President You: How a Thoughtful Ordinary Citizen Could Change the Most Complex Government on Earth
Brand: All Wet Publishing, LLC
Categories: Books, Politics & Social Sciences, Politics & Government



Dimensions: 6 x 0.87 x 9 inches
ISBN-13: 978-0578563459
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0578563452
Print length: 347 pages
Publication date: September 17, 2019
subtitle: Paperback – September 17, 2019
author: Visit Amazon's Tom Williams Page search results Tom Williams
review: Editorial Reviews Review Here, the publisher talks with the author about his book and its creation (Part 1) Q: What inspired you to write President You ? A. Disappointment in overly partisan congresses as well as divisive presidencies propelled me to pen President You . That, and my belief that politicians deliberately fail to provide citizens adequate information regarding public policy initiatives. The book was also inspired by something I remember my dad telling me: "Son, it is easy to complain. It is harder to develop solutions. And, harder still to present those solutions in some form of rational argument based on evidence." Q: Have you yourself served in a governmental role? A. I've play a number of roles. For numerous years, I was employed as a county Emergency Manager, a supervisor in a state's Department of Social Services, and a federal government anti-terrorism contractor. (I've also served in the military, which is a government job in any important sense.) In addition to government positions, I worked in both the private and non-profit sector. Among other things, working in so many different types of organizations and capacities has given me an understanding of how complex and difficult it can be to make a change. Q: What do you see as the book's core message? A. I think it's all too easy today to feel that each individual can't do much to change our government. I hope that President You challenges that sense of powerlessness. As the subtitle- How a Thoughtful Ordinary Citizen CouldChange the Most Complex Government on Earth - suggests, citizenship is tremendously powerful. Every citizen has a voice that can change the way our government operates through greater involvement in our democracy. Specifically,we can learn more about the issues and cast our votes with greater knowledge and, perhaps, less emotion. Q: Politics are, of course, highly partisan these days. Does President You take a specific party or ideological position? A. President You shies away from a single ideology. Instead of any one dogmatic or partisan viewpoint, I wanted to offer alternative perspectives with possible solutions. Many of those solutions are based on readily available information, so the reader is able to decide if the proposals of my fictional president align with his or her own beliefs or not. Among other things, I hope the book is a tool for generating thoughtful discussion on some of today's political issues. Q: Though identified as nonfiction, the book makes use of a fictional narrative. That kind of hybrid isn't uncommon these days; what made you adopt it for this particular material? A. The original draft read more like a government "white paper." Using a fictional president and some of the tools of fictional storytelling - scene setting and dialogue, forexample - is more entertaining and, I believe, fosters greater reader involvement. Q: The book includes succinct but detailed discussions of complex policy challenges. How did you research these issues, as well as the details of how the presidency and the federal government function? A. As you note, President You has a lot of detailed information, and I really wanted to get it all right. The foundation was the civics education provided by my public schooling in grades kindergarten through twelve. To that, I added my experience in government and a review of published books on our political party system, public policy, etc. Reading and listening to politicians' promises and media reporting offered insights into particular issues and the way they are framed and explained. Finally, I used official government websites- as well as reputable websites on specialized subjects - to check, substantiate and enhance much of what I was writing. I say "reputable" websites because, of course, there is a lot of misinformation online. So it's important to make sure one's sources are accurate and without hidden agendas. Here, the publisher talks with the author about his book and its creation (Part 2) Q: Your fictionalpresident, Augustus Lincoln Treatise, has a very interesting name! What inspiredyou to choose those particular first, middle, and last names? A. As Augustus' father mentions,I wanted a strong name that represented unconventional thinking. Both AugustusCaesar and Abraham Lincoln took bold actions that reoriented traditional mindsetsin their respective nations and eras. In that regard, the book itself is a treatise. Q: How did you go aboutimagining his life and character? Were there real figures from past or presentthat inspired some of the details, for example? A. My wife Judy gave meone of the key elements. Following her recommendation, I tried to imagine theconversation any couple might have should one of them decide to compete for thepresidency. Why might one of them wish to do so? Why might the other resist?That became the opening scene in PresidentYou . In later chapters, I included what could be the thoughts and feelings ofchildren under similar circumstances - some supportive, some not. Those familyinteractions helped me firm up the character in my mind. Augustus wasn'tmodeled after any single person. He's a compilation of many facets of manypeople, from individuals I've known to public figures. And, to some degree, Ithink every author extracts aspects of his or her own life and incorporatesthose into their work. Q: How long did it takeyou to write the book? A. I began writingindividual chapters in 2012 and assembled my first complete draft in 2016.After that, finishing the text was a matter of researching, reviewing, and revisingfor maximum impact. Once the draft was largely complete, there was considerablework still to do ... copy-editing, proof reading, and book design are fairlyintricate tasks. In essence, it took almost seven years from start to finishbut three years to complete once I had a first draft. Q: What made you decideto publish the book yourself rather than seek a traditional publisher? A. I know that this canbe a complex question for some authors. For me, an unknown and first-timeauthor, it was a simple cost-benefit analysis. The lengthy trial and error processof acquiring a literary agent and seeking a traditional publishing house feltboth time-consuming and likely delay the book longer than I liked. It justdidn't mesh well with my other commitments and my sense that many of the book'sissues were time-sensitive. Self-publishing was a better fit for me and forthis particular subject. Q: What was the hardestpart of writing the book? A. Dealing withpotential future changes was probably the most complex aspect. The bookinvolved creating a fictional president who faced challenges in the future -but of course; those difficulties were based on real current events, laws, andpolicies. It was difficult writing about what might occur given the potentialfor rapid change today. That is one of the secondary themes of President You : government changes therules faster than individuals or organizations can determine the full impact ofthose changes. Q: What was the thingthat surprised you most during the writing process? A. Each chapter waswritten based on my education, personal experiences, and beliefs. On a coupleoccasions, when I set about confirming my suppositions about an issue, I wassurprised to learn my version of reality was, in fact, incorrect. Thatnecessitated deleting or altering the approach to a chapter's subject matter. Q: What piece of advicewould you give to a writer just starting out? A. Listen to yourtrusted inner circle of counsellors. Don't be afraid to stand your ground inthe face of criticism, yet understand that sometimes, you may need to changehow you approach the subject you are writing about to better serve the reader.As a former boss advised, "Tom, there are many paths to success." Here, the publisher talks with the author about his book and its creation (Part 3) Q: Are you a reader? Are there a favorite few books you might recommend? A. Given the focus on citizenship in President You , I'll start by sharing five books that I recommend every citizen read: The Consent of the Governed by John C. Livingston and Robert G. Thompson; Common Sense by Thomas Paine; Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville; Proclaim Liberty ... a Broken Bell Rings Freedom to the World by Dr. Peter A. Lillback; Signing Their Rights Away - The Fame and Misfortune of the Men Who Signed The United States Constitution by Denise Kiernan and Joseph D'Agnese. Together, these books offer a wide-ranging exploration of the nature of government and the responsibilities of citizenship. Other books I enjoy reflect a wide variety of time periods and genres. The Book of the Courtier by Baldesar Castiglione, The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, Forever Amber by Kathleen Winsor and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury are all favorites. Q. How much of the character of Augustus Lincoln Treatise is based on yourself? A. As I mentioned above, I believe authors inevitably imbue their characters with aspects of their own personality and life experience. Augustus is dissimilar to me in more ways than not, yet I'm sure we have common traits. For example, I think Augustus shares some of my stubbornness. When I feel that something is right or necessary, I can be pretty persistent, and he has that quality too. Q. Are you an author who likes meeting readers? A. While the writing process itself is necessarily solitary; I greatly enjoy the chance to talk with readers, as well as others as interested in the American presidency as I am. I schedule book talks and signings in the Kansas City area when possible - for information on upcoming events, check the Events page on my website at allwetpublishing.com - and I welcome the chance to speak to book clubs and other groups about the book and its topics, including citizenship and the presidency. Just use the form on the website's Contact page to reach me; you'll hear back from me promptly unless I'm traveling, which may slow my response somewhat. From the Author "I wanted to explore actual issues in a detailed and accurate way, but without the heated partisan slant that drives most political discourse today. The best way to do both was to merge a fiction narrative with nonfictional information. Readers my agree or disagree with the issues President Treatise chooses to address and the way he tackles them. I welcome that. I want to encourage questions and reflection, not to suggest that there is a single valid approach. Ultimately, I hope President You affirms 'ordinary citizens' can have a profound impact on the life of our country." From the Inside Flap None as the book is Paperback. From the Back Cover On retirement, most Americans hope to travel, pursue hobbies, dote on grandchildren, and just enjoy life. Augustus Lincoln Treatise has a different dream: to solve some of America's thorniest problems by becoming President of the United States. Not surprisingly, his wife and grown children react to this dream with disbelief. Augustus' vision of change persuades them--and to everyone's surprise, he wins the national election. As president, he introduces bold new strategies to eliminate the national debt and clean up the country's water, create jobs and reduce traditional influence peddling. Many of his unexpected proposals prevail. Even when they don't, his willingness to dismantle partisan boundaries and rethink outworn traditions revitalizes the presidency and the nation it serves. President You reaffirms that "ordinary citizens" can have a profound impact on the life of our nation and, by extension, the world. Whether or not you've ever wondered what you would do if you were President of the United States--and even if you disagree with some of Augustus' initiatives-- President You will get you thinking about the role and responsibilities of national government, the issues that affect our collective and individual lives, and the power of each and every citizen to make enduring change. President You couples an engaging fictional narrative with a factual and impeccably researched exploration of presidential decision-making, the legislative structure and process, and the challenges that face America today. Offering bonus extras including a reference list and reader questions, it's ideal for both book-group discussion and individual reading. About the Author Tom Williams has always been fascinated by American politics and the methods Congresses and Presidents use to establish public policies in our democracy. His experiences in federal, state, and county government, as well as work in international charities, small businesses, and corporate America provides him a wide range of expertise on how political decisions impact everyday people. President You builds upon those life lessons. Tom achieved magna cum laude from the University of Kentucky's Martin School of Public Policy and Administration, which built upon his baccalaureate education from the United States Military Academy, West Point, NY. He is a disabled veteran who now resides in Kansas with his wife, Judy, and their Main Coon cat, Nora. Read more