Masters of Disaster: the ten commandments of damage control by Christopher Lehane, Mark Fabiani, and Bill Guttentag (Palgrave Macmillan, 2012)
Two days before the last Ides of March, the day that went down in history as the death of Julius Caesar at the hands of Roman senators at Pompey’s theatre, I went to the Robinson Exhibition Hall in Little Rock, Arkansas. It was centuries too late for Caesar to learn the ten commandments of damage control from Chris Lehane, author with Mark Fabiani and Bill Guttentag of Masters of Disguise: the ten commandments of damage control. While Caesar shut his ears that fateful day to repeated warnings, the room was full of folks like me primed to learn how to emerge unscathed from potential controversy assassination.
Masters of Disguise isn’t just for celebrities like Paula Deen and Duck Dynasty‘s Phil Robinson who fought major media battles in 2013. The book holds media disaster preparedness tips for any individual, public or private citizen alike, who might draw public controversy. From my four college years in which I drew media attention twice (first for an injury, later for a contest win), I can personally testify that anyone can be thrown into the public eye at any moment totally unexpectedly.
My tip? Read this book if you hope to survive!
Epic: The Story God is Telling by John Eldredge (Thomas Nelson, 2004)
I ran into a friend from my hometown at Barnes and Noble recently. She was there to buy a small Christmas gift to express thanks to a few helpful volunteers. What is her favorite Christmas book to gift? Barbara Robinson’s The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.
If I could gift a book to Storydame readers this Christmas (and I can’t, so don’t get excited!), it would not be a Christmas book even though there are many terrific ones in publication. Some of my favorites are Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, John Grisham’s Skipping Christmas and How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss.
StoryDame loves stories, stories that are true, stories that reveal us flaws and all, stories that raise a range of emotion from tears to laughter. My favorite book of true tales, flaws and an emotional rollercoaster ride of love, adventure, horrific evils and thrills has to be Epic: The Story God is Telling by John Eldredge.
Epic tells us that we are part of a larger story started before the dawn of time. The stories we love, Eldredge says, are a heart call to this epic. This Christmas season join me as I reread Epic and discover the crucial role that is mine and yours!
Photo: Colosseo. ©iStockphoto.com/Soldaini
Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris (Little, Brown and Company, 2008)
Everybody has their personal favorite Christmas “story fare” from Luke’s version of the birth of Jesus to T’was the Night Before Christmas to The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson. For the true-life narrator like me, the list likely includes David Sedaris’ account of his Macy’s elfin adventure in SantaLand Diaries, one of twelve stories in the 2008 version of Holidays on Ice.
The discovery of Sedaris by Ira Glass of This American Life eventually led to Sedaris’ reading of SantaLand Diaries on NPR’s Morning Edition on December 23, 1992, which catapulted the former elf to mega-fame, the illusive goal of every true-life narrator. Want to follow in Sedaris’ golden footsteps? Do yourself a favor this Christmas. While you’re out shopping, buy one more gift. Buy Holidays on Ice for yourself. With stories guaranteed to make you laugh, SantaLand Sedaris is stellar example of this art form!
When I see Linda Obst among speakers at Digital Hollywood, I rush out and buy her latest book before I travel to LA for the conference. After the session, despite the fact she has a book signing later that day, she graciously signs my copy. (Note: due to privacy issues I smudged her signature in Photoshop elements. Yes, you can do that!!!)
Obst is smart, articulate and nice – a great combination.
