From Print to Paper & The “Gentleman’s” Copy

I started this blog with a post called Putting Pen to Paper. 

Paperback Copy & Bookmark

It was little more than an opening to talk about the eBooks I had written and how the process came about. I was excited that something I created could be received by readers in seconds after the simple click of a mouse. But I remember thinking at the time that it was funny to talk about pen and paper with eBooks.  Well now that is solved.

Starting today you can now receive Gather Sticks Along the Way in paperback. Before,  you could only read the book via the Kindle or Kindle Apps. Now you can have your very own paperback copy. I’ve already received a few myself and I’m very pleased with the outcome. I think you will be as well.

But wait, that’s not all folks . . . .  (as is the line in all infomercials)

I’ve heard it said before that a gentleman will keep three copies of this favorite book; one to carry with him (to show to others), one to keep on his bookshelf (for himself), and one to loan to friends.

Gather Sticks Along the Way – Bookmark

So if you already have a Kindle copy, I’ve tried to sweeten the deal for you. Instead of buying the book from Amazon, you can buy a copy directly from me (via PayPal) and get an autographed edition. For a few bucks more I’ll sign the inside flap and make it out to you or anyone else. I’ll even throw in a free bookmark. It’s basically a business card, but the definition of a bookmark is pretty flexible. Use it to mark your page or give to others. Either way it’s free and you’ll have a personalized copy to outfit your library.

I’d like to say how much I appreciate the encouragement from family and friends. Taking this project to print was never an intention and only came to my mind after people asked where they can purchase paperback copies. Thanks to everyone for all the support.

Click here to order a paperback copy from Amazon

or

Click here to order an autographed copy via PayPal

Life After the Comma

On February 17th, 2005, I was given a little notebook by a girl I was dating at the time. We had only been together for nearly a month and she wanted to get me a little gift for my birthday. She picked out a little leather-bound notebook that she thought would fit my personality and encouraged me to start writing things down.   She said I should write quotes, occurrences, stories I’d heard, thoughts and prayers. Anything and everything.

When she handed me the notebook I opened the first page to see nothing but my name followed by a comma. She said it was an accident. She had meant to write a short message to me inside the book’s jacket, but decided not to, only after writing my name. She asked me to tear the page out, but I wanted to keep it. I liked the way it looked.

As the years went by the girl stuck with me (who knows why) and  after April 25th, 2009 I have the honor of calling her my wife.  I can’t describe how blessed I am to have her in my life. We are still growing up together between our two children. One here now and another on the way. I know for a fact that I wouldn’t have done half the things in my life without her encouragement and support, including taking on the task of writing.

And so today, on her birthday, I wanted her to know how much she’s meant to me. I’m gratefully for her love and I can’t imagine anything she would have written on my birthday, those years ago, would replace the gift she’s given me. A life with her. A life with our family. Our life after the comma.

Gather Sticks Along the Way

I’ve published my first novel and it is now available on Amazon.  The story covers a range of elements that I think most everyone can relate to and find interesting. The chapters are pretty short so the story moves quickly. At about 26,000 thousand words it’s roughly 90 pages on most eReaders. The full description is below:

When God commanded Abraham to carry Isaac up the mountain, the boy was told by his father to gather sticks to build an altar. With each piece he gathered he unknowingly contributed to his own sacrifice. But before the blade would fall an angel of God would appear. The entire parable hinged on Abraham’s faith in God’s plan and his determination to carry it out with his own hands.

Charles is an average man. He has a loving family and is solid in his own beliefs. But his faith is soon tested with the loss of his son and Charles becomes a man driven by the need for answers. He needs to know what happened to his child and is prepared to do anything to find out. As simple actions by multiple individuals begin to unfold, a tragedy is formed and Charles is caught in the middle. Throughout it all he knows he is not alone. He knows God is with him. As Charles begins to see signs of what he believes to be the truth behind his son’s disappearance, he’s unsure if these come from God or if they are just coincidences. Is it his vengeance that propels him or is he just doing God’s plan? His faith will either see him through this catastrophe or cause him to lose all he has left.

“As the sun began to set on the home Charles sat quietly in the front foyer looking out the window. Ann sat on the front porch looking right and left still half expecting to see small feet carry a little boy around the corner. One phone was clutched in her left hand and her cell phone rested in the other. Charles looked through the window at his wife. Images and thoughts raced through his mind as to what or where the boy could be. He pushed the thoughts aside, bowed his head, and prayed to God that solace would be swiftly found. It never came.” –excerpt from Chapter 10

“He took a shower, longer than his normal scrubbing and slid into his side of the bed. He thought for only a moment about how he could have carried out such malicious acts and have the ability to close his eyes, but as soon as he tried his exhaustion took hold. His mind quickly began to shut down and his last attempt at consciousness was the annoyance of the quill from the feather pillow piercing into his cheek.” –excerpt from Chapter 23

Putting Pen to Paper

For those who don’t know me, I’ve recently started writing. It began with my long-standing hobby of reading. I’ve always enjoyed it and like most readers I usually wondered what it would be like to write a book of my own. I had tossed around a few ideas over the years but always came up with excuses. When my wife and I discovered we would be having our son I realized that life was going to move quickly from here on out. I’ve always told myself  that you have to make time to have time, so I started to make time. I started jotting down ideas and things I’d like to write.

Soon stories began to form and before long I was writing. To date I’ve written two short stories and am placing the final touches on my first novel. I started working on the novel around six months ago and am anxious to have it completed. I’ll post more details on it soon.

I’m pretty excited about this new hobby and thought I’d create this blog so people could follow along. Thanks for checking this out and I’ll try to post frequently.