Posted by Elena del Valle on September 14, 2022
Mindfulness Through the Stars
Photo: Mango Publishing Group
Ashley Flores, who as of this writing has 172,000 subscribers on YouTube, where she posts content as the Amateur Guru, wrote Mindfulness Through the Stars A Zodiac Wellness Guide (Mango Publishing Group, $22.95). The 175-page hardcover book has a 2020 copyright.
The book, her first, is divided into an Introduction, a chapter for each sign of the zodiac as well as a chapter on mindfulness and one on self care. According to her biography the Canadian resident is an amateur astrologist.
When asked about the primary target audience for the book the author replied via email through a Mango representative, “While writing this book, I tried not to have a specific target audience in mind. Of course, I knew a large portion of the people choosing to purchase and read my book would be viewers of my youtube channel. These viewers are typically young adults, of all genders. However, I targeted my book towards people who value personal-development, mindfulness, self-care, and of course astrology lovers! I wanted to cater this book to people who have a basic understanding of zodiac signs, so that they could learn the potential that tuning into their zodiac signs energy can have on aiding them on their self-help journey!”
Regarding the amount of time the project required from idea to publication she said, “Prior to beginning the writing process, I worked closely with Mango to develop an editorial brief, come up with a name, a cover, and of course – a general idea of what the book could be. This process took a few months. I began writing the book in October 2019 and the final draft was submitted early May 2020. It was a much quicker process than I had imagined!”
When asked if she has plans for other titles she said, “Absolutely! I am planning to release a guided journal, as well as a second self-help book. I am also currently working on guided workbooks and worksheets.”
When asked her motivation in writing the book she said, “As a child and young adult, I had always had a passion for writing. I often wrote short stories, poetry, and scripts. It was always a goal of mine to release a book. Eventually, I channeled all of my creative energy into my youtube channel which gained the attention of Mango Publishing. They saw something in me, and presented the idea to me to write a book on Astrology. It all felt very aligned with my passions, and I happily decided to work with them on this book!”
“As a creative person, I have many goals and aspirations,” she said when asked what she hopes to achieve. “A few things I would love to achieve are writing a second book, becoming a life coach, success on both of my youtube channels, and using my platform and endeavours to help change the lives of others around me. I have a passion for helping others understand themselves and their true passions, and would love to see how far I can take that.”
How will she measure success in relation to the book? “If just one person can read my book and say it helped change their life for the better…That is success to me.”
Regarding ways and channels other than her own YouTube videos she uses to promote the book she said, “I promote my book mostly through my TikTok and Instagram, however – I bring it up in real life conversations as often as I can! I live in a big city and meet a lot of people, and always go out of my way to bring up my book as often as possible! People are very supportive and either purchase the book, or recommend it to a friend.”
When asked about the title and the chapter on self care she said, “To me, being mindful is to be intentional and aware. These are forms of self-care to me. Being intentional allows me to make sure that all of my actions are in alignment with who I am and what I want. When I take the time to be intentional, I find that I am able to tune into my higher self with ease. This is important to me because I strive to be the best version of myself daily. When I show up for myself, and others – I want to make sure I am reaching, or close to – my highest potential.”
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Filed Under: Books
Posted by Elena del Valle on August 31, 2022
On October 4, 2022 MhzChoice.com plans to offer its first Japanese series, according to a recent press release. Pension Metsa, a six-episode miniseries released in 2021, features Tenko, a Japanese woman who runs a one room country guesthouse in the Nagano larch forest. Nagano is 278 kilometers northwest of Tokyo. MhzChoice.com provided a screener although no images or video clips were available for editorial publication.
A different brief story unfolds around a guest star in each 20-minute episode. The stories take place in and around the pretty guesthouse and its natural environs. Often there are shared meals and soulful conversations.
Satomi Kobayashi is Tenko. According to Imdb.com Kana Matsumoto is the writer and director of the series. The episodes are in Japanese. English subtitles were added by the streaming service.
Actress Tôko Miura, who played the young chauffeur Misaki in the Oscar-winning feature Drive My Car, appears in Episode 6. MhzChoice.com offers a streaming subscription service of European series and programs with English subtitles.
Posted by Elena del Valle on August 10, 2022
Las mujeres en la química and Las mujeres en la física
Photos: Science, Naturally!
Targeting children aged seven to ten with English and Spanish language 37-page and 39-page titles about the sciences Science, Naturally! released Las Mujeres en la química and Las mujeres en la física by Mary Wissinger last year. Danielle Pioli illustrated the titles. The books are translations of Women in Chemistry and Women in Physics originally published by Genius Games LLC in 2016.
Women in Chemistry
Michelle A. Ramirez and The Spanish Group were responsible for translating both titles. Lidia Diaz, Ph.D., and Camilla Hallman are listed as Spanish-language consultants for Las mujeres en la física. Spanish-Milka O. Montes, Ph.D., and Hallman are listed as Spanish-language consultants for the second Spanish language book. All titles have a $12.95 cover price.
Dia L. Michels, publisher, Science, Naturally!
“We have promoted these books across all of our social media platforms and to our newsletter subscribers,” said Dia L. Michels, publisher, Science, Naturally! via email when asked in what ways and via what channels her company has promoted the titles. “We also reached out to educators, librarians, and STEM programs. And, of course, to the reviewers and customers who already love our other Spanish-language books! They are always excited to hear about new ways to share STEM content with children. We submitted Las mujeres en la química for Empowering Latino Future’s International Latino Book Awards, under the translation category, and it earned an award. We take pride in the amount of effort we put into each of our books to ensure that the translation captures both the content and the feeling of the English editions, so the fact that we can promote these titles by pointing to a translation award is a huge achievement! Empowering Latino Futures also does a bit of promotion for their award-winning authors to help make quality Spanish-language resources easier to find.”
Mary Wissinger, author, Women in Chemistry and Women in Physics
Wissinger was born and grew up in Wisconsin where she dove into storytelling through acting, singing, and writing. A former teacher, according to her biography she can be found at her standing desk in St. Louis, Missouri, “writing stories to inspire curiosity about the world and connection with others.” She is the author of the Science Wide Open Series and the My First Science Textbook Series.
Danielle Pioli, illustrator, Women in Chemistry and Women in Physics
Artist and illustrator Pioli, drawn to magic (what she calls quantum physics now), is on a mission to inspire others to create. According to her biography, “The idea of creating a whole universe from her mind to paper is what made her fall in love with art and storytelling.” She creates art, illustrations, comics, zines, poems, songs, and hypnotherapy sessions. She is the illustrator of the Science Wide Open Series.
Women in Physics
Three new books in the Science Wide Open series are due out in September 2022: Women in Engineering, Women in Medicine, and Women in Botany. Spanish versions titled Las mujeres en la ingeniería, Las mujeres en la medicina, and Las mujeres en la botánica are expected early next year, according to Michels.
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Filed Under: Books
Posted by Elena del Valle on July 25, 2022
Thomas Savidge, research manager, Center for State Fiscal Reform at American Legislative Exchange Council
Photo, report: American Legislative Exchange Council
A podcast interview with Thomas Savidge, research manager, Center for State Fiscal Reform at American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), is available in the Podcast Section of Hispanic Marketing and Public Relations, HispanicMPR.com. During the podcast, he discusses unfunded public pension liabilities in the 50 States (see ALEC 2021 35-page report on state pension funds: Unaccountable and Unaffordable) with Elena del Valle, host of the HispanicMPR.com podcast.
Tom researches and writes on state tax and fiscal policy, applying knowledge learned in the classroom and working in the policy world.
To listen to the interview, scroll down and click on the play button below. It is also possible to listen by looking for “Podcast” then select “HMPR Thomas Savidge” and download the MP3 file to your audio player. You can also find it on the RSS feed. To download it, click on the arrow of the recording you wish to copy and save it to disk. The podcast will remain listed in the July 2022 section of the podcast archive.
Posted by Elena del Valle on July 11, 2022
Mathieu Champigny, group chief executive officer, CoCreativ
Photo: CoCreativ
A podcast interview with Mathieu Champigny, group chief executive officer, CoCreativ, is available in the Podcast Section of Hispanic Marketing and Public Relations, HispanicMPR.com. During the podcast, he discusses brand versus product messaging with Elena del Valle, host of the HispanicMPR.com podcast.
Mathieu has held a number of high tech and creative management positions in Europe and the United States over the past 20 years. In his current role he leads Industrial Color, Globaledit and Smashbox Studios servicing brands in creative production solutions. Before managing this creative group of agencies, his career started in structured finance in Paris, France followed by Houston, Texas.
To listen to the interview, scroll down and click on the play button below. You can listen by looking for “Podcast” then select “HMPR Mathieu Champigny” and download the MP3 file to your audio player. You can also find it on the RSS feed. To download it, click on the arrow of the recording you wish to copy and save it to disk. The podcast will remain listed in the July 2022 section of the podcast archive.
Posted by Elena del Valle on June 20, 2022
Jackie Lange, CEO, Panama Relocation Tours
Photo: Panama Relocation Tours
A podcast interview with Jackie Lange, chief executive officer, Panama Relocation Tours, is available in the Podcast Section of Hispanic Marketing and Public Relations, HispanicMPR.com. During the podcast, she discusses relocating to Panama with Elena del Valle, host of the HispanicMPR.com podcast.
After a Texas summer with 100+ Fahrenheit weather for 90 days straight, Jackie decided she wanted to move to a place where she would never need air conditioning or a heater again. She wanted to live in a place where her windows could be open every day for fresh air! She researched and visited several different countries and picked Panama because of it’s strong economy, friendly people, safe, weather, and affordable prices.
Shortly after moving to Panama in 2010, friends asked her to show them Panama and teach them how to move to Panama too. She did a tour for eight friends. Then others started calling to learn how to relocate to Panama so Panama Relocation Tours was born in 2010. Jackie has completed 172 relocation tours and helped thousands of people relocate to Panama the easy way.
Jackie lives in Boquete, Panama, a town in the highlands with daytime temps in the mid-70s all year long. Prior to moving to Panama, Jackie was a real estate investor in Texas and taught classes on creative real estate investing.
To listen to the interview, scroll down and click on the play button below. You can listen by looking for “Podcast” then select “HMPR Jackie Lange” and download the MP3 file to your audio player. You can also find it on the RSS feed. To download it, click on the arrow of the recording you wish to copy and save it to disk. The podcast will remain listed in the June 2022 section of the podcast archive.
Posted by Elena del Valle on May 18, 2022
52 Ways to Walk
Photo: Penguin Random House
British author Annabel Streets is a fan of walking under a wide variety of conditions. In her new book, 52 Ways to Walk: The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time (G.P. Putnam’s Son, $24), she proposes a different walk for each week of the year. Each short and easy to read chapter outlines a type of walk such as in cold weather, at altitude, slow, in solitude, with a dog, with a map, on muddy ground, hungry, backward and others along with its benefits.
She includes the findings of researchers or scientific studies supporting the health benefits of such walking conditions. Each chapter begins with a historic reference and concludes with a list of tips. For example, in the chapter on walking with a dog she suggested readers might consider borrowing a dog from a friend or via a program.
The 267-page hardcover book is divided into 52 chapters. Streets did not respond to several emails sent to her website address. The publicity contact listed on the author’s website indicated she doesn’t represent the author. According to her biography Streets is a writer of “highly researched, fiction as well as both narrative and practical nonfiction;” and under the name Annabel Streets, which she uses for “practical nonfiction,” she is coauthor of The Age Well Project.
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Filed Under: Books
Posted by Elena del Valle on May 2, 2022
Ivan Estrada, author, Brand With Purpose
Ivan Estrada, author, Brand With Purpose
A podcast interview with Ivan Estrada, author, Brand With Purpose (see California realtor releases branding book with community financial support), is available in the Podcast Section of Hispanic Marketing and Public Relations, HispanicMPR.com. During the podcast, he discusses branding with Elena del Valle, host of the HispanicMPR.com podcast.
Ivan is chief executive officer of Ivan Estrada Properties, a real estate agent with 12 years of experience and public speaker. He created Brand With Ecosystem which contains Brand With Purpose, Brand With Video, and Brand With Podcast.
To listen to the interview, scroll down and click on the play button below. You can listen by looking for “Podcast” then select “HMPR Ivan Estrada” and download the MP3 file to your audio player. You can also find it on the RSS feed. To download it, click on the arrow of the recording you wish to copy and save it to disk. The podcast will remain listed in the May 2022 section of the podcast archive.
Posted by Elena del Valle on April 11, 2022
Stanley Wong, co-founder, DistroScale
Photo: DistroScale
A podcast interview with Stanley Wong, co-founder, DistroScale, is available in the Podcast Section of Hispanic Marketing and Public Relations, HispanicMPR.com. During the podcast, he discusses streaming services targeting Hispanics with Elena del Valle, host of the HispanicMPR.com podcast.
Stanley is vice president of marketing at DistroScale, a media technology company and the parent company to DistroTV, an independent network home to 150 live streaming channels.
Prior to his role at DistroScale, Stanley was an early Yahoo! employee (41st). Since Yahoo!, Stanley contributed to Search Physics (now known as Metavana). He also served as the vice president of Ad Products at Glam Media and co-founded Permuto (acquired by AOL and re-named Buysight)
To listen to the interview, scroll down and click on the play button below. You can listen by looking for “Podcast” then select “HMPR Stanley Wong” and download the MP3 file to your audio player. You can also find it on the RSS feed. To download it, click on the arrow of the recording you wish to copy and save it to disk. The podcast will remain listed in the April 2022 section of the podcast archive.
Posted by Elena del Valle on April 6, 2022
Washington Hispanic market campaign videos link to VacunaDeCovidWA.org
Photo: Tony Teran
Video: Washington State Department of Health
Hoping to reach Hispanics between 18 and 35 years of age hesitant about pandemic vaccines in Washington state with a pro Covid-19 vaccinations message the Washington State Department of Health hired C+C. The Seattle-based marketing agency produced audio and two video spots in Seattle. Production costs for Vacúnate Mijo/a were $168,000 and $205,000 for Mentira Mariachi. The ads were produced for broadcast distribution, YouTube, TikTok and radio. Scroll down to watch videos in English and Spanish (with subtitles).
When C+C conducted the initial research that led to the campaigns’ development, the team found that while most Hispanic people in Washington state were “very willing or somewhat willing” to take a Covid-19 vaccine more English-speaking survey respondents expressed vaccine hesitancy than Spanish speakers. Overall, 62 percent of survey takers said they were very willing or somewhat willing to receive a Covid-19 vaccine; 67 percent of Spanish speakers and 56 percent of English speakers said they were very or somewhat willing to get vaccinated; 2 percent of Spanish speakers who responded to the survey compared to 18 percent of English speakers who responded to it said they would not take the vaccine; 27 percent of Spanish speakers versus 23 percent of English speakers who answered questions said they were unsure; more English speakers than Spanish speakers said they thought Covid-19 vaccines may be unnecessary and ineffective; and more English speakers than Spanish speakers said they had other ways to protect themselves against the virus.
According to a C+C spokesperson the overall goal of the campaigns was “to increase vaccination rates among the Hispanic community in Washington by tackling key research findings. Misinformation on vaccine safety and efficacy was indicated as one of the main drivers of vaccine hesitancy among this community. While protecting themselves, their loved ones, and their community ranked as the main motivation for getting vaccinated.”
The agency addressed concerns about trust in the vaccines with emotional pleas to family ties, Spanish language and Mariachi music. Tony Teran, campaign writer and creative director, C+C, replied by email via an intermediary, “At the center of the Vacúnate Mijo/a campaign is the relationship between a grandchild and a grandmother or abuela, a much loved and nostalgic figure among many Hispanic/Latinx families, often seen as a trusted voice of reason. We follow their bond through different life stages that showcase the core of our message: protecting each other. The Spanish language is also a powerful connecting thread in these ads, as we hear the word mijo/a express different emotions at different times, a word so simple, yet incredibly purposeful. Abuela is saying ‘I care about you’ with every mijo and ultimately encouraging her grandchild to receive the vaccine.
The idea behind the Mentira Mariachi campaign is that we all listen to the voice of our conscience when making decisions. So, what if that voice came accompanied by trumpets and guitarrón, as in traditional Mariachi music, to remind audiences to listen to science and their good judgement, and not to misinformation? The :30 video spot shows a young guy at home. Every time he is exposed to fake news about the COVID-19 vaccines, he’s surprised by a Mariachi band popping out of nowhere to humorously remind him, with a catchy jingle, that those are mentiras (lies). At the end of the spot, we see him coming out of a vaccination site after getting his shot as Mariachi band members give him a nod of approval and a health care worker delivers the campaign’s tagline: ‘Escucha a la ciencia y a tu conciencia.’ (Listen to science and to your conscience.)”
The Vacúnate Mijo/ ad goal was to encourage community members to get vaccinated by emphasizing the importance of protecting their loved ones during the pandemic; while the Mentira Mariachi ad was meant to dissipate vaccine misinformation by encouraging the audience to “trust science.”
According to information provided by C+C the Hispanic population in the state represents 13 percent of the total population, yet in mid-July 2021, had 27 percent of the coronavirus cases, 19 percent of total hospitalizations, and 8.4 percent of total deaths in Washington; about 60 percent of the state’s Hispanic population remained unvaccinated, according to the Washington Department of Health.
Tony Teran, creative director, C+C
“Creative concepting for both of the campaigns began in August 2021,” Teran replied when asked how many months the campaign project required. “Vacúnate Mijo/a launched in November 2021 while Mentira Mariachi launched in February 2022.
The C+C team used three different types of research when developing the strategy and concept for this Hispanic/Latinx-focused campaign: 1:1 Interviews, since 2020, the team has been conducting monthly 1:1 in-depth interviews with Hispanic/Latinx community members to learn about their overall attitudes, barriers and motivators for getting a COVID-19 vaccine.
Focus Groups, C+C conducted four focus groups with Hispanic/Latinx community members to test the campaign’s creative approach and gain insights into what type of creative would resonate most with the community. A total of 20 community members participated.
Secondary Research, The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) and C+C worked hand-in-hand with partners like the University of Washington’s Latino Center for Health to analyze insights about vaccine hesitancy among the state’s Hispanic/Latinx population that helped shape the campaign, including a report released by the Center in April 2021. The team also referenced findings of COVID-19 surveys conducted regularly by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation/Civis Analytics.”
When asked how the agency measured results Teran replied, “We have been correlating the success of the campaigns with the increase in vaccination rates among Hispanic/Latinx adults in Washington. Approximately 63 percent of the Hispanic/Latinx community 18+ in Washington have initiated vaccination as of 3/25. This is up from 49.9 percent in November 2021 before the campaigns launched. This amounts to an increase of 13.1 percent. The overall vaccination gap has also closed by 7.4 percent among the Hispanic/Latinx community. The gap closed on Hispanic/Latinx community vaccination rates from being 29.5 percent behind the overall Washington state rates in November 2021 to only 22.1 percent behind in March 2022.”
The campaigns were developed and produced by a team that included members of Washington state’s Hispanic community, including Terán, the creative of Venezuelan roots behind the original concepts. He wrote the video and audio scripts, and oversaw the campaigns’ production process; featured Hispanic cast member for both campaigns; and the production team selected Spanish speaking talent seeking a cultural fit, and with good acting skills and on-camera presence, according to information provided by C+C.
The Vacúnate Mijo/a production included creative input from Mauricio Valadrian, of Valadrian Creative & Consulting; the Mentira Mariachi video production was co-directed by Marvin Lemus, director of Netflix’s Gentefied, and also a Hispanic creative; the Mentira Mariachi video and audio ads feature an original song written for that campaign by a Hispanic musician and performed on-screen by Tacoma-based Mariachi Ayutla, a mariachi band, according to information provided by C+C.
Mentira Mariachi ad in Spanish
Vacúnate Mijo ad in English
