How to Gift an e-Book

If you find yourself gift shopping for an avid reader, consider gifting e-books. Both Kindle and Nook books feature a gifting option. As you will see from the directions below, the process proves rather simple.

Gifting a Kindle Book

1. Go to the sales page for the Kindle book you wish to gift.

2. Click the “Give as a Gift” button, located on the right-hand side beneath the “Buy now with 1-click” button.

3. A form will load asking for the recipient’s e-mail address and date you wish to have your gift delivered on. Personalize the gift by including a short message 300 characters or less. You can adjust your payment option on the screen’s right-hand side. After you finish click “Place your order” at the bottom of the page.

Gifting a Nook Book

1. Just like the Kindle instructions, go to the sales page for the book you wish to gift.

2. Click “Buy As Gift,” located next to the “Buy Now” button.

3. Fill out the form which includes the recipient’s e-mail address, re-typing the e-mail address for confirmation, your name, the recipient’s name, and a personalized message (maximum 250 characters). Click “Submit” once completed.

But… what if I don’t know the person’s e-mail address?

Go to the person’s Facebook page. Click “About,” located under the cover image. Scan his or her “About” page for an e-mail address. Or, create a rouse so you can ask the person for his or her e-mail without giving away the real reason behind the question. For example, say you want to forward the person an e-mail you think he or she will find interesting.

On a final note, maybe you will want to gift my memoir Off Balanced to someone.

Off Balanced explores how my mild cerebral palsy affected me socially through adolescence. Checkout the following excerpts to determine if Off Balanced may interest someone on your holiday shopping list.

Watch the Off Balanced cyber reading, highlighting a section from chapter four “My First Crush.”

Read a selection from chapter six “Not Enough” (courtesy Rebelle Society).

View a reenacted scene from chapter eight “Culmination.”

Father’s Day

Allow me to join the vast majority and say “Happy Father’s Day” to all the Dads out there. Earlier this week I received an email from Dick’s Sporting Goods’ PR department, suggesting since I’m such a big Cleveland Indians fan I checkout the following video.

Nick Swisher really knocked one out of the park there with his insights.

“The greatest gift I can give my Dad is just spend the time with him.” 

My brothers and I with our father. (circa 2010)

When both child and father enjoy athletic abilities spending time together seems easy. Swisher played PIG with his pops. My two brothers playing little league each experienced the chance to be coached and managed by our father. Seeing how I grew up in America loving the Cleveland Indians and baseball in general I saw little league as ultimately the traditional father-son bonding opportunity. Considering my cerebral palsy though, my parents prohibited me from playing.

In situations like mine seeking other ways to spend time together becomes important. During my preteen/early teenage years my father took my brothers and I fishing on weekends somewhat regularly. I like to think I thrived the most. My older brother Bill didn’t appear super into the activity, perhaps due to his “I’m a teenager and spending time with family isn’t necessarily cool” mentality. This mentality I mention in Off Balanced we both eventually adopted. Nick, my younger brother, preferred using his fishing rod to “dip” for the small fish swimming around the pier over actually casting out.

Anyways, let me get back to my point. So I viewed little league as the traditional father-son bonding opportunity. Traditional however does not mean exclusive. Discover an activity which will grow the father-child relationship and pursue!

Sales Pitch Time:
Why should fathers, sons, and daughters read Off Balanced?

Fathers, one theme present throughout Off Balanced revolves around parenting decisions to protect your child. Whether your son or daughter has a disability or not the urge to protect your offspring remains universal. Reading Off Balanced will hopefully motivate you to reflect on your own parenting decisions, enabling you to become an even better father.

Sons and daughters specifically current teenagers, another universal theme to the parent-child relationship involves frustration. I felt frustrated amongst other emotions because my parents never signed me up to play little league. Yet in writing Off Balanced I did my best to fairly portray the reasons behind my parents’ decisions. Such an approach could help you learn to respect your own parents’ decisions more.

*Purchase Off Balanced for your Kindle or Nook.

New Year Resolutions

January 30th may seem like an odd day to post about New Year resolutions, but why? Personally I find such a notion problematic. New Year resolutions fail because people fail to maintain the energy and ambition initially kindled by the year’s start. Let’s break this trend! Today I will share three New Year resolutions I made. Hopefully the read gets you once again thinking about your own 2013 goals.

Resolution #1- Utilize My Youtube Channel via Vlogging
Last year during the book marketing process I ended up creating a Youtube channel, Zachary Fenell. In 2012 I uploaded two videos, one answering questions for Dee Owens’ Book Readers website and the other my Off Balanced Cyber Reading. Throughout 2013 I plan to grow my relationship with Youtube viewers by sharing vlogs (video blogs) twice a month. You can find my first vlog below. Feel free to give your feedback. 🙂

Resolution #2- Post Here on a Weekly Basis
On a typical day my Twitter feed fills up with tweets linking to social media tips. Heck, I spent four months in 2011 ghostwriting social media advice articles for Hudson Business Solutions. One rule I come across again and again, blog at least once a week. I always intend on posting here at least once a week but that obviously doesn’t always happen. Ideally I’m aiming to generate a fixed blogging schedule where a new post appears every Friday, starting this Friday (February 1st)!

Resolution #3- Keep to Due Dates
Yes, I know. Resolution three seems pretty basic. However, other freelancers out there will almost certainly back me up on this task’s toughness. Without a traditionally structured work environment meeting due dates can become difficult. Plus, time can drag. When I started freelancing in 2009 I aggressively knocked off deadlines. As years passed I became more relaxed and by last summer I found my slacking off at an all-time high. I thought “This is not who I am and this is not professional behavior.” Ultimately, clients shouldn’t need to contact me and request ETAs on assignments. That’s how I’m going to measure the success rate to my third and final New Year resolution.

What New Year resolutions did you make? How do you plan on measuring your success rate? Share with a comment. 

What Does Labor Day Mean to You?

Today we Americans celebrate Labor Day. To recognize the holiday I want to ask, what does Labor Day mean to you? Do you value the day’s significance or just relish the day off from work and/or school?  For anyone unfamiliar with the idea behind Labor Day, here you go (courtesy of the Department of Labor website).

“Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.”

Honestly, I didn’t know the meaning behind Labor Day until I started researching for this blog post. As a kid I saw Labor Day as a chance to share this brilliantly lame joke, “What’s Labor Day? The day pregnant women are suppose to go into labor?” Har, har. 😉

Nowadays, through word association I correlate Labor Day with cerebral palsy. You see, the word “labor” makes me think “cerebral palsy” because CP creates a need to work harder than the average person. If you read my book Off Balanced (available on the Kindle and Nook), you know as an adolescent I tried to hide my disability and blend in with my peers. I needed weekly physical therapy to stay at my physical best and attempt this. However, even then I remained no match for my peers.

A decade later I’m no longer trying to compete with those around me but I still must exercise regularly so I can remain my best and make the most from every day. The exercising doesn’t feel like extra labor because I’m use to that being my life. Yet Labor Day reminds me I do need to do a little extra to reach my potential. By appreciating what I usually take for granted as ordinary life I remember to not always burden myself with worries, like I tend to do at times.

Does Labor Day hold a unique significance to you? Share by commenting below.