Showing results by narrator "Alex Picard" in All Categories

Anyone who really knows product marketing understands the tremendous value it adds to organizations, but not enough people seem to get it, which can make it notoriously hard for product marketing managers to get the recognition they deserve. Product Marketing Misunderstood helps you apply the tools of your own trade to your job—positioning, messaging, research, personas, and more—helping your entire organization value what you do. This guide arms you with the tools you need to show colleagues past, present, and future that product marketing lies at the heart of your company.

In 1986, Tommy Gaye is in love with his best friend, budding teen poet Renaldo Calabasas. But at the height of the AIDS crisis and amidst the homophobia running rampant across America, Tommy can never share his feelings. Then, one terrible night, Renaldo is struck by lightning. And he emerges from the storm a very different boy.

How do you mark a quarter century? While parties are great—and we'll have those—I wanted to distill the time in a tangible way. To hold it in my hands, and share with you, dear listeners, in celebration and appreciation. But how? A collection! I dove into my published short fiction. Some I included because they were challenging to write. Several show my growth as a writer. I love them all. There's science fiction, fantasy, and, yes, horror. Plus an all-new story from Night's Edge.

Leo Zimmerman has had a crush on his curvy friend Kylie Jenkins since forever, so when he discovers the girl with a flair for candy making has a newfound plan to rebel against her overbearing parents, he's determined to be the one to help her carry it out. Who better than himself to show her the ropes of letting loose? Sure, taking her to her first high school party, helping her sneak out of the house, or watching a sunset together isn't exactly a hardship, but much harder is masking his feelings the more time they spend together. 

After tragedy hit her family, Meg Matthews officially crossed the line from "good girl" to "bad girl." Motorcycle? Check. Graffiti? Check. The only thing Meg hadn't planned on was blackmail. Too bad now a certain infuriating boy holds Meg's future in his hands . . . When Luke Prescott—star pitcher and town golden boy—catches Meg vandalizing the school, she's given two choices: face the consequences or enter into a fake relationship with him to get his parents and his ex off his back.

Across forty years, three continents, and a past incident in 1560 France, Serafina Olegario tests the boundaries of love, power, and corruption as she fights to escape her life of poverty and abuse. Serafina’s quest begins in Brazil when she’s possessed by the warrior goddess Yansã, who emboldens her to fight yet threatens to consume her spirit. Fueled by power and enticed by Exú, an immortal trickster and intermediary to the gods, Serafina turns to the seductive magic of Quimbanda. It’s dangerous to dance in the fire. But when you come from nothing, you have nothing to lose.

This is the story of New York City, told through the prism of one block, bordered by 23rd Street to the south, 24th Street to the north, Fifth Avenue and Broadway to the east and Sixth Avenue to the west. It’s a story of forest and cement, bird cries and taxi horns, theatres and factories, gambling dens and gourmet foods. It’s also the story of high life and low life, immigrants and tourists, farmers and aristocrats, crooked cops and moral reformers, toy stores and social climbers 

Is your team willing to propose game-changing ideas and offer diverse opinions? Will they take personal risks for the sake of your company and its reputation? Most leaders can't answer yes to these questions, especially during critical times of change.