A Life Through Books

The Manifesto for Creative and Critical Thinkers

Nonfiction / Self-Help

Date Published: December 21, 2023

Publisher: ‎Mindstir Media

This book is an exploration of original, critical, and creative thinking through the lens of my creative philosophy. It delves into the very essence of what it means to be human and provides a rational, abstract, and methodical examination of reality.

Philosophy, the love of wisdom, is the guiding principle behind this journey of reflection, self-expression, and enlightenment.

THINK is a bold and inspiring call to free our minds and embrace original thinking.

The philosophical approach that guides this book is designed to ignite a spark within us, to inspire and empower us to break free from the shackles of preconceived notions and legacy thinking that may hold us back. It is a call to embrace critical, original, and creative thinking on our own terms, so we can forge new paths forward. This is not just a book:

It is a revolution for the mind.

Innovation, disruptive creativity, and a nontraditional approach to marketing are hallmarks of Ivonne Kinser's work. As a result, she is widely recognized in the marketing industry as a thought leader on effective and disruptive marketing.

Each year, Ivonne delivers dozens of keynotes at marketing industry conferences where she addresses problem-solving, disruptive creativity, and innovation in the hope of inspiring creative change through the art of deep, strategic, and creative thinking.

As a seasoned marketing professional and accomplished author, Ivonne Kinser has dedicated over two decades to mastering the art of strategic, deep, critical, and creative thinking. Through her vast experience in both brand and agency settings, Ivonne has honed her skills to become a thought leader in innovative marketing.

Passionate about inspiring others, she shares her wealth of knowledge and expertise to encourage individuals to unlock their full potential and think in transformative ways. Her approach to problem-solving and disruptive creativity has captivated audiences at numerous marketing industry conferences and continues to spark change in the industry. By harnessing the power of strategic thinking, Ivonne empowers individuals and teams alike to reach new heights of success and innovation.

As a groundbreaking leader, Ivonne shattered glass ceilings by becoming the first Latina recipient of the DFW American Marketing Association's Lifetime Achievement Award.

She has also earned a spot on the "100 Most Influential Latinas in the United States" list for two consecutive years and was honored with the coveted Changing the Game Award in the Brainwave category by the She Runs It organization in 2018.

Recognized as one of the "20 Women to Watch in Dallas Advertising," Ivonne's brilliance also shined when she was awarded the Shining Star Award by the American Advertising Federation.

As the innovation lead for the Avocados From Mexico's brand, Ivonne led the innovation agenda that put Avocados From Mexico on Fast Company's list of Most Innovative Companies in the world, and at the top one in the branding category.

Overall, her work has received more than 30 accolades and awards for creativity, innovation and high performance.

About the Author

Ivonne Kinser is a trailblazer in the marketing field, consistently challenging the status quo in her pursuit of creativity-driven exponential growth. Within the realm of marketing and innovation, Ivonne has carved out a distinguished reputation.

She boasts over 20 accolades for her creative, performance-driven, and innovative contributions, and notably, she became the first Latina to receive the Marketing Lifetime Achievement Award from The DFW American Marketing Association. She has also been included in the list of the 100 Most Influential Latinas in the US for two consecutive years.

Prior to that, she was honored with the Changing the Game Award in the Brainwave category when the She Runs It organization recognized her as one of the five women who fearlessly make bold moves and transform their brands and organizations.

Her impact transcends industries, leaving an enduring mark on the marketing landscape. Her unwavering passion for martech-led marketing innovation drives her to continuously seek groundbreaking strategies that propel brands to unprecedented heights. Her remarkable 20+ years in the field of marketing disruption have contributed to the redefinition of marketing in the industries she has left a mark on.

From pioneering the initial digital marketing initiatives for the world's largest airline, American Airlines across 20 Latin American countries in 2002, to leading the innovation agenda that propelled Avocados From Mexico to the top of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies list on a global scale in 2021, her career has made a lasting impact.

Ivonne is also an innovation advisor for the Food Institute and a frequent marketing lecturer at IPADE, Mexico's leading business school. Her leadership extends to serving on the boards of both the DFW American Marketing Association and the University of North Texas' College of Merchandising, Hospitality, and Tourism. Moreover, she contributes as an honorary member of the DFW Interactive Marketing Association's board.

In June 2023, she founded Vantage Innovation Lab, a marketing firm dedicated to accelerating growth-driven innovation by integrating marketing technology in unique and disruptive ways.

Through her multiple ventures, from entrepreneur and founder to an author and speaker, her work is characterized by a nontraditional approach to marketing, guided by bold creativity and unconventional problem-solving.

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Young Adult - Sci-Fi / Fantasy

Date Published: September 18, 2022

"He wanted more power, and more control. When I was with him, that seemed to be his main goal."

"What other power was there?"

"Oh, more than you could ever know."

About the Author

Bertrand Coruscare's first novel, Rising Darkness, is the beginning of the epic "The Torch series." Lover of the mysterious, the heroic, and the refined, he fills his days with dark stories, warm drinks, and a touch of sarcasm.

Bertrand resides in the Pacific Northwest, where he is pursuing a degree in English. He often wanders the ancient forests of imagination, guided by ambition, that azure flame.

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Historical Fiction

It's 1943 on the American home front, and Ella's pent-up, common-law husband finally decides to leave their farm and enlist. Ella must either depart their seafaring town in coastal Delaware to pursue other dreams inland or try to save their farm. Their grade-school son, Reese, won't budge, and Ella sees that farmers have a patriotic duty to stay on the land.

The bay and ocean waters before them have been preyed upon by German U-boats, and their village has become a refuge for survivors. When an officer from a surrendered German submarine is sent to her as part of POW farm labor, can Ella embrace the help in order to survive? And what happens when Dieter becomes more than a hand to her, amidst prying eyes and under her beloved but conflicted son's watch? How will she choose when her explosive husband returns from Europe wounded from infantry duty against the Germans?

In ELLA'S WAR, we travel a journey amongst women and men whose lives are deeply altered by the circumstances of WWII. What heroic or questionable choices must they make to be true to themselves and come through the great conflict?

 About the Author

Rusty studied creative writing at the University of Virginia and has been a full-time freelance writer for most of his career. He owns The Writers Studio, a marketing/copywriting practice located just outside of Philadelphia. He led the Advanced Novel Writing Group at the Writers Room/Writers Corner, a writers co-op in Doylestown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and is a member of the Rebel Writers, a highly select novelist critique group that was highlighted in Writer's Digest in the article "Plotting a Novel Group".

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Nonfiction

Date Published: ‎November 11, 2023

Publisher: ‎Burggraff Tash Levy PLC

How can you end your marriage with dignity and respect? While divorce can be filled with anger, frustration, and bitterness, most couples don’t want to end their marriage in an ugly, drawn-out battle that causes irreparable damage.

Does a Good Divorce Really Exist? (Absolutely!) is your definitive guide through the difficult journey of divorce. Randi Burggraff, Justin Tash, and Bryan Levy lay out a roadmap to help you understand the process, rules, and potential outcomes. More importantly, you will master the critical mindset shift that will get you and your partner on the path to a “good” divorce.

Educate yourself by using the examples of healthy divorces to understand what’s involved at each step. This book will guide you through potential pitfalls so you can prepare mentally and think strategically. This book helps you approach heated  conflicts in ways that will allow you to emerge with your emotional well-being and integrity intact.

INTERVIEW

1. **Introduction to the Book:**

   - Can you provide a brief overview of your book, "Does a Good Divorce Really Exist? Absolutely" and its main objectives?

   - What inspired you to write a book on this topic, and what do you hope readers will take away from it?

Answer:

“Does a Good Divorce Really Exist? Absolutely” identifies pain point people experience in divorce—outside of the law. Although we organized the book to follow the general framework of how a divorce progresses through the legal system, that is only for organizational purposes. This is not a book on divorce law and offers no legal advice.

Rather, it defines what a “good divorce” is, at least in our opinion and as it relates to an average situation. Then it identifies what are likely practical goals to aim for in a divorce to help keep people grounded and focused on resolution. Lastly, it identifies common pitfalls that people get wrapped up in that can derail their divorce.

We wanted to write this book to help dispel some misconceptions and help people set a mindset for success. We hope that people will read this book and be able to have candid discussions with their attorney about how to get through this process as efficiently, effectively, and affordably as possible. Additionally, while some of the pitfalls and feelings they generate may be unavoidable, we hope that knowing they are coming will help people approach the situation from a place of strength and preparedness.

2. **Defining a "Good Divorce":**

   - In your book, you discuss the concept of a "good divorce." How do you define a good divorce, and why is it an important perspective to consider?

Answer:

Defining what a good divorce is, is one of the most important points of the book. Setting the appropriate mindset and expectations go a long way to helping people get through this process and onto the next chapter in their lives.

In most cases, a “good divorce” is not fun and not a happy time. Even at its best, you are still ending a relationship and likely dividing a family. A “good divorce” gets you through this period of your life without spending all of your money, the stress of high conflict litigation, losing sleep at night, having a mental breakdown, or getting the police involved, . . . then that is a good divorce.

The best way to have a “good divorce” and get through this process is to stay focused on the goals of the divorce.

3. **Common Misconceptions:**

   - What are some common misconceptions or myths about divorce that you aim to address in your book?

   - How can changing our perception of divorce contribute to a more positive outcome for all parties involved?

Answer:

Some of the biggest misconceptions about divorce are related to the goals of a divorce. The goal of a divorce is not to see the other person suffer and seek vindication. Rarely, very very rarely, is the divorce system and appropriate place to seek vindication.

The tough part about this is most times people’s feelings are completely valid. They usually have been really hurt by someone they trusted. But, if you set the right expectations about what a divorce is, what it provides, and how to best get through it, we believe you will have a better experience during the process.  

4. **Legal Insights:**

   - As family law lawyers, what legal insights or advice do you offer in the book for individuals going through a divorce?

   - How can legal professionals play a role in facilitating a smoother and more amicable divorce process?

Answer:

This book does not offer any legal advice because everyone’s case really is unique. Their families are unique, their facts are unique, and even their courts are unique. There are no blanket statements that can take the place of a discussion with an experienced attorney.

What this book does offer are insights into the general process and how a person may feel at each phase of the process. This insight promotes a person’s informed conversations with their attorney or other legal professionals. Having informed and candid conversations with your attorney about expectations plays a huge role in the path of a smoother and more amicable divorce process.

5. **Communication and Collaboration:**

   - Communication is crucial in any divorce process. How does your book emphasize the importance of effective communication between spouses during divorce proceedings?

   - Are there specific strategies or tips you provide for fostering collaboration between divorcing parties?

Answer:

Communication is crucial in a divorce process, especially because divorce doesn’t stop life and divorce can take several months, even years. Our book discusses keeping life going—making sure the landscaping is being maintained, kids are getting to their soccer practice—and moving through your divorce on two separate, but parallel, tracks. What are some conversations you should likely have with your attorney and what can you handle yourself? This is largely case specific and would need advice from counsel. But, we do identify situations that commonly arise during divorce.

6. **Emotional Well-being:**

   - Divorce often takes a toll on individuals emotionally. How does your book address the emotional well-being of those going through a divorce, and what guidance do you offer in this regard?

Answer:

First and foremost, it is important for people to understand that peoples’ emotions are usually completely valid. They are hurt and usually rightfully so. It is important for your attorney to know how you are feeling and what your concerns are. Attorneys are there to help you. But, there are times when a professional counselor is more appropriate in helping you work through those issues and get to a place of strength so you can move onto the next chapter. This is further discussed in the book.

7. **Co-Parenting:**

   - Co-parenting is a significant aspect for many divorced couples. How does your book explore the challenges of co-parenting and provide advice for creating a healthy co-parenting relationship?

Answer:

Co-parenting is a significant aspect for many divorced couples and co-parenting itself isn’t directly addressed in this book. It is a dense topic that could fill its own book. But, our book does discuss how the divorce itself can impact co-parenting and why it is important to work towards a good divorce. Remember, if you have kids, your relationship and interaction with your soon-to-be ex-spouse isn’t completely over. Even, when your kids turn 18 and graduate high school, it isn’t over. There are still college graduations, weddings, grandchildren, grandchildren’s birthdays. Do you really not want to be invited to your grandchild’s birthday? Do you really want your children to still feel the impacts of your divorce when they are trying to celebrate their own milestones?

How people act during divorce can impact people’s ability to co-parent in the future and that future doesn’t stop when the kids turn 18.

8. **Practical Tools and Resources:**

   - Are there practical tools or resources mentioned in your book that readers can implement during the divorce process to make it more manageable?

Answer:

Absolutely, we discuss various issues people experience during the divorce process, how clients tend to feel about those issues, and practical paths forward.

9. **Success Stories:**

   - Do you share any real-life success stories or positive examples in your book to inspire individuals going through a divorce?

Answer:

We do not. None of the avatars in our book are real people and the stories are created to make a point. But, these points are important and come from our collective experiences, both professional and personal.

Often information and its importance is better understood when told in a story or with relatable examples. That is what we believe we have done here.

10. **Audience Engagement:**

    - How can readers engage with the content of your book, and do you offer any additional resources or platforms for ongoing support and guidance?

Answer:

Our book is offered in paperback and on kindle. For additional guidance, it is likely best to consult with an experienced family law attorney. If they are in Arizona, where our office is and the only place we are licensed to practice, we would be happy to schedule a consultation with them.   

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Philosophic meditations in poetic form on the meaning of eternity for 72 famous persons

Poetry

Date Published: January 15, 2024

As a philosopher once surmised: talent hits a target no one else can hit. Genius, he insisted, hits a target no one else can see. The greatest artists and thinkers are the greatest seers. They do not imagine ... only and merely. They study the facts, they think the facts, they feel the facts, until the facts, the acts of faith, the articles of invention, dissolve in the naked light of the hitherto unseen, until fact, faith, and invention fall away like Halloween masks, like swaddling clothes; and then, leaving behind the tricks and the treats, they teach us what to hallow: the nakedness of a newborn joy, perpetually born anew, a joy that can never die, because it never quite knows, but never fails to enjoy, how early it already is, and how young it was always going to be.

All thinking, carried far enough, ends in paradox: trying to think the unthinkable. All feeling, carried far enough, ends in paradox: trying to feel the unfeelable. But one can feel the unthinkable, and think the unfeelable. To do so is to think with one's feelings and to feel with one's thoughts. Then, and only then, is it possible to hit a target that no one else can see. To experience deeply (profoundly and creatively) is to think with your feelings and to feel with your thoughts. And there's a first and last to every thought, to every feeling. To think the first, to feel the first, as if it were the last, and to do so intensely is to know nothingness, to experience death. Yes, this is paradox. To think the last, to feel the last, as if it were the first, and to do so intensely is to experience life, a life that never ends, precisely because – like a box without sides – it is without beginnings and without ends. Yes, this is paradox too.

This book continues the conspiracy of significance, the dialectic of nowhere and now here, that began with The History of Eternity. Read this sequel, Passages to Eternity, and follow, if you will, the destiny of this paradox as it unfolds in the lives of 72 historic individuals, including Rilke, Peirce, Aeschylus, Pythagoras, Wordsworth, Ibsen, Santayana, Wilde, St. Teresa, Melville, Whitman, Beethoven, Godel, Michelangelo, Leibniz, Thucydides, Ovid, Empedocles, Mann, Plato, Borges, St. James, Baudelaire, Bradley, Arendt, Auden, Maistre, T.S. Eliot, Democritus, Bruegel, Unamuno, Flaubert, Girard, Calvino, Holderlin, William James, Tacitus, Jaspers, St. Paul, Pater, Anaximander, Solzhenitsyn, Nicholas of Cusa, Picasso, Joyce, Berlioz, Marcus Aurelius, Tolstoy, Rose, Kant, Tennessee Williams, Amos, Crane, Toynbee, Wharton, Hegel, Cavafy, Schmitt, Celan, Shankara, Heisenberg, Gibbon, Luther, Frost, Anaxagoras, Nabokov, Adorno, Conrad, Naipaul, Euripides, Ramanuja and many others.

About the Author

Mr. James E. Winder was born on June 16, 1953, in Athens, Tennessee, and graduated summa cum laude from Vanderbilt University in 1975 with a B.A. in philosophy and literature. He earned an M.A. in philosophy from Purdue University in 1980.

James Winder spent the lion’s share of his career as a mid-level manager and intelligence analyst for the National Security Agency (NSA), where he retired in 2013 after 30 years of service. At NSA, Mr. Winder’s most noteworthy assignment was in 1991-1992, when he served as Assistant Director of the President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board (PFIAB). During that time, he co-authored a report for President George H.W. Bush on intelligence lessons learned during the first Gulf War and provided extensive research and documentation on a wide range of other matters of great interest to the PFIAB board members. In a special commendation, then Acting PFIAB Chairman, Admiral Bobby Ray Inman, cited Mr. Winder for his “expert advice to the President of the United States” and for his “extremely incisive and timely contributions on some very complex issues.”

During three decades at NSA, Mr. Winder produced three classified, book-length studies, most notably including a comprehensive report on an important topic, which won NSA’s annual Cryptologic Literature Award. In addition, he wrote a wide variety of other in-depth reports on Soviet intelligence, terrorism, and technical threats to U.S. telecommunications.

Mr. Winder is also the author of The History of Eternity, a series of philosophic meditations in poetic form, which is, according to Mr. Winder, the cryptic story of his life and the lives of many others. There is – in the history of philosophy and literature – no other work that is akin to it in nature and scope.

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Self-Help, Self Reflection

Date Published: 5/25/2022

We all have a certain role to play in what we want the world to look like. What the world looks and feels like today is because of our actions – or inactions; there is always a price to pay for both. The need to understand that we are responsible for what the world is today cannot be overemphasized. We are either living in it carelessly, carefully scheming and orchestrating conflicts that will last many generations, or transferring in our young ones hatred about others which they, moving forward, transfer into theirs.

‘The World in My Eyes’ is a masterpiece by Kayode Michael Arimoro as he, through his experiences and reflections, is making a conscious effort to urge everyone to pause for a moment, take account of how our actions and inactions have impacted the world, and make a conscious effort to making the world a better place than we met it.

About the Author

A believer of non geographical, non color or racial categorization of mankind who believes all humans should live above a globally acceptable human existence index

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Shapeshifter, Paranormal Romance, Contemporary Romance

Date Published: February 20, 2024

In this pulse-pounding novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling Leopard series, animal instinct unites two elite shifters whose heads are at war with their hearts.

Gorya Amurov might be known as his family's peacekeeper, but the leopard inside him wants nothing more than to claw to the surface and unleash hell. A harsh life has shaped him into a vicious fighter with a calm exterior, but Gorya knows it's only a matter of time until he loses all control. Deep down, he truly believes he'd be better off dead, and that no woman will ever accept him as a mate....

Maya Averina has spent years hunting the criminals who destroyed her life, and she always takes down her prey. She keeps to herself, stays under the radar, and never loses focus. But with her body burning up and her mind distracted by her first heat, an ambush takes her by surprise. Now she's trapped, an unmated female shifter about to be sold off to the highest bidder. Maya is ready to fight her way out—until the most dangerous, powerful man she's ever encountered arrives to set her free....

About the Author

Christine Feehan is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, with 83 published works in seven different series: Dark Series, GhostWalker Series, Leopard Series, Drake Sisters Series, Sea Haven Series, Shadow Series, and Torpedo Ink Series. All seven of her series have hit the #1 spot on the New York Times bestseller list. Judgment Road, the first book in her newest series, Torpedo Ink, debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list.

"After Bram Stoker, Anne Rice and Joss Whedon (who created the venerated Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Christine Feehan is the person most credited with popularizing the neck gripper.”—Time Magazine

“The Queen of paranormal romance.” —USA Today

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