Posted on Leave a comment

Barack Obama’s Eulogy for John Lewis – One of the Best

On Thursday, mourners honored civil rights icon and longtime Rep. John Lewis in Atlanta. At his funeral ceremony, the first Black president of the United States, Barack Obama, gave a eulogy that served both to pay tribute to one of the greatest leaders of the American civil rights movement and call for specific action to carry on that legacy. It will likely go down as one of Obama’s greatest speeches, and it is worth watching in full.

You can watch it here.

In a speech that was almost surprising in its frank invocation of politics, Obama compared the brutal 1965 violence that nearly ended Lewis’ life—police fractured his skull on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama—to the violent suppression of peaceful protests by federal officers today, called the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision to gut the Voting Rights Act and the wave of voter suppression that followed “an attack on what John fought for,” challenged hypocritical congressional leaders who have opposed a renewal of “the law that [Lewis] was willing to die for” while issuing empty statements calling him a “hero,” called for the end to the disenfranchisement of formerly incarcerated people, called for making Election Day a national holiday, called for statehood for D.C. and Puerto Rico, and called for “eliminating the filibuster, another Jim Crow relic, in order to secure the God-given rights of every American.”

The barn burner of a political speech followed a powerful retelling of some of the highlights of Lewis’ life and career, a narrative that laid the groundwork for Obama’s call to action. It seemed clear that Obama was devastated by the death of a man he called a mentor.

“It is a great honor to be back at Ebenezer Baptist Church in the pulpit of its greatest pastor, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., to pay my respects to perhaps his finest disciple,” Obama said near the start of his remarks, his voice nearly breaking.

“I’ve come here today, because I, like so many Americans, owe a great debt to John Lewis and his forceful vision of freedom,” Obama continued.

Obama then described Lewis’ rise from a place of “modest means” in rural Troy, Alabama, where, as a boy, he eavesdropped on his father’s discussions with friends about the murderous violence of the local Ku Klux Klan. As Obama described, after hearing King speak on the radio, Lewis became one of the greatest advocates for nonviolent resistance this country has seen.

Obama’s was one of the finest funeral orations by an American president—a tribute to Lewis’ life and a specific, actionable plea to protect the rights for which he and so many others fought and bled. History will determine whether his call—and that of Lewis—has been heard in the United States.

Posted on

Handwriting & Reading

Will reading go the way of handwriting? 

Have you noticed how handwriting is nearly if not completely obsolete?  No one writes anything anymore by hand. We don’t even sign our own name.  Everything is entered via keyboard or tap entry on an app.   

That leads me to reading.  Do we really read, or do we expect everything to be “streamed”?  

Will reading become a lost artform? 

Isn’t it a use it or lose it premise?  

rĀthe® about its mobile app will support the activity in 2-minute increments to meet the modern age. 

Check us out today! 

#savereading,

Posted on 3 Comments

Why Should you rĀthe®- About It?

Why should you rĀthe® – about it? 

  • No Subscriptions! – We want customers not hostages!! 
  • Pay as you go with no commitment 
  • Free samples of every Title 
  • Undiscovered talented authors 
  • Get the whole eBook for free in the format of  your choosing when all individual episodes are purchased. 
  • Manage your time – Enjoy whole books pre-packaged in bite sized increments 2- minute reads 
  • Classics available for free and University required reading 
  • No annoying ads
  • Few Push Notifications (2 per week) 
  • Maximum user flexibility – Access to multiple format options (small doses, eBook, and/or imprint)  
  • Doesn’t require 2 hands
  • Doesn’t drain battery and easy on data storage

Easy sign up, Existing account mirroring (we do NOT store none of your sensitive data)

Download the App here!

Posted on

rĀthe® at the Oklahoma Book Festival!

rĀthe® will be at the Oklahoma Book Festival on Saturday, September 21st! We’re extremely excited to have some of our amazing team members up there showcasing the power of publishing and reading with rĀthe™ . 

The app launched only a few weeks ago now, and the process of finding new authors and readers has remained slow, yet steady. Book festivals are the ideal events to go to as it’s purely dedicated to readers and writers! 


Remember the excitement of the book fairs that would come through your school when you were young? The feeling of awe from staring at the explosions of color and stories all around you (not to mention the frustration of forgetting to ask for money before you left for school). Most of all, the desire of wanting to have one of your books on one of those shiny book racks, enticing those that pass by it. 

As writers and readers, we fantasize about spending a day with an excellent book and writing our very own. Yet, as we grow up, “reality” often appears before us as a perpetual excuse or obstacle in the way of this fantasy. That’s just it – others (or just as often, ourselves) refer to it as a “fantasy” – something magical, ethereal, and altogether unattainable. This is fundamentally false. 

rĀthe™ ’s mission is to help writers become Authors and readers to read (especially in this distracted digital age). The feeling of hopelessness and anger and fear after staring in the face of rejection over and over is what we want to eliminate. If you write, we want you to publish it and find your audience. Every single person has an audience, and rĀthe™ finds that audience for you, so you can focus on the fantasy – writing. 

Come to the book fair and learn more about rĀthe™ ’s magical, fantastical process and just how easy it is to start publishing your writing. Every writer needs to read, read, read. That’s why we make it easy to do that too – a little at a time.

The Oklahoma Book Festival is in Oklahoma City in the Boathouse District from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The event is completely free to attend (no tickets needed!) and will feature over 100 authors from across the nation. Additionally, there will be panel discussions, presentations, crafts, poetry readings, book signings, food trucks, and more

Check out okbookfest.org to learn more about it!  rĀthe® – About it on the App Store

Posted on

Will the American Dirt Fiasco Change American Publishing?

rĀthe® is already revolutionizing the publishing industry, but how will the American Dirt scandal change things up further?

“What lesson are book publishers taking away from the controversy raised by American Dirt, Jeanine Cummins’ novel about a Mexican woman and her son seeking to cross the border? Will the furor change the way editors think about acquiring novels, or does the book’s sales success—it’s currently No. 2 on Amazon’s bestseller list—obviate those concerns? I asked several editors at Big Five houses (Hachette, Macmillan, Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, and HarperCollins)—all of whom only felt comfortable speaking candidly if they could remain anonymous—what went wrong in the publication of American Dirt, how it might have been avoided, and how the landscape has changed—if at all.”

Read more about it here

Posted on

Mary Higgins Clark, Best-Selling Queen of Suspense, Dies at 92

All of us at rĀthe® mourn the passing of Mary Higgins Clark.

Her books inspired the founder to pursue her life’s dream of becoming a mystery novelist.  

Thank you, Mary Higgins Clark, for leaving humanity the gift of your work.  

Sleep well “My Pretty One”

“She became a world-renowned author writing about ‘nice people whose lives are invaded.’

Mary Higgins Clark, a fixture on best-seller lists for decades whose more than 50 novels earned her the sobriquet Queen of Suspense, died on Friday in Naples, Fla. She was 92.

Her death was confirmed by her daughter Carol Higgins Clark, also a mystery novelist. In addition to Naples, Ms. Higgins Clark had homes in Saddle River, N.J., and Manhattan and on Cape Cod.

Ms. Higgins Clark, whose books have sold more than 100 million copies in the United States alone, was still writing until recently, her daughter said, and had a book published in November.

Legions of readers were addicted to her page-turners, which popped up on the market one after another. She wanted to create stories that would make a reader say: “This could be me. That could be my daughter. This could happen to us,” she told Marilyn Stasio in a 1997 interview in The New York Times.”

Read more about it here

Posted on

Romance Writers of America (RWA) Scandal

A romance novelist accused another writer of racism. The scandal is tearing the billion-dollar industry apart

To say the romance publishing industry is in upheaval right now would be an almost comical understatement. It’s more scandalized than a dowager countess finding her headstrong niece alone on the lap of a rakish duke. It’s more divided than a reluctant billionaire who has to choose between the family business and his love for a beautiful corporate rival.

Read more about it here and read the rĀthe® Press Release about it here!

Posted on 2 Comments

rĀthe® – About it with our Authors at the Texas Book Festival!

A Hell’s Angel, a virus-chasing Reporter, and a time traveling musician. Add to that, prisoners reincarnated as famous artisans, a Rock and Roll Truck driver, and a 1720’s London Gentleman. We didn’t forget church, either – Church/devotional, and a Pizza Fight!

All that in booth #104 at the Texas Book Festival on October 26 and 27!

Come meet the amazing authors of these characters and stories!! Francis Hicks, Ron Seybold, Michael Inman, JL Civi, Bill Thomas, Tobias Garrett, Petrena Wilbur, and Kerry McAvoy!

Meet them in person at the rĀthe booth at various times throughout the weekend for readings and signings. Check out the schedule below for times.


Saturday October 26th in Booth #104  

11AM: Francis Hicks shares his coming of age tale of runaway kid in a tribe of the Hells Angels in The Long Ride: Learning About Life from An Outlaw Biker.

At Noon: Ron Seybold tells of his crack reporter who must discover and erase the first networked bio virus before it wipes out humanity in Viral Times.

1 PM Come have fun with the Happy Texan, Michael Inman, on the road with some of the most famous bands we all grew up with, from Willie to Pink Floyd.

2 PM JL Civi reads from his debut novel Timely Persuasion about a music critic who goes back in time to fix his love life.  And from his Short Story about a world where customer service agents’ immense power and influence, a screenwriter uses a magic website to get out of jury duty.

3 PM Bill Thomas brings to life his falsely imprisoned long-haul truck driver/ reincarnated Ernest Hemingway who meets fellow inmates/ reincarnated artists Vincent Van Gogh and Amadeus Mozart in The Three Souls. 

4 PM: Tobias Garrett tells of Peter’s escape from the 1720’s debtors’ prison to take down the ruthless and greedy Lord Banks that wrongfully engineered his family’s fate in Hunted. 


Sunday October 27th in Booth #104

12:30 ( just about time for Church!)

Kerry McAvoy encourages readers to challenge their most basic assumptions about God and urges them to look at the quality of their relationship with him. In addition to daily devotionals, psychological questions, spiritual discipline exercises, and worship in her new Devotional, Pain is a Starting Point.

1:30: rĀthe hosts a live demonstration of how to upload your content and control your future as an Author. 

Find out more about the Live Demo and RSVP to it here.

2:30: A good old-fashioned Food fight – well, a Pizza Fight to be specific!

Petrena Wilbur captures the moment near the end of a relationship where enough is enough in Pizza Fight.


For more information about the Texas Book Festival and rĀthe’s involvement, check out our post here!

Posted on 1 Comment

The rĀthe® Writing Challenge: Leg Emoji

rĀthe™ – A Revolution in Publishing

Remember when writing was fun?  

Before you were told how hard it used to be to get published?

We’ve discarded the old world way of thinking.

We believe writing is fun, and should remain so. That’s why we’ve distilled the writing process into easy steps.

Step 1.  Write it   

Step 2.  Make it available  

Step 3.  Distribution to people other than family and friends 

(Bonus: Retain a much more equitable share of the earnings.)

that’s rĀthe!

We have a fun challenge for all writers!

rĀthe would like your help to solve the mystery of the Leg Emoji!

This Apple emoji lives alongside the smiley face, high-five, and the others on iPhones.  

We aren’t kidding!

Can you explain this emoji in a Short Story of 1500 to 5000 words?

We can’t wait to read it – on rĀthe!  All you have to do is write and publish a  short story (1500 – 5000 words) and publish it to the rĀthe portal that incorporates, explains, animates, stars, launches, shoots (you get the point!) about this emoji – to help unravel this mystery?  We don’t know? We are befuddled, mystified, stymied, stumped? We haven’t a clue. That’s why we are asking you!    

We thought emojis are supposed to be pictorial representations of emotions.  Happy-face, high-five, kisses, you know… So what emotion does a Leg capture? You tell us!

If you haven’t heard, rĀthe doesn’t believe in genre.  We believe in the power of the emotional journeys created for our rĀthe mobile app users by our talented authors.  

That’s why we have our own classification system: Magic Words.  Here are our Magic Word Categories:

AdventureFunFantasyMystery
InspirationHopeSurpriseFright
SoulRomanceHistoryPassion
ThrillYouEscapeLearning

Which one of our Magic Word categories will your emoji short story be in??

Did we mention this isn’t a contest?  Did we leave out the part there are no losers?   Submissions are not judged. There is no deadline for submission. Oh, and no fees either!

The rĀthe Author who sells the most Episodes from Titles submitted for this challenge by December 22nd, 2019 – wins!  

Your Short Story can be launched on rĀthe at any time prior to Leg Challenge end which is midnight December 22, 2019.  Obviously, the more time a story is available, theoretically the more opportunity for it’s success. However, that is only a theory.  Scalability (or, how much rĀthe readers enjoy your story) of the story itself will tell the tale.

The challenge will run until midnight on December 22nd, 2019. 

What does the winner – win?  A Leg trophy of course!  A bunch of accolades, fun marketing, and a big ole push from rĀthe – About YOU and your work.  Everywhere within our reach.  And of course, you’ll earn income from your Episode sales.

rĀthe® will feature your stories (all of them) on our website as they arrive!  

Help us solve this mystery!!!!  

Reading & Writing with rĀthe…
Posted on

Scary titles available in the rĀthe® Library!

We’d like to take a moment to highlight some of our current rĀthe® authors with particularly scary titles – just in time for the scariest part of the year! Hang out and dive into the many different worlds our talented authors have created…

Check these self-published titles released in the rĀthe library.

J. Soleil The Face in the window book cover art

J. Soleil

NIGHTMARE –  “An attorney deals with her subconscious fear of the release from prison of a drug lord.”

The Face in the Window – “Was it a dream or was someone really peering in the window?”


K.G. McAbee Double double cross title story novel book art

K.G. McAbee

Artist in Residence with the South Carolina Arts Commission

Double Double Cross –  “He’s investigating a string of murders. Too bad the solution is worse than the problem.”

Murder on the Alternate Express – “When a famous detective and his assistant take the famous Alternate Express, who knows what world they’ll end up on?”

Pulling Strings – “In the early days of television, the puppet show was king. But this puppet is something else entirely.”

Careful What you Wish For – ” Five stories that will make you shiver… “

Mr. Popular – ” He wants revenge for his son’s death. But how can he infiltrate the world’s cleanest company?”

Cast Away the Works of Darkness – ” Prince Adric is on the run from the evil Lord Brecc, aided only by his tutor and a few friends. As they struggle through a wandering cave to safety, what follows them in the darkness?”

Dyed to Death – “A young man in a 1920’s cotton mill village discovers a murder.” (Published in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine)

BLACKTHORNE AND ROSE: AGENTS OF D.I.R.E. – ” The dead are rising and stalking London! Only the intrepid agents of D.I.R.E. can save the world…again! ” (Honorable Mention in the 3rd quarter Writers of the Future contest)


tobias garret from my covers creep short story cover

Tobias Garrett

From My Cover’s Creep – “The nightmares of nightmares. The main character hangs on for dear life as an evil entity tries to pull him down into the bed during the night.”

Texting – “Texting has become part of our lives and sometimes our deaths. “


petrena wilbur colored lights and faded roses

Petrena Wilbur

Colored Lights and Faded Roses – “Shock turns to the need to escape harsh reality by overcoming obstacles to find a dream.”


Bill Thomas

The Three Souls – “A Texas truck driver meets two inmates who are reincarnated artists.”


Ron Seybold

Viral Times – “A reporter must discover and erase the first networked bio virus. Mighty Hand, created by an evangelical scientist, will sweep through a network of VR SimSuits in seven days, killing millions who suit up for sex in a world overrun by STD pandemics.”


Looking for something scary, spooky, or surprising in our library? Use magic words like “Fright”, “Surprise”, or “Thrill”, and we’ll find you something right up your alley.

Try out a couple of books by reading the first Episode of each for free (how great is it to know whether or not you like a book by taking a minute [maybe two] to read 625 words?)

Lastly, remember that we’re adding numerous classic titles, all for free! Everyone wants to be well read, so why not start with some classic scary stories in the scariest time of the month? We have Dracula, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Frankenstein, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Grimm’s Fairytales, and Sherlock Holmes!


rAthe halloween self publishing stories
rĀthe® – A Revolution in Publishing