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Twenty Twenty

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I have been working on the PR campaign for this is incredible book(which came to me serendipitously), Twenty, Twenty by the highly-acclaimed author, Nigel Watts, which is a blueprint for 2020, which was originally published in 1995 by Hodder and Stoughton.

The book eerily and accurately predicts a global pandemic that occurs in the year 2020 causing the world to communicate largely through virtual technology, with people wearing masks, a drastic reduction of air travel leading to ‘virtual tourism’, and nature fighting back for its survival due to mankind’s destruction of our planet.

Tragically, Watts took his own life in 1999 and now 25 years later, his very brave widow, former BBC presenter and broadcaster, Sahera Chohan has republished this timely and relevant book this August; the book’s anniversary month.

At the time, when it came launched, the book received rave reviews from The Times, Time Out, Sunday Times and more. The Times said: “Twenty Twenty is about the end of the world, viral apocalypse, virtual reality…[it] asks the big questions at a time of global destruction and spiritual uncertainty…an intriguing synthesis between ancient mysticism and the brave new world of virtuality. It is a book to make the pulse race, the mind dance and the heart sink.”

Twenty Twenty foretells the events of the year 2020, where an ageing writer infected with a deadly virus and despairing of mankind’s continuing damage to the planet retreats to a derelict factory in the icy wastes of northern Canada. Meanwhile, at a remote research institute in the Californian desert, William Morrison, a virtual reality test pilot, and Julia

O’Brien, a British anthropologist, are working on a VR simulation of the Amazonian Kogi tribe. William and Julia appear to have little in common, until they discover an uncanny connection that finds them being drawn towards a derelict factory in northern Canada. As the story escalates to its dramatic conclusion, Watts powerfully manipulates the reader’s perceptions of reality, whilst blurring the boundary between creator and created.

Nigel Watts has drawn his name in the sands of time, putting him side-by-side with some of the greatest futuristic authors – Orwell, Huxley and H.G.Wells – securing Twenty Twenty not just as a book of our time, but an enduring and influential novel. Needless to say the book has been drawing lots of media attention and it has been such a great book campaign to work on…to know how it ends you will need to buy the book, which is available on Amazon.

 

 

The PR Knowledge Book Launches at The Taj Hotel London

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It has been a busy October, which had a brilliant start with the launch of my book, The PR Knowledge Book, at the very glamorous Taj Hotel, London on 4 October, 2019.

I welcomed over 80 guests from the world of business, family and friends…and they say never mix with business with pleasure; it was such a great night that it through this old adage out the window. There were social media influencers in the room, well known people and organisations such as the Born Free Foundation, Asian Voice, Alternatives London, the Bangladesh Caterers Association, Federation of Small Business; Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council, book publishers, award winning chefs, authors and many others. I am so grateful to everyone who attended the launch event to support me and the book!

Many people since have been asking me what was it like having a book launch and the best way I describe it, is the evening went far too quickly and it was like being a bride without a groom!

At the event, journalist and book editor, Tania O’Donnell did a fireside chat with me about the book, to give guests an insight into the book.

I am delighted to say that the book has since been receiving positive media coverage, strong social media engagement and good reviews on Amazon. 

The PR Knowledge Book is published by Business Expert Press (BEP) and I have written it in an easy style for anyone irrespective of where they are in the world—entrepreneur, student starting out in the media industry, home business, small business, start-up, charity, or any other type of organisation wanting to embark on their PR journey or someone just plain curious about what it entails.

The book went through a rigorous editorial process by the highly regarded Professor Don Stacks at Miami University and has received great endorsements from international business leaders. It has already been bought by the following UK universities –  University of Oxford; London Business School; University of Edinburgh; University of Bath; University of Glasgow; University of East Anglia; University of Salford; University of Kent; and University of Strathclyde.

The book is available to buy on Amazon – UK, US and India. It is also available on the BEP website, which also allows you to experience the book and sample a few chapters.

Pax Japonica Launches At Foyles

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This time of year always reminds me of my childhood trips to Foyles, where my mum would take us at the start of the Christmas holidays, where we could choose a few books to occupy us over the Christmas period. I loved these yearly trip, as at an early age I had a deep love of books, that would allow me to escape into different worlds.

Foyles those days had a long narrow winding staircase, where everyone would somehow superbly navigate themselves up and down, without colliding into each other. The book shelves used to be stacked and packed, where I would choose my Nancy Drew or something from the Hardy Boys – yes it was that long ago!

So, it was almost ‘back to the future’ moment when last month I helped organise the book launch for a Japanese business title that I was working on – who would have guessed that that that little girl, would one day be helping to host an author from Japan at Foyles?! Time is indeed a wondrous thing.

Takeo Harada, former Japanese diplomat and now CEO of the Institute of International Strategy and Information Analysis, a leading think tank is the author of Pax Japonica – a book that is indeed ahead of its time.

As earlier this December, Brussels and Tokyo created the biggest open economic area in the world; just as the US is walking away from multilateral trade regimes. The agreement comes as Japan exhibits 2.5% growth, the strongest in a generation. The agreement removes tariffs for Japanese cars and spare parts, while Japan opens up its public tenders to European contractors and its supermarkets to European cheese, wine, beef and pork with guaranteed names of origin.

This global headline reinforces the premise of Pax Japonica – Japan, the world’s third largest economy and largest creditor nation, has been in crisis for more than two decades. Its economy has been depressed or in recession for much of that period, its banking sector in a critical state and its public sector burdened by recurring fiscal deficits and mounting debt. Yet, Harada argues in his book that a possible future ’Pax Japonica’ – one in which Japan will overcome its paralyzing debt and once again play a leading role in global finance – can become a reality and is now unfolding.

Harada says, till now, the hegemonic role in global trade and financial markets has been assumed by the USA and China, but this is now changing; and that Japan’s role in the global economy can never be under-estimated.

To understand what is happening in geo-politics with particular reference to Japan, this book is a must read. It is published by LID Publishing.