by Bob Ossler and Janice Hall Heck
Choosing a title for a book is tricky. Designing the book cover is another matter.
Our first book, Triumph Over Terror, has just gotten a new cover. Look at cover 1 and cover 2. Can you see why we changed it?
Cover 1 Cover 2
Author Bob Ossler walked into a bookstore/candy store in touristy Matlache, Florida (The Fudge Factory) where our book is prominently displayed for browsers. Who can beat that combination?
The bookstore owner reported hearing these comments from store visitors.
“TRUMP? Who wants to read a book about Donald Trump?”
“Or Trump? I want/don’t want to read a book about that president.”
We wrote our book before our country’s love/hate relationship began with Donald Trump. But now, people glance at our title and misread Triumph as Trump.
Those who pick up the book and glance through it find that Triumph Over Terror is a highly sensitive book about the victims and heroes of 9/11. Chaplain Ossler spent 45 days at Ground Zero ministering to and counseling family members who lost loved ones in the tragedy. He also spent countless hours caring for the heartbroken and weary firefighters, police, emergency workers, construction crews, and volunteers. No one who worked on the Pile at Ground Zero escaped the emotional pain caused by the 9-11 terrorists.
After hearing these Trump comments in several venues, we decided to ask our publisher, Scoti Springfield Domeij of Blackside Publishing, to change the cover. She agreed.
Our new cover features the authors names at the top, with the lead in, Ground Zero Chaplain, Bob Ossler. The cover uses smaller type and gives a better view of the new World Trade Center.
In two seconds people discern that Triumph Over Terror is about September 11 and the author is a chaplain. It is clearly not a political book, and it is definitely not about Donald Trump.
Did we accomplish our mission? What do you think?
Triumph Over Terror is listed on Amazon where it has received 53 five-star reviews. Here is one review:

August 14, 2016
You can read an excerpt of Triumph Over Terror here:
Excerpt: Triumph Over Terror “Hard Shells, Soft Shells”
You can order Triumph Over Terror on Amazon here.
News on Upcoming ADD/ADHD book:
Ossler and Heck are now collaborating on a book about ADD/ADHD, attention deficit disorder. Look for more news on that topic on this website. Ossler tells stories about his years growing up and living with ADD in a pre-ADD world. A chance encounter with Dr. Edward Hallowell, author of Driven to Distraction: Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder, helped Ossler identify the source of his life-long frustrations. With sheer willpower and thoughtful evaluation of his difficulties, he figured out strategies to help him cope at work, at home, and in life in general. He shares his strategies in this book.
Janice Hall Heck has over 40 years in the education world. More than half of those years were spent in classrooms for students with special needs. The remaining years were spent in educational administration as principal in Kenai, Alaska, and at Hong Kong International School, Hong Kong, China.
As expected, the title for this ADD/ADHD book is elusive and has not been finalized yet. We’ll keep you posted.
Thank you so much, Janice! Looking forward to reading the book.
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Great. Loved your pictures. We visited the 911 Memorial Museum but didn’t take enough pictures. Next time!
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Thanks, Amy. I hope you like it. It is sad in parts, but it does have happier moments. Mostly it is a book about finding hope after tragedy.
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