So, this is what I have been doing with the bulk of my free time the last few months (when I am not playing cello!). I was hit by the layoff shoulder tap twice (!) in the last three years. Each time I found a new job reasonably quickly and a big part of that was relying on both my personal network  and my social network.


Speaking to a few of my unemployed colleagues, I realized that many of them could use some guidance to create an online network and uncover hidden career opportunities. Networking for jobs, particularly on the internet, is a new concept for many professionals, especially those who have been with the same company for many years.

So I put together this short e-book, about 30 pages long, that serves as a quick guide to navigating the many options that are available to create a professional social network using LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter and finding new opportunities with an internet optimized resume and online job sites. I also cover creating an online presence and preparing for phone and video interviews.

Right now Social Networking Your Way to a New Job: Putting the Power of the Internet to Work for You is available on Amazon Kindle for $2.99.

Domestic Violets: Corporate Shenanigans or Literary Legacy

Imagine a fictional son of John Updike (Couples and Rabbit Updike, before he begin living entirely in his own head). Add healthy doses of Dave Barry and Scott Adams and sprinkle with a little hipster. This is Tom Violet, the snarky, mis-employed son of critically acclaimed, womanizing author Curtis Violet.

Matthew Norman's Domestic Violets details the foibles of Tom Violet who, having grown up in the shadow of this literary giant opts to join the corporate world rather than compete on his father's home turf. To say that Tom is ill-suited for corporate life is the grossest of understatement.

Tom's subversive office antics save his sanity, but undermine his career. He tortures his corporate drone coworker, Greg, flirts dangerously with his young coworker Katie, while his indulgent boss Doug ignores much of his shenanigans because of Tom's copy writing talent.

When Ian, British company president comes to town to shake things up, it means big changes for Tom, who describes Ian's office to Katie:

"standard president stuff...Water slide. Gold-plated desk. Little Korean boy fanning him with a giant feather."
I was frequently annoyed that my real life interfered with my ability to get back to Domestic Violets and find out how Tom would resolve his sexual and professional impotence and rebuild his career, marriage and relationship with his parents.

Definitely a fun, fast read with well-developed relatable characters and a page-turning plot.

Oryx and Crake: Dystopian, Depressing, Duh

Title: Oryx and Crake
Author: Margaret Atwood
Genre: Dystopian Fiction

Oryx and Crake is dystopian and depressing, but when is dystopian NOT depressing? This, like the best dystopian novels takes present reality and turns it up a notch. Or maybe a  couple of notches.

As much as I loved the Hunger Games series, it is difficult to draw a direct line from current society to where it devolved to in the book. Not so with Oryx and Crake. The path to Atwood's future reality from current technology is straight and alarmingly solid.

One annoyance and possible spoiler is the mushy ending. Even a novel intended to be part of a trilogy should have a beginning, middle and end. The cliffhanger ending calls to mind a television show going to commercial break.

Recommended: YES
One word description: DESPAIR