This advert was banned in South Africa

This advert reverses the black and white South African stereotypes. A must see!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcWsTwvtyOI&feature=related

Win with Echelon Press

USA elections versus South African Elections, continued

http://www.madamandeve.com/cartoons/me004177.jpg

:-)

South Africa's comment on Obama

Read what South Africans have to say about the latest USA Elections:
http://www.madamandeve.com/cartoons/me004176.jpg.

Speaking of elections, it's South Africa's turn in 2009. "Murder @ Play", the prequel to "Murder @ Work" (hey, if George Lucas could do it...), will be released by Echelon Press soon. "Murder @ Play" is set at the time of the first free and fair elections in South Africa (1994) and it will make for important reading in 2009.

South Africa is gearing up for the Elections

Have a look at the plumber's perspective:
http://www.madamandeve.com/cartoons/me004172.jpg

Pssst: the prequel to "Murder @ Work"

Echelon Press will be publishing "Murder @ Play" soon. Read about it on http://www.longandshortreviews.com/LASR/ArchiveInterview/080930-YvonneEveWalus.htm.

President Mbeki Quits

President Mbeki Quits. "Madam and Eve" reports:

http://www.madamandeve.com/cartoons/me004130.gif

(Regrets, I've had a few, but then again, too few to mention...)

Book Trailer and Excerpt

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

If you like multi-cultural books, you might also enjoy....

Today this blog welcomes a Red Rose Publishing author, Delores Walker. Her mainstream romance, "WHEN MARIAH SMILES" is the first book in a series.

Yvonne: Delores, can you tell us about both the book and the series?

Delores: This book is the first in my Williams Men Series. I wanted a book where you knew what the hero was thinking as well as the heroine. I remember the first book I read where the hero point of view was given. I was blown away. I always thought it would be only fair to know the hero's vunerabilities. I grew up with one point of view, the heroine. These stories follow the Williams Men; three strong completely self confident individuals. They are not afraid to pursue what they want in life. That includes the women. The first book tells the story of Edward Mason's estranged son. Travis Williams. He is forced into a marriage of convenience to save his cruiseline. The second story will focus on Jeremie. He is a complete unknown. You'll learn more about him later. The last story will be Edward's story. He finally gets the woman of his dreams... after more than thirty years.

Yvonne: Unless you look at the cover, you wouldn't guess that the novel is multi-cultural. Can you tell us about the background that your hero and heroine come from, and whether it influences the story?

Delores: The hero's background is Native American, Caucasian and African American. You will learn more about that in Edward's story. The heroine is African American. My original aim was to pair a darker hued hero with Travis' lighter skin on the cover. It was a long hard search. I wanted a the two to look lovingly into each others eyes. My cover came about after a struggle as to whether I wanted my concept(of her smile) on the cover or two people who fit the description, but not the concept.

Yvonne: Sounds awesome. Can we please have an excerpt?

Delores: Mariah has run into the "Three Divas" who tortured her in highschool. They are convinced that Mariah has settled for an old sugar daddy. They haven't had a chance to meet her handsome young hubby. When they finally meet Eva decides she want him for himself.

"You mean he can still walk? We thought you had to push him from place to place."

"Not yet. He's in fine shape if I do say so myself. I must compliment each of you ladies. You all look absolutely stunning."

"These are Neal Exclusives," Eva stated proudly. "It is almost impossible to find anything classy for women of color. For some reason designers want to keep us in fire engine red or bright yellow. But, I see you must be familiar with the line. That looks to be one of her designs you're wearing."

"Well, yes and no. It is a Neal Exclusive. However, it's one of my own designs. I am proud to be able to claim rights to your designs as well." Mariah paused. "You see I know about problems finding colors that compliment your skin tone. In fact, I have you three ladies to thank.

"Because of you, I spent a lot of time by myself in high school. So, I put it to good use sketching. After graduation I attended the Savannah School of Fashion Design. And the rest is history."

Sharica was the first to regain the power of speech. "You know, I do remember you walking around with a sketch book." Her look had changed from patronizing to awe. "Get out! Mariah, honey you have made a mint off us three."

Soon after the three are introduced to Mariah's extremely attractive husband and the games begin.....

Yvonne: I love it! And I can see why the publisher loved it too. Which reminds me. Tell us about your publisher: are they absolutely amazing and why?

Delores: I simply love Red Rose. They are amazing. My experience with them has been very positive. Wendi Felter, the owner, is very hands on.

Yvonne: I've spoken to Wendi a few times, and she's absolutely awesome. I hope "WHEN MARIAH SMILES" is the bestselling success it deserves to be. Where can we buy your book?

Delores: It can be purchased at Red Rose Publishing, Mobi Pockets and Books on Board.

Yvonne: Red Rose Publishing is the place to do your shopping this month. They're running a contest to win... a pair of black and white (!!!) diamond earrings. Check it out!

What South Africans Laugh About

What South Africans Laugh About Today:
http://www.madamandeve.co.za/week_of_cartns.php

What South Africans Laughed About 5 Years ago:
http://www.madamandeve.co.za/five_years_ago.php

What South Africans Laughed About in 1996 when Murder @ Work is set:
http://www.madamandeve.co.za/archive.php?self_day=28&self_month=7&self_year=1996&selt_day=28&selt_month=8&selt_year=1996&do_search=1&search=vanilla&start=0

Watch the book trailer

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Interesting letter by John Mauldin, one of the US's top investment advisors

I start this week's letter somewhere over the Atlantic, halfway through an 11-hour flight from Frankfurt to Dallas. It has been an altogether marvellous 11 days in South Africa, speaking to over 1,000 people at 12 venues, giving a half dozen media interviews, and meeting with many individuals.This week, I want to give you some impressions of not only South Africa, but talk a little about emerging markets in general.

Finding Value in South AfricaI realized about halfway through my recent trip that it had been some time since I was in an emerging-market country. I have been to over 50 countries over the past 20 years, but recently most of my travels have been to Europe and Canada, with the occasional vacation trip to Mexico.As I observed South Africa, it was forcefully brought home to me that there is more to the emerging-market story than China, India, and Brazil. There are any number of countries that are seeing robust growth and contributing to the world economy. It was reported at Davos this year that for the first time the developing world has a larger share of world GDP than the developed world. Today, we focus on an emerging-market country that does not make as much news as it should.As I mentioned above, the mood among those I talked with in South Africa in the early 1990s when I was travelling often to South Africa was quite pessimistic. The economy was not good, due to international economic sanctions stemming from worldwide protests over the policy of apartheid. Changes and elections were coming, and it was not clear what would happen.

I travelled for (mostly) business into 14 other sub-Saharan countries in Africa. With a few notable exceptions, most countries were not doing well and things had progressed from bad to worse over the previous 10-20 years. It was a tough time to try and do business, but it was a great education.The contrast today is amazing. Before we get into some facts, let me give you a few impressions. First, there are construction cranes everywhere in the four cities I visited: Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, and Cape Town. Twelve years ago the thirty miles from Johannesburg to Pretoria was mostly agricultural land. Today it is one big city, with offices, malls, and homes lining the freeway. There was a significant number of rather nice new housing developments, many if not most being built on speculation all along the freeway.Johannesburg is a world-class city, on a par with New York or London or any major city in terms of facilities, shops, infrastructure... and traffic. There were new shopping malls all over, and the stores were busy. The restaurants were excellent. The hotels I stayed in and spoke at were excellent and modern. The Sandton area is particularly pleasant.

Durban is a tropical jewel on the Indian Ocean. Again, there was construction everywhere - a green, verdant city of 1,000,000 people, with modern roads and great weather.I have been to Sydney, Vancouver, and San Francisco. I love all of them. But for my money, Cape Town is the most beautiful city I have been to in the world. Amazing mountains, blue water harbours, white sand beaches, with wineries nestled in among the mountains and valleys. The Waterfront area, where I stayed, is fun and vibrant. Again, an amazing amount of construction everywhere, especially in the waterfront area, as investors from Dubai are pouring huge sums of money into creating a massive residential/business/ retail/restaurant development. There are several similar, quite large developments going up in different parts of Cape Town.I ate dinner on Friday night at a restaurant called Baia at the Waterfront. I find I really love the better South African chardonnays. My friends know I am something of a chardonnay snob. I like the better California wineries. I was pleasantly surprised to find more than a few South African chards the equal of their US counterparts, but at a third to half the price for the same level of quality. (I should note that a decent chardonnay in London or Europe is twice the US price.) The two of us had the best chardonnay in the restaurant and one of the better meals I have had in a long time, and the bill was less than $100.

The next day my partner Prieur du Plessis informed me that Baia was one of the most expensive restaurants in town. By way of comparison, you can easily spend 2-3 times that at a comparable restaurant in Dallas, and 4-5 times that in New York. Forget London. I began to ask about the bills for food, drinks, and such for the rest of the trip. The country was uniformly about half what I would pay in Texas for the same quality. I stayed in a very nice five-star hotel (The Commodore) for six nights for less than $1,000, including several meals, laundry, and my bar tab. Their walk-up price was much higher, but clearly you can get deals, and it is tourist season at that. The service was terrific and uniformly delivered with smiles.

The exceptionally nice private game reserve (Itaga) we stayed at when I first arrived, trying to get over jet lag, was only a few hundred a night, including meals, wine, and game runs. In short, after having been to London and Europe for my last few overseas trips, South Africa seemed like a bargain. And it was not just the people I spoke to that were optimistic. Grant Thornton (a large international accounting firm) did a survey in the 30 countries in which they do business. The four countries with the most optimism and confidence were India, Ireland, South Africa, and Mainland China. Why such confidence? I think there are several reasons. The economy has been growing at a reported almost 5% a year for the past several years, which is quite strong. They have had 32 consecutive quarters of positive growth. But the official figures may understate the reality by a significant amount. If you look at the VAT (value-added tax) receipts, as well as other tax figures, some economists estimate the economy may be growing by 7% or more. Why the difference?

There is a large "informal" economy in South Africa. While much of the income may not be reported, when something is bought and sold in the retail sectors, taxes are collected.
The stock market has grown by over 25%, 47%, and 41% for the last three years. Such a bull run is always a boost to confidence. But there are also some real fundamentals underlying the emerging-market Bull markets. South Africa has a strong commodity sector, with numerous commodities and not just gold.

JP Morgan thinks that earnings growth for South African companies, even adjusting for some anomalies, will be 20% this year, which should mean another good year for their local markets.This link between commodities and stock market prices is reflected not just in their stock market, but in emerging markets worldwide. Look at the close correlation for the last ten years between the prices of commodities and the emerging-market equity index. I think this rather clearly shows the link between the recent rise in commodity prices and emerging markets. It is more than just a China story.Football as an Economic Driver The attention paid to football (or soccer in the United States) is rising to fever pitch in South Africa. And for good reason: they will host the World Cup in 2010. They expect some 3,000,000 fans to show up. (FYI - a friend of mine works for FIFA in JNB & they are expecting about 500,000 fans to come from abroad. R.) The government is using the occasion to spend some 400 billion Rand (a little over US $50 billion) on all sorts of infrastructure projects.

They are doubling the size of the major airports, which had already been significantly improved. Walking past the construction at the Johannesburg airport, you have to be impressed with the size of it. New roads and other forms of infrastructure are being added to prepare for the influx, but it will have the added effect of making the country more competitive, just as infrastructure in China has been a boost to that country, and a lack of infrastructure has limited India.The World Cup will also be a boost to tourism, already one of the most important sectors of the economy. Cape Town is becoming an international destination for vacations and conferences. The growth in tourism has been strong, showing 20% growth last year from 2005. 2006 was a record year.
Interestingly, 75% of the traffic reported in the tourism growth is from Africa and the Middle East. While a lot of the people are vacationers, I think a goodly portion are businessmen and women from all over sub-Saharan Africa who look to South Africa as a deal-doing financial centre.

South Africa has a quite strong, very competent, and growing financial services sector that is a magnet for entrepreneurs from all over Africa seeking to find capital. South Africa also has a strong entrepreneurial class which is the base for much of the new business and development, not just in South Africa but in all of Africa.The rest of the world rightly sees South Africa as the place to launch into the rest of Africa.Are there problems in South Africa? Of course, and some of them are quite serious. But that is the case in nearly all (I cannot think of an exception) emerging-market economies. While the overall crime rate is dropping, it is still far too high. Some rather high-profile crimes of late have resulted in a strong outcry for serious change.Corruption is an issue, but that is the case in almost every emerging-market country. The high levels of poverty are evident. Although employment is growing and more and more of the poor are being brought into the economy, there is still a lot of room for progress.The telecommunications infrastructure is hampered by a lack of serious competition.

Access to the internet is limited in many areas, and it is really slow where it does exist. This will improve in the coming years, but it is a serious handicap to business. There are power shortages and the need for more power-generation plants to keep up with the growth.But all these areas are (mostly) going to improve. I see a lot of opportunity in South Africa in particular and Africa in general. Let's look at one area where there may be more than a little potential in the future.I think there is deep long-term value in African (not just South African) farmland. Right now, given the nature of US and European subsidies to agriculture, it is hard for developing-world farmers to compete. But that will change in the next decade.As I have written before, "Old Europe" the US and even Australia are going to come under intense government budgetary pressure due to the high levels of pension and medical costs they have promised their retiring boomers. Europe is particularly vulnerable. Quite simply, Europe cannot afford to keep the pension promises they have made and pay for any other normal government expenses without raising taxes. Except that they already have economy-stifling high taxes.Budgets are going to have to be cut in other areas.

At some point, sooner rather than later, agricultural subsidies are going to come under pressure, as politicians must decide where to find the money to pay for the promised pensions and health care. There are more voters who are older and on pensions than there are farmers. I can count votes, and it is not hard to predict the result. It will be with a lot of fighting, but in the medium run, the agricultural subsidies in Europe are going to have to go.When the writing is clearly on the wall, Europe will start to negotiate on those subsidies, trying to get something for what they will have no choice but to give. Part of that will be to reduce US subsidies as well. Africa will become a breadbasket for much of Asia. With China pressed for water and much of its agricultural land being used for development, China will need to import more food. And as the rest of the world becomes more developed, there will be an increased demand for meat, which means an even bigger demand for feed grains for livestock. The growing use of ethanol is increasing demand for corn, absorbing more of the world's land use for energy corn rather than for food.

The simple fact is that as the world grows more prosperous we are going to need more grain and other foods. Where is the land we are going to need to feed the world? There is an abundance in Africa, along with the needed water and labour. And as African countries upgrade their infrastructure, it will improve the ability of farmers to get their grains to market at profitable levels.There is much to like about emerging markets. That is where a great deal of the real potential growth in the coming decades will be. And South Africa will be one of the better stories. If you are not doing business there already, you should ask yourself, why not?

Let's start at the very beginning....

• To begin at the beginning, I record that I was born.
• Lst night, I dreamt I went to Manderley again.
• Scarlett O'Hara was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it.

Here is how I started my "Murder @ Work":
http://startatbeginning.blogspot.com/2008/05/murder-work-by-yvonne-eve-walus.html

No stock on Amazon....

I have good news and bad news: "Murder @ Work" is sold out on Amazon. As the author, I'm ecstatic. As a customer who'd like to send it as a present to my friends, I'm disappointed.

Customer Services cannot give me a date on when stock will be replenished, so meanwhile, if you'd like to buy the book, please contact Echelon Press or get the e-version of "Murder @ Work" on Fictionwise.

“Slam”

All my deadlines, writing competitions, proof-reading and promotion efforts are now temporarily under control. I’m reading again and it feels good. What I’m supposed to be doing, of course, is my GST, which is why I’m reading.

Nick Hornby’s “Slam” is something I would not have selected to read if it weren’t for the author. “Slam” blurb claims the book is all about this 16yo kid who skates (that’s skateboarding, not ice skating) and talks to his bedroom wall poster.

What “Slam” is actually about, though, is life, love, relationships and parenthood. What “Slam” is actually about, is Nick Hornby’s beautiful turn of phrase (even when he speaks Teenage) and his acute observations. What “Slam” is about, is deep philosophy disguised as a fast-food book.

Although it’s not “High Fidelity”, it’s still one heck of a read.

PS One thing I really admire about Nick Hornby is that every book of his has a unique set of vocabulary, be it music, soccer or skating, pertinent to the theme and the main character.

How I Killed My Boss

Join me at the Birkenhead library (Auckland, New Zealand) on Sunday 27 April at 4pm to find out.

It's all in the setting...

Check out my interview about the setting of "Murder @ Work" here: http://itsallinthesetting.blogspot.com/2008/04/murder-at-work-by-yvonne-eve-walus.html ....

How I killed my boss

If you'd like to know how I killed my boss, please visit the online chat at Love Romances Cafe, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveRomancesCafe/ on April 10th, from 9 to 3 (EST Time).

Lots of excerpts, with ebooks and paperbacks to give away!

"Murder @ Work": A boss out of hell + A woman with a mission to put him there.


Reminder: For a chance to win 1 of the 3 paperback copies of "Murder @ Work", simply go to http://www.sleuthedit.com/featuring.html during April 2008 and enter the draw.

Genderism in South Africa and USA

Apartheid in South Africa was not only about race: it was also about gender. In those days, women were not allowed to enter a bar or join the Toastmasters Association. Even if a woman earned a higher salary than her husband, she was not allowed to open a credit account in a shop without her husband's permission (read "Murder @ Work" for more insights on the topic).

All that has changed. And yet, in the run-up to the 2009 General Elections, there is no sign of women candidates. I imagine South Africa is simply not ready for a woman president. What about USA?

Says Earl Ofari Hutchinson in "The Ethnic Presidency: How Race Affects the Race to the White House":

(...) There were also mixed signals if whether being a woman would help more than hurt Clinton even with women in a wide segment of America. In a Newsweek poll in July 2007, fewer voters said they would vote for a woman candidate for president than a black candidate. Hillary scored just as dismal when asked whether the country was ready for a female president. More said no to this question than said no for a black president. The gender reluctance by big chunks of voters was in part offset by the experience factor. Hillary scored big on this in the polls.

The Hillary distaste in part explained why in February 2007 Hollywood mogul David Geffen, a long time Clinton family cheerleader and campaign bankroller sucker punched Clinton with the knock that she would polarize voters. The implication was that she would be a disaster for the Democrats if she were to get the party presidential bid. Geffen rapped Clinton at the moment that he and some other Hollywood movie big shots pumped a reported cool million dollars into Obama’s campaign coffers. (...)

At the same moment, a slew of conservative hit groups loudly announced they had sunk loads of cash into a pack of “stop Hillary” websites, muckraking pieces and scheduled attack ads on her. They vowed this was just the start of a freewheeling, no holds barred disinformation effort to sabotage her campaign.

For more information about Earl Ofari Hutchinson and The Ethnic Presidency: How Race Affects the Race to the White House, visit his blog blitz homepage - http://inspiredauthor.com/promotion/Ethnic+Presidency+Blitz. To order your copy of the Ethnic Presidency, visit www.ethnicpresidency.com orwww.amazon.com/Ethnic-Presidency-Decides-White-House/dp/1881032256

Will America accept a black president?

It's ironic if you think about it. South Africa, the echelon of apartheid during the better part of the 20th century, has a black president. Continually since 1994, in fact. (My book, "Murder @ Work", explores how South Africans reacted to that.)

Now the world's eyes are on USA. Would America accept a black president?

The Ethnic Presidency: How Race Decides the Race to the White House is an explosive look at how racial and ethnic conflict has openly and covertly played a crucial role the past three decades in influencing, shaping and ultimately deciding who bags the world’s biggest political prize, the White House. It tells how racial politics will play an even bigger role in the 2008 presidential election and future elections.

It examines Obamamania, the Hillary and Bill factor, the soaring Latino vote, the silent but potent Asian-American vote, the immigration wars, the GOP’s love-hate relationship with black and Latino America, and Bush’s effort to recast the GOP from a clubby, ole white guys party to a party of racial diversity.

For more information, visit this link
www.amazon.com/Ethnic-Presidency-Decides-White-House/dp/1881032256.

About the author of The Ethnic Presidency: Earl Ofari Hutchinson is an author, syndicated columnist, political analyst and commentator. He has been a frequent guest on Hannity and Colmes, The O’Reilly Factor, The Big Story, EXTRA, and numerous CNN News and Talk Shows.

Win copies of my book!

Please come visit me on www.mysteryloverscorner.com - I'm their featured author for the month of April. If you click through to the interview, you can enter the draw to win one of three copies of "Murder @ Work".

Let us judge by the cover

A cool interview about the cover of "Murder @ Work":
http://judgebookbycover.blogspot.com/2008/03/murder-at-work-by-yvonne-eve-walus.html

About "Murder @ Work"

This is an office who-dunnit, set in South Africa during the period of transition from an apartheid government to democracy. Although not a political thriller, it captures the flavour of the socio-political atmosphere. Apartheid in South Africa was not only about race, it was about gender, too. The book shows how people of the "old school of thinking" adapted to the new reality of a woman being allowed to walk into a bar or own a house without her husband's permission.

Christine Chamberlain doesn't want much from life: a steady job, a baby, and a Fields Medal. Her boss, however, wants money and he's willing to do anything to get his way, even if it means getting Christine involved in a project that not only jeopardises her dreams, but also her life. When Christine complains to her colleagues, they joke about killing the boss to solve the problem. Almost everybody has an obvious motive to get rid of the boss from hell... and a few hidden ones they don't share. The next day, Christine brings fennel oil to work. It’s not the world's deadliest poison, and Christine would of course never dream to use it as such. Or would she?

“Murder @ Work”

Publisher: Echelon Press

Date: 2004

ISBN: 1590803256

Available from Fictionwise.com and Amazon.com