I Was On 'Coast To Coast AM!'
Posted by Steve at 11/2/2009 9:48 AM 
Categories: Book
Tags: Steven Mark Weiss Signs of Taste Signs of Success astrology Coast to Coast AM
Categories: Book
Tags: Steven Mark Weiss Signs of Taste Signs of Success astrology Coast to Coast AM
It is exactly one week since I had the rare privilege of visiting with George Noory and his national audience on Coast to Coast AM. Forgive me the use of the very prosaic descriptor "cool," but it was so cool. Thanks to everyone who stayed up late to listen.
I've been rolling the experience around in my brain and I've not come to any ultimate conclusions. However, in the spirit of someone who blogs and actually has something cool to blog about, here are ten top-of-minds that I feel worth sharing.
1) The audience for Coast to Coast AM is enormous. I know this because on an average day my website receives in the neighborhood of 50 to 100 hits. On a couple of occasions when I've been in the news, such as recently when I did some work for Domino's Pizza on their Oven Baked Sandwiches, the total has gone into the high hundreds. On the day of my radio appearance and the day after the combined total number of requests for my website was 99,939.
2) Judging by the on air questions and the email I received afterward, the world is filled with many decent, open-minded and enthusiastic people. There were so many sincere compliments, even from the astrologically disinclined. My favorite notes, though, came from other astrologers who recognized that my "mission" is to make astrology somehow palatable to those who are not inclined by nature to accept its charms, and who thanked me for my efforts in bridge-building.
3) Of course, not everyone is a prince. On the afternoon of the show, before I was even on the air, the first email I received (from one "John Smith") read: "Astrology is stupid nonsense and you are a fool to think it can tell you anything. Grow up clown." Another writer took exception to my on-air assertion that astrologers are overly fond of doomsday predictions and I that was not so inclined towards a blanket cynicism, commenting that I was a victim of "Pixie Dust" and that my time would be far better spent using my talents to "find Obama's birth certificate."
4) And then there are those folks who defy classification, but might be the sort who stay up into the wee hours listening to a program that frequently deals with topics such as astrology, alien abductions, ghost hunting and the like. I mean no disrespect to the individual who sent me the following note (and if you can help her I'd be glad to pass along any advice). What, though, is one to make of: "It was a pleasure to be introduced to you on the radio last evening. Thank you for pursuing your given talents. I could feel your energy, it was very uplifting. I have a question that I hope you can answer even though it is not astrology related. Do you know what it means when you smell a sulfur like odor when there is nothing lit?"
5) Before leaving the impact others made on me, I must note that George Noory and the producer I worked with, the fabulous Lisa Lyon, couldn't have been more professional, encouraging and gracious. In a world in which it is so easy to feel like grist for someone else's mill, these folks made the human dimension of the experience an absolute pleasure.
6) So did I sell any books? That's kind of a personal question so let me give a personal answer. On the best sales days of Signs of Success, back over a year ago when it first came out, I made it a few times to as high as #4 on the respective Amazon lists of astrology and horoscope books. Even on those heady occasions, I was always parked behind the late great Linda Goodman, whose mid-1960's Sun Signs to this day remains arguably the premier initiate gateway into astrology and the best selling astrology book in recorded history. For three days, thanks to Coast to Coast AM, I was the author of the #1 astrology book in the U.S., even topping Linda Goodman...and while I'm sure that was accomplished on quite modest sales...to me it will always and forever after be a special occasion.
7) So did I get any job leads? Yes, I did. But I'm not so busy that I wouldn't like to hear from you, too.
8) Of all the things I got to talk about, two pleased me the most. First in a segment devoted to my earlier astrology book, Signs of Taste, George afforded me the opportunity to run down each of the astrological signs with a brief description of what they like to eat. While far less heady than the other material with which I now find myself concerned, this subject matter is like the whipped cream of astrology...and people have always responded enthusiastically to it, as they did in this case. The other area where the conversation got particularly interesting, I thought, was in a discussion of the apocalyptic prospects that are now being attached to the year 2012. I explained that my own take on the matter has to do with the increased strength of Neptune as it enters into its own sign of Pisces in 2012, a condition that basically tells us we are not supposed to know what is going to happen that year...its unpredictability being mostly what is predicted. I also shared a great observation from the astrologer Ken Johnson, an expert in indigenous South American astrological practices, who notes that the "rolling over" of the Mayan calendar in 2012 is analogous to what happens when a car odometer hits all 9's...it rolls over to all zeros but the car does not stop.
9) If your wife is going to watch your Siamese cat while you are on the radio, make sure the wife does not nod off and allow the cat to come into your office while you are on the air. Not only did Tofu (the cat in question) participate in the conversation, he has received almost as much 'fan' mail as I have. The wife has been summarily dismissed from future cat monitoring duties.
10) My life hasn't changed so far due to this experience, nor I suspect will it. But if someone from Oprah was listening and would care to give it a shot...
For further information, please visit: www.stevenmarkweiss.com
To contact Steve directly: smw@stevenmarkweiss.com
I've been rolling the experience around in my brain and I've not come to any ultimate conclusions. However, in the spirit of someone who blogs and actually has something cool to blog about, here are ten top-of-minds that I feel worth sharing.
1) The audience for Coast to Coast AM is enormous. I know this because on an average day my website receives in the neighborhood of 50 to 100 hits. On a couple of occasions when I've been in the news, such as recently when I did some work for Domino's Pizza on their Oven Baked Sandwiches, the total has gone into the high hundreds. On the day of my radio appearance and the day after the combined total number of requests for my website was 99,939.
2) Judging by the on air questions and the email I received afterward, the world is filled with many decent, open-minded and enthusiastic people. There were so many sincere compliments, even from the astrologically disinclined. My favorite notes, though, came from other astrologers who recognized that my "mission" is to make astrology somehow palatable to those who are not inclined by nature to accept its charms, and who thanked me for my efforts in bridge-building.
3) Of course, not everyone is a prince. On the afternoon of the show, before I was even on the air, the first email I received (from one "John Smith") read: "Astrology is stupid nonsense and you are a fool to think it can tell you anything. Grow up clown." Another writer took exception to my on-air assertion that astrologers are overly fond of doomsday predictions and I that was not so inclined towards a blanket cynicism, commenting that I was a victim of "Pixie Dust" and that my time would be far better spent using my talents to "find Obama's birth certificate."
4) And then there are those folks who defy classification, but might be the sort who stay up into the wee hours listening to a program that frequently deals with topics such as astrology, alien abductions, ghost hunting and the like. I mean no disrespect to the individual who sent me the following note (and if you can help her I'd be glad to pass along any advice). What, though, is one to make of: "It was a pleasure to be introduced to you on the radio last evening. Thank you for pursuing your given talents. I could feel your energy, it was very uplifting. I have a question that I hope you can answer even though it is not astrology related. Do you know what it means when you smell a sulfur like odor when there is nothing lit?"
5) Before leaving the impact others made on me, I must note that George Noory and the producer I worked with, the fabulous Lisa Lyon, couldn't have been more professional, encouraging and gracious. In a world in which it is so easy to feel like grist for someone else's mill, these folks made the human dimension of the experience an absolute pleasure.
6) So did I sell any books? That's kind of a personal question so let me give a personal answer. On the best sales days of Signs of Success, back over a year ago when it first came out, I made it a few times to as high as #4 on the respective Amazon lists of astrology and horoscope books. Even on those heady occasions, I was always parked behind the late great Linda Goodman, whose mid-1960's Sun Signs to this day remains arguably the premier initiate gateway into astrology and the best selling astrology book in recorded history. For three days, thanks to Coast to Coast AM, I was the author of the #1 astrology book in the U.S., even topping Linda Goodman...and while I'm sure that was accomplished on quite modest sales...to me it will always and forever after be a special occasion.
7) So did I get any job leads? Yes, I did. But I'm not so busy that I wouldn't like to hear from you, too.
8) Of all the things I got to talk about, two pleased me the most. First in a segment devoted to my earlier astrology book, Signs of Taste, George afforded me the opportunity to run down each of the astrological signs with a brief description of what they like to eat. While far less heady than the other material with which I now find myself concerned, this subject matter is like the whipped cream of astrology...and people have always responded enthusiastically to it, as they did in this case. The other area where the conversation got particularly interesting, I thought, was in a discussion of the apocalyptic prospects that are now being attached to the year 2012. I explained that my own take on the matter has to do with the increased strength of Neptune as it enters into its own sign of Pisces in 2012, a condition that basically tells us we are not supposed to know what is going to happen that year...its unpredictability being mostly what is predicted. I also shared a great observation from the astrologer Ken Johnson, an expert in indigenous South American astrological practices, who notes that the "rolling over" of the Mayan calendar in 2012 is analogous to what happens when a car odometer hits all 9's...it rolls over to all zeros but the car does not stop.
9) If your wife is going to watch your Siamese cat while you are on the radio, make sure the wife does not nod off and allow the cat to come into your office while you are on the air. Not only did Tofu (the cat in question) participate in the conversation, he has received almost as much 'fan' mail as I have. The wife has been summarily dismissed from future cat monitoring duties.
10) My life hasn't changed so far due to this experience, nor I suspect will it. But if someone from Oprah was listening and would care to give it a shot...
For further information, please visit: www.stevenmarkweiss.com
To contact Steve directly: smw@stevenmarkweiss.com
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