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Amazon.com Talks to Rene Reid Yarnell

Amazon.com: Where are you from? How--if at all--has your sense of place colored your writing?

Rene: I was born and raised in Dallas, Texas and grew up with a strong Catholic influence. I lived with my Mother and rarely saw my father. My life has taken me from the confines of religious life in the sixties to the exposure of public life in the nineties. I am currently working on a book, "From Prayers to Politics" which covers these extremities of my life. At the very core, whether I have taught in the classroom or hosted a talk radio show, I consider myself a teacher. Network Marketing has been the catalyst to bring every aspect of my life together. Through this medium, I have been able to utilize my background in teaching, theology, communications, politics, and business. I can't think of another industry that provides this kind of opportunity. Writing is yet another form of teaching, but allows me to reach hundreds of thousands of people.

Amazon.com: When and why did you begin writing? When did you first consider yourself a writer?

Rene: I began writing how-to books about a year after I got involved with Network Marketing. In the late eighties, there was very little written on the subject. But it was my husband, Mark, who encouraged me to go beyond technical books, and began writing things of more substance. It was in June of 1996, while we were spending a great deal of time at our second home in Gstaad, Switzerland, that I first considered myself a writer in the deeper sense of the word. My objective is to write books that will be a reflection of ingetrity in the world I touch and to have an impact for positive change in the lives of my readers.

Amazon.com: Who or what has influenced your writing, and in what way? What books have most influenced your life?

Rene: In am an avid reader and find myself selecting certain styles to emulate. For example, I love to read dialog in which the author reveals not only what the character is saying but what he/she is thinking. My life's philosophy has been shaped over a lifetime by too many influences to recount. The writings of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin had a major influence on me in the sixties. All the theological writers with whom I familiarized myself during my studies to earn my masters degree held a strong impact. I have been married to two writers -- James Kavanaugh and Mark Yarnell. They have both had a strong influence on my writing. I believe the Kavanaugh poetry is some of the most sensitive and reflective writing of our times. I will always value the poetry he wrote for me. The Yarnell writing is extremely influential. I believe Mark really could sell ice to an eskimo. He is powerful and motivational in his style. His letters during our courtship and early years of marriage were persuasive beyond words. I am grateful to have spent a significant part of my life deeply loving two such dynamic individuals. Each of them has taught something special for which they will always hold a special place in my heart.

Amazon.com: What is the most romantic book you've ever read? The scariest? The funniest?

Rene: By far the most romantic book I have ever read is Judith Michael's "Acts of Love." Judith Michael is a husband and wife team who write under this name -- a style to which I am very partial. I don't like scary books and rarely read them. The funniest books I ever read dealt with growing up Catholic.

Amazon.com: What music, if any, most inspires you to write? What do you like to listen to while writing?

Rene: I think carefully about what music to play when I am writing and usually make it fit the mood. I prefer music without words when I am writing and will often play light classical, piano classics, or someone like Gary Lamb's music.

Amazon.com: What are you reading now? What CD is currently in your stereo?

Rene: I have just finished reading "Soul Mates" by Thomas Moore. It is one of the most impactful books I have read on the subject of relationships. I am now reading "Teach only Love" by Gerald Jampolsky, M.D. and "A Guide to Rational Living" by Albert Ellis and Robert Harper. These are both older, well-established books that I am finding very helpful at this period of my life. I am writing a very romantic scene at this moment, and am playing my favorite love song, "Somewhere in Time."

Amazon.com: What are you working on?

Rene: I am currently working on my next Network Marketing book for Prima Publishing. The working title is "Network Marketing: the Rising New Profession" and I am co-authoring this with Dr. Charles King. Mark, Charles, and I teach a course at the University of Illinois at Chicago (next one offered February 26th through 28th, 1999), so it is fitting that I should write the next book with Dr. King. This book, due out in the Summer of 1999, is intended to build relationships with professionals who are somewhat skeptical about identifying their credibility with what they perceive to be a less-than-credible industry. By the end of the reading, we believe they will find it easy to make the transition into Network Marketing if what they are seeking is a lifestyle that provides personal freedom, financial stability, and altruistic opportunities.

Amazon.com: Use this space to write about whatever you wish.

Rene: For the past two and a half years, I have been working on two autobiographical non-fictions. The first is called "From Prayers to Politics" and the second "Marriage and Merger." My objective is to tell the story of those parts of my life that have universal appeal and common experience, using dialog and descriptive scenes that make it a good story. But my real goal is to follow this with some reflections on the lessons I've learned and offer the reader a chance to do some journaling reflecting on his/her own personal set of circumstances. I raise poignant questions for my readers, giving them an opportunity to dig deep into their souls and perhaps make critical decisions about their own lives. I am about ninety-five percent finished with these two books, and am currently looking for the right publisher.

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