The Red Velvet Lawyer

But, Boy,  Is that a  Pretty Picture! When it snows here in Grundy, the flakes cling to every tree twig, limb, and leaf.  They stick to the rock crevices on all the mountain outcroppings.  They cap the fence pickets, bird feeders, and flower pots.   As you look out, you swear you are living in a white cloud. Few things are quite as lovely as snow in the Appalachian Mountains.  I've talked about the surrounding mountain beauty in several postings, my favorite appearing  here .    ASL alumni, I know this makes you feel a little nostalgic. 

Claim Your  Well-Deserved  Prize! An ASL grad posted this Facebook comment in response to one of my blog postings in July 2013 about claiming your right to success, abundance, love, and creative energy found  here . Prof. Young, last year you recommended bar takers to do affirmations to boost our confidence and success rates.  It felt hokey and certainly could never take the place of diligent studying[.]  [B]ut, it definitely helped me relax before the exam and helped reduce my stress during it.  A very belated thank you and a recommendation to bar takers that you give wonderful advice!   To make it easier for you to find some affirmations that may work for you, I am providing them below. Find the affirmation that deals with a specific challenge you face right now in connection with the bar exam.  Also, find an affirmation you plan to use shortly before the exam date, and as you sit to take the exam.  Write the affirmation ten times in your journal every day.  Say it

More on my Favorite Topic these Days --  Content Marketing When I was looking for  Gary Vaynerchuck's Wine Library  and Daily Grapes videos (so I can model them in my own marketing), I found this TEDtalk  that tells us what we need to be doing.  Be happy.   Do what your love.   Share your passion.   Work VERY hard.   Build your personal brand.  Be authentic; and, Use the new social media platforms to really connect with your tribe .  Here's what I said in an earlier  posting  about his books on the use of social media, content-based, marketing. Gary Vaynerchuk,  Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook: How to Tell Your Story in a Noisy Social World  (2013). Explains how to use the existing and developing social media platforms by describing each platform, explaining its “native” communication style, describing its primary audience, and offering good and bad examples of the use of each platform.  Beautifully illustrated and well-written.  Includes discussions of Fac

Drop in Applicants to Law School Generating Another Kind of Equilibrium In December 2013,  I reported on the law schools cutting tuition, especially in highly competitive markets, like Pennsylvania.    Another blogger has updated the list and suggested law schools use Groupon to offer tuition discounts.   As I noted in my earlier posting, ASL has been and continues to be one of the most affordable private law schools east of the Mississippi River.  And, we held tuition stable this last year.  With scholarships, ASL can be as good a value as adjacent state-sponsored law schools, like University of Kentucky. Yes, unmitigated plug.  Feb. 11, 2014 Update:   More law schools drop tuition.     Feb. 27, 2014 Update: Tulsa , on scholarships and tuition.

Syfy Reality Show Will Feature ASL Alumnus JR Cook An alumnus of the Appalachian School of Law, JR Cook, will play the role of "Johnnie Rocket" on the new Syfy reality show Opposite Worlds .  See his introductory i nterview .  Episodes here .  Fan page here . He mentions his recent engagement to Jessica Taylor, also an ASL alumnus.   Follow him on Facebook here . But, he may not be making any postings until he can earn his way into "the future." For an interview with fiance, Jessica, see here .  Fan page for JR Cook  here . If you tweet to support him, be sure to include #AppalachainSchoolOfLaw. Twitter handle is @TeamJRsyfy Thanks!

        Appalachian School of Law  in the News In a recent article, The Bristol Herald Courier quoted  Appalachian  School of Law Professor Stewart Harris on the case involving Virginia’s Attorney General and his decision on a controversial same-sex marriage statute. Good job, Stewart! AG’s announcement met with sharply divided reactions BY ALLIE ROBINSON GIBSON BRISTOL HERALD COURIER Thursday’s news that Virginia At­torney General Mark Herring de­clared the state’s ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional shows how elections are important, a lo­cal law professor said. “Elections matter,” said Stewart Harris, who teaches constitutional law at the Appalachian School of Law in Grundy, Va. “That is what this tells us.” The announcement was met by sharply divided reactions, as some applauded Herring’s move to join other states in supporting same­ sex marriage and some said he was going against his duty to uphold the state’s constitution. Virginians voted in 200

They are Dying for Stories One of my favorite actors, Kevin Spacey, gave a speech that has run through the content marketing world with great enthusiasm.  In fact, he will now be a keynote speaker at the Content Marketing Institute's World 2014 conference in Cleveland, Ohio on September 8-11, 2014.  I'm going! If you have not watched this video, you can find it here . It's really great, especially if you're a House of Cards fan, like I am. Spacey explains the experience he had with marketing the series to the major networks before Netflix backed the project.  He then argues: The audience has spoken.  They want stories.  They are dying for them.  They are routing for us to give them the right thing.  And they will talk about it; binge on it; carry it with them on the bus and to the hairdresser; force it on their friends; Facebook; tweet; blog; make fan pages; make silly GIFs; and God knows what else about it. Engage with it with a passion and inti