Happy New Year

Greetings! Time to leave 2008 behind and hope for a better year in 2009.

What we all need is some good news…some positive vibes, for a change.

Those things can come from anywhere…friends, family, sports business. “The Leafs win the Stanley Cup!”  Even the things that dreams and fantasy are made of.

So, I raise a glass to every optimist out there, a glass that is always full of hope.

Have a happy and prosperous New Year.

Cheers, James

A Life’s Passion Completes National Screening Tour; Toronto Nov 26

It’ll be a big one, our Moving Stories Films event in Toronto, Nov 26, Gladstone Hotel, 7:30pm, sponsored by Pages Books “This Is Not A Reading Series.” Big cause there will be a lots of artists attending (I’ll be traveling up from Florida especially for the event!); big cause I’ll be attending the annual BookShorts Xmas party (never too soon for parties!) which bring over a hundred independent artists out for holiday cheer. And it also a wonderful way to wrap the national tour of Moving Stories Films, which screened A Life’s Passion to over 600 people across the country, from St. John’s NL to Ottawa, Winnipeg, Calgary, Banff, and Vancouver. Have a look at the terrific support from the presenting festivals across the country.

MOVING STORIES FILMS
Wed, Nov 26; 7:30pm (doors 7pm) $5 Door
Gladstone Hotel Ballroom, 1214 Queen St W, Toronto
with Hosts Judith Keenan and Paul Quarrington and James McCreath + More Special Guests

Want to see some of this season’s hottest titles on the big screen before they are turned into feature length blockbusters? Moving Stories Films is a hilarious, odd and poignant collection of short films based on recent books from all over the world. Some are faithful to the page and others treat the source text as a starting point for cinematic invention. Judith Keenan and Paul Quarrington curated the program. Many of the featured authors will be in attendance. – A This Is Not A Reading Series event presented by Pages Books & Magazines, BookShorts Literacy Program and EYE WEEKLY.

Pages Books & Music Series TINARS November 26, 2008
http://pagesbooks.ca

A Life’s Passion Screening in Winnipeg!

Today marks the Canadian premiere of Moving Stories Films in Winnipeg at THIN AIR: Winnipeg International Writers Festival.  Moving Stories is a program of 15 short films all based on works of literature - and A Life’s Passion is part of the lineup!  The producer Judith Keenan is out in Winnipeg at the event today. I would love to have been there, but I’m covering Word on the Street in Toronto, where I hope to catch  up with lots of interesting authors. The weather is wonderful…see you at Word on the Street!

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A Life’s Passion on CBC Reflections November 2

We’re looking forward to the national broadcast of A Life’s Passion on CBC Reflections November 2! We’ll post a reminder closer to the date with more details. Stay tuned!
Renaldo: The film is a beautifully shot and animated hybrid that conveys the authenticity of author James McCreath’s dramatic life, and his fictionalized telling of real-world historical events in Argentina from its first years of industrialization to the terrorism and politics underscoring the country’s host role in the 1970’s World Cup.

BookExpo Canada

Things are gearing up for BookExpo Canada, to be held this weekend at the Metro Toronto Convention Center.

I will be attending as an author/interviewer, working again with BookShorts Executive producer, Judith Keenan.

The trade show on Sunday and Monday is every bit as intense as its U.S. counterpart, only just not as large.

A special event for me personally is the premier showing of my film, “A Life’s Passion,” as part of the Moving Stories Film Festival on Sunday at 2:00pm.

“A Life’s Passion” was produced by BookShorts and by directed Crush’s Gary Thomas.

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has licensed “A Life’s Passion” for exclusive release this fall.

BookShorts will be shooting authors and other interesting personalities throughout the show in the “Bookshorts Lounge, while I will be doing additional filmed interviews and talking about Renaldo in my booth.

I am looking forward to an exciting couple of days…stay tuned.

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BookExpo America

After a hectic three days in Los Angeles at the BookExpo America, I am back in Toronto reflecting on the adventure.

The Expo was held at the L.A. Convention Center, in the heart of the downtown towers. The Staples Center, home of the hockey Kings and the basketball Lakers was right across the street.

Thousands of people from around the world attend this show. There are speakers’ events, educational seminars, a huge trade show featuring everything to do with books and publishing, and evening parties to mingle and network.

I spent the first two days with BookShorts executive producer, Judith Keenan, her Lyn Rosen, and a film crew, interviewing authors for Judith’s Moving Stories film company. Several minutes shooting prolific, best-selling author James Patterson was the highlight of our journalistic endevours.

I also had an opportunity to meet Hugh Hefner, founder of Playboy Magazine, and get an autographed copy of his forthcoming biography, “Mr. Playboy.”

William Shatner of Star Trek and Boston Legal fame was another star that I was able to meet and get a signed copy of his new book, “Until Now.”

Saturday night there was a great pool party at the super- funky Moroccan styled Hotel Figueroa. The outdoor pool, surrounded by a high wall and palm trees made the guests feel that they were really in another world. Waiters in fez hats, belly dancers, and Moroccan music all added to the incredible atmosphere.

Sunday morning was “autograph time” for author James to sign copies of Renaldo. My publisher, Booksurge Publications had everything all set up for me in the exclusive autograph area, and I had a great time meeting many new fans and giving away my book.

All in all it was a very rewarding, educational experience. I look forward to staying in touch with many of the contacts that I made at BookExpo America.

Now it is on to BookExpo Canada in Toronto on June 14-16.

Taking Off For BookExpo America!

I am getting set to fly to Los Angeles today for BookExpo America. It will certainly be exciting. I am taking my camera, so I should have so good shots next week.Please wish me and Renaldo good luck!

From Two-Finger Typing To A Published Book!

I sat down at my daughter’s school computer in July of 1990, and two-fingered the words that started to flow onto a bunch of floppy disks. Over the next month or so, I realized writing had become quite therapeutic, and that I wanted to keep going.The first thing I needed to do was to purchase a proper computer, but in those days, I was a totally lost and overwhelmed when I talked to any computer sales rep. They might as well have been speaking Chinese.

Fortunately, a lovely lady took pity on me, and not only did she help me with my hardware purchase, she set me up with Quark Express, a program specifically designed for writers.

To top things off, she told me that her husband was a high school English teacher, and that they would be more than happy help a novice author with both technical support and editorial comment.

With their help, I was able to charge full speed ahead to the next step in the process, completing my manuscript and then trying to find and agent and a publisher. To say that I was naïve about this process would be an understatement.

Welcome to my blog!

This is James McCreath writing, and I am the author of the novel RENALDO.

This book is my first attempt at writing serious fiction, although I have written reams of business documents in my other life, which involved commercial real estate.

I consider myself to be a self published author in the truest sense of the word. I started writing with no idea at all about how make the many pages of paper I had written into a real book.

The internet was in its infancy in those days and email seemed to be used primarily for business. I was fortunate that I just seemed to find the right people at the right time to move those pieces of paper to the next step. Nevertheless, each and every decision, as well the expenses, were mine, and mine alone to make.

If you fast forward to the present day, even though RENALDO has now been published by Amazon affiliate Booksurge Publications, the decision making process for production, sales and marketing, and distribution all still remain squarely on my shoulders.

It has been nearly eighteen years since I started to write RENALDO. Over that time I have acquired a great deal of insight into the strange and fascinating world of authors, agents and publishers.

Initially, my reason for writing fiction was to find an oasis, a place where my mind could free itself from the reality of my life.

I drew on my passion for sport, specifically soccer, my extensive interest in history, and the experiences I had garnered during my world travels to come up with the historical fiction tale I wanted to tell.

RENALDO is a novel of hope. The hopes and dreams of an entire nation, as wells as its individual characters. Politics, terrorism, romance and the greatest sporting event in the world, the World Cup of soccer, form the backdrop of my story.

As it turned out, my faith, hope, and passion for life inspired me to continue this exploration into the publishing industry through to fruition.

It is this story that I would like to reveal to you in future postings. I want to meet people who are passionate about books and writing, and share my knowledge and experiences in a reciprocal way. I hope to hear from you soon.

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