By
Teresa Beasley (Indianapolis,IN)
This review is from: Life Is What You Make It (Perfect Paperback)
In Life Is What You Make It by Carl Mathis, readers will learn seven steps to move forward in life after experiencing a loss. Carl Mathis shares his story with readers while providing the tools he used to overcome his loss, hurt, and pain. The author's story leads into how to accept your situation, take responsibility then condition your mind to make the right decisions, build a team, believe, and define the new normal.
After reading Life Is What You Make It, I have discovered that after a loss or tragedy that a person can become victorious by reclaiming their life. The author is living proof of this and of the seven steps within this book. I recommend this inspirational and motivational book to others.
This book was provided by the author for review purposes.
Teresa Beasley
APOOO BookClub
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book review. Show all posts
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Literary Gumbo - interview author of Life is what you make it (Carl Mathis)
About the Author
Christian author, preacher and motivational speaker Carl Mathis began his work for the ministry in 2005 after a life-altering experience. At that time, the death of Mathis’ wife was the reason behind the dramatic turn of events that soon led him to his life’s purpose and calling.
Dealing with the loss of his wife and raising three children as a single father while struggling to make ends meet, Mathis had to contend with unbearable feelings of hopelessness and despair. It was during those moments that Mathis cried out for a strategy to overcome his situation. This experience soon pushed him to channel is grief and use its transforming power to change his own life and others as well.
Immediately after getting back on track, Mathis was moved to act on his burning desire to encourage and motivate people, especially those who have shared the same fate as him. It was then Mathis saw the need to reach out to the distressed and the depressed.
In 2010, he came out with his debut work entitled Life is What You Make It – seven steps to moving forward, a 104 page inspirational book drawn from his own personal life experiences and challenges. Filled with messages on how to deal with sorrow and ultimately survive the process of moving on, the book provides readers with the much-needed encouragement and motivation in order to strive better.
A man after God’s own heart, Mathis continues his passion today of reaching out to people using his God-given abilities, particularly speaking and writing, and becoming a blessing to others in return.
Tell us an experience about your writing process.
I have learned that writing is a craft in it self, what I am saying is not every one is cut out to be a writer. The process is long and tedious with a creative mind set. When I wrote Life is what you make it: seven steps to moving forward and submitted it to my publisher, they loved the concept, but as requested I changed some parts. In fact I had to rewrite about 80% of the manuscript to come to the company’s liking. So this was an experience in it self. If I wasn’t committed to fulfilling the project I started, things just may have been a little different, but I was determined and focus on pursuing this craft.
Is there anything you have learned and maybe wish you had known?
Because the craft of writing found me in such an unusual way, I had the liberty of finding out a few things I wish I had known prior to tackling this craft. I must say that it was not in my plans to become a writer, of even thought about writing a book, it’s seems like it just crept up on me out of nowhere. While sitting at my desk putting down some information, one thing leads to the next and before I knew it a manuscript was established. However, there were a few missing components, such as having a platform and a brand. In other words I need some credibility to what I am doing, so I had to back track and build a platform.
Are there any myths you have discovered about being a writer?
I have not found any myth about being a writer; however, it was revealed to me how dedicated and focus you must be to become a good writer. One must continued to write until it becomes a daily routine.
Please share your experiences with publication.
My experience with publication has been challenge and a great learning experience at the same time. I found out that publication can get you on some good avenues, but getting the word out for your book/project has to be your responsibility. Publishers have a certain way they want their manuscript to be formatted and laid out. But at the same time it’s not an easy thing to get a publisher to accept your work, they look for an individual who has a track record and could potentially sell a good amount of books. So being not so well known as some of the more established authors made it was a little challenging for me to get a publisher.
What is your pattern for timely effective writing?
Writing is a craft in a class by itself. However, just as any project or job that needs to be completed in a timely manner, it needs a well laid out plan.
One of the first things to be considered is resource into the topic and the content about what you’re writing about. Always remember that content is imperative and adds value and ingredients to your credibility, which would transcend to people drawing close to your work. I believe that this should be done before you attempt to write your manuscript.
You then want to create an outline to follow. This will help prevent you from writers block or quieting at the half way point, because you now know what you have to do to complete what you have started. With the resource and the outline done first, you have a good chance at a well formatted manuscript. The outline should consist of a Headline, an Introduction, a Body, a Conclusion and in some cases, a little information about the author.
Headline – This should be most appealing as possible because readers read this first then decide if he or she will continue reading the rest of the manuscript. In most cases they will just take a glance at the cove and scan over the headline, and if it’s not appealing they will put it down and move on.
Introduction – many has made the mistake in putting too much into the introduction, this will give way for the reader to lose interest in continuing at all. They will feel like they have already figured out the end result. Just introduce the problem you will be discussing in your manuscript or write a few paragraphs some relevant experience while introducing the plot.
Body – This is where you discuss all the solutions to the problem you expressed in the Introduction. You want to break up each point into separate paragraphs; this will give the reader a good understanding of what he/she is reading. A good idea is to create a sub-heading for each point to allow an easy read. Most people scan before reading, so sub-headings work in your favor.
Conclusion - this is where you summarize your story and pressure a call for action. Make sure there is a solution to the problem you explained in the body. Be direct in leading the readers, make sure they will fully understand what it is that needs to be understood.
Some things to keep in mind:
Write with passion and inspiration – in other words, write like you would explain something to your friend. Don’t worry too much about correcting mistakes or how it sounds. As long as the flow of thoughts is flowing, keep writing, you never want to break the train of thoughts. You can always correct them later. When you are finish writing, take a break, then come back and take a fresh look at what you have written, and make your adjustments. Make sure it flows well by clearly identifying the problem, providing a solution and concluding with an action step or steps. It’s a good idea to get someone else to read it over. Often they will find the mistakes that you missed. One of the most important things is going over your manuscript several times. This will help you catch the little things you might normally over look.
About the Book
Carl Mathis wasn’t prepared for the devastation the loss of his wife would bring to his life. He soon found himself grieving, struggling to make ends meet, and trying to raise his sons, who were also dealing with personal turmoil from the loss of their mother. After months of waiting for someone to rescue him, Carl had to face the inevitable truth–no one was coming. He realized that if he wanted out of the mess his life was becoming, he was going to have to do it himself.
Join new author Carl Mathis in this motivational story about one man’s struggle to put his life back together. Life Is What You Make It will teach you how to overcome any crippling situation you find yourself in and stimulate personal and spiritual growth by accepting the situation, taking responsibility, conditioning your mind, choosing to make right decisions, building a team, believing, and defining the new normal.
Purchase the Book Online at:
http://www.Amazon.com
http://www.BarnesandNoble.com
http://www.BooksaMillion.com
Visit the author at http://www.CarlMathis.com
Christian author, preacher and motivational speaker Carl Mathis began his work for the ministry in 2005 after a life-altering experience. At that time, the death of Mathis’ wife was the reason behind the dramatic turn of events that soon led him to his life’s purpose and calling.
Dealing with the loss of his wife and raising three children as a single father while struggling to make ends meet, Mathis had to contend with unbearable feelings of hopelessness and despair. It was during those moments that Mathis cried out for a strategy to overcome his situation. This experience soon pushed him to channel is grief and use its transforming power to change his own life and others as well.
Immediately after getting back on track, Mathis was moved to act on his burning desire to encourage and motivate people, especially those who have shared the same fate as him. It was then Mathis saw the need to reach out to the distressed and the depressed.
In 2010, he came out with his debut work entitled Life is What You Make It – seven steps to moving forward, a 104 page inspirational book drawn from his own personal life experiences and challenges. Filled with messages on how to deal with sorrow and ultimately survive the process of moving on, the book provides readers with the much-needed encouragement and motivation in order to strive better.
A man after God’s own heart, Mathis continues his passion today of reaching out to people using his God-given abilities, particularly speaking and writing, and becoming a blessing to others in return.
Tell us an experience about your writing process.
I have learned that writing is a craft in it self, what I am saying is not every one is cut out to be a writer. The process is long and tedious with a creative mind set. When I wrote Life is what you make it: seven steps to moving forward and submitted it to my publisher, they loved the concept, but as requested I changed some parts. In fact I had to rewrite about 80% of the manuscript to come to the company’s liking. So this was an experience in it self. If I wasn’t committed to fulfilling the project I started, things just may have been a little different, but I was determined and focus on pursuing this craft.
Is there anything you have learned and maybe wish you had known?
Because the craft of writing found me in such an unusual way, I had the liberty of finding out a few things I wish I had known prior to tackling this craft. I must say that it was not in my plans to become a writer, of even thought about writing a book, it’s seems like it just crept up on me out of nowhere. While sitting at my desk putting down some information, one thing leads to the next and before I knew it a manuscript was established. However, there were a few missing components, such as having a platform and a brand. In other words I need some credibility to what I am doing, so I had to back track and build a platform.
Are there any myths you have discovered about being a writer?
I have not found any myth about being a writer; however, it was revealed to me how dedicated and focus you must be to become a good writer. One must continued to write until it becomes a daily routine.
Please share your experiences with publication.
My experience with publication has been challenge and a great learning experience at the same time. I found out that publication can get you on some good avenues, but getting the word out for your book/project has to be your responsibility. Publishers have a certain way they want their manuscript to be formatted and laid out. But at the same time it’s not an easy thing to get a publisher to accept your work, they look for an individual who has a track record and could potentially sell a good amount of books. So being not so well known as some of the more established authors made it was a little challenging for me to get a publisher.
What is your pattern for timely effective writing?
Writing is a craft in a class by itself. However, just as any project or job that needs to be completed in a timely manner, it needs a well laid out plan.
One of the first things to be considered is resource into the topic and the content about what you’re writing about. Always remember that content is imperative and adds value and ingredients to your credibility, which would transcend to people drawing close to your work. I believe that this should be done before you attempt to write your manuscript.
You then want to create an outline to follow. This will help prevent you from writers block or quieting at the half way point, because you now know what you have to do to complete what you have started. With the resource and the outline done first, you have a good chance at a well formatted manuscript. The outline should consist of a Headline, an Introduction, a Body, a Conclusion and in some cases, a little information about the author.
Headline – This should be most appealing as possible because readers read this first then decide if he or she will continue reading the rest of the manuscript. In most cases they will just take a glance at the cove and scan over the headline, and if it’s not appealing they will put it down and move on.
Introduction – many has made the mistake in putting too much into the introduction, this will give way for the reader to lose interest in continuing at all. They will feel like they have already figured out the end result. Just introduce the problem you will be discussing in your manuscript or write a few paragraphs some relevant experience while introducing the plot.
Body – This is where you discuss all the solutions to the problem you expressed in the Introduction. You want to break up each point into separate paragraphs; this will give the reader a good understanding of what he/she is reading. A good idea is to create a sub-heading for each point to allow an easy read. Most people scan before reading, so sub-headings work in your favor.
Conclusion - this is where you summarize your story and pressure a call for action. Make sure there is a solution to the problem you explained in the body. Be direct in leading the readers, make sure they will fully understand what it is that needs to be understood.
Some things to keep in mind:
Write with passion and inspiration – in other words, write like you would explain something to your friend. Don’t worry too much about correcting mistakes or how it sounds. As long as the flow of thoughts is flowing, keep writing, you never want to break the train of thoughts. You can always correct them later. When you are finish writing, take a break, then come back and take a fresh look at what you have written, and make your adjustments. Make sure it flows well by clearly identifying the problem, providing a solution and concluding with an action step or steps. It’s a good idea to get someone else to read it over. Often they will find the mistakes that you missed. One of the most important things is going over your manuscript several times. This will help you catch the little things you might normally over look.
About the Book
Carl Mathis wasn’t prepared for the devastation the loss of his wife would bring to his life. He soon found himself grieving, struggling to make ends meet, and trying to raise his sons, who were also dealing with personal turmoil from the loss of their mother. After months of waiting for someone to rescue him, Carl had to face the inevitable truth–no one was coming. He realized that if he wanted out of the mess his life was becoming, he was going to have to do it himself.
Join new author Carl Mathis in this motivational story about one man’s struggle to put his life back together. Life Is What You Make It will teach you how to overcome any crippling situation you find yourself in and stimulate personal and spiritual growth by accepting the situation, taking responsibility, conditioning your mind, choosing to make right decisions, building a team, believing, and defining the new normal.
Purchase the Book Online at:
http://www.Amazon.com
http://www.BarnesandNoble.com
http://www.BooksaMillion.com
Visit the author at http://www.CarlMathis.com
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Sormag's Blog: interview of Life is what you make make it
Life is What You Make It Blog Tour
Posted by LaShaunda Labels: BLOG TOUR
Tell us about Life is what you make it – seven steps to moving forward.
“Carl Mathis wasn't prepared for the devastation the loss of his wife would bring to his life. He soon found himself grieving, struggling to make ends meet, and trying to raise his sons, who were also dealing with personal turmoil from the loss of their mother. After months of waiting for someone to rescue him, Carl had to face the inevitable truth--no one was coming. He realized that if he wanted out of the mess his life was becoming, he was going to have to do it himself. Join new author Carl Mathis in this motivational story about one man's struggle to put his life back together. Life Is What You Make It will teach you how to overcome any crippling situation you find yourself in and stimulate personal and spiritual growth by accepting the situation, taking responsibility, conditioning your mind, choosing to make right decisions, building a team, believing, and defining the new normal.”
How did you come up with ideas for this book?
At the grieving period of my life when I lost my wife, I was looking for someone to come to my rescue, but help didn’t come as I hope it would. After waiting and seeing my life slowing going down, I decided that no one is coming, so life ended up what I made it out to be. The idea for this book came to me in an unusual way. I was sitting at the computer one day just putting some thoughts down about my past experience of what I went through, then one thing lead to next, and this book was established.
Who are your main character(s)?
The main characters in the book are Carl Mathis, and his three sons Jaron, Carl JR and Torrey Mathis.
• Did you have a favorite character(s)? Who and why? No
• Did you have to do quite a bit of research for this novel?
I did some, but because this book was about my experience, it was like researching me.
What do you hope readers will learn/discover from reading Life is what you make it: seven steps to moving forward?
I hope the readers read the book with an open mind and be ready for changes! Great things are in store for every life that yearns for the Truth, and when you embrace it, the way you see life will completely change for the better. Remember: it's all up to you. One can accomplish anything he/she puts their mind to.
Okay, a not-so-fun question. How important are reviews to you as a writer?Reviews are very important, because this tells me what at lease some of the readers are saying, plus it gives value and credibility to your work.
About the Book
Carl Mathis wasn’t prepared for the devastation the loss of his wife would bring to his life. He soon found himself grieving, struggling to make ends meet, and trying to raise his sons, who were also dealing with personal turmoil from the loss of their mother. After months of waiting for someone to rescue him, Carl had to face the inevitable truth–no one was coming. He realized that if he wanted out of the mess his life was becoming, he was going to have to do it himself.
Join new author Carl Mathis in this motivational story about one man’s struggle to put his life back together. Life Is What You Make It will teach you how to overcome any crippling situation you find yourself in and stimulate personal and spiritual growth by accepting the situation, taking responsibility, conditioning your mind, choosing to make right decisions, building a team, believing, and defining the new normal.
Purchase the Book Online at:
http://www.amazon.com/
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/
http://www.booksamillion.com/
Visit the author at http://www.carlmathis.com/
Visit the blog tour schedule at http://bit.ly/LifeisWhatYouMakeIt
Posted by LaShaunda Labels: BLOG TOUR
Tell us about Life is what you make it – seven steps to moving forward.
“Carl Mathis wasn't prepared for the devastation the loss of his wife would bring to his life. He soon found himself grieving, struggling to make ends meet, and trying to raise his sons, who were also dealing with personal turmoil from the loss of their mother. After months of waiting for someone to rescue him, Carl had to face the inevitable truth--no one was coming. He realized that if he wanted out of the mess his life was becoming, he was going to have to do it himself. Join new author Carl Mathis in this motivational story about one man's struggle to put his life back together. Life Is What You Make It will teach you how to overcome any crippling situation you find yourself in and stimulate personal and spiritual growth by accepting the situation, taking responsibility, conditioning your mind, choosing to make right decisions, building a team, believing, and defining the new normal.”
How did you come up with ideas for this book?
At the grieving period of my life when I lost my wife, I was looking for someone to come to my rescue, but help didn’t come as I hope it would. After waiting and seeing my life slowing going down, I decided that no one is coming, so life ended up what I made it out to be. The idea for this book came to me in an unusual way. I was sitting at the computer one day just putting some thoughts down about my past experience of what I went through, then one thing lead to next, and this book was established.
Who are your main character(s)?
The main characters in the book are Carl Mathis, and his three sons Jaron, Carl JR and Torrey Mathis.
• Did you have a favorite character(s)? Who and why? No
• Did you have to do quite a bit of research for this novel?
I did some, but because this book was about my experience, it was like researching me.
What do you hope readers will learn/discover from reading Life is what you make it: seven steps to moving forward?
I hope the readers read the book with an open mind and be ready for changes! Great things are in store for every life that yearns for the Truth, and when you embrace it, the way you see life will completely change for the better. Remember: it's all up to you. One can accomplish anything he/she puts their mind to.
Okay, a not-so-fun question. How important are reviews to you as a writer?Reviews are very important, because this tells me what at lease some of the readers are saying, plus it gives value and credibility to your work.
About the Book
Carl Mathis wasn’t prepared for the devastation the loss of his wife would bring to his life. He soon found himself grieving, struggling to make ends meet, and trying to raise his sons, who were also dealing with personal turmoil from the loss of their mother. After months of waiting for someone to rescue him, Carl had to face the inevitable truth–no one was coming. He realized that if he wanted out of the mess his life was becoming, he was going to have to do it himself.
Join new author Carl Mathis in this motivational story about one man’s struggle to put his life back together. Life Is What You Make It will teach you how to overcome any crippling situation you find yourself in and stimulate personal and spiritual growth by accepting the situation, taking responsibility, conditioning your mind, choosing to make right decisions, building a team, believing, and defining the new normal.
Purchase the Book Online at:
http://www.amazon.com/
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/
http://www.booksamillion.com/
Visit the author at http://www.carlmathis.com/
Visit the blog tour schedule at http://bit.ly/LifeisWhatYouMakeIt
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
All the Buzz Reviews (Life is what you make it)
• Tell us about yourself.
Hi, my name is Carl Mathis; Author of Life is what you make it: seven steps to moving forward. I’ve dedicated my life to helping people achieve their dreams through the word of GOD. When I lost my wife to death in December of 2005, I was faced with the challenges of raising three boys as a single parent, and at the same time coping with the loss of my mate.
During this time, I dealt with many emotions, how can I be a father and mother to my children, how do I deal with the grief of losing my wife. I was faced with many difficulties.
There were times when life brought enjoyment, and other times when life was so challenging that I wanted to give up and quit. However, during such difficult and unbearable moments, I make up my mind to do something about it. I was not going to let this unfortunate situation take over me. I decided to use this terrible and devastating situation as a platform to rebuild my life( I realized that life is what you make it).
I spent many nights crying out to GOD for a strategy to overcome my situation. The strategy I got was, while I am going through my difficulties, share it with others, help them to overcome and at the same time I would overcome. That’s exactly what I did and by doing so, I am so blessed because I am in a much better place than I was years ago.
Now I am on the right path to success. I now have a burning desire to encourage and motivate people and let them know that life is whatever they make it.
I pursue diligently because I see that many people have struggled, and their quality of life has been diminished. It coerces them to give up and throw in the towel. Someone needs to reach out to these people and let them know that they should hold on to their dreams, that they can accomplish anything they put their mind to. I hope to encourage people through my books and teach them how to acquire instruction, motivation and encouragement when striving for their dreams.
• What type of jobs or careers have you worked in the past?
I am a carpenter/handyman by trade. I worked in that field for many years; I also spend three years as an Army National Guard. I worked in the surveillance industry for about seven years as a Surveillance Supervisor for a Casino in Miami Fl.
• Who are your favorite authors?
Although I read varieties of authors, I recently enjoyed books by Max Lucado and TD Jakes, but there are many other good authors I also read.
• What are your favorite books?
Of course, The Bible is the most important book that I will ever have. For any other book, as long as it combines a good plot with a positive or Godly perspective, It will have my attention.
• When did you begin to realize you wanted to write?
I must say that the craft of writing found me in an unusual way; Just the thought of putting information on paper to help someone was fascinating to me. While in the process of overcoming and moving forward from my grieving period, it lead me to put in writing how I was able to triumph over such an obstacle. After a while I began to realize that this is a God giving gift. And I should use it to my advantage. That is when I realized that I wanted to continue writing.
• Tell us about your journey to publication.
My journey to publication was like driving in the middle of rush hour in NYC. What I am saying is, being a new comer on the author seen; I was not given any consideration. There was rejection after rejection from agents and publishers, after a while Tate Publishing accepted my manuscript, and made me rewrite about 75% of the book before they published it.
• Are you a full-time writer? If so, describe your day?
I would not say I am a full time writer, but I am pretty close to it, because I make sure I write every day.
Carl Mathis author of life is what you make it – seven steps to moving forward
Go here now http://www.carlmathis.com for more
Hi, my name is Carl Mathis; Author of Life is what you make it: seven steps to moving forward. I’ve dedicated my life to helping people achieve their dreams through the word of GOD. When I lost my wife to death in December of 2005, I was faced with the challenges of raising three boys as a single parent, and at the same time coping with the loss of my mate.
During this time, I dealt with many emotions, how can I be a father and mother to my children, how do I deal with the grief of losing my wife. I was faced with many difficulties.
There were times when life brought enjoyment, and other times when life was so challenging that I wanted to give up and quit. However, during such difficult and unbearable moments, I make up my mind to do something about it. I was not going to let this unfortunate situation take over me. I decided to use this terrible and devastating situation as a platform to rebuild my life( I realized that life is what you make it).
I spent many nights crying out to GOD for a strategy to overcome my situation. The strategy I got was, while I am going through my difficulties, share it with others, help them to overcome and at the same time I would overcome. That’s exactly what I did and by doing so, I am so blessed because I am in a much better place than I was years ago.
Now I am on the right path to success. I now have a burning desire to encourage and motivate people and let them know that life is whatever they make it.
I pursue diligently because I see that many people have struggled, and their quality of life has been diminished. It coerces them to give up and throw in the towel. Someone needs to reach out to these people and let them know that they should hold on to their dreams, that they can accomplish anything they put their mind to. I hope to encourage people through my books and teach them how to acquire instruction, motivation and encouragement when striving for their dreams.
• What type of jobs or careers have you worked in the past?
I am a carpenter/handyman by trade. I worked in that field for many years; I also spend three years as an Army National Guard. I worked in the surveillance industry for about seven years as a Surveillance Supervisor for a Casino in Miami Fl.
• Who are your favorite authors?
Although I read varieties of authors, I recently enjoyed books by Max Lucado and TD Jakes, but there are many other good authors I also read.
• What are your favorite books?
Of course, The Bible is the most important book that I will ever have. For any other book, as long as it combines a good plot with a positive or Godly perspective, It will have my attention.
• When did you begin to realize you wanted to write?
I must say that the craft of writing found me in an unusual way; Just the thought of putting information on paper to help someone was fascinating to me. While in the process of overcoming and moving forward from my grieving period, it lead me to put in writing how I was able to triumph over such an obstacle. After a while I began to realize that this is a God giving gift. And I should use it to my advantage. That is when I realized that I wanted to continue writing.
• Tell us about your journey to publication.
My journey to publication was like driving in the middle of rush hour in NYC. What I am saying is, being a new comer on the author seen; I was not given any consideration. There was rejection after rejection from agents and publishers, after a while Tate Publishing accepted my manuscript, and made me rewrite about 75% of the book before they published it.
• Are you a full-time writer? If so, describe your day?
I would not say I am a full time writer, but I am pretty close to it, because I make sure I write every day.
Carl Mathis author of life is what you make it – seven steps to moving forward
Go here now http://www.carlmathis.com for more
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