figure, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said today. Sales for the first three months of 2009 are now down 29.7 per cent, although small cars and diesel-powered vehicles showed a sales improvement last month. For some time, the motor industry has been calling on the Government to introduce a car-scrappage scheme whereby owners are offered a financial incentive to get rid of their old vehicle and replace it with a greener model.he number of new cars sold has fallen by more than 30 percent in a year, it was announced today. A total of 313,912 new vehicles were registered in March 2009 - a 30.5 per cent fall on the March 2008 figure, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said today. The Ford Fiesta was the best-selling model for a fifth successive month in March 2009. These were the best-selling models in March 2009: 1. Ford Fiesta 2. Vauxhall Corsa 3. Ford Focus 4. Vauxhall Astra 5. Volkswagen vans 6. Peugeot 207 7. Audi A3 8. BMW 3 Series 9. Vauxhall Insignia 10.Ford Mondeo In terms of real ability to sell, even in the save your savings type of climate, local car dealerships seem to be more effected then the larger dealers, who as I have wrote about in previous posts, can afford to entice customers in with extra deals or insurance style packages.

Twice a week I go to a great little massage place in the neighborhood, and right next door is a tiny Indian restaurant. The food always smells delicious when I walk by, and the owner excitedly waves at passersby. But there’s a reason why I’ve never gone in and given it a chance… The restaurant is always empty! When I walk by, I always think, “Hmm, maybe I’ll try that place for takeout one night.” But in five years I never have. I always end up going two doors down to the bustling Chinese place or the sushi place with the line out the door - even though I have to usually wait 20 minutes for my food to be ready. What’s even funnier is that the food at those places isn’t even great, but I keep thinking I must be missing something since so many other people like it! The saying is true… no one wants to eat at a restaurant where there are no cards parked outside. We all go by the feeling of “safety in numbers” and look for what some people call “social proof” that something is good or works before we try it. This is why it’s extremely important to use testimonials on your website, brochures, and marketing materials, and even in your talks and teleseminars. And it’s even MORE important for people like us whose businesses don’t have parking lots. It’s up to US to show prospects they won’t be the first person ever to hire us or buy our products! Simple idea, yes, but many people forget to use it in their marketing. (Even I forget sometimes, too.) But it’s extremely important. Whether conscious or subconscious, seeing testimonials for a product or service makes us feel “safe” when deciding to buy. But please remember the big difference between a good testimonial and a lame one. Let’s look at two examples: Example 1: “I’ve really enjoyed being a part of Alexandria Brown’s Gold Mastermind program and have found it great value for the money.” - E.B. This one’s all right, says nice things, and gives the person’s initials. Problem is, there are no actual *results* shared here, and using initials-only leaves doubt about the authenticity of the testimonial. Example 2: (and a real one, too!): “Since joining Alexandria Brown’s Gold & Platinum Mastermind programs last year, I’ve doubled my revenues and can directly attribute at least $100,000.00 to her ideas and advice. Believe me, you WANT to be a part of this exceptional group of entrepreneurs!” — Christine Kloser, Founder of “The Conscious Business Circle”, Red Lion, Pa., .ConsciousBusinessCircle.com Now, let’s look at the second one. Much more effective because it’s results oriented. That is, it shares actual results the client/customer has gotten. Do whatever you can to include numbers, dollar amounts, and/or percentages — these will grab your prospect’s attention, let them know this is the real deal, and dramatically increase your response. Also, the more information you provide about your clients and customers, the more believable and effective their testimonials will be. Include full name, occupation or company name, city and state they’re from, web address (if applicable), and a PHOTO. (Even a poor photo, if that’s all they have. It’s important to make them REAL to your reader.) If you’re in a sensitive industry and clients don’t want their names revealed, then share as much as you can about them otherwise. For example, “– female Fox News executive, 38, Studio City, Calif.” While it’s not as good as giving their names, it’s better than nothing. And remember, one of the best things about using testimonials is it’s much more effective for your clients and customers to rave about YOU than for you to rave about yourself. So let them “rave” and have fun with it! BONUS TIP: Use Testimonials to Address Common Objections If you really want testimonials to dramatically improve your response, make a list of the common objections your prospects usually have to buying your products or services. And then have at least one testimonial that addresses each. For example, when I first started selling my Boost Business with Your Own online newsletter system, I learned that some folks weren’t buying it because they thought they needed a website to get started. So I found a success story from one of my customers who had used the system and never even had a real website. And we created a testimonial that made sure to share that fact. For more useful tips & hints, please browse for more information at our website: - .newbies-copywriting.com .articlewriting.reprintarticlesite.com

Weeks drifted by with no sign of Ariya, or anybody else for that matter, but the silence was eerie, compelling me to look over my shoulder more often now. I was back where my enemies might find me, and my life was definitely in grave danger. They knew that I was still alive. One morning just before dawn, Ariya appeared for last time during this early phase of my journey. “I see you are still safe, my great king!” She said, as she swooped down in front of me from the treetops. “But you must be vigilant. The horse will protect you in my absence, as well as others yet unknown, but don’t let your guard down.” She stopped speaking for a long moment while she seemed to gaze into my heart. “You have made yourself worthy by staying true to your quest during these first five years of isolation,” she continued, “and now your battle begins in earnest. Your heart and intuition long for the Source, but your strong mind and logic doesn’t; they hate the Source because they want to be boss, and therefore will oppose the quiet, still voice of your heart every time. “Your mind and logic desperately want to remain in the physical world, so naturally they want nothing to do with this quest for the key. They will attempt to convince you that your intuition and deep inner urgings are foolish, yet they will have only contradictory answers or solutions of their own to solve your fear and frustration. Since you have freewill, nobody can know how this battle will come out between these two opposing factions of logic and intuition. The victor remains to be seen.” “I have no misgivings,” I replied, “My heart has prevailed for five years.” “Five years is a mere blink of time,” she said, “and soon you will learn how difficult it is to distinguish between your heart and your mind. Only with more experience will you see that urgings coming from your heart are consistent, peaceful, and sure. Urgings from the mind, on the other hand, are impulsive, fearful, and frenzied. You feel that you must act immediately or something valuable will be lost. Keep this in mind and delay any important decisions until you can discern clearly whether the choice is being made by your heart or by your mind, for given time; a decision from your heart will remain stable, while one from your mind will slowly weaken.” “There were times,” I replied, “when my resolve was weakened while I was in the forest and I almost returned home, Ariya, but after a few days, my heart kept me going.” “Yes, I know,” she said, “and you have done well, but the struggle ahead will be far greater. It will be the most difficult thing that you have ever attempted, with an entirely unknown outcome. But you have fought this spiritual battle many times in the past, and, alas, each time you have obviously failed since you are still trapped in human form. The ones who fought these battles in your previous lives will not be remembered by your mind, but they were nobody but you, only in different bodies and minds. All that carried forward between your various lifetimes are the residue of every past action. So be forewarned; your actions follow you like tracks follow wheels.” “But I have done many regretful things just in this lifetime,” I said. “How long will they continue to haunt me? Many questions such as this remain unanswered.” “I know of a little man who lives deep in the forest,” Ariya replied. “He will go into all of this with you at a more profound level someday, if you are fortunate enough to meet up with him. I can see a meeting happening, but again, with your freewill I cannot be certain. In the meantime, remember that there is a storehouse of goodness in your heart, so try passionately to listen to its subtle voice at all times; it is your true teacher, and if you learn to follow it, you will find your key as surely as wind whispers. “My great king, you have no idea of the inconceivable power of which I speak. I speak of Reality, the tiniest part of which dwarfs the entire material and immaterial existences in all the worlds. Reality is the basis of all existence; Reality supplies the consciousness for all things in all the worlds, and therefore existence itself cannot be real . . . for it is not Reality. Existence shifts about and changes constantly; if it didn’t, we couldn’t experience existence because experience requires movement. And that’s why we can’t experience Reality. We can know Reality when we touch it, but we can never utter a word about it. “Your logical mind will therefore sneer at Reality, laugh at it, perhaps become angry about it, and go about its shortsighted business of its own; the quest for pleasure and the flight from pain. So as you come closer to the key, my king, always remember that your mind will tenaciously resist Reality, a resistance that will dwarf any previous battle you have ever fought, making previous battles seem as child’s play. Therefore, be prepared, because more than just this present lifetime is at stake now. Are you ready?” I had no idea what she was talking about, as usual, but I replied that I was indeed ready, and that I would find this key no matter the hardships, willingly surrendering my life if need be. I swore to her that I would never give up. She didn’t reply to my promise, but slowly drifted into the treetops toward the subtle light of dawn that was filtering into the forest awakening the dreaming trees. But as she was almost out of sight she called out, “Whenever you stop soaring, look closely at your broken wings.” Ariya’s visits always left me alert and rested, as I absorbed some of her incredible strength. I could never understand all that she would say, but what she said made me feel good. So with renewed faith and a glorious day ahead of us, we were soon on our way again walking toward the west and into the unknown. The wind sighing through the trees almost sounded like whispering voices, and I distinctly thought that I had heard something, but it was so soft and ephemeral that I merely shrugged it off as an overactive imagination. . . . (”Be careful what you love, it could kill you.”) (To be continued) E. Raymond Rock of Fort Myers, Florida is cofounder and principal teacher at the Southwest Florida Insight Center, .SouthwestFloridaInsightCenter.com His twenty-nine years of meditation experience has taken him across four continents, including two stopovers in Thailand where he practiced in the remote northeast forests as an ordained Theravada Buddhist monk. His book, A Year to Enlightenment (Career Press/New Page Books) is now available at major bookstores and online retailers. Visit .AYearToEnlightenment.com

You might understand what you`re writing, but does anyone else? When you write something, are you confident you`re getting the message across effectively? How can you be sure? Well, you can`t. Not completely. But one step you can take to give yourself the best possible chance of being understood by your reader is to write simply. Don`t tie sentences and paragraphs up with long constructions that leave the reader wondering what your point was. Don`t use big, multi-syllable words just because you can. In short, write like you speak! Readability is what you should be aiming for at all times. If your reader doesn`t understand what you`re trying to get across, it`s not their fault. It`s yours. So before you post a blog entry, send an email or submit an essay to your college tutor, check through to see if it`s possible to make it simpler, more brief and easier to follow. But isn`t that dumbing down? Isn`t that just bringing everything down to the lowest common denominator? No, it’s not. Not at all. Mark Twain, the writer of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, once wrote `I didn`t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.` Brevity is difficult. Writing something that`s simple to understand is not at all, well… simple! But it`s worth it. Plain-language trainer Willam DuBay wrote about readability in 2004 and quoted the following rules of documentation writing. You can use these rules for everything you write, whatever the medium: - Use short, simple, familiar words. - Avoid jargon. - Use culture-and-gender-neutral language. - Use correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling. - Use simple sentences, active voice, and present tense. - Begin instructions in the imperative mode by starting sentences with an action verb. - Use simple graphic elements such as bulleted lists and numbered steps to make information visually accessible. And here’s one more he didn’t mention: - Don’t use clichés. They just make your writing look tired and unimaginative. And I haven`t finished yet! Even a writer as great as George Orwell was moved to write about the `Rules of Writing`. Two of his rules are directly relevant to this article: - Never use a long word where a short one will do. - If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out. Given you something to think about? Here`s a really useful (and free) online resource to check how easy your writing is to understand. Cut and paste your text into the top box, press `Submit` and in a couple of seconds you`ll get a report on how well you`ve done. The metrics it uses are all U.S.-based, but still completely relevant for English-speakers from other countries. .editcentral.com/gwt/com.editcentral.EC/EC.html Get simple! Daniel O`Connor is a top freelance business writer based in the UK. See his satisfaction-guaranteed website’s copywriter profile. He`s worked for some of the biggest companies in the world — including NTT and Mitsubishi Electric, not to mention the 1998 Olympic Winter Games — as well as some of the smallest. And he can do a job for you, too. Daniel is supremely qualified at explaining complicated things in a simple way. There`s nothing you can throw at him that he won`t have dealt with before. Because it`s all about one thing: the words. The right words for you and your business. Blog articles. SEO for websites. Direct marketing. White papers. Flyer advertising. You want words? Daniel O`Connor has words. Want to try out his writing before getting in touch? Check out his business blog. See this article in its original context and many others by going to the Articles section of Daniboy`s website.

We hear a lot about Web 2.0 these days. It sounds neat and it’s trendy to talk about blogging and social media. But does it really affect our businesses? Is Web 2.0 just for kids or is it something we business owners should use to help promote our businesses? I can’t say if Web 2.0 is right for your business but I can say it’s something to be aware of. Ignoring it means ignoring a possible tool that could be valuable in helping you get more customers. So, to help you get started in thinking about Web 2.0 for your business, here are some points to ponder. 1. Have a plan. Don’t dive in just because it’s cool or because you read an article about it. Be clear about what you’re trying to accomplish, how much you’re willing to invest and what time frame you are working on. Like any aspect of your business, as in management planning

Five years ago, blog posting didn’t even exist as a popular freelance job. Now, it’s one of the new media jobs that’s growing in popularity, and one I added to my list of services as an SEO writer because clients kept asking me for it. But, how much should you charge for it? That depends. Following are some things to consider when you are trying to decide what to charge for blog posting. 4 Guidelines for Setting Blog Posting Rates 1) Per Post: This is perhaps themost popular way to charge. Rates are all over the place, generally ranging from $5 on the low end, on up to $25-$30. A post on LinkIn here confirms this, stating, “Acceptable pay rates range from $10-30 a post, depending on the depth involved.” Before you go this route though, keep the following in mind: 2) Type of Content: Speaking of “depth involved” for more technical posts that require research, you’re going to want to charge more. Recently, I did a series of blog posts on routers for one of my clients - a company that sells network hardware. This is a highly technical niche that, unless you work in the industry, you will have to research - even if the post is only 300 words (which can seem like 3,000 if you have to research to gain an understanding of it). 3) Word Count: Speaking of word count, blog posts generally range from 50-200 (considered short posts) on up to 350 words (250-350 words are considered longer posts). They’re shorter than the standard article, which tends to be between 450-600 words. However, as noted just in Tip #2, a 300-word post can take you a couple of hours to write - easily - if the subject matter is foreign to you. So, keep this in mind when you are setting rates. The rate per word can mirror what you charge to write articles, or more. For example, I charge 5 cents/word for article writing. However, I charge more for blog posting. My rates are as follows: You Provide the Topic: $20/per post. Up to 350 words. Posts longer than this revert to a per-word charge (6¢/word). We Provide the Topic: $30/post. Up to 350 words. Posts longer than this are billed at 9¢/word. Why is this? Because time is money. When I take on a project, I like to be assured of making a minimum amount of money, no matter how small the project is because I still have to schedule that project into my day. And, every hour of my time is worth a minimum amount. Understand? Just to provide some measure of how widely rates differ, I found the following quote over on the Digital Point Forums: “My normal rates for blog posting are from 0.02 per word. However, I’m willing to negotiate (within reason).” 4) Flat Rate: Many clients like flat-rate fees because there’s no surprise. As evidenced by my fees listed above, I use a tiered flat-rate system (eg, $20 if they provide the topic, and $30 if I have to come up with it). I charge like this because it’s much easier to write - for me - when I am assigned a topic. I don’t have to think about what to write and then go and research it. I can get right down to the writing and/or research if I know exactly what my client wants me to write about (more evidence that writing is more cerebral than many think; it’s the thinking that’s the hard part). There are many clients who will want you to contribute a number of posts to a certain blog per month and prefer that you quote a flat rate. For example, one of my client asked me how much I would charge to update a mortgage blog he had 5 days a week (250-300 words/post). That’s how I originally came up with my rates. So, in that case, it would have been $400/month. I found this post on BloggingTips.com from a contributor who charges flat rates. Kris Larson from Carthage wrote: “I write a blog about a web service, where I write 25 longer posts a month (about 350 words each), and it does require some research. I get paid $125 a month.” As blog posting is a relatively new type of new media job, it will probably take a few more years before we see concrete posting rates. On the other hand, this is freelance writing, and the industry has yet to have a “standard” rate scale for any type of writing. But, we can all hope, no? About the Author: Yuwanda Black is a freelance SEO writer. She blogs at InkwellEditorial.blogspot.com and is the author of How to Make $250+/Day Writing Simple, 500-Word Articles.

You know getting articles published on article directories builds back-links to your website and increases your exposure so you can get more visitors to your site. And, you know this will translate to more sales. But what are the perks of getting republished by publishers who find your articles on article directories. 4 Ways You Will Benefit from Getting Republished on Other People Websites, Ezines & Blogs 1. You reach a very targeted, specific audience. Most websites, ezines and blogs are very specific in their topic and target market. So if your article is picked up for publication, you have the opportunity to directly reach prospects who are interested in what you’re writing about. 2. You reach people you normally do NOT come into contact with. For example, people who read your article in an ezine did not have to do a search for your article topic in Google. They simply subscribed to a particular newsletter. Then the newsletter containing your article showed up in their inbox. The reader did no work to find your article other than subscribing to the newsletter. 3. You benefit from the branding and credibility of the site that publishes your articles. When sites and ezine editors publish your article they are introducing you to their audiences and giving you theirs stamp of approval. You have instant credibility because of their branding. 4. They can bring a dramatic surge of immediate website traffic. Publication on a major website or in an ezine can bring a surge of traffic over a few days. Of course, every time your article is picked up by an ezine editor your resource box is included along with a link back to your website. How much traffic you receive depends on how much traffic your article receives or how big the ezine editor’s list is. But even if the traffic and ezine subscriber base is on the small side, it’s still exposure to a targeted readership, and every little bit counts! In fact, those small sites might have the most loyal followers