Blog Tour: Runaway Smile

Things happen for a reason

smicov1I’ve come to realize lately that things happen in their own time. No matter how much I want something, if it’s meant to happen, it will, no effort needed on my part.  Other times, I might want something very much, but no matter how much effort I put into it, it just doesn’t happen – and trust me; this has happened a lot.  Then again, something that I completely ignore might just flourish in front of my eyes, unexpectedly and effortlessly.

Following that, I think about how things have “happened” in my life, leading me to where I am right now.  I studied civil engineering (my dad’s idea of a secure job) and in 1995 I went on to do a PhD in Digital Architecture (the only way for me to link my degree with two of my passions, design and computers).  Hardly a month into the course, a professor asked me out of the blue to make a website for the department, from scratch. He gave me three days to do it; days I spent reading a lot, experimented quite a bit and pulling hair, until I did it, and my first website went live at the end of the 3-day period.

I’ve been working as a web developer for almost 20 years now. I still do, partly because I have to earn a living and partly because I’ve worked so hard to create Istomedia, my company, that I feel like it’s kind of a family member.  Then, a couple of years ago, I realized that I had started losing patience: with clients, projects, designs, programming, the constant need for updating and upgrading and the 6-month life cycle of everything technological.  I turned to writing as a relief, and realized, startled, that it was all I wanted to do.

Every now and again, I wonder whether my studies and everything I have worked for is going to waste.  But I think not: my degree has helped me to study and organize my thoughts.  My PhD taught how to properly research topics, question everything, look for new and different ways to achieve a result.  My work has taught me how to market my book, design its cover, create the ebook file.  Indie publishing requires the same skills: presenting myself and my work to potential clients, networking, promoting my creations, finishing a project within a deadline and a budget etc.

So, at 44, life has brought me where I am. All the things I’ve done, have arguably happened because I need them today.  Which is why I try to practice nowadays what Tao Te Ching calls Wei Wu Wei – actionless action: the art of setting your destination and letting life take you there.  It’s a nice concept, isn’t it?

And if you’re curious as to where life has brought me so far, read my children’s book Runaway Smile, online for free and find out!

Book Blurb

Cover_Runaway_Smile_700I woke up this morning and I had lost my smile and it wasn’t my fault and I looked everywhere and it was gone. Then I met a workman and a king and the best salesman in the world and a clown and no-one wanted to give me theirs. At school, I asked Miss to give me hers, but she gave us a pop quiz instead, and then no-one was smiling and… From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children’s books A little boy wakes up in the morning and realizes he has lost his smile. After spending the entire day trying to find it, he learns the truth behind smiles: the only real smiles are the shared ones.

Contact Information

I’m all around the Internet, but the best place to find me would be my blog, http://nicholasrossis.me/.

Anyone interested in my books can check them out on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Nicholas-C.-Rossis/e/B00FXXIBZA/

Also, people can read for free both Pearseus: Schism, on Goodreads and

Runaway Smile on my blog: http://nicholasrossis.me/childrens-books/

Other places to connect with me include

Brief Bio

book photo NR_1000Avid reader. Web developer. Architect by training, holder of a PhD in Digital Architecture from the University of Edinburgh. Most importantly, author.

Nicholas loves to write. He has published Runaway Smile, a children’s book, and the Amazon best-selling epic fantasy series, Pearseus. The fourth book in the series is currently edited, and expected to be released mid-February.

He has also published The Power of Six, a collection of short sci-fi stories that include his award-winning short story, I Come in Peace. This, too, has reached #1 on Amazon.

Nicholas lives in Athens, Greece, at a forest’s edge, with his wife, dog and two very silly cats, one of whom is always sitting on his lap, so please excuse any typos in his blog posts: typing with one hand can be hard. Mercifully, all of his books are professionally edited.

Blog Tour Links

Goodreads Event Page – https://www.goodreads.com/event/show/952438-runaway-smile-blog-tour

Rafflecopter Giveaway Page – https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/4af5be7f9/

smileblogtour

This tour sponsored by 4WillsPublishing.wordpress.com.

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39 comments

  1. PH, thanks for hosting this stop. Your support is much appreciated.

    Nicholas, loved the post and I couldn’t agree more. Things have happened in my life much as you described and sometimes I think I settled, meaning I should have tried harder at some point. Reading your post, though, reminded that letting life take care of its own course and watching the pieces come into place give us a sense of peace and realization as opposed to the anxiety of swimming against the tide.
    Thank YOU for this reminder. I needed it today.

    Good luck with your tour. Your book looks amazing and it’s in my TBR list for 2015,
    Liz

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  3. Pingback: SPOTLIGHT Blog Tour: Runaway Smile | lizgavin

  4. “Which is why I try to practice nowadays what Tao Te Ching calls Wei Wu Wei – actionless action: the art of setting your destination and letting life take you there.” I love that concept, Nich. Great post. Best of luck with your book. Thanks for hosting, PH.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

      1. I ended up doing two translations; one literal, and one free. The book I self-published through Createspace includes both of them, side by side, so that people can decide for themselves what the verse means to them.

        The whole thing took me over a year – longer than any of my books! I even taught myself a little Chinese to better understand it, and used half a dozen different English translations to better grasp all possible meanings of each verse. But I loved it!

        Liked by 2 people

      2. That’s fantastic. I had a year of ancient Greek when I was in college so I can still do a bit of translation like that myself. My wife is a French teacher so she translates at times too. I really understand the challenge of translating. It’s not easy to communicate nuance of culture and perspective between 2 languages. My hat’s off to you!

        Liked by 2 people

      3. Thank you! I did do my best, but have no idea how it will read to a Chinese 🙂

        You see, the problem with ideograms is that they very laconic. For example, there;s this 9-character inscription on King T’ang’s bath – that only uses 4 characters:

        “If day renew
        day day renew
        again day renew”

        Translated literally, then, it doesn’t make much sense. A free translation, however, reveals the meaning:

        “If you take a bath each new day, each day you will feel like a new person”

        The above translation follows closer the structure to the following one:

        “By taking a daily bath, you will start each day refreshed”

        Both are valid translations, but the second one is closer to what a person might actually say in English. Hence my dual translation!

        I can only hope that I managed to rise to the challenge! 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

  5. I really enjoyed your post today, Nick. There’s a lot of wisdom that philosophy of actionless action! I too, am grateful for ending up where I am on my life’s journey! Thanks for sharing thour thoughts with us. Thank you for hosting Nick today, P.H.!

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

  8. This was an awesome post Nich but I would say that everything you’ve done up til this point, has gotten you right where you should be, serving next to those other awesome board members of RRBC! Thanks Wei Wu Wei!!!!

    P.H., as always, you’re such a gracious host! Thank you!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  10. OMG Nicholas! I didn’t know you majored in Civil engineering. Me too!! 🙂 Although I don’t have the impressive PhD.
    And I love how you’re so positive about all the twists and turns in life. No way can we predict all that when we graduate college.
    Loren

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  12. P.H., thank you for hosting this talented writer. Your support is truly appreciated. Nicholas, great post. It’s fascinating to learn about people, fellow RRBC members, and fellow writers. Thank you for sharing.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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