My co-author, Mikal Belicove, and I are developing a new website to help promote our book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Facebook. The site is still under development, but you can check it out at FacebookIdiot.com.
Instead of using our photos on the site, we agreed to use avatars. Seems a bit odd to me, because Facebook is all about using actual depictions, but okay. I ordered my avatar from MyCaricature.com.
All I had to do was submit a couple digital photos, instructions on how I wanted my avatar to look, and $59.99. After a couple minor adjustments (which I was not charged for even after offering to pay extra for them), I was presented with the final rendition in high resolution. Below are the photo I submitted and the final result (both in low-res versions).
Awesome work, I think. If you’re going to get an avatar or caricature done, I highly recommend MyCaricature.com. Please tell Victor that Joe Kraynak sent you.
I recently received a Facebook message from Abnoos Moslehi, a translator in Iran who has read Bipolar Disorder For Dummies, which I co-authored with Dr. Candida Fink. Abnoos wants to translate the book into Farsi. Following is her letter of introduction, posted with her permission:
Dear Mr. Kraynak,
I was once diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder II, in Iran, my home country, where there was and is no information resource on this disorder.
I am not sure where I first saw your book , but it was the first real/complete thing I read about my condition and it has been helping me a lot.
Due to lack of information in this field I have been thinking of translating this book into Farsi and somehow hopefully get it published in Iran. It is a huge task and being a BP, I can’t tell you whether it’s one of those highs or not!
Iran doesn’t follow the Copy Right law and basically it is OK to translate anything from anyone and publish it without their permission. However I’d like to make sure that this is OK for you, it really does matter to me that if I get it on the market, it should be decent by all means.
Thank you for your time,
Abnoos
Abnoos found me on Facebook via the Bipolar Disorder For Dummies Facebook Page I set up and co-host with Dr. Fink.
I am currently working on putting Abnoos in touch with the Wiley’s associate manager of international rights who has informed me that Wiley has a For Dummies partner in Persia that might be helpful in making the Farsi translation possible.
I also told her about my Slovenian friend Darja Budja, the translator for the Slovene edition of Bipolar Disorder For Dummies, who rallied a bipolar support group in her country that teamed up with the publisher and the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca to help finance her efforts in translating the book and getting it published and distributed.
I find it intriguing how the Internet, including Facebook, helps to facilitate global connections and make things happen. Of course, ultimately the driving force is comprised of the individuals who make it happen, but technology often provides the introductions and infrastructure necessary get people connected and support their collaborative efforts.
I’m hoping this all comes together and I’ll see Abnoos’ Farsi edition of the book next year.
