Wait - the Meandering Mouse wrote some books?

That radio interview reminded me of something: I haven't yet told my blog readers about my e-books!

I've tooted the horn on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn - but not here. This is a personal blog, not a business blog, but that's no reason not to write a post about Goody Ideas and It is OK. For less than the average price of a magazine (and with far fewer ads!), these two e-books can be yours.

Here is the text from my press release:

Jennie Brown Hakim appreciates the fact that today’s technology makes it easier for people with ideas to tell the world – right away.

“I have no problem with responsible gatekeepers of media, such as traditional book publishers,” says Ms. Hakim. “But it takes time for a book to get published the ‘normal’ way – more than a year from acceptance to publication date. With e-book technology, a book can get to its audience hours after the final draft is done. How amazing is that?”

Ms. Hakim’s two e-books, Goody Ideas and It is OK, are made for an audience that seeks new ways of thinking. Goody ideas, according to Ms. Hakim, are ideas that are meant to bring nothing but joy. Their end result is fun and happy memories. Most goody ideas have low or even no cost – all you need to bring is imagination.

Some of Ms. Hakim’s goody ideas include making poetry out of collected cookie fortunes, listening to favorite songs at 2 a.m., and having a “Bed-In” like John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Each one of her 100 goody ideas can be done alone as well as with others, so the reader does not have to depend on company to play. “I know how hard it can be to get other people to go along. No matter how many friends you have, they may not always be ready when you are.”

It is OK was years in the making – Ms. Hakim started writing what “it is OK” to do in a notebook back in 2006. Bit by bit, the project grew until it was over 5,000 words. At that point, it was the size of a book.

“We receive so many messages about what it is not OK to do,” Ms. Hakim says. “I like the idea of a book which says what is OK to do – and it’s more than you may think.”

Some examples from the book include:

• It is OK, if you’re a gal, if your best friend is a guy (and vice versa).
• It is OK to admit that you don’t have it all figured out – even as an adult.
• It is OK to prefer white rice to brown rice. (The same goes for bread.)

Ms. Hakim also designed both of the book covers using the Adobe Creative Suite. “Book design is another of my creative specialties, and it is a meditation for me. When a book is well-designed, it can’t help but add to the reading experience. Thanks to technology, e-books can be just as beautiful as printed ones.”

Both e-books are now being sold for the Amazon Kindle, the Barnes & Noble Nook, and at Smashwords (which sells books that can be read on almost any e-reader). The links can be found at Ms. Hakim’s site, JennieBrownHakim.com.

These are certainly not the last words from Ms. Hakim, who has written articles for Orange Coast and Vision magazines. “I want to see what reception these two books get, but of course I expect to write more in the near future. I can’t not write, after all.”