Angeline M. Bishop

I know Hollywood stars do it when they have anger towards another star and their fans are quick to follow suit. People forget that we shouldn't react from a place of anger because nothing good comes from it. It’s a malicious cycle that spreads ugliness and hate that wounds delicate hearts. But people are quick to type something they would never say to a person’s face. It’s like their empathy chip temporarily stops working and they become utterly vindictive and nasty.

Last year a study reported that anger is the most viral emotion on the Internet. The examination of how we humans are influenced by friends on social media, conducted by researchers at Beihang University in China, found that friends and followers are far more likely to share or echo angry sentiments than messages containing sadness, disgust or even joy. 

Angry tweets caused a ripple of more angry tweets up to three degrees of separation from the original irate message, the researchers found. The spread of anger was particularly high when the rage originated from a user with a large follower base. As a blogger and author I make a conscious effort to spread information, support authors' works, give inspirational thoughts, and to express my gratitude for life with my followers and subscribers. And I know many people have decided to do the same thing. It may not be the popular stance but I can sleep well at night. And I never have to go back and erase my tweets or Facebook posts due to an act of immaturity.

Now if I could say one thing to my daughters and the other young people that use social media on a daily basis it would be to think before your type.  Remember your future employer, landlord, and colleagues will Google you and read the things you post. And if that doesn’t make you think twice before you post something… then think about how your family and friends will feel about reading the things you've said about them. You can also damage in your relationship by posting things instead of talking to the person one-on-one.

Now, I’m not saying I don’t understand why people post anger things.  I totally understand. I really do. I’m just asking you to think about why you want to before you do it. Everyone that reads your words will be shocked that you are filled with so much hate and then they'll question your mindset and decision-making processes.

Hey, do you really want your followers to think you’re so mad that you could possible hurt someone? It’s not a good look and I can’t think of one person that would want to be close to you after that.  I mean, they could be your next target, right?

So use Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook to give us a window into the things you love about your world (i.e. the happy memories, celebrations, and joyful moments) and leave the negative emotions for the people in your real life that can handle the drama… and then forget about it.

North Star is now in audiobook production. I’m very happy that audiobook listeners will experience the talents of a wonderful narrator this summer.  I tell you, once you listen to her reading of Yvette and Caresse’s interactions; you’d understand the brilliant acting ability she brings to the written word. I’ll introduce you to her work soon, I promise.

Now, I’m trying to select the best narrator for South Beach because I really would like both productions to come out around the same time.

For those of you that don’t know very much about audiobooks, you should really give it a try. Most listeners use audiobooks while they’re traveling, commuting and during lifestyle activities such as exercising, relaxing, cooking, cleaning, gardening, walking the dog, etc.

With the right narrator, audiobooks are a good replacement for reading fiction for attentive listeners. It’s a wonderful way to experience fiction. Audiobook narrators are often actors and actresses that have voice and dramatic training. They are able to use dialects and accents, can respond to direction, have the stamina that being in a closed studio for many hours requires, and ultimately deliver the feeling behind the author’s intent of the book.

I’m so glad I have the honor of selecting my choice of narrator because this novel sets up some main characters of the Sheridan Series. The performer plays all of the parts of my work (although there are also books performed by multiple narrators or a full cast).

So are you still having doubts about whether an audiobook can be as much of an enjoyable experience as the printed original?  Well listen to real people talk about their audiobook experiences below.

I can't believe how much I've learned in just six months.  It feels like a veil has been lifted from my eyes and I'm finally seeing the world as it really is.

I was blessed to learned about Pastor T.D. Jakes' teaching on Instinct before his latest book hit the New York Times Bestseller list. I know the world is finally hearing the message now and I'm grateful that I've learned some of these truths in April. I also must give a BIG thanks to my friends at the Potter's House for connecting me to Pastor DeForest Soaries and the wonderful First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens family in Central New Jersey.

This month is not only the celebration of mothers, graduates, and weddings, its also a great month to celebrate the completion of my inspirational new adult novel Jacmuir - Book One and my second novel South Beach - Book II, The Sheridan Series now available in paperback.  (NOTE: I'm currently exploring the audiobook format of my novels so auditions are underway. I don't want to rush the process because the right narrator can open my novels up to a totally different market.)

Let me quickly mention that Wild West (Book Three) is on schedule to be completed before Summer 2014.

As you can see from the blog post photos, Mothers Day was a wonderful spring day in New Jersey. 

I sent my mother a beautiful bouquet from the Bouqs Company because they caught my eye on the Shark Tank. And quess what?  They were the prettiest flowers she'd EVER seen. Give them a try the next time you're thinking of buying flowers online.

Well, thanks for stopping by for my quick update but I better go. It's graduation time at the university so we're working hard to give the graduates a proper send off.

Congratulations Class of 2014!! Now go out into the world make a difference.  And if you need a little help to make sure you're headed in the right direction, please make Instinct:The Power to Unleash Your Inborn Drive by T.D. Jakes and dFree: Breaking Free from Financial Slavery by DeForest Soaries part of your Kindle library.