Category: Blog Post

Business Books to help you Achieve Success and Reach your Goals!

Business Books

A business might look simple enough as buying something and selling it at profit, or providing a product and selling it to the masses, except it isn’t that simple. A business, be it of any kind, is filled with intricacies most of us have no idea about. There are secrets to success that are only divulged to those who have been working relentlessly for years, learning through trial and error, never giving up and learning from their mistakes.

They say there’s nothing better than to learn from your experience… or is there? What if you could jump ahead, skip all the years of hard work and find perhaps… a cheat code to getting your business on the right track? Well, we have the answer for you! Books. In particular, business books, written by experienced professionals who revealed their business tricks and strategies that led them to the apex of success in their books.

In reading and analysing these books, you will learn before you make any mistakes. You can fix your business model, make your user interface more friendly, explore new avenues of marketing that you previously hadn’t thought of and much more! There are many different ways to use business books; just start by asking yourself what you want to learn and what your weaknesses are. Then, find the solutions to those and learn from them!

Here are some recommended business books that will save you from the trouble of making mistakes by helping you learn from the experiences of business tycoons.

 

The Octopus Director

The Octopus Director
Eng. Aisha Al-Ali

In any business,  administration is key. Without the logistical and technical support of administration, no business can take off. In this book, the author aims to elevate the readers’ ability to engage in, oversee and manage workplace resources. The book provides an excellent opportunity to help readers manage technologies in a non-technical way. This book is for those wishing to achieve high administrative positions and develop their careers further!

The author, Aisha Al-Ali, has a bachelor’s in engineering, majoring in IT from Sharjah University in 1997 on a scholarship given only to high achievers. The author earned the Distinguished Employee award from Sharjah Government in 2009.

 

Symbiosis in Hospitality Management

Symbiosis in Hospitality Management
Peter Alatsas

This book is based on the concept of mutualism, within the broader concept of Symbiosis in a business context. Mutualism in Symbiosis is when two organisms share resources and benefit from the outcome mutually. In a business setting, this is when stakeholders treat one another as partners for mutual benefit.
This book, in particular, focuses on hospitality management and the relationship between key stakeholders. The book is written for hotel operators, owners and their representatives as a guide to help manage and oversee the business operations and also guides how to further consolidate partnerships that benefit the parties involved mutually.

The author is an expert in hotel management, having done his bachelors in Tourism and Hospitality Management from Ryerson University, and anMBA in Management Consultancy from Sheffield Hallam University. He has travelled the world and has a quarter century of experience in hospitality tourism and education. Currently, he is the COO of Frontel Group and General Manager of The Venue Hotels in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

 

Engineering Project Management Highlighted from Design to Execution

Engineering Project Management Highlighted from Design to Execution
Eng. Abdullah Theeb Qandil

A book perfect for engineering and construction enthusiasts looking to streamline their businesses. This book talks about the entire construction process from start to finish; including the designing, project submission, major and minor mistakes that are usually made by the owner, contractor and project consultancies. It also explains the dangers and obstacles observed in each step of the construction process and gives solutions to such problems. An all-in-one guide for business owners and enthusiasts alike!

Born in Jordan in 1978, the author has a major in Architectural Engineering and a Masters in Construction Management. Having years of experience working as an Architect in the Contracting and Engineering Consultancy field.

 

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

2021’s Good Books to Read for Everyone

2021's Good Books to Read

“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” – Marcus Tullius Cicero

The human mind works in extraordinary ways. Just by looking at a few jottings on paper, our mind turns them into images that help them perceive better. Every day is a new opportunity to learn something new, something astonishing about yourself. Well, knowledge is the power that can be used to change your state of mind and enhance wellness. Find some good books to read for the weightlifting of your brain. The beauty of reading is that each one of us experiences books in our own ways, through our lenses.

Here we mentioned some of the great benefits of reading for you!

  • Reading Reduces Stress

Take out time for yourself when daily stress is taking its toll. A 2009 study at the University of Sussex found that reading can reduce stress by up to 68%. Reading helps faster in reducing stress than sipping a coffee or listening to music. You can read whatever book you want, whether it be fiction, non-fiction, or motivational books to stimulate your mind.

  • Increases Imagination and Creativity

According to the researcher, Dr Lynell Burmark, the visual imagery is programmed in the human brain. We build images in our minds when we read, which helps us in remembering things a lot faster.

  • Helps in Writing

Expand your vocabulary and write in a perfect formal way by experiencing a good study. You can find some good books with different perspectives to read, or you can come up with your idea for writing.

  • Enhances Quality Time With Your Family

Reading improves quality time with your children. Research confirms that reading books to children promotes cognitive skills in children. They absorb things faster and develop the ability to communicate adequately. In today’s digital environment, it is encouraged that children may catch out some time to read with their parents. It will lift the confidence of the child and will provide the capacity to focus.

  • It Is Fun

Why get bored when you can read a good book? Read books about nature, inventions, space or general knowledge. Find some good novels to read to kill time. Stick yourself to a good book and it will take you on a magical ride with your favorite characters.

Here are some of our best up-coming books by our top-notch writers to get you started:
 

 

Narrative Techniques in The Thousand and One Nights and Its Impact on World Fiction

Book: Narrative Techniques in The Thousand and One Nights and Its Impact on World Fiction

Author: Dr. Sharifah bint Mohammad bin Naser Al-Oboudi

Enjoy reading the history of The Thousand and One Nights and its impact on world literature and literary figures. Figure the uniformity of the techniques with the later fabricated literary approaches of metafiction. The book mentions the extended legacy of Egyptian fiction writer and Noble Prize winner Naguib Mahfouz’s short but abridged novel, Layali Alf Laylah (interpreted into English as Arabian days and nights). This book also highlights the legacy of the American fictionist and critic, John Barth, it concentrates on his short story collection, Ten Nights and a Night: Eleven Stories.
 

 

The Flute Boy

Book: The Flute Boy

Author: Fanny FM

Experience a melodic curve in the story of a poor orphan boy who delights a beautiful princess by the tune of his flute.
 

 

 

 

The Mysterious Shadow

Book: The Mysterious Shadow

Author: Amna Salem bin Hashel

Sophie Bethalion, a school going girl, sees a mysterious shadow on her way to school. She starts observing the same shadow quite often. One day, she takes a day off from school due to heavy snowfall. However, she doesn’t stop investigating about the shadow. Read this new fiction release and solve the puzzle of the mysterious shadow. From where did this shadow come? Make head or tail of this interesting shadow with Sophie.
 

 

 

 

Travelers’ Tales

Book: Traveler’s Tales

Author: Ruhie Jamshed

Enjoy the 15 travel stories by Dubai residents from all over the world, who love to imprison their thoughts on paper. From mysteries to love stories to the ones that inspire, this book will take you on a roller coaster ride where you’ll feel all kinds of emotions.

 

 

 

 
Catch our newly released books on our website and keep yourself updated about our books and authors by following us on Facebook,  Instagram, and Twitter. Discover how you can make your dream true to become a published author by clicking here.

Set New Year Goals for Your Writing

Writing Goals for 2021

New year resolutions are often inspired by our bigger ambitions. Just as we divide a day into smaller tasks, we count on yearly progress when it comes to our bigger aims in life. If someone wants to become a neurosurgeon, he/she will move through years of medical studies and specialized surgery training to reach that goal. If you aspire to be a famous, recognized writer whose reputation reaches millions across the globe, you will have to dedicate years altogether. What time is better than the start of the year to remind yourself of your passion!

Setting new year goals is the best way to start a year. It sets the tone of the coming year with optimism and hope. If you are a writer or you want to be one, use the dawn of 2021 to set goals in writing. Writing is a time-consuming task, and there many are stages of refinement. Nevertheless, the reward is too big to miss out on. Even if you are feeling stuck, start afresh. At a later time during the year, you will be able to combine the new and old manuscripts and bring the best out of them.

Working with a team of reputed editors and authors, we list down here some suggestions on new year’s resolutions for writers. Utilize them and incorporate them into your own style and we hope this year will turn out to be very productive in your writing voyage.

Read, Read!

All writers are keen readers as well. The writing journey for  most writers begins with inspiring reads; that push them to create equally worth reading content. While working on your own book, make sure to take time out for reading as well. At the start of the year 2021, you can set yourself a goal for the number of books you will read each month. Reading will give you new ideas and inspirations on form, structure and plot. With regular reading, you will learn how to write your book. You can always make comparisons between what you are reading and what you are writing.

Join Other Authors!

Being connected to other writers comes with its own perks. You get a space where you can discuss your ideas. Having like-minded people around will boost your tendencies, and you will feel more welcomed and accepted. If you already have writer friends, discuss your goals with them and help each other to achieve them. In this way, you can keep a check on them, and they can do the same for you. If not, make a resolve to build a strong network this year. You can do that online as well; by utilizing social media platforms.

Associate Yourself with Your Story!

You must keep yourself engaged with your target audience of your book. If you are putting together a children’s book, interacting with children will help you get a good understanding of their minds, what they like and engage well with. This will allow you to write a story which will be tailored towards your target audience and create a book they will truly enjoy.

Connect with Editors and Publishers!

Introducing your manuscript into editing stages is very important. You will never be fully ready for this phase. Anticipations of rejection will haunt you all the time. But we will advise you to do this as early as possible. We, at Austin Macauley, are also offering editing and publishing services and we are open to submissions. You can read more about us here. We edit your manuscripts with care and keep you involved at all stages.

With these ideas surrounding new year goals for the writing community, we wish you a very happy and productive year!

Happy Writing!

Stay connected with Austin Macauley and be the first one to hear about our new releases by following us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Are Audiobooks as Good as ‘Reading Books’?

Audiobooks or Reading

Audiobooks are versions of books, that are meant for the ears instead of the eyes. Wait, what? Well, the idea of not reading a book might sound a little less familiar, but familiarity is growing with time. More and more audio versions are being made available. Comparing audiobooks and paperbacks can make us look into the bright and dark sides of both. One is about listening and the other about reading.

Books have traditionally been associated with sitting down in some leisure time and reading your favourite kind of book. Audiobooks appear to be more convenient; since many of us struggle to have the time to develop a consistent reading habit. . Audiobooks, definitely are an innovation, designed to cater for our fast-running routines where we prefer digital media and movies over reading in our free time. This innovation, however, genuinely provokes the question of what is superior and more valued; audiobooks or reading?

Audiobooks for Adults; Accessibility

They are perfectly designed to provide an experience to blind or visually impaired people, ensuring that everyone has access to books.

Audiobooks: Learning Languages

Audiobooks are helpful for those who understand a language but cannot read written text. This utility comes in two ways; they can listen to a book and secondly, they can also learn to read gradually by holding the book in front of them whilst the narrator reads the book aloud.

Audiobooks are also a good tool to help introduce children to different languages. Since children learn to speak from scratch, their learning can be enhanced by listening to audiobooks. While there are numerous ways to teach/learn a language, audiobooks have an edge for communicating the accent and pronunciation very delicately. This also applies to the learning of all languages and accents.

Audiobooks for Children

Audiobooks are a great way of getting children to learn new stories and new skills. Some children do not want to sit down with a book sometimes, audiobooks are a great way introduce new books to them in a different and engaging way.

Audiobooks Vs Reading

It will not be a very good idea to weigh audiobooks and reading against each other. We cannot cancel reading for listening; since both are essential skills. We should take advantage of all technologies. Likewise, we can welcome audiobooks and can take benefit from them. Reading is one remarkable brain exercise, which aligns and sharpens our focus and allows us to look for details. It strengthens insightfulness.

Audiobooks are more fun when it comes to fiction. Since they strengthen the traditional practice of storytelling, audiobooks are a tech-inspired solution for our nostalgia of olden golden times. However, for non-fiction, reading is always a better idea because non-fiction, academic books require more attentive energy. When we read, we can understand more clearly and are more receptive to ideas. We can also use both reading and audiobooks in combination. First, we can read difficult texts and then listen to the same, just to affirm and reinforce our prior knowledge.

Audiobooks are just a more refined, tech-driven version of the old school  stories or the bed-time stories used to amuse children. Now, the difference is that we have audios of a range of books, and not just children’s books. Audiobooks are not a replacement for reading. They are a luxury; something you can have as an addition to your basic survival kit. To say that listening is the new reading, will sound more like a flawed assertion. We should not seek to replace one with another, rather a better idea would be to let audiobooks and reading co-exist.

Stay connected with Austin Macauley and be the first one to hear about our new releases by following us on facebook, twitter and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Romance Books to Get You into the Mood for Love!

Romance Books to Get You into the Mood for Love

It takes great emotional strength to read romantic books. The best romance books are ones where you just can’t put the book down. The characters pull you into their world, and you feel as they feel, becoming a part of their world as they become a part of yours. Love stories are the best way to spend your time, especially with there still being restrictions on going out at the moment. Good books are hard to come by, but when they do, you can bet they’ll become a permanent part of your collection. So, read ahead and find a new book, a new experience to lose yourself into!

Whether you’re an avid or a new reader who has fallen in love with romance books, we have something for everyone in our collection of love stories. Below are some of our recommended books for you to get going.

 

 

From The Heights Of Heaven To The Depths Of Despair

From The Heights Of Heaven To The Depths Of Despair
Grace Lagos

Kacey, a Greek girl with a free spirit, falls in love with an Irish boy. Her controlling and disapproving parents want her to marry a Greek boy as soon as possible. This becomes a problem for Kacey. Will love be enough to transcend the cultural boundaries and the pressure on Kacey by her parents? To find out, grab your copy of the book here.
The author, born in a town outside Brisbane, Australia, was three when her parents bought a farm where she grew up. On the vast and empty farm, she had her books to keep her company, providing an escape into another world. She works now in the public service and lives in Brisbane with her husband, two children, and grandchildren.

 

 

Single Mother

Single Mother
Mohanachandran T

A love story about two people who could not get married despite being in love with each other due to social differences. They surrendered to the fact that they’ll enjoy what little time they have together and move on with their individual lives. Only years later, their past reunited them, albeit in a very different and unexpected way. Check out this interesting romantic book here.

The author is a civil engineer by profession with an interest in writing. His first book was published in 2016 and his second published in 2017, both being self-help books. The author has also established an Indian school in the UAE, which is now one of the best in the country.

 

 

Robbery of Another Kind

Robbery of Another Kind
Dr Najat Sultan

This story is about a young girl called Rovan living at a time when development in technology allowed After receiving a message, Rovan was taken back into the past, where she fell in love and devoted herself to the one she loved. Suddenly, however, things changed, and she found herself alone. This is a story about love and the meaning this word carries. Order your copy of this romantic novel now.

The author holds a PhD in Public Administration. She is a lecturer at the Institute of Administrative Development, UAE, the Acting Director of Research and Consulting as well as the Head of Admission and Registration Department at the Institute of Administrative Development, UAE. Her passions include reading, drawing and writing.

 

 

The Battle of Love

The Battle of Love
Nagham Mohammed Alsamarqandi

A romantic novel revolving around the lives of different girls as they face the struggles of life. Their ambitions and dreams stopped in their tracks as each girl experienced injustice from loved ones. How they cope with these situations and the events that unravel will culminate in the practice of black magic and the loss of innocent lives. Learn more about the story here.

The author is a Saudi poet and writer with a bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literature.

 

 

She Was

She Was
Nura Alhamadi

She Was is a novel about love and loss. She gave him a home when he had nothing.  But fate has its way. She was snatched away from him and taken to a place from where there is no return!

 

 

 

 

Rose Marie

Rose Marie
Badriah Al-Ahmad

Arthur’s pain is unbearable. He cries for the woman he loves, the distance between them and his inability to see her has turned him into an insomniac. What has Arthur done for her to behave this way towards him? Has he wronged her? Will his pain ever end? Find out in this romantic story, Rose Marie.

She has an interest in short stories and prose.

 

 

 

Me and His Wife

Me and His Wife
Maryam bin Sultan

The past has a funny habit of coming back to haunt you when things are going well. After almost three beautiful years of marriage, there is now a storm coming, filled with hatred and contempt. Will our characters and their lovers escape this storm unscathed?

She started participating in writing competitions at a young age. She also got the first position for her short story at Ras Al Khaimah.

 

 

 

 

Follow this link to find more romantic books that you might like.

To stay connected with Austin Macauley and be the first one to hear about our new releases, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Reading Tips for Families & Children

Reading Tips For Families & Children

Families reading is fun, entertaining and extremely useful as it helps develop the habit of reading books, especially in children. Struggling readers can largely benefit from family reading sessions because it helps them gain confidence and motivation to read. Sharing a book with children and other family members helps build the family bond while keeping all entertained and engaged.

It’s usually difficult to keep children hooked onto a book, but family reading is a great way to keep young readers engaged and involved in reading. It’s the best technique to make young ones lifelong readers. Enjoying a story together is a reason for laughter, family discussions and lively bonding. If you’re not confident about reading together or your child is struggling with a book, here are a few tips to help you out.

Children Reading Tips

Looking for some interesting reading ideas for parents? Is your child weary of reading? It can be frustrating at times to get your child to read with you but do not fret as we got you covered with our handy pointers below. Take a look.

  • Ensure the book is interesting for all parties. It’s not worth sharing a book that your child is not interested in. If you’re thinking of reading together as a family, then it’s best to first ask your child to pick a title. A nice picture book, an engaging children’s book or an addictive piece of fiction, whatever your child chooses, make sure your kid is interested in the title. That way, they will stay engaged during the reading session and will be more inclined to develop a good reading habit as well.
  • There must be no distractions during family reading. If there is any TV, computer or another activity going on in the reading space, then make sure it’s finished before you start with the reading to ensure you get everyone’s full attention
  • While reading aloud, stop to ask questions about the book and discuss the different pointers in the book. If your child has difficulty in reading, talking about a picture book or a story can help remove any fears or issues. Motivate them to answer different questions about the book, brainstorm ideas and ask them if the book is making them feel any emotions and feelings and discuss these with them.
  • Sit closer together during the reading session and encourage the children to hold the book, turn pages and read aloud with you. If possible, try to act out different situations in the storybook and take turns to play out various characters in the book.
  • A picture book is a fun tool that can inspire your child to develop the habit of reading books. Look at the pictures together and ask your child to guess different situations in the story. You don’t necessarily have to read out the words in the text. Use pictures to encourage the young ones to discuss the literature and perhaps, laugh together at a funny moment or image.

Family Reading Tips

Families reading together is a great way to have fun and connect. Here are some handy family reading ideas that are sure to make every reading moment memorable and enjoyable.

  • Look for anything interesting to read like a newspaper, a detective novel or a romantic title. It could be a computing tutorial, a children’s picture book or historical fiction, anything that perks up your fascination. Have the children join in the fun. Readout loud with them by taking turns and pause for moments where you can discuss characters, the plot or anything associated with the literature.
  • Make it a habit to give books as gifts or presents and motivate your children to swap books with you and with the other family members. Then enjoy reading these books together and discussing the text over a nice dinner meal or an evening tea. This way, the kids will have new stories to read and talk about that will add to their literary prowess.
  • Visit your nearest library with the kids and look for some exciting books to read as a family. The library is stocked with interesting books that can be enjoyed with the family members and young ones. Also, check for important events like author meet-ups and author reading sessions at the library. It’s a great way to let your children meet their favourite authors and develop the habit of reading books.
  • While cooking or deciding the menu for a meal, have kids read out recipes to you and discuss cooking methods. If watching the TV, have them read out listings and program schedules. It will help build their language, vocabulary and grammar skills as well. Always have a family bookshelf in your home that is stocked with good books to read as a family, perhaps a Harry Potter or a Stephen King read that you can all enjoy at a cosy family gathering.

We have selected some cool books that you can enjoy reading as a family. These books are sure to make your reading activity indelible and worth every minute.

Austin-Macauley-Homes

 

Austin-Macauley-Nahola-and-the-Insect-Hunter

 

 

Austin-Macauley-After-a-While

 

AMP_Seeking_Hope

 

Austin-Macauley-At-Grandmother-Hissa’s-House

 

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

5 Ways to Inspire Your Children to Read

Top Tips to Encourage Children to Read

As parents we envision our children to be well-mannered and want them to engage in activities that push them to have a fresh and unique perspective on life; what better is there than reading? Reading is not only necessary for academic purposes, it is a fundamental need for them, providing them with a gateway of various opportunities. Reading is essential to teach thoughtfulness and imagination in children and helps build their critical thinking, analytical, socialisation and communication skills.

Sometimes it can be difficult to get children to read, especially if they do not enjoy it which can feel like a losing battle, however, reading can be fun and exciting and it is our roles as parents to show them how.

Below we have outlined 5 ways in which you can encourage your children to read regularly.

  • Be Your Child’s Reading Buddy

Children are the mini version of us, they like to copy us in every way. We know they want to do whatever we are doing, they won’t even let us use the bathroom in peace! Reading with them is a great way to encourage children to read. Reading regularly can inspire them to also read on their own. Taking turns to read sentences, paragraphs, or even short stories is a great way to spend time together and get your children comfortable with reading.

  • Encourage Them to Read on Their Own

Have a lot of reading material available at home that will encourage your children to read on their own. Purchase books with intriguing front covers which will grab their attention and draw them in.

  • Recognise Their Achievements

Recognising and celebrating their achievements can help with reading too. Praise them when they have finished reading a book or a school project. This positive reinforcement will work a long way and will motivate and push them further to accept new reading challenges.

  • Expose Your Child to Different Genres

Every child is different, and that being said, they all have different tastes and preferences. Learning a skill becomes easy when you enjoy what you are doing. You can help your children to become good readers by exploring various genres with them. Because the more they like it, the more eager they would be to read it.

  • Buy Books That Interest Their Taste

After exploring these genres with your children and figuring out what they enjoy the most, you can ensure you are purchasing books they like. There are only so many times you would read the same book and this is same with for children. Giving them access to different stories will keep their excitement levels up. After all, who doesn’t enjoy a new book?

Here is a list of our top children’s books to we think will encourage your children to read at home more often:
 

The Little Nurse

Book: The Little Nurse
Author: Dr. Reem Bent Nasir Aldosari

A delightful and endearing story of a young girl as she finds herself interested in becoming a nurse after she injures her knees while playing. Embark with Hima’s journey as she discovers her interest in nursing after her encounter with Nurse Reem, who later explained the nursing profession to her. Moreover, a great read for instilling your children with nursing knowledge as it makes an introductory exhibit of career they can opt for in the future.

 

Munir the Millionaire

Book: Munir the Millionaire
Author: Zainab Ali Albahrani

It is a book of adventure, exploration and intrigue; it takes you on Munir’s journey, who is an intelligent kid and a keen observer. His curiosity lands him to realize the significance of money for a prosperous life. So, he starts to manifest unique ideas that will make him a lot of money.

 

 

 

 

 

The Strange Ring

Book: The Strange Ring
Author: Ahlam Yahya Jhaaf

It is a fascinating yet enticing adventurous story of a strange magical ring called The Great Name’s Ring, which leads our three heroes on a journey across the Arab countries after finding this ring in an old box. This book is excellent for introducing the spirit of adventure in your children and to ignite the theme of exploration in them.

 

 

Diversity

Book: Diversity
Author: Maryam Saqer Al Qassimi

It can be one of those perfect bedtime stories to read to your children as it aspires to raise awareness regarding appreciating differences and integrating a sense of equality in them. This book is a thought-provoking and classic example of mindful reading.

 

 

 

 

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

5 Hacks for Designing an Eye-Catching Book Cover

How to design an eye-catching book cover?

Stuck with no ideas on how to begin on creating a brilliant design for your book cover?  Let’s face it. Designing a catchy book cover can be a challenging task. Book cover designs require diligence and creative flair! It’s not just the plot, characters or writing quality that makes a book a success. Remember, books are often judged by the cover! A snazzy book cover will attract more readers, convey the theme of the book and seal the sales deal.

Essential Elements of a Book Cover

With book cover designs, various elementsplay a pivotal role in defining the aesthetics. Key elements of any book cover include imagery, colors, format, typography layout and fonts. The key is to put these together in a successful blend to design an eye-catching cover. When designing a book cover, you need to keep in mind dynamics like the title, subtitle, portraits, background images, graphics, summary, synopsis, author’s trivia, recommendations and many other relevant components depending upon the genre of the book. These will essentially work together in harmony for a brilliant graphical impact.

 

Visual elements for any book cover fall into three broad categories:

  • Typography

This includes the background colour and the contrasting hues for all artwork included in the cover design.

  • Graphics/Imagery

This is the collection of artwork that goes in your cover design, synching with the genre and overall layout.

  • Colour

This includes the background colour and the contrasting hues for all artwork included in the cover design.

These three elements are organised in a ‘layout’ that defines the arrangement and scope of the elements. The layout works together with the ‘size’ and ‘format’ to display all elements in an aesthetically pleasing manner. The format determines whether a book is a ‘paperback’ or ‘hardback’. This plays a significant role in cover design as designers often create covers keeping the format in mind.

Two key pieces of information all covers need to convey is the ‘book title’ and the ‘author’s name’. The layout will define how these two informative pieces are scaled, positioned and combined on the cover..

Hacks to Use for a Striking Cover

A picture can say 1000 words. Every aspect of this famous saying is true when designing a book cover. You need to demonstrate to the reader what secrets the book holds inside.

A book cover is essentially the face of the book. Creating an eye-catching cover is certainly a daunting task. But, don’t fret as these handy tips below will help you design a fantastic piece meant for a poignant impact.

 

Know That a Book Cover Is Linked to the Genre         

An appropriate book cover will sync well with the genre of the story. For example, if your book is a gripping thriller that will leave your readers shaking in their boots then ensure that your book cover represents the horror which will be revealed inside. Readers often have specific genre preferences and therefore use the cover to identify which genre the book is, highlighting the importance of this.

Have a look at some of the examples below.

– Horror

Heptagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

– Children’s

Diversity

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blossoming Kindness

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

– Romance

For the Bound Hearts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a While

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Choose Appropriate Font & Colours

The book title and author name are one of the most important elements of the front cover, as this is what they will remember when recommending your book to their friends/family. Therefore ensuring you pick the correct font and colouring for these key elements is imperative to the success of your book.

The colours should complement the genre and the graphic/images you have selected on your cover. You want them to stand out but not stick out.

Ensuring the font is easy for your readers to read is as important as picking the graphics, after all you did not spend hours, weeks, month, or years writing a book for your readers to get your name wrong,

Think outside the box

Remember, you will be on a bookshelf with thousands of other books…you want your book to jump out at shoppers. Thinking outside the box is a great way to grab readers attention.

Conducting research is a great way to see what else is out there. Look other book genres in your genres, write a list of things you like and things you don’t. Can you think of something that hasn’t been done before?

Pay for Catchy Artwork

Avoid using the free graphics available from various sites online. It’s a good strategy to buy stock images and photography licenses that will add value to your book cover. Investing in the art will ensure you’re designing a fabulous cover that has the potential to turn heads and step up your book sales. Look for photos and artwork that will make your cover look more refined and professional. If you need to hire a professional designer or photographer and have your custom illustrations commissioned, then do so as it will enhance the aesthetics of the cover and this may be the difference of whether the reader picks up your book or the neighbouring one.

Make the Book Cover Elements Work Together

The three most important elements of a book cover are the background, image and type or texture. A cover’s background should blend in well with the artwork on it. However, it should have a striking contrast with the type or texture to accentuate the title. The image or artwork should be imagery that evokes the right kind of feelings and emotions. Usually, imagery is not required if the background and type blend well. For some genres, however, vivid images are essential for the right impact.

A title is the most significant element in the type or typography that should stand out and be readable and apt for the specific genre. In general, the three elements should work together to create the correct effect that clearly defines the essence of the book.

So, next time you’re designing a book cover, use these hacks above and design a winning cover that will inspire readers, entice them and boost your book sales too!

Submit us your manuscript today to fulfil your dream of becoming a published author.

Conquer Your TBR Pile with Austin Macauley Publishers

Austin-Macauley-Conquer-the-TBR-List

This book seems interesting!

Man! I wanted to try this genre.

Maybe I should buy this book; the visuals seem stunning.

Now you probably are thinking to yourself these thoughts seem familiar. Well, that means you are one of the very large group of people who cannot seem to take their hands and money off that one corner of a stationery shop. There is something so captivating about that corner that lures a bookaholic into the designated buying trap. Once you find yourself there, the urge of buying everything will not wear off until you get your hands on them. As a person who loves books, the temptation of buying and adding a new book in that TBR pile is a temptation we cannot resist, do not worry we understand, there is just nothing better than diving into the pages of a great book. We all have been in that very similar situation time and time again. Passing by that book store or that magical book-corner without giving it a visit seems impossible..

Read onto the blog to find out ways of conquering your TBR Pile. Let’s go together!

 

  • Make it necessary to read

“Life is short and TBR lists are long.”

― Katja Millay

Chances are that you were all riffled up to start reading that book, but to be honest, you just could not find the time. You’ve scheduled a relaxing day reading the book top of your TBR pile but, ding dong, the doorbell goes, you see a pile of clothes just as big as your TBR pile that needs washing, suddenly it’s the end of the day and you have not been able to sit down with your book. Luckily, it’s not that big of a deal and you can still finish the quest of tackling that stake of books, reading should be enjoyable and not a chore so do not force yourself to.

 

  • Prioritize and set the daily/weekly/monthly goal challenges

Whenever we start to embark on a journey, what is the first thing we do? Yes, you probably thought of planning it out. Plan your journey of tackling off the respective pile of yours by initiating mini-goal challenges for daily/weekly/monthly TBR book reading. Select the books you want to finish off in that specific period and decide on which among the selected ones you would like to read first. Considering the books you select, you can set goals on how you are going to do it. Set challenges for completion of goals and don’t feel defeated up if you could not complete them every time…Success is usually built on many small victories.

 

  • Associate a positive reinforcement with reading

What is reinforcement? It is something that mitigates encouragement in you and pushes you onward with motivational cues to keep on repeating the same behaviour that resulted in that specific outcome. So? How to read faster? Try aligning positive reinforcement with reading. How can one do that? You can reward yourself with something that will ensure the possibility of a similar pattern of behaviour in future. Pat yourself on the back every time you receive that positive outcome after reading a little bit more of that book.

 

  • Stop stacking up the shelf

Though there may seem a lot of interesting books to read and buying it will satisfy your thirst but, sometimes the problem lies in ‘our buying behaviour’ pattern. Sometimes it’s not the interest for book reading that makes us make that buying decision but rather it’s our underlying impulsive reaction. Take it as a stimulus for initiating action, good or bad. If that is the case, then it’s time to make it stop. Time to find the reason for this obstructive buying pattern. Try examining your environment for any underlying red flags that bring about that reaction from you. Set yourself boundaries to curb that thirst, for example only purchase a book when you have finished two existing books.

 

  • Don’t buy the book because it’s visually appealing

A good book is the one that captivates the reader through the essence of the story. However, chances are that the readers or non-readers might fall for appealing cover and not for the actual book. We’d suggest all the booklovers or non-readers out there to go for the comprehensive note at the end of the book or skim through the contents before making the buying decision.

 

  • Keep track

How about tracking the books you buy, read and even those which you have not touched in a while? How about tracking them in excel log or online tracking software or even a list in a notepad? You can keep a record of every book purchase and mark the ones you have finished and the ones that are still sitting in a dust-coated old shelf. This will surely keep you in check and even result in reducing unnecessary book purchases.

 

  • Buy books that interest your taste

“I am addicted to reading, I will never reach the end of my TBR list because it multiplies all by itself. It is not my fault; I was born this way.”

― Lani

There are chances of you buying a book just because someone recommended or gifted it to you. But it may not necessarily be of your interest. What are you supposed to do now? Firstly, give away that book because you are never going to read it. Gift or donate it. This way, the shame of stocking up the bookshelves will trim down a little. The second thing is to buy books that are of your taste. We got you covered on the latter. Check out our recommended books to read that might be useful to be added up to your “Active Read Shelf”.

 

 

100 X 100

Book: 100 X 100
Author: Seena Zarie

Happiness can be found within each of us. Get to know about the tools to unlock happiness in the workplace. Read through this book to manifest what real happiness is about. Who knows, maybe adding it in your active read might do some wonders for that pile.

 

 

 

 

A Mysterious Marking

Book: A Mysterious Marking
Author: Taiba Albahrani

A gripping and tantalizing tale of Amara’s journey full of mysteries, powers and discoveries. Readers will surely enjoy the story and would be able to finish off without adding further to their enormous to be read piles; because it is just that type of mesmerizingly thrilling story. You will have to read it to find out the greatest storylines to have existed.

 

 

 

 

Divine Decree

Book: Divine Decree
Author: Z.A Soliman

In her book, the author explains that each and everything is meant to happen. There is a high decree to everything that happens in our lives. Take this that you are reading this blog because it was bound to happen. It was through the law of nature to get you some help with your reading habits.

 

 

 

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Top Social Media Marketing Trends for Authors

Austin-Macauley-Social-Media-Marketing-for-Authors

“I don’t think social media is evil. I think it is a tool just like everything else.”

– John Meese

 

Today, everyone is becoming increasingly aware of the importance of social media on our day to day lives. Social Media is a great tool for marketing and when executed well can lead to great success for marketing promotion. Social Media Marketing is playing a vital role for every small and large business.

Social Media Marketing helps to establish a strong and fruitful relationship with potential customers. Brand awareness, affordable advertisement, worldwide reach, improved engagement and conversion rates and communication authority are the perks of social media marketing. All of which you as an author can take advantage of. It’s not as scary as it sounds… we promise.

There’s no denying that social media is easily accessible for everyone these days, it can be very beneficial for both, aspiring and established authors. We can understand writing a book is a challenging task, which requires intense amounts of creativity and skill. Therefore, as a writer, you deserve appreciation and acknowledgement from the world.

There are many social networking sites which can be helpful for authors, Here are the top 5 social networking sites for both fiction and non-fiction writers:

  1. Facebook
  2. Instagram
  3. Twitter
  4. LinkedIn
  5. YouTube

Every social networking site has different trends for promotions and marketing. Below we will be revealing some incredible tips and trends for each platform to help you, as a talented author discover and make the most out of these channels.


Facebook Marketing Trends:

Everyone is aware of the popularity of Facebook. The vast amount of users (1.79 billion) means that there is an audience for everyone, including authors.

Creating an author’s fan page can be beneficial for the promotion of your books and writings. This page will allow you to easily interact with your fans and keep your readers engaged through posting thought-provoking discussions. You can share their unique thoughts and writing styles or the chapter excerpts from your books to attract readers. You can also give updates about different events such as book signings, book launch, reading sessions and interviews.

Readers love to be a part of your personal life. So, keep giving them a glimpse of your daily activities through Facebook stories allows them to have quick and access to the ‘behind the scenes’ of their favourite author.

TOP TIP:
 Giveaways are another great way to attract new reader, everyone wants something for free so would happily share your post for a chance of winning a free/signed copy of your book. This means that their friends will see your post, which could attract new readers.


Instagram Marketing Trends:

Instagram is famous for its outstanding features to promote content. You have slaved over ensuring you picked the right cover for your book, this is the ideal platform to show it off!

Although the benefits of Instagram for authors does not stop at the cover of your book. You can post pictures of your writing stations or what book you are currently reading, or post a picture from any book events you attended or hosted. Even posting quotes from your book is a great way to attract readers on this platform.

The Instagram story feature provides a great opportunity to interact with readers via various built-in features. You can conduct live reading and Q&A sessions.

All of these ways are great opportunities to boost book sales.


Twitter Marketing Trends:

Twitter is one of the most popular social media platforms used around the globe. Millions of people use Twitter daily. Authors have a special relationship with Twitter to promote their books, as Twitter is more popular way to share knowledge with the world – a great opportunity for Non-Fiction writers to connect with their audience.

Using relevant emoticons can make your tweets stand out and attract your followers. Interactive polls and gifs work well on Twitter so do not forget to add these, as with millions of people on the platform it is important to ensure your tweets stand out as much as possible.

TOP TIPS:

  • You can follow other writers to gain genuine followers.
  • Announcing your live streams with the link and time on Twitter will let more readers join your stream.
  • Live broadcasting on Twitter does wonders as Twitter shows them on the top of your followers’ feed. Using relevant and popular hashtags help expand your reach.

 

LinkedIn Marketing Trends:

Linked is well-known for resumes and job postings. However, it is a powerful platform to create effective lead generations and allows authors to build strong professional networks.

As it is very helpful to develop professional brand awareness, you can use your LinkedIn profile to promote your author events and interviews. Creating a writing group in LinkedIn can help improve your writing skills and facilitates in showcasing your talent to others. Groups can also be very helpful in developing a strong image of your books.

TOP TIP:
An appealing lengthy interactive post tends to perform better on LinkedIn. Use this platform as a way to demonstrate your knowledge around the subject of your book and build creditability.

 

YouTube Marketing Trends:

When it comes to video marketing, YouTube is always the first platform that comes to one’s mind. It is not only a social media platform but is also a constructive search engine that provides users with a huge variety of videos on different topics.

‘Book Cover Reveal’ videos, book trailers, short videos with the book excerpts are great ways to promote your book. Sharing a 360 degree video which shows the book from all directions will attract readers. YouTube is considered as the best place for learning, therefore this platform is ideal for you to share ‘How to’ videos about writing to help the many aspiring authors out there.

YouTube live streams have 8 times greater engagement rate as compared to a normal video. Authors can host Q&A sessions and podcasts in their live streams. Visual storytelling can also attract viewers.

TOP TIP:
Sharing your writing journey and struggles with the viewers through a video can leave a great impact on the audience.

 

We hope that these trends will be helpful for all the aspiring and established authors to boost their social media presences. So, hurry up authors and get connected to the world.

To stay updated with the latest writing tips and marketing trends, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Our Best-Selling Books That Should Accompany You This Autumn

Austin-Macauley-Top-Six-Best-Selling-Books

Different readers have different tastes. Some have found a comfortable home in reading romance; others consider poetry their abode for a retreat. Some find solace in reading thrillers; others search for meaning in crime fiction. Some are more inward and go after what induces nostalgia—historical fiction; others are more into the futuristic reads such as Sci-Fi. Some read self-help books for their development and growth; others are biography enthusiasts who are interested in learning more about people.

If you fall in any of the above groups, hang in there, keep on reading. Below, we list six of our best-selling books of various genres for you to read this month. You can choose the genres you are passionate about, or you can try something different—and we suggest you try something new.

Here we go.

 

 

Come On, Let’s Run Away

Book: Come On, Let’s Run Away
Author: Ali Nasser (Bu Mayed)

Do you ever wonder what were the old days like—the homes, schools, values and traditions, relationships, people and their aspirations? If your answer is yes then we have a treasure for you. Ali Nasser brings “a story from the memories of people who lived during those days, so that who didn’t live in that time can live it with us…and it remains a memory for every generation.” Let’s dwell in the past, for a brief moment, with this nostalgia-inducing book and relive a part of the life that no longer exists. Grab your copy at 30% off and reminisce the ‘good old days’ with Come On, Let’s Run Away.

 

 

Khalid’s Promise

Book: Khalid’s Promise
Author: Amna Ibrahim AL-Badwawi

If you need a strong stimulus to continue despite the challenges, Khalid’s Promise is written for you. It details the life of Amal, an Emirati girl living in a conservative household, from her childhood to her marriage. Her life is not as she always fantasised but altogether different, with difficulties and challenges taking their turns, one after another. The loss of her mother at a young age and her father’s marriage to a foreigner sends her to an abyss of mental pain. She feels alone and isolated when she loses her favourite friend and confidante, Manal, who used to be a source of relief for her. She begins to enjoy her life only after she meets and marries Khalid. Embedded in this story is a homage to the martyrs and their sacrifices for the sake of their homeland.  Would Amal’s newfound happiness last long? What is Khalid’s promise to Amal—and would he keep it? You can tell. Get your copy of this riveting book at 30% off.

 

 

Dot

Book: Dot
Author: Lubna Mohammad Altamimi

Life isn’t always one smooth ride. Most of the time, one’s life is characterised by the highs and lows, failures and success, accomplishments and setbacks and love and abandonment.

If you are someone whose life features the latter elements in abundance…if you are grappling with your own set of challenges…if you are disturbed by the modern fast-paced life…if you feel isolated in a bustling city of millions…if you dream of achieving lasting happiness and peace of mind…Dot is for you. Give yourself a break, read this resourceful book, lighten up your path and live your life with a reinvigorated passion. To facilitate you, we are offering 30% off on this best-selling book. Buy your copy now!

 

 

Hiam Is the Life

Book: Hiam Is the Life
Author: Yasir Alnasir

This book of contemporary fiction is based on the life of a young man. He prefers to live in solitude, detached from the outside world, inside his own state of mind. But his solitary habits are interrupted by a girl, with whom he dearly falls in love. Her arrival in his life dramatically alters the trajectory of his life. Whether this ‘change’ is for better or worse, the reader will tell. How did the girl meet this reserved boy? And more importantly, how did he fell in love with her? To find out, purchase your copy at 30% off.

 

 

 

For the Bound Hearts

Book: For the Bound Hearts
Author: Tasneem Zeyad Abu Shawish

For the Bound Hearts is a book of romance. But what if we told you that this book contains ingredients of a recipe that will heal your wounds? That’s true! Written with ink mixed with tears, this book will cheer you up, show you the path to a fulfilling life and enable you to stand up to your demons. The plot is interesting and the characters striking, many readers will find it relatable to the milieu they find themselves in—whether being simply sad, feeling dejected or not being able to chase their dreams—and take the corrective measures as the story moves forward. Buy a copy of this enchanting romance novel at 30% off and give yourself a treat you needed since long.

 

 

Love Pirate

Book: Love Pirate
Author: Rania Nimr Eitah

Love Pirate is a collection of heart-warming poetry. Written by a literature enthusiast, who closely observes the day-to-day life, this collection presents a realistic worldview of our existence to you—the reader. The words are woven together delicately, but given the power to make their way to your heart and arouse those emotions that lay dormant until now. Get your copy of this soul-stirring book at 30% off and be able to look at the world differently.

 

 

 

We hope these best-selling titles will add to your intellectual horizon. If you want to explore more, we have much more in store for you. Click here and pick your favourite titles, whether fiction or non-fiction, all at 30% off.

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Eight Tips for Writing a Best-Selling Romance Novel

Austin-Macauley-Tips-for-Writing-a-Best-Romance-Novel

Of all the genres of fiction, the most popular is romance. And rightly so—it’s a genre almost every reader can relate to. It talks about a passion that we all long for—love. We love being in love, loving someone or being the beloved of someone. When these love experiences are written on paper, they have the power to transform the perspective of generations to come. Wuthering Heights, Jan Eyre, Pride and Prejudice and Love in the Times of Cholera are some of the best romantic books that continue to influence us to this day.

Ever since romance novels appeared on the scene, the same basic story is repeated. Boy and girl meet. Their interactions evolve into love. A romantic relationship is developed. The usual conflict sets in. These adversities are overcome, sometimes against all odds. Both find solace in each other and start living happily ever after—or for the foreseeable future. Sounds familiar? It is. But still, the readers’ appetite for this genre, if anything, is growing day by day.

If you are passionate about writing fiction, romance should be the genre to start with. How to do that? In the succeeding paragraphs, we’ll try to offer you our help on how to produce a gripping work of romance.

Here are a few tips for writing a best-selling romance novel:

1. Choose Your Subgenre

Romance is a big genre. While anything you write on love will be called romance, there are subgenres you can choose to focus on. These are contemporary, historical, young adult, supernatural, fantasy, religious or spiritual and erotic romance. Which one should you go for depends on your taste and your audience (we’ll discuss the audience later.) Some subgenres such as historical fiction need extensive research about the period of history where the novel is set. But whatever you decide to write should broadly conform to any of the above categories.

2. Know Your Readers

Probably, you aspire to write your novel, publish it and sell it to the readers. Thus, you are not only a writer but a businessperson as well. And what is the most significant factor that determines the success of a business? It is to know who are your prospective customers. In this case, who are your readers? Their culture and values? Demographics? Their sensitivities? These also determine the point of view of your story. Most of the time, the narration of events is from a woman’s point of view. It’s because women make up the vast majority—about 80%—of romance readers. Naturally, they’ll be interested in reading the story from their own perspective rather than a man’s.


3. Plot, Characters and Tropes

In the introductory paragraphs, we discussed how the plots of a romantic story have been, broadly, the same. However, it is the details that you would work on. For instance, what is the trope of your story? “A trope in literary terms is a plot device or character attribute that is used so commonly in the genre that it’s seen as commonplace or conventional.” Below are some common tropes in romance.

  • Enemies to lovers. A boy and girl are enemies at first. The enmity is converted into friendship and eventually into love.
  • Damsel in distress. A girl is grappling with her problems. The hero comes and frees her from the clutches of these problems and she falls in love with him. Or vice versa.
  • Friends to lovers.
  • Forbidden love. Both boy and girl, for whatever reason, are not allowed to love each other.
  • Soul mates. As if they were made for each other.
  • Love triangle. There are three characters, two of them competing to prevail upon the third one.

 

There are many others too. You can choose any trope. However, it is not the trope but your plot that will define your success.

Does your plot have the necessary tension—something that stops the protagonists from becoming one—that will engage the readers? What about your characters? Do they relate to your target audience? Let’s take the example of Pride and Prejudice. Its trope is enemies to lovers, and the tension is the social hierarchy—Mr Darcy is from nobility, has a large estate while Elizabeth Bennet is a middle-class woman and if both come together, Mr Darcy’s acquaintances would not appreciate his choice. In Nicholas Spark’s The Notebook, it is the class difference that doesn’t allow Allison and Noah to unite in marriage. The characters in these stories are not superheroes but ordinary people and therefore, many readers can relate to.


4. Setting – Time and Place 

The setting means the place and time in which the story is based. If it’s a historical romance, the writer must have the necessary know-how of that era. Where the story takes place should conform to the ambiance of the day including the dressing, the architecture, the scientific developments, and the prevalent attitudes of people towards all the things discussed in the story. Try to create vivid imagery of your settings, one that will arrest the imaginations of your readers.


5. Intimate Scenes – Yes or No?

Here, the writers of romance find themselves in a perplexing dilemma. There are no fixed rules for including intimate scenes and very much depends on your subgenre and target audience. In Young Adult, intimate scenes are usually avoided. In any case, unless you are writing erotica, the intimate scenes serve a specific purpose—to help the story move in a clear direction. If you have decided to include these scenes, they should be progressive and implicit—leave much to the imaginations of readers.

 

6. What About Secondary Characters?

Though much of your energy will be spent on the main characters, secondary characters should not be ignored. They help the story as much as the protagonists do. Friends, family, foes, neighbours, colleagues, and whoever else you have given the role of a secondary character contribute to making your story great. The only rule here is, the attention given to them shouldn’t obscure the leads.


7. A Good Ending

Romance readers expect the author to give a good ending to the story. A favourable ending is in which both the protagonists come together. As in ‘Love in the Times of Cholera’ (Spoiler alert ahead!) it takes decades for Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza to overcome the tensions and come together. In Pride and Prejudice, despite the initial dislike, both come together eventually. But it is not a rule that both the lovers should unite in marriage. For instance, the endings of The Fault in Our Stars and A Walk to Remember are not what we would call a ‘happy ending’. Still, they’re popular among the readers. However you bring the story to end, it should satisfy the readers, evoking the necessary emotions, that what they read was worth it.

8. Read More About Your Genre – and Subgenre

For any aspiring writer, reading is a must-to-do thing. No ifs and buts here. The reason for this is, the readers are not only interested in learning about what happens to a couple. When they pick a work of fiction, they expect a good drama, catchy sentences, compelling metaphors and a positive message at the end of the story. To help you understand what we just described above, we have listed some of our best-selling romance books below. While we won’t reveal the tropes and settings of these novels for the fear of spoilers, they have all these ingredients carefully woven into them. These stories would spark your imaginations and help you in generating worthwhile ideas for your own work of romance.

 

Book: Behind My Strength is a Weakness, Loving You
Author: Dina Al-Saigh


Book: For the Beloved
Author: Rania Nimr Eitah


Book: Rose Marie
Author: Badriah Al-Ahmad


Book: What Do You Know About My Love, Baby?
Author: Shaikhah Kaseb


Book: In Love with Dracula
Author: Nadine Jameel Omar

 

Other than these, we boast of a resourceful collection on a variety of subgenres in romance. Explore this treasure here. Don’t forget, we are offering 30% off on all paperbacks!

We sincerely hope these tips and books would encourage you to take your pen and notebook (or your laptop) and start working on your masterpiece. If, however, you have already prepared the manuscript, we are just a click away. Send us your manuscript at submissions@austinmacauley.ae or explore more by visiting our submissions page.

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Five Best Thrillers and Crime Novels to Curl Up with at Home

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Books are amazing. Why? Because they allow you to live through the experiences of others. As George R.R. Martin once said,

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.”

True, motion pictures do the same job but since everything is in visual form, it doesn’t offer much room for curiosity and speculation. It’s a book that gives us room to go on a never-ending voyage of imaginations. It’s a book that stirs our curiosity as we progress from one page and one plot to another, left to ourselves, wondering what the next page is about to bring.

The human brain is hard-wired to absorb information in story form, analyze it, and store it away for future use. In this context, the utility of reading thrillers and crime fiction can become handy. They put you in a mental simulator, keeping you engaged and mentally active. As this New York Times article shows, “fiction — with its redolent details, imaginative metaphors and attentive descriptions of people and their actions — offers an especially rich replica. Indeed, in one respect novels go beyond simulating reality to give readers an experience unavailable off the page: the opportunity to enter fully into other people’s thoughts and feelings.”

Secondly, it brings the good out of you—especially crime fiction. Humans are blessed with willpower, and thus, we are capable of doing both good and bad things. But our good side gets a value boost when we read a consequential thriller on crime. For instance, you read a good crime thriller, you question your core values—such as social and legal justice, fair-play, liberty and freedom and human dignity. It gives you a chance to reflect upon your own beliefs and receive renewed strength to carry on.

Last but not least, it offers us avenues to release our stress through. Although it sounds hypocritical, it’s true. A study by the University of Sussex showed just six minutes lost inside a thrilling book could reduce your stress level by as much as 68%. You journey through a tension-filled story but at the end of the story, it’s catharsis—the tension that was building up is finally released. When good finally triumphs evil, you feel vindicated, as if the world comes back into balance.

Below we give you an overview of some of the best thrillers we have in store for you. Read them, get curious and stay inspired.

 

 

Black Cat

Book: Black Cat
Author: Aesha Raja’an Al-Harashani

If you are a fan of supernatural thrillers, Black Cat is for you. It revolves around the story of a black cat, Rex. A magician loses his bewitching powers, and to regain the powers, he has to turn Rex into a vampire. Rex, now with immense powers, embarks on the mission to save his parents and take revenge from the evil magician for the wrongs he has done to him and his family. The magician has magical powers, but Rex is fast, furious and bloodthirsty. Who will win this battle? Will Rex rescue his parents and make them proud? To know how the tussle between Rex and the magician unfolds, grab your copy at 30% off here.

 

 

 

The Moon

Book: The Moon
Author: Khamis Mohammed Ali Alabdouli

The Moon is a captivating story of a king, named Robert.  He is ruling upon the subjects who are not humans but another species living on the surface of the moon. The only attributes this species share with the humans are cunningness, betrayal, and penchant for killing. Robert betrays his subjects and descends to the planet earth, a forbidden journey for which he is severely punished. But before bowing to his fate, Robert plants his seed in the womb of a human girl. Would his blood go to waste? Would Robert’s offspring avenge these lunar civilians for the death of his father? How would this fight between two different species unfold? Order a copy of this book at 30% off here and find out if Robert’s child would make his father proud.

 

 

 

Come On, Let’s Chase Him to Tunisia

Book: Come On, Let’s Chase Him to Tunisia
Author: Qais Ghanem

When Salem, a Yemeni boy, returns to London, he finds out that the love of his life Brigitte has left him and is with Peter now. A battle of words ensues when Salem confronts Brigitte in his apartment. In a fit of rage, he punches her; she fells on the steel table and succumbs to her injuries. Salem flees to Yemen where his father has great political clout. While the Yemeni authorities dodge Interpol’s requests to hand him over, the story takes a turn when Salem has to travel to Tunisia. It’s here that Peter sets a trap for him, with the help of his beautiful sister, Antonia. What is the trap? Would Salem fall for it? Would Peter give solace to Brigitte’s soul by taking the revenge? Don’t hang from the cliff! Order your copy of this page-turner at 30% off and know the complete story.

 

 

 

Grandmother Fran’s ACCIDENTAL ARSONIST

Book: Grandmother Fran’s ACCIDENTAL ARSONIST
Author: Carol Moxham Boot

Grandmother Fran’s ACCIDENTAL ARSONIST revolves around the life of Frances Plum, also known as Grandmother Fran. It features many characters and includes in its plot a range of issues such as pride, prejudice, bullying, domestic violence and much more. Grandmother Fran has to address each issue on her own. But her plans, are much easier said than done. There are significant twists and turns in the story, which will keep the readers gripped until the very end. But who—and what—is this ACCIDENTAL ARSONIST? Grab your copy at 30% off and go on an imaginative ride with Grandmother Fran and be privy to how she tackles her adversities.

 

 

 

There’s a Secret I Didn’t Tell You

Book: There’s a Secret I Didn’t Tell You
Author: Nora Sami Al-Thumairy

There’s a Secret I Didn’t Tell You is a gripping story of a young boy, Ali, and his struggles. His life is full of difficulties, hopping from one challenge to another. The final blow comes when he loses his mother to cancer. He’s alone, without anyone beside him. He doesn’t know who his father is. This story follows Ali’s journey to find his father. Would his father recognise him—and if he does, would he love Ali as his mother did? Would Ali’s share of trials and tribulations come to an end? Would he find the tranquillity and peace he so dearly deserves? Grab a copy of this full-of-suspense novel at 30% off here to know How it comes to an end.

 

 

We believe these thrillers would serve your brain well. If, however, you are interested in more of the same genre, visit our website and find the best titles for yourself. We are offering 30% off on all paperbacks!
 

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

World Teachers’ Day: Paying Homage to Teachers Around the World

Austin-Macauley-World-Teachers-Day

If we could ask you to attribute the massive developments we see today to a single fact, what would you choose? The rapid progress in science and technology—coupled with the progress in other fields at the same pace, right? We got you. That is right. But have you imagined, who made it possible? The teachers. Teachers were the medium which transmitted these learnings from one generation to another, eventually bringing us to here. Aristotle was a teacher, and so was Socrates; Newton, the founder of classical physics was a teacher, and so was Einstein, the founder of modern physics; Jabir Ibn Hayyan, the father of early chemistry was a teacher, and so was Muhammad Al-Khwarizmi, the father of algebra. If we carefully skim through the human history, we can safely presume that every positive change-maker in history has been a tutor—though these roles were not strictly delineated back then like today.

Recognising the roles teachers have played—and continue to play—in shaping our collective history and individual lives, an event, the Intergovernmental Conference on the Status of Teachers was held on 5th October 1966. The world leaders, for the first time, sat together to deliberate upon how to universalise and “supplement [the] existing standards by provisions relating to problems of peculiar concern to teachers and to remedy the problems of teacher shortage.” The Recommendations of this conference “established benchmarks regarding the rights and responsibilities of teachers, according to UNESCO, and set standards for their training and continuing education, recruitment, employment, and teaching and learning conditions.”

In 1994, to commemorate the signing of the 1966 UNESCO/ILO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers, 5th of October was designated as World Teachers’ Day, also known as International Teachers’ Day. This day also celebrates the adoption of the 1997 UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Higher-Education Teaching Personnel which sets forth the rights and responsibilities of teachers and researchers in higher education. Like every international day, WTD too celebrates an annual theme and the theme this year is “Teachers: Leading in crisis, reimagining the future”.

The theme pays homage to educators all around the world, who, despite this deadly pandemic, managed to keep their pupils engaged in the process of learning. When schools closed without any prior warning, they tried, collectively and individually, to find solutions to bridge the gap between themselves and their students that was beginning to widen. They provided remote learning, founded groups and communities online and in some cases, uploaded their materials online for everyone to access. Where there was no connectivity, they prepared take-home packages to be delivered to students.

You can read more about the rationale behind the theme here.

 

How You Can Celebrate World Teachers’ Day?

Your celebration depends on who you are. Here are some ways to observe this day:

  • If you are a teacher, be proud of the role you play—imparting knowledge, moulding lives and shaping dreams. It’s a hard job with a lot of challenges. We, at Austin Macauley, thank you for your commitments and dedication towards this respectable profession. It is people like you who can ensure that every child is well-read and qualified for the 21st century’s fast-paced life.
  • If you are not a teacher, you must have been a student once in your life. Reach out to your teachers and thank them for the positive role they have played in your life. If you cannot visit them, send them a text, an e-mail or a letter. This way, they’ll feel valued with a reinvigorated passion to do more.
  • If you are a student or an administrator, arrange events at your school which would glorify the role teachers play in directing our destinies. Given that COVID-19 has disrupted our lives, thus if schools are closed, such events could be arranged virtually as well.
  • Use your influence on social media platforms and pay respect to the teachers around the world. Take to Twitter and post pictures of your favourite teachers, anecdotes related to this profession or some interesting incidents with the trending hashtags on 5th October.
  • Start a conversation. Irrespective of who you are, a parent, a student, or anyone else, initiate conversations about this profession at home, school or in your workplace. How they change our lives; and for this, how much underpaid and -valued they are; how you, as an individual, can make it better. Discussion on a certain topic usually leads to some interesting conclusions. This day is the perfect day to discuss teachers and their profession.
  • Read, Read, Read. One of the best ways to honour this day is to read more. Reading anything is learning something new every day—this is what teachers precisely do, teach us what we don’t know.

 

Visit our website and find a range of books that will quench your intellectual thirst.

Happy International Teachers’ Day!

If you are a teacher who has a story to tell the world, let us help you. Submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Austin Macauley’s Five Lengthy Books to Keep You Hooked

Austin-Macauley's-Five-Lengthy-Books

“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”

– C. S. Lewis

Reading long books is no less than a project. It requires dedication and commitment. You do not just read the books; you live within them for a while. Long books have their charm, the characters are described in such detail that the readers get lost in the story. Lengthy books allow readers to live in the world they are offering. Reading lengthy books requires patience and time. However, with the ongoing pandemic and social distancing becoming the new norm reading can be  an entertaining way to lose track of time.

We present to you a list of Austin Macauley Publishers’ lengthy books that will keep you hooked till the very end. With 500 pages or more, these books are definitely worth your time.

 

Diving with Seven Livelihoods

Book: Diving with Seven Livelihoods
Author: Ahmed Mohammed Bin Thani

Born in a coastal village in Dubai the author was brought up in a marine environment. He grew up hearing stories from the senior sailors about the diving championships that intrigued his imagination. From a young age, he started working with his father making wooden ships and loved his job. He was so in love with the marine environment that he started collecting marine poetry. After joining the Dubai Police Force as a helicopter pilot, he practised air navigation—a branch of marine navigation. The author is very passionate about navigation, maps and everything related to stargazing, which comes through in his work.

Grab your copy of the book at 30% off!

 

 

Come On, Let’s Run Away

Book: Come On, Let’s Run Away
Author: Ali Nasser (Bu Mayed)

This book aims to take the readers on a journey through the author’s beautiful memories of his past—the memories of school and the local neighbourhood, the memories that are almost erased, but still live in his heart. The writer narrates, “I dedicate to you a story from the memories of people who lived during those days, so that who didn’t live in that time can live it with us.”

Buy today and avail 30% off online!

 

 

 

A Journey Goal: A Step Towards Achievement

Book: A Journey Goal: A Step Towards Achievement
Author: Manal Albassam

This book promotes that the achievement of goals requires good ideas, self-satisfaction and ambition. Presenting a plan for the continuity of business as well as thoughts and ideas on other topics such as social, administrative, and leadership. The plans and solutions presented in the book are designed to support the dreamers of the future.

Get your copy at 30% off online!

 

 

 

Linguistic Planning and Policies in the Baltic States

Book: Linguistic Planning and Policies in the Baltic States: Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia
Author: Prof. Dr. Mohammed Ahmed Tajjo

This book discusses the linguistic planning experience in the Baltic states, pointing out many important questions about the concept of linguistic planning and its impacts. The book also discusses the role of language and the need for linguistic policies. Towards the end, the author talks about the evolution and experiences of Baltic states in linguistic planning.

Order your copy today and get 30% off online!

 

 

Aircraft Ground Handling

Book: Aircraft Ground Handling
Author: Subash S Narayanan

This book uses simple language to explain the processes required for aircraft ground handling, giving a brief introduction to airports and basic aviation knowledge. The author has shared all his experiences and knowledge from 26 years of working in the civil aviation industry. This book highlights the most critical functions involved in aircraft ground handling and is the perfect guide for anyone thinking of pursuing a career in the aviation industry.

Grab your copy of the book at 30% off!

 

 

 

We hope that the shared long books will boost your interest in lengthy books. Visit our website to find our collection of long books.

Get all our amazing books online at 30% off from our website.

To stay updated with the newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are a writer yourself, why not submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Five Poetry Books You Cannot Resist to Read This Autumn

Austin-Macauley-5 Poetry-Books-for-Fall

Poetry—its creation and appreciation—is a part of our DNA. Since time began, poetry has been our emphatic companion, feeding our minds and healing our souls. It’s like lenses we wear to see the world differently, understand people and emotions more profoundly, and broaden the horizons of our thoughts…more freely.

Poets transform what we see as mundane thoughts into beautiful words. They give life to inanimate objects in such a vivid way as if they are alive, talking to us and comprehending us. And it’s after this transformation that we are able to observe beauty and purpose even in such trivial happenings. They put into words love, romance, beauty, nature, peace, dreams, compassion and humour.

Autumn—the favourite time of the year for poets and poetry enthusiasts—is upon us.  Below we have included a handful  of our poetry books. Dive into this collection and cherish this autumn with these heartfelt and powerful collections of poems.

 

Hearts Fell Apart

Book: Hearts Fell Apart
Author: Ahmed Saeed

Hearts Fell Apart is a book of moving poems. Standing at the crossroads of his life, Ahmad Saeed asks himself: Where is the beloved, and where is the path to her? Away from his true and innocent love, burning in the cruel period of separation, his words feel like the embers of lost love. The poems in this book will make their way into the deepest corners of your heart. You’ll find yourself in the shoes of the writer, crying when the writer cries, smile when he smiles and express the hopes of his lover’s return when he does so. Order your copy here at 30% off and give yourself a meaningful ride in the wilderness of your own heart.

 

 

So Many Hats (or Veils)

Book: So Many Hats (or Veils)
Author: Wid Kattan

So Many Hats (or Veils) is a book of poems which will compel you to ask yourself this important question: ‘Who am I and what is this hat I am wearing?’

Every one of us plays many and different roles in this one and only  life. The author represents these roles with wearing hats. Can you make a connection with someone who wears hats that you can’t understand? Hats that even seem to be intimidating? Could one wear many hats without losing oneself? These are the themes the poet explores in her poetry. Grab a copy of this thought-provoking book at 30% off here.

 

 

On Par With Emotions

Book: On Par With Emotions
Author: Daham El mezrab

What makes a book of poems so remarkable is the fact that it stirs various emotions in you simultaneously. One poem can be cathartic, another reassuring; one verse brutal, another very tender. Written to relieve personal struggles and stress, On Par with Emotions expresses emotions that force a connection with the readers. It has violated poetic laws, and has religiously followed them; has poetic madness, but devotion towards Godly mysticism too. Honestly and sincerely expressed, these poems will take you to a world of your own, providing you with the much-needed retreat into your own self. Claim a copy of this beautiful book at 30% off here.

 

 

Full Stop

Book: Full Stop
Author: Esra’a Yousef

It’s rare that a spontaneous train of thoughts strikes our mind, giving a continuous flow to words as if these words are a stream of water, liberally coming from a benevolent fountain. But when you notice this much profuse flow of words, be assured that there is a great secret behind the writer—the secret which must carry meaning for you. Full Stop is one such book. Immerse yourself in this amazing read, available at 30% off and live through the striking characters the poet has portrayed in her poetry.

 

 

 

Twenty Five

Book: Twenty Five
Author: Shoaq A. Aljuhani

Twenty Five is a small but beautiful anthology of poems. These poems tell the story of incidents the writer experienced in 11 months—a period covering the transition of the writer. These 11 months shaped her thoughts, her beliefs and tested her sanity in various ways. Get a copy of this perspective-changing book at 30% off here to know what happened to the writer and how she responded to the changes she saw coming.

 

 

 

 

We believe these popular poetry books will satisfy your literary taste buds. If you want to explore more, we have much more in store for you. Click here and pick your favourite titles at 30% off.

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Infuse Your International Literacy Day With Our Knowledge-Filled Educational Books

Austin-Macauley-International-Literacy-Day-Blog

“Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.” – Charles William Eliot

 

Austin-Macauley-International-Literacy-Day

 

International Literacy Day is celebrated on the 8th of September across the world. Founded by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the intention behind the day is to highlight the significance of literacy as an  essential human right, and to further the literacy agenda to create a more informed and sustainable society.

As the population is increasing, the illiteracy rate is increasing as well, with over 100 million people across the globe lacking basic literacy skills. The purpose of literacy day is to tackle this growing concern with the objective of ensuring every person in the world can read and write.

As an internationally renowned publishing house, Austin Macauley Publishers is playing its essential role in eradicating illiteracy.  We have a wide range of educational books for people of all ages, providing the tools to become informed and educated in the literary world.

Below are a few books to add to your bookshelf this International Literacy Day to elevate your knowledge on different topics!

Mutualism, Commensalism, and Parasitism are three naturally existing interactions between two distinct species. Symbiosis is the interaction based on mutualism, where both individuals get the benefit. In business, the term symbiosis occurs when stakeholders act as true partners for mutual gains. This book discusses the key relationships, hospitality management, and the complex operational dynamics of two major stakeholders of a hotel. The critical relationship is examined for improvement, ideal for anyone related to the hospitality industry or looking towards a career in hospitality.

Get this amazing read at 30% off!

 

After moving to Dubai, the author Cristina  was heavily involved in uplifting the profile of the Arab world. In this book, she talks about her  ambition to bring the king’s parade event —an event celebrated for global peace —to Dubai. The event is currently celebrated in Spain on 5th January to welcome the kings and their lavish entourage. This book is a great opportunity to have a wider understanding of global peace events, their locations and traditions.

Grab this exciting book at 30% off!

 

This five-chapter-long book discusses multiple factors related to disasters and crisis management. It guides the reader to deal with crisis and informs about the steps needed to surpass their destructive effect. The book includes extensive information on the planning and response management of various entities. With further discussions about disasters that occurred in the past, their effects, and how they were tackled, this educational book uses real life examples and advice to help learn and develop your knowledge of how to crisis manage.

Buy this informative read at 30% off!

 

The book deals with the significant issue of contemporary zakat. The issue is addressed in two ways—the agricultural production cost and the exploitation of factories. The author has created a beautiful summary of the views of old and recent scholars in this educational book. The book is a wonderful guide on the topic of Zakat.

Buy now to get 30% off!

 

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We hope that these educational books will help increase your knowledge of areas that you might have overlooked.

To stay updated with our newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are an aspiring writer, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Make Your Kid an Avid Reader with Austin Macauley’s Incredible Reads

Austin-Macauley-Make-Your-Kid-an-Avid-Reader

Book reading is a habit that not only helps children and young adults with their academics, but also helps them to explore their imagination and adventurous minds.

Inculcating book reading habits in children is of utmost importance for their learning and should not be missed at a younger age. You can develop this habit by reading children’s books together whether it be a bedtime story, or a daytime adventure! Set a reading time and demonstrate the love for books to them.

Austin Macauley brings a collection of interesting and moral oriented children’s books to help your children develop a reading habit.

At-Grandmother-Hissa’s-House

Book: At Grandmother Hissa’s House 
Author: Abdulrahman Mohammed Almahimeed
 

The amazingly written children’s fictional story that is going to teach your children about different colours and shades of life and how to tackle difficulties that will occur over the span of their life.

Get a copy of this book at 30% off!

 

Blossoming Kindness

Book: Blossoming Kindness
Author: Yasmine Hammad

Some if not all people have the habit of speaking unkindly about themselves. Grandpa Hadid will teach you the real meaning of kindness and tolerance. Use your heart, thoughts and hands to make this world a better place.

Grab a copy at 30% off!

 

 

Munir the Millionaire

Book: Munir the Millionaire 
Author: Zainab Ali Albahrani
 

The inspiring story of an intelligent child, Munir, with a unique ability of keen observation. He stays updated with his surroundings and wishes to have huge sums of money once he is older. Follow his journey as he makes plans to achieve his goals.

Get a copy today and enjoy 30% off!

 

 


How a Whale and the Moon Helped Me

Book: How a Whale and the Moon Helped Me 
Author: Sarab Al Ani
 

The main character of the story, Yasmine, wants an electronic tablet but her father is reluctant to buy her one. Read the book to find out what she will do to get one and how a whale and the moon helped her complete her mission.

Grab your copy and avail 30% off!

 

 

To The Circus Lights

Book: To The Circus Lights 
Author: Richard Anthony Chudzynski
 

Marlee, Danny and George woke up one day and find out that a circus has come to their town. They decided to visit the circus, and their journey gets filled with many adventures. They are mesmerized by the events at the circus. The spectacle finishes at night, but their mother is waiting for them at home. Will they make it to home in time?

Buy your at 30% off!

 

 

Get all our amazing books at 30% off on our website.

We hope that our suggested children’s books will help your children to develop a habit of book reading.

To stay updated with the newly released titles and share your favourite reads, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. If you are a writer yourself, why not submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Autobiographies: A Collection of Our Authors’ Inspiring Life Experiences

AUTOBIOGRAPHIES-OUR-AUTHORS’-INSPIRING-LIFE-EXPERIENCES.jpeg

Everyone has a story that needs to be heard. An Autobiography is a compilation of an individual’s life stories which he or she shares with readers. Through an autobiography, you can share your experiences, stories and events with the world.

There are different forms of autobiographies. A full autobiography lets you share your entire life whereas a memoir discusses a specific part or event of your life. Confessional autobiographies let people confess what they otherwise cannot while spiritual events and experiences are shared in a spiritual autobiography.

We are sharing our top inspiring autobiography books written by our authors. Give them a read to get inspired and start writing a story of your own today.

If you already have it, submit it here and become a published author with Austin Macauley.

Amina Defies Difficulties

Book: Amina Defies Difficulties
Author: Amna Faisal Husain Alshamsi

A real-life story that teaches you to not let any disability bring you down. Rather focus on strengthening the remaining senses. Whoever tries succeeds and whoever plants, enjoys the fruit.

 

Listen to Me

Book: Listen to Me
Author: Jawaher Mohammed Alnoami

Listen to Me is the story of Jawaher Mohammed’s life, with a message of never giving up. The writer asks a question that, is there anyone who can hear the river of tears inside someone? The answer he gets is no. Instead, he gets a feeling from within to get up and hold on to the floor that brought him down. Learn from your failures and turn them to success. An inspiring story to increase your enthusiasm and stability.

My Mister

Book: My Mister
Author: Nayla

A book based on stories regarding many misconceptions and ideas that surround us in our society. Marital infidelity can be from either partner. Some accept it, while others don’t tolerate and reject it. The responsibility of raising the next generation is thrown entirely on mothers when it is equally a fathers’ responsibility as well. In the end, the writer included a few poems by different poets for all the wonderful women out there.

 

To My Father in Paradise

Book: To My Father in Paradise
Author: Wadha Al-Marzooqi

To My Father in Paradise is an evocative recollection of an ailing father on his death bed. The author rues the worldly system that turns a person back to adolescence with age. She scornfully wishes to end the world that brought this misery on her beloved father. The story is reflective of the love that a daughter has for her father and how difficult it is to separate from your loved ones.

Nothing and Everything All at Once

Book: Nothing and Everything All at Once
Author: Sabrina Marie

This book is the story of the author as she embarks on the journey to recovery after being sexually assaulted. It reflects her choices to help her move on. The story is written in the present with flashbacks. Walk along with Sabrina Marie as she explains the nightmares and hidden pains after these events.

Get all our amazing books online at 30% off on our website

We hope that the shared stories of these authors will encourage and motivate you to start writing your autobiography.

To stay updated with the newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you are a writer yourself, submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Eid Blessings! Celebrating Eid Al Adha With Austin Macauley Publishers

Austin-Macauley-Eid-Al-Adha

Eid al Adha is one of the holiest celebrations of the Islamic calendar and is observed by Muslims worldwide. The festival is also known as ‘festival of sacrifice”.

The day of Eid al Adha is celebrated on the tenth day of the last month of the Islamic calendar, Dhu-ul-Hajj. The day of celebration depends on the legitimate sighting of the moon followed by the completion of Pilgrimage to the Holy Ka’aba (The Hajj). Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. Every year millions of Muslims  gather in Makkah, Saudi Arabia to perform this religious duty.

According to the Holy Quran:

“Those who can make their way, must surely once in their lifetime take the sacred journey to Makkah.”

Although the date of Eid al Adha stays the same according to the Islamic calendar but it varies on the Gregorian calendar. This is because the Islamic calendar is lunar-based (i.e. based on moon) and ten days shorter than the Gregorian calendar which is based on the sun.


History Behind Eid al Adha

The celebration of Eid al Adha is celebrated to pay homage to the Prophet Ibrahim’s (Peace Be Upon Him) devotion to Almighty Allah and his willingness to sacrifice his son, Ismail. At the very moment of sacrifice, Allah replaced his son with a lamb from the heavens through the angel Jibraeel (Gabriel). The lamb was slaughtered instead. This command of Allah was a test for the honorable Prophet Ibrahim and his commitment to obey his Lord’s command without any question. This is the reason Eid al Adha is also known as the Eid of sacrifice.

Rituals of the Day

Several traditions are followed by the followers of Islam on this day. Men, women and children dress in neat clothes and gather in mosques earlier in the day to offer the Eid prayers. After the prayer, those who can afford, sacrifice one or more animals. The animal choice can vary from a goat, camel, sheep, cow or buffalo. This sacrifice is a sign of Muslim’s willingness to please and surrender before Allah as Ibrahim did. As the sacrifice is being made, Muslims say a special statement praising the highness of the Almighty. After the sacrifice is made, one-third of the meat is kept by the one and his family who has sacrificed the animal, one third to relatives, friends or neighbors and the last one-third is distributed among the poor.

Eid al Adha 2020 will be celebrated on July 31st in UAE and many other countries of the world.

Make your Eid day productive and fun with our book suggestions. Blossoming Kindness by Yasmine Hammad highlights that you are not alone if you think or speak unkindly about yourself or others. You can change into a better person if you follow some acts of kindness. Learn to counter and avoid problems in your married life with Fifty Tips for a Happy and Balanced Married Life by Dr. Mohammed Allam. Change into a better and happy person and learn the meaning of true happiness with Happiness: Get it, Keep it, Oh…And Enjoy It! by Dr. Louise Lambert. Green Leaves of a Dry Trees by Zakia Hashim Basri will teach you how to overcome your sufferings and turn them into blessings.

Get all our amazing books online at 30% off this Eid al Adha on our website.

To stay updated with the newly released titles, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Share your Summer Reading Challenge booklist with us using our hashtag #StayBookedStayHome. If you are a writer yourself, why not submit your manuscript to us and make your dream of becoming a published author come true.

Austin Macauley Publishers wish you and your family a very happy Eid al Adha. May this day be filled with joy and pleasure!