Joe Flood

Category: writing

  • Guest Blog on Digital Book Today: Reading Novels is Good for You

    I have a guest post on Digital Book Today on how reading novels is good for you. Novels teach essential skills, such as concentration, careful reading (not skimming web pages) and the ability to frame and express a story. Novels are more than just entertainment. Immersing yourself in words on a regular basis will improve your writing ability, something that is vital for business success. You’d be surprised at the number of college grads I’ve met that can’t write a sentence. Being able to craft blog posts, articles, reports and other kinds of communication is a way to differentiate yourself from your ADD-afflicted peers.

    Digital Book Today was founded by a book industry veteran. Its mission is to help readers find new authors in the digital world. It focuses on e-books and provides a great list of free new e-books every week.

  • Steve Jobs for Govies

    Steve Jobs and government bureaucrats – what could they have in common? A lot, as I write in Steve Jobs for Govies, recently published on GovLoop.

  • V/H/S: A Horror Flick for the YouTube Generation

    vhsIn the latest issue of On Tap, I have an article on V/H/S, a new horror anthology that opens this week. In this bloody collection of short films, a group of thieves come across a stack of mysterious videocassettes, each more disturbing than the last.

    Lots o’ blood, gore, genital removal, sex, nudity, impaling, screaming, running and shakycam. But if you’re into that kind of thing, then this is the movie for you.

    I screened the movie on a laptop and had the chance to interview Joe Swanberg, one of the directors of V/H/S. His short film is pretty interesting – it’s a horror flick told by Skype, where you watch a guy and his girlfriend chat online, as things steadily go wrong. Directing two actors who were both on the screen for the entire movie was a real challenge, according to Swanberg.

    It’s always interesting talking to directors – Swanberg shared the thrill of seeing his flick on the screen at Sundance. When he heard the shocked gasps of 800 people in a theater, he knew he had succeeded.

  • Interview with Morgan Spurlock, Director of Mansome

    Morgan Spurlock
    Morgan Spurlock

    What makes a man?

    I had a chance to interview Morgan Spurlock for On Tap magazine. The director of Super Size Me discusses his new documentary Mansome, which explores male vanity in modern America.

    From beard contests to the epidemic of manscaping, being a dude has become a lot more complicated.

  • Matthew Modine: Shut Your Mouth

    Fan art by messenjahmatt
    Fan art by messenjahmatt

    Matthew Modine is at the heart of the mystery that surrounds The Dark Knight Rises.

    In this email interview I conducted with him for On Tap, the veteran actor discusses joining the iconic movie franchise, as well as his experiences working with some of film’s greatest directors.

  • No Fooling – Don't Mess Up My Block Free on Kindle

    Don't Mess Up My Block book coverIt’s no April Fool’s joke. Get my novel Don’t Mess Up My Block for free on the Kindle.

    This offer is just for April 1 so act quickly.

    Don’t Mess Up My Block is a parody of self-help books. This funny and cynical tale follows the adventures of Laurent Christ, a man who pursues self-improvement to its logical conclusion – he reinvents himself with a brand-new name and history. He drops a hundred pounds, shaves his head and goes on the road as a management consultant. Everywhere he goes, comic disaster follows as companies follow his glib counsel.

    It’s a fast and funny read so download it today!

  • Free Kindle Books – All Weekend Long

    In honor of my Irish heritage, you can get Kindle versions of both of my books for free all this weekend.

    Don’t Mess Up My Block is my newest novel. It’s a funny parody of self-help books that examines the American faith in gurus and easy solutions.

    Murder in Ocean Hall is my first book. It’s a mystery and is ideal for anyone who wants to learn about Washington beyond the monuments.

    And you don’t even need a Kindle to read them for free. You can also read them for free using the Kindle app on the iPad, iPhone or computer.

  • Don't Mess Up My Block Advances to Second Round of ABNA

    My new book, Don’t Mess Up My Block, has advanced to the Second Round of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award (ABNA).

    ABNA brings together talented writers, reviewers, and publishing experts to find and develop new voices in fiction. The 2012 international contest will award two grand prizes: one for General Fiction and one for Young Adult Fiction. Each winner will receive a publishing contract with Penguin, which includes a $15,000 advance.

    Finalists will be announced in May with grand prize winners selected in June.

    Don’t Mess Up My Block is a novel that satirizes self-help books like Who Moved My Cheese and The Secret. It follows the adventures of an ambitious consultant as he goes from disaster to disaster, believing that success is a matter of just following the right catchphrase.

    Read the first chapter and then buy it for yourself!

  • First Chapter – Don't Mess Up My Block

    Here’s the first chapter of my new novel, Don’t Mess Up My Block. This fictional work is a satire of self-help books and is a funny, fast read. Check it out!

    A Street Corner Epiphany

    All business success rests on something labeled a sale, which at least momentarily weds company and customer.
    – Tom Peters

    Late one night, I got lost. It is on these unexpected journeys that you sometimes encounter the greatest discoveries. I certainly did.

    Was it the 97 Pinch Mountain cabernet? Or perhaps the postprandial mojitos we imbibed at Marquez? It had been a client dinner that had gone long, after a day of business process reinvention. My client (an elderly CEO I cannot name) was garrulous, as many of them are, and wanted to talk and theorize after spending the day planning the next great reorganization of his Fortune 500 company. (more…)

  • My New Novel – Don't Mess Up My Block

    Don't Mess Up My Block book cover

    I’ve written a second novel. Don’t Mess Up My Block is a funny parody of self-help books like The Secret and Who Moved My Cheese. Here’s the description:

    The secret to success is to not let other people “mess up your block.”

    Or at least that’s what Laurent Christ thinks, in this satiric novel disguised as a self-help book.

    Laurent has pursued self-improvement to its logical conclusion – he reinvents himself with a brand-new name and history. He drops a hundred pounds, shaves his head and goes on the road as a management consultant, providing advice to corporations around the county. Everywhere he goes, comic disaster follows as companies follow his glib counsel.

    But failure is not going to stop him as follows the path laid out by his mentor, Esalen McGillicuddy. One man and a story – that’s all you need to make it in America.

    As a management expert, he’s inevitably drawn to Washington, DC. But even he is appalled by the incompetent bureaucracy he finds in the city. Maybe he’s been wrong about everything. Maybe you need more than a catchphrase to find success in this country.

    Laurent tells the sprawling story of his life in Don’t Mess Up My Block, a literary novel that examines the American faith in gurus and easy solutions. It’s a dark satire that is reminiscent of Catch-22 and Absurdistan.

    Don’t Mess Up My Block is available in a variety of formats:

    Check it out – the novel is a funny, entertaining read.