S.D. Smith's Blog

Own a Piece of Green Ember History

There were rabbits in the yard…

Ten years ago The Green Ember book came into the world. It began years earlier as a story I told my then-toddling daughter. The stories we started that day were about a rabbit family caught up in a surprising, epic adventure.

Back then, on the porch of our West Virginia home, I had no idea hundreds of thousands of kids around the world would later share in our adventures. (Now in multiple languages!)

I truly love the kids and families who read my books and I want to give them an enduring gift. It’s a profound honor and a responsibility I take very seriously. These stories are anchored in hope, with values that will endure the test of time.

A Gift to Last

Today I want to share something special: SIGNED legacy hardcover editions of The Green Ember series.

These books feature the classic covers that many young readers first fell in love with. Many of those young readers are entering adulthood, stepping into their own adventures and this legacy collection would be a beautiful way to help them build their library around stories that shaped them. Young readers new to the the series will enjoy this as a collector’s edition designed to last.

The Bad Part: There are only 250 sets available. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.

Details:Four high quality hardcover books (The Green Ember, Ember Falls, Ember Rising, Ember’s End)SIGNEDDebossed silver character under each dust jacketOn sale for $80 + Free Shipping (US)Get Yours

I hope you’ll consider picking up a set for your family, or gifting it to a family just beginning their adventure.

My first and most precious audience is my kids. But the long job of turning the tales I told them into books has set my heart on loving and serving people beyond my own blood.

“A writer only begins a book, it is the reader who completes it.”
Elizabeth Yates

I have loved our partnership and hope it may go on for many years. I pray that my work continues to serve you, because…

I’m on your side,

Sam

Shop Story Warren Store

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Thank You, I Love You + New Green Ember Book News

I want to thank the many of you who wrote a reply to my last post (I’m Sad and Angry and I DO Know What I’m Going to Do), and for the overwhelmingly encouraging words you shared. God bless you. You are very kind. It has not and will not be my practice to comment on lots of cultural or political issues. That will be a gesture for me, not a posture.

Please don’t ever equate my silence on any topic as indifference or assign bad motives. I am sometimes too otherwise engaged to fruitfully contribute and most often focused on staying in my lane to serve you in my clear calling. I am not your pastor or bishop. I recommend you stay faithful where you are on that front and not look to (even Christian) authors or musicians or actors to be your spiritual shepherds. I will let you down on that front, without doubt. Let me be a faithful (please God) storyteller for you, and I think you will be served well.

It is a huge honor for me to serve you, and I thank you for being so generous with me in so many ways. You and your children are so kind to share notes of encouragement and love, so often with assurances that you are praying for me. I can’t tell you how many letters I have received from precious children who, on top of other kind things, have said they are praying for me. What a gift!

I am trying very hard to follow my own advice in that newsletter, but it is remarkable how hard it can be. I am keenly aware of how flawed I am, and how much I need repentance regularly to right the ship. I am reminded of one of my very favorite quotations from a favorite character (the Zulu Anglican priest, Msimangu) in a favorite book (Cry, the Beloved Country) by Alan Paton.

“I am a weak and sinful man, but God put His hands on me, that is all.”

Amen. God be our shield.

It’s a Wonderful LifeSeveral years ago, with my young(er) songwriters.

May I share something from my home and engage in a moderate dadbrag? My two oldest children are in a wonderful band called Willow Crush, and their debut album, Greatest Hits, just released. You can get it at all the places.

My son Josiah Caleb (co-author of the Jack Zulu books) wrote and sings many songs on the record, but my favorite is probably The Flying Song. It’s lovely and, remarkably, it was recorded live. Hold on Tonight is also a banger, as they say.

Our daughter, Anne, wrote and sings I’ll Give You the Moon, a song channeling the magic of It’s a Wonderful Life, a movie we watch together every Christmas. It’s really special. Give it a listen!

It’s such a pleasure to see our adult kids creating art and serving others. (Both of them are heavily involved in ministry to teens with Young Life in our county). I am delighted in this man and woman, and I love them so much. I’m excited to see what God will do in and through them in the years ahead. If you’re in the southern West Virginia area, consider coming to their show in Beckley on September 26th. It’ll be fun.

Find Willow Crush on: Spotify | Apple | Amazon | YouTube

Nothing is Stopping You From Playing Green Ember: Helmer in the Dragon Tomb TODAY

The Demo is available to play and it’s so fun. Give it a shot! (It’s best with a controller.) Check out the latest game update from our very own Zach.

Do You Have Young Creators?

I have LOVED co-creating the Green Writer Show podcast with my pal Brett Harris. Another episode dropped today. All of season one has been so fun and, I believe, truly helpful. If you have a young writer, or are one yourself, give it a listen. And please subscribe on YouTube!

The New Green Ember Book is Coming Soon!

Yes, and I am so stoked to get it into your hands. It’s at the printers now and we will soon announce the dates it will be available for you to order!

I love this new adventure featuring beloved Helmer in an awesome origin story. I am particularly excited to share this with boys because of the wholesome and inspiring vision of masculinity in the story. Girls will love it as well, and it will help shape their expectations for what a good man is. Good, good, good.

After the Kickstarter fulfillment for backers, we will first release the book (with signed copies) at my store. I’m excited about that, and we’ll have some other fun Helmer and Green Ember merch to help give you options for fantastic, formative, fun Christmas gifts. Oh no, are we talking about Christmas too early? #yikes #cliches #planahead

Okay friends, thanks again.

It is a genuine privilege to serve you and your precious families. I am on your side.

I love you all.

Sam

Shop Story Warren Store

P. S. I am currently writing Green Ember: Lost Tales II. It’s fun! Have you got the eBook for Green Ember: Lost Tales I (The Lost Key)? Welp, it’s only 99 cents today (Monday, Sep 22). Get it and be ready for when the sequel hits!

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I’m Angry and Sad and I DO Know What I’m Going to Do About It

I am so deeply moved by the atrocities of recent weeks.

From the horrific murder of a young Ukrainian girl, Iryna, fleeing the invading army of a predatory totalitarian state to the murder of a peaceful Christian political activist and young father, Charlie. There were more school shootings, including young kids targeted for being Christians. There are Christians being terrorized and slaughtered in Nigeria, a grossly unreported and all-too-common reality. Hatred for Jews is alarmingly common.

I am horrified by the ongoing practice of and enthusiasm for the dismemberment of our youngest girls and boys in abortion and the rise in killing other vulnerable people like the unwell and the old.

Maybe you, like me, feel anger, frustration, sadness, and a lamentable bewilderment. What can I do?

Online expressions of rage are often feckless or counterproductive, fueling the very fire we are burning in.

So, what to do? I don’t know, for sure. But I’ll tell you what I’m trying to do and maybe that will be an encouragement to you.

Tragedy sharpens grief and sorrow sharpens focus.

It can sharpen a hatred, and fuel a murderous vengeful heart. And it can do the same for good.

I want my pain to fuel focus on both the Kingdom of God and love of neighbor.
One big picture thing. One close to the ground. Both connected.

How does God usually work in the world? In vocation—by calling people to do his will and work.

I believe leaning into your calling is a noble response to evil.

I know my calling is to share stories with kids who are being formed into the adults who make choices about whether or not to be brave in the face of evil, to do what’s right no matter the cost. I am not just entertaining kids, I’m helping them become who they are and will be.

It’s an honorable calling, and I’m honored to serve families this way. It’s a big project, for me. It matters. It’s not easy. The stakes are high. So, instead of raging at my enemies online, I’m writing a story about Picket Longtreader, a heroic soldier who helps rescue a young orphan.

I’m also feeling a keen call to love the people in the first sphere of my stewardship, my family. I am trying to love my wife, my kids, and to love and honor my parents.

Impotent rage is not righteous anger. I know anger is sometimes an appropriate gesture, but it is not a good posture of life.

Can you do one thing that is “big” and one thing that is “local” this week? Can you lean into your vocations and say yes to Jesus in what you’re clearly called to? You probably don’t have to do anything new, just show up faithfully to what you’ve already been called to.

Maybe the best way to respond to the horrors of the world is to modestly, defiantly live out our vocations faithfully where we are. The more anonymous and closer to home, the harder for most of us. It’s easy to make pronouncements on social media (or a newsletter) about what is right, it’s hard to lay down your life for your wife, or to patiently serve a sick family member.

The enemy loves murder, and chaos, and hates the family and children. He hates you going to church. He loves it when you’re angry and inactive, and he hates it when you take good action. So make life, and make order, and bless and serve the least of these.

Mow the grass. Make pancakes for a child. Read the Bible. Pray and think. If you’re not involved in a daily Bible reading and prayer habit, then start now. (I recommend the daily office.) Go to church. Do good to your father and mother. Write a poem. Take a walk. Send money to a missionary. Buy a veteran a meal. Clean your desk.

Order is defiance. Self-sacrifice is defiance.

Many said “Make love, not war” in the sixties, but we must make war by loving. Self-sacrificial love is the way of Jesus. It is the weapon we make war with.

I am so grateful to you, my readers. I have met thousands of you and I find you to be the finest people. You love your kids, and love the truth, and you do extraordinary things (often unseen) to love and bless others. Thank you. I see you. I guess, really, that I only sometimes see you. But God sees you.

Your “ordinary” vocations matter so much. Mine do too. Let’s show up, even in our anger and grief, and work with anticipation for the coming Kingdom of God.

I feel truly honored to be your ally.

Speaking of allies, the first ever foreign translation of The Green Ember is now out. I’m so delighted to share that it is in Ukrainian. Ukraine is home to countless Christians (it was known as the Bible Belt of the Soviet Union), and I have had a heart to share my hopeful stories with the children of that nation for a long time. My prayers and support are with the brave people of Ukraine, especially my brothers and sisters there. Please join me in praying that these books find and serve many homes and hearts in Ukraine!

“War must be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all; but I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.“
J. R. R. Tolkien

God give you joy. I am rooting for you, and…

I’m on your side,
Sam

Shop Story Warren Store

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Play Green Ember | Videogame Demo

Green Ember: Helmer in the Dragon Tomb production is moving right along and we’re happy to announce that a FREE demo version of the video game is available to play!

The demo gives you a chance to step into Helmer’s world and experience Green Ember like never before.

Play DemoHow to Access the Green Ember GameSign Up/Sign In to SteamAdd to WishlistDownload/InstallPlaySign Up

Signing up for a free Steam account takes less than 2 minutes. (Yes, I timed it. Can you beat me?) The majority of that time was spent trying to come up with an awesome username because “BunnyBrawler” and “DungeonCrawler” were already taken.

Add to Wishlist

After signing up, please click the big green button to Add To Your Wishlist. (It’s free!) That is the number one way to support this game right now. Wishlisting tells Steam that people are interested in family friendly games with a beginning, middle, and an end.

Download Demo

You will see an option to Download Demo (PC is live, Mac is coming very soon!). You’ll need the free Steam app if it’s not installed already. Open your Steam Library and install Green Ember: Helmer in the Dragon Tomb.

Play!

Now it’s time to play! For the best experience, it is recommend that you use a controller (recommendations: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 ) for gameplay but a keyboard also works. Tell me what you think of the game in these comments!

Questions? Check out the FAQ.

Announcing Longtreader Games

The game has a new website! Take a look around at Longtreadergames.com and see videos of gameplay. Sign up for the Longtreader Games newsletter to get behind the scenes and release updates.

I hope you enjoy this taste of our Bunny Brawler Dungeon Crawler. We’re working hard to create a game that is radically hospitable for kids and families.

I’m on your side,

Sam

Shop Story Warren Store

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Does Struggle Disqualify Me?

When I think back on the year that I wrote The Green Ember, I can confidently say that it was one of the most difficult years of my life.

I go into a little more detail here.

But, despite the struggles and thin margins, the Lord brought something good and beautiful.

Characters, real and fictional, cannot grow and change unless they go through pain.

This is why I champion dangerous (but good) stories to make kids brave. Stories give kids (and adults) a way to witness character growth, letting us see how challenges are faced and resilience is built. We learn and grow alongside the characters.

Great hearts can only be made by great troubles.

Charles Spurgeon

If you find yourself in a season that feels unbearable, like prolonged illness, scarcity, failure, loneliness, unanswered prayers, etc. know that it is not meaningless. And it does not disqualify you from creating.

Amid your pain, wait and create. Though you grieve, make and believe.

Even what was intended for evil, God redeems. He is using it to refine and shape you (James 1:2-4). God is doing something in your life, and it’s really powerful.

We often find ourselves envying those who appear to move through life effortlessly—at least, from the brief snapshots we catch in the curated glimpses of their lives. Envy is everywhere. It is the water we are swimming in.

“If only I had ______.”
“They’re younger but more successful than me.”
“Their kids are better behaved than mine.”
“How do they do it all?”
“Their house/vacation/car is fancier than mine.”

As the saying goes, comparison is the thief of joy. But I’d like to add that envy steals our generosity.

Envy convinces us that someone else’s path is better and their success diminishes our own. By contrast, contentment is a grace-shaped posture of the heart that grows as we trust each season has a purpose.

Envy is natural but contentment is supernatural.

Brett and I talk more here about why surface level comparison is not an accurate representation of the struggles others are facing.

Spoiler alert: you may not want to trade places with your heroes.

You may be struggling through a difficult season. But it doesn’t disqualify you from making meaning out of it. God is equipping you for the good and beautiful things he is calling you to do.

I’m on your side,

Sam

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P.S. Brett Harris, author and cohost of the new podcast, is the founder of Young Writer’s Workshop that is opening enrollment for their program TODAY (this only happens a few times a year). Love to see you in there.

P.P.S. We’ve put together a collection of verses and quotes in the form of free downloadable lock screen/wallpapers. Enjoy!

The post Does Struggle Disqualify Me? appeared first on S. D. Smith.

Misinformation

Everyone is upset about misinformation, and I get that.

It’s bad to tell lies and to believe lies. We need a robust life of the mind and to encourage excellence in the intellect, what C. S. Lewis called the “organ of truth.”

But we need to keep in mind that human beings don’t make decisions based on facts alone. We really are more than brains on sticks, and when we love and believe we are operating with more than our minds.

This is why we need stories, symbols, and rituals.

Or rather, we do have stories, symbols, and rituals, and we are formed by them. So, let’s have faithful ones.

Why do we kneel or bow our heads to pray, put our hands over our hearts and stand at the national anthem, clap when we’re delighted, and hug our kids goodnight? Because we are beings of ritual. We are whole-bodied beings.

There’s a quotation attributed to C. S. Lewis that resonates with many. “You do not have a soul, you are a soul. You have a body.”

There are only two problems with this quotation: 1) Lewis didn’t say it, and 2) It’s a lie.

And we must not tell lies. We don’t have bodies. We are bodies. We are embodied spirits.

Be a Christian in more than just your mind. So kneel, and stand, and bow, and close your eyes, and hug, and light a candle, and bow, and anoint with oil, and on and on and on, world without end. Amen.

And, hey, share faithful stories. Stories address the mind, but not the mind only. They invade the imagination, which Lewis (really) called the “organ of meaning.”

Don’t believe lies? YES.

Also, don’t live and love lies.

Immerse your family in faithful stories, faithful symbols and rituals, and live like what and who you are.

You are more than a mind for processing true or false information, and what you feed your imagination has the power to sneak past your best arguments and infect with, or cure, the worst misinformation.

We should be as concerned about mis-formation as misinformation.

Which is to say that we need to think positively about formation. And for that, we need stories, symbols, and rituals.

I’m on your side,

Sam

What rituals do you practice that form you intentionally as who you are and want to be? Tell us in the comments below.

We’ve turned some of these quotes into lock screens and wallpapers for you, free to download!

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Why Green Ember Works for Reluctant Readers

If you’ve ever been (like me), or had, a reluctant reader in your home, you know the challenge: getting them to want to read. So when a story finally clicks? Something special happens.

That’s what happened for this mom:

“With The Green Ember, we had the free audiobook but didn’t buy the audio version for Book 2. I was pleasantly surprised when [my dyslexic son] started asking to borrow my Kindle to read it on Kindle—and he was engrossed over it for hours on end, a first for him! Which is why I can confidently say it’s definitely engaging.”

Yen, Charlotte Mason International

And this one:

“Big win for my reluctant reader! S.D. Smith’s world of rabbits with swords is captivating. I have three children (16, 13, 11 yo) who love stories, but my middle child–the one who doesn’t interact with books that he’s not required to read–devoured this story and then proceeded to craft all sorts of creative art projects to accompany it…We are hooked on these characters and their adventures!”

Karen B.

But these aren’t isolated stories. We hear again and again:
“My child who hated reading finished the whole series!”
“My daughter finished the first and immediately asked for more!”

Why Green Ember Works

Here’s why Green Ember is great for reluctant readers:

Short chapters with cliffhangersChapters are a manageable length that give readers a sense of accomplishment but the suspense keeps them reading.Series builds momentumOnce they finish one book, they’ll want to keep going. I hear from lots of parents that this is the first time their child finished a whole series on their own!Relatable charactersThe main characters, Heather and Picket, are siblings who face big fears and have to make brave choices. Readers can relate to their struggles and celebrate their victories.

Try out the first audiobook for free. Once they’ve finished, it might be the perfect time to invite your reluctant avid reader to keep going.

Get the Series + Free SHipping

I’m on your side,

Sam

Shop Story Warren Store

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Boyhood is a Blessing, Not a Disease

It’s hard to find modern books where ordinary boys are heroes whose strengths are gifts to be used for good.

In so much modern literature, boyhood is a disease to be cured and masculinity is a villain poised to destroy. In my books, young men learn that their energy and strength are gifts they are given so they can serve the vulnerable and help set things right.

Boys—as boys—don’t need to be cured, but coached.

I hear from many parents who are determined to find optimistic depictions of masculinity that their growing boys can latch on to. Boys are hungry for brave quests and noble causes, but have been poisoned into passivity and perversity by an unmoored culture that rejects their gifts.

There are real dangers with men who become tyrannical and abusive, but the very best check against such men is giving boys a positive vision for what it means to be a good man.​

All of my books have this generous disposition toward the needs of boys at their heart. It should come as no surprise that moms and girls love them, too. They want those kinds of sons and brothers and friends and, eventually, husbands.

The world needs them.

There’s an eloquently simple song we sing about Jesus, the ultimate man (and fully God, of course). It’s called Jesus, Strong and Kind. I think that is a beautiful summary of the gifts boys (and men) can offer the world.

Boyhood is wonderful, and I want to be your ally in encouraging, equipping, and inspiring your boys to step boldly into their callings.

I’m on your side!

Sam

Shop Story Warren Store

P.S. If this post resonated with you, please forward it to a friend or share this Instagram or Facebook post so they can be encouraged, too.

P.P.S. Already read Green Ember and want more stories that celebrate boyhood as a gift? We’ve put together this BOLD adventure audio bundle with boys in mind to inspire bravery and courage. Pick up the physical copies to read along.

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Green Ember Kid Art Winners | 2025 Q2

It’s time to announce the winners for this quarter’s Green Ember Kid Art contest! Watch the video.

Best Green Ember Kid Art

The FIRST prize goes to the Best #GreenEmberKidArt, judged according to the artist’s age. The winner will receive a $25 gift certificate at the S. D. Smith Store (along with Unimaginable Glory & Prodigious Esteem). 

And the winner is… 

Rebekah, age 10!

Randomly Selected Kid Artist

For our next prize: Wild Glee, Contagious Joy, and $20 Gift Certificate at the S. D. Smith Store, everyone who submits art is entered.

And the winner is…

Karolyn, age 18!

Congratulations to these winners!

We had so many wonderful submissions!! Here are some of them:

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Check out this video for more!

The contest for the next quarter starts now. Here are the official rules:

To enter, submit your art here.

If you have social media, please share your child’s Green Ember art (publicly) on social media (Instagram, Facebook, YouTube). Use the hashtag #GreenEmberKidArt (along with #RabbitsWithSwords and #TheGreenEmber if you would) and tag S. D. Smith on either Facebook or Instagram. YouTube submissions may be featured in our playlist here.

Art can include but is not limited to pictures of Green Ember drawings, paintings, songs, poems, animation, sculptures, woodwork, crochet art, and MORE! We love seeing your creativity.

Please submit 1 original piece (no AI) per quarter. If you have more than one, hold onto it until our next quarterly contest opens up (every 3 months). The next contest ends in September and winners will be announced in October.

2025Q1 Winners2024Q1 WinnersQ2 WinnersQ3 WinnersQ4 Winners2023Q1 WinnersQ2 WinnersQ3 WinnersQ4 Winners2022Q2 WinnersQ3 WinnersQ4 Winners

We look forward to seeing your submissions!

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Tolkien and His Son, Asleep

How often I have slept like this,
Snuggled up against my son,
Or as a frightened child, I’d lie,
In the bend of my father’s arm.

Whatever stories you shared with us,
Bright and bold as any ever,
Nothing you did was better than,
Investing in those living treasures.

And all the glories that you gave,
Are richer for the giving there,
At home you broke out beams of light,
Then shared the shards out everywhere.

I am grateful to see this nap,
This serene escape from a world of bother,
Reminds me that, though master scribe,
You might have been a better father.

So, if I could be like you and have,
Just one quality for acquisition.
From all your gifts, it would be this,
‘A good father,’ is my high ambition.

The Forge, Grandview, WV

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