S.D. Smith's Blog, page 17

S. D. Smith in Houston

I’m so grateful for the time we had in Houston. We had a wonderful trip!

I got to speak in-person again with real people around. That was a hoot. (Although I’m so out of practice that when the students at Trinity Classical were trying to welcome me this morning, I just sat there through the applause like an idiot.)

Thanks, Houston Baptist University, for having us. Man, I’m so impressed with what they are doing at HBU. Super cool things happening there for creators. Writing. Screenwriting. Animation. And much more. It’s the kind of school I would have loved to attend as a young person. (Maybe it’s not too late for me!)

We felt welcomed and loved the whole time and the people were the best part. From Dr. and Mrs. Sloan to the deans and chairs and professors, we were blown away by HBU’s hospitality and excellence. It feels like the beginning of a long friendship. We also got to see some of the sights and history of a special city. I’m a homeboy, so I’m glad to be back in West Virginia, but we loved our time in Houston and hope it’s not too long before we return. I’m especially grateful for how you welcomed my two oldest kids!

God bless Texas!

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Big Things Happening. Big Gratitude to Meet Them!

These are good days for giving thanks.

I’m grateful for these brothers, Josiah and Andrew, and the way they have had my back while I’ve been facing front. I have almost never felt up to the vulnerability and anxiety associated with being “out front.” You don’t often see them, but they are there. And I can’t do this without them.

I’m grateful for you, the readers/fans/friends who encourage me daily with incredibly generous notes and posts and mail and messages sharing how much you love these stories. This has been so powerful for me. I wish I could say I was oblivious and don’t need the encouragement, but I’m not and I do. It means so much to me that you care and care enough to not be silent.

I’m grateful for our sales team. Yep, that’s you again. We don’t have a marketing team, or a sales team. We have YOU. And you’ve been that. You write and post reviews, you share the books with your friends (online and in person), you wear the t-shirts and hats, and you are the reason the books have spread and I get to write stories for a living. I’ll never forget that.

This is a very full, exciting season.

• I’m starting to do some select and small talks again this week (see you soon, Houston).

• We have new books on the near horizon, including my first traditionally published story.

• We have a writing course launching soon (can’t wait to share!).

• We are in serious talks about a Green Ember feature film.

There’s more. It’s a lot! It’s fun, but there are challenges for sure. That’s why I’m always most grateful when I hear that you have been praying for me and my family and our team. Thank you! This is why PRAYER is part of our Gimme 5 asks. (Gimme 5 started because people asked us, “What can we do to help?”) Ultimately, we can’t do anything apart from God—and don’t want to.

“A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.” John the Baptist (John 3:27)

So, our deepest gratitude is to God the Father, who gives good gifts to his children, to Christ our Lord, who is the Good Shepherd to us goofy, often-hopeless sheep, and the Holy Spirit, who advocates for us against the active and aggressive Accuser

And thank you, once again, our very dear friends.

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Surely a Green Ember Movie (and/or Series) Needs to Happen, Right?

I hear this from fans all the time. And I agree. There are so many cool ways to bring great projects to the screen. We are working with some amazing folks who are keen to do that with The Green Ember. Surely, if people are out here making a Peeps movie, we should get The Green Ember franchise kicked off. Am I right?

A Peeps movie? Okee-dokee!

My personal preference would be to eat peeps and watch a Green Ember film. But maybe I’m in the minority there.

Though all doors are open, it may not be a traditional route for us. We are considering lots of cool options and taking our time. If you are a wealthy person who might consider investing in our project, get in touch. There’s no pressure at all, but we do have some exciting options lining up. Like our books, we are committed to the highest possible standards for this–animation and writing and music and acting, all of it. We won’t say yes to a crummy deal. We are thinking more like Star Wars than the Peeps movie.

(Nothing against Peeps. It’ll probably go on to be the next Casablanca.)

Pray for us, if you would, and we will let you know when we have something definite to share!

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Author S. D. Smith and Actor Tony Hale to Keynote HBU Conference

S. D. Smith, author of the popular middle-grade series The Green Ember, will feature alongside multiple Emmy-winning actor Tony Hale at Houston Baptist University’s writing conference. The pair will share keynote duties at the creative conference hosted by HBU’s School of Fine Arts. The conference is aimed at serving writers, artists of all kinds, students, and educators. The May 1 event is free and will be available for a virtual audience.

You can register here.

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A Blessing at the Back of the Book

This photo shows me right after reading the Author’s Note at the end of The Green Ember Book IV: Ember’s End for the audiobook. 

I wrote that note in a mall parking lot late at night. We were driving home from a church service and picking up a car we had left in the parking lot to meet up and drive together as a family. I was alone. I had been thinking the whole drive back from church (a long drive at that time). The note did kind of flow out, and I am grateful that I was able to say just what I wanted to. 

It’s too long to post here, and it belongs where it is, waiting for those precious readers who have finished the series, but I’ll share a small excerpt here:

“…So, thank you for reading. And thank you for the generous way you have read and received these stories. There is a generosity both of host and of guest, and when both act from love, a feeling of being at home prevails for both. In awkward meetings, neither party feels ‘at home.’

“I have long viewed storytelling in general, and The Green Ember Series in particular, as an opportunity for hospitality. These stories belong to my family, and sharing them has been a joy. That others ‘feel at home’ with our adventures makes us happy, like finding that our guests have been genuinely comfortable, refreshed, and at ease in our house. 

“We are grateful. I am grateful. Because it’s been more than simply me inviting you into our home; it’s I (through the books) who have been invited again and again into home after home, and heart after heart. Your homes. Your hearts. What an incomparable honor. That kids (and families) all over the world have cherished these stories is an honor I can barely comprehend. I would deny that it’s true, but I have it thousands of times over in their own handwriting.”

God bless you, friends. There’s a longer blessing at the end of the Author’s Note in Ember’s End. I hope you find it.

Thanks for welcoming my series—our series—into your lives and homes and hearts; thank you for allowing me this incredible privilege. 

Your friend and mine,
Sam

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Happy Anniversary Ember’s End. The Green Ember Finale’s Book Birthday!

Today is a special day; it marks the one year anniversary since the end began. We’re celebrating with a HUGE GIVEAWAY so read on to find out how to enter!

Ember’s End was officially published on April 14th. Fun fact: due to numerous requests, this book released early as a way to serve those looking for hopeful, inspiring stories during a time that required bravery, courage, and hope.

“Dark as it gets, there’s always a dawn.”

Ember’s End

Now more than ever we need stories that inspire us. We need stories that make us brave.

Here’s a little bit about the book that does just that: “Heather and Picket face off for the last time with their tyrannical foes in this final installment of The Green Ember Series. The Mended Wood flickers dimly in the vision of the rabbits of Natalia, as they battle bravely for their survival and a hopeful future beyond.”

As the final installment made it’s way into the homes of readers, the reception was heartwarming. Take a look in this video celebrating the anniversary!

This is what S.D. Smith has to say about Ember’s End:

“I never intended this to be an Easter book, like a bunny book for Easter. I mean, people by these books for Easter baskets and that’s fine with me, but I wasn’t thinking about it in that way myself. 
But the last book is really kind of an Easter book. It was written during Lent and Easter largely.
It released during Easter.
And what’s really fun is that Ember’s End came out during a global pandemic. I won’t soon forget that. 
But it all fits. The story is about life breaking through in the face of death. It’s about sacrificial love. It’s about the dawn of a Mending. 
So, I didn’t design it that way, and it’s not an allegory or anything like that at all. But it really fits that it came out during Easter season and that we can have this anniversary of Ember’s End happening during Eastertide.”

The eloquent ending has warmed the hearts of many but don’t just take our word for it. Here’s what YOU are saying:

Have you made your way to the end? Share your thoughts by hopping on over to Goodreads, Amazon, or Audible to review this book. Your reviews are incredibly appreciated.

And just to make sure EVERYONE gets something cool from the Ember’s End fun, here’s a free Ember’s End coloring sheet, brand new and created by Green Ember Series artist Zach Franzen! It features Jo Shanks, Cole, and Heyna catapulting away from the Terralain camp! You can grab it here.

(And FYI, you can get 8 awesome Green Ember coloring sheets FREE—including another brand new Ember’s End sheet—if you “Gimme 5.” It’s easy and you can do that here.)

For Ember’s End’s anniversary we are celebrating how any good rabbit should: with a sweet treat and the game Heather recalled from her childhood that her father invented – Tower Wars.

Tower Wars

You Will Need:

wooden blocksa small ballan opponent

The play is simple: work on your own or in a team to build opposing towers, focusing on strength as well as beauty. Take turns throwing a small ball back and forth until one of the towers falls. Whichever team’s tower is left standing is the winner.

Congrats! You get bragging rights.

Time to celebrate with a sweet treat. Our choice: pecan cupcakes.

April 14th also happens to be national pecan day so it’s only fitting to add pecan cupcakes to our Ember’s End celebration – because what rabbit doesn’t love nuts?! What a great excuse to whip up your favorite pecan recipe!

How are you celebrating Ember’s End’s birthday? We’d love to see! Use #rabbitswithswords and tag @sdsmithereens on Instagram or Facebook.

We also love to see the art and ideas you create and share. Check out the video to see more of what we’ve already received!

New to The Green Ember? Get started with the first audiobook for FREE.

If you want your very own copy, Ember’s End is available in hardcover and paperback at the S. D. Smith Family Store (where you get the best deal) and is also available on audiobook and eBook (and print) at Amazon and your favorite bookshops.

* SALE ALERT * Right now you can get the entire set in paperback, which retails at $114.55 for $79.97! That’s ALL NINE GREEN EMBER BOOKS for under $80! GRAB IT NOW!

* SALE ALERT II * Right now you can also get most of the eBooks for $0.99 or FREE! Sale ends soon so don’t wait to snag your copy.

Speaking of free: if your library partners with Hoopla, you can listen to ALL the audiobooks for free! Make sure to check with your local library and then follow the recommended reading order.

Now for a final word from S.D. Smith:

“This was the culmination of a lot of work, many hours of pouring my heart out on the page, right there day after day, in the thick of the adventure with Heather and Picket. I was happy to bring it to an end that satisfied me, and my kids—who were the original audience—and our amazing readers. That was a dream come true. And I’m so thankful.”

It’s time for the GIVEAWAY! In honor of the anniversary, we’re giving away:

(2) Signed Hardcover copies of Ember’s End(2) Ember’s End Audiobooks(2) Signed Sets of The Green Ember Series books(2) Full Sets of The Green Ember Series Audiobooks(2) Picket’s Sword(2) Heather’s Necklace(2) “T-Shirt of your choice” from the S.D. Smith family store

How to enter: Let us know in the comments (here / Instagram / Facebook) how you are celebrating Ember’s End’s anniversary – are you playing a game, making a fun treat, drawing a picture? (You can get free coloring pages when you Gimme 5!)

7 winners will be chosen at random and 7 winners will be chosen based on the fun ideas you share to celebrate Ember’s End’s birthday for a total of 14 winners! Winners will be chosen and contacted on April 21st.

Rules: Must have a U.S. mailing address. Must be 18 or older. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by or associated with Facebook or Instagram. Void where prohibited.

Thank you for celebrating Ember’s End’s anniversary with us!

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Green Ember Singing Sisters Are Back, “My Place Beside You…”

QUESTION: When you read The Green Ember books aloud, do you sing the songs?

These girls wrote their own melody!

The three sisters from the Philippines are back with another lovely song! “My place beside you, my blood for yours. Till the Green Ember Rises, or the end of the world!”

#TheGreenEmber​ #RabbitsWithSwords​ #SDSmith

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Enjoy Your Smallness

Be small in a big world, Little girl.
Run free and fast and happy,
While you have the strength,
And stamina,
And the painless ease,
Of good knees.

Run, With the wide stride of an athlete,
Competing with the last joy,
A lithe, gliding repeat,
Of the same song you just sang,
In a new key,
With a new beat,
A familiar innovation,
And a singalong chorus.

Enjoy your smallness,
Before your head blocks the sitters,
In the pew behind you,
Before your shadow—cast in innocence,
Is an old friend’s new darkness.
Guard your little heart,
And make art,
Before you know,
How far it might go,
And stay small in your heart,
Though the ambition, it itches,
Don’t get too big for your britches,
And be as glad and grateful,
As you can.
If you can,
This too, is from the hand,
Of God.

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FREE GREEN EMBER! Kindle FREE + 99¢ Deals April 10-17

Who wants FREE ebooks? 

In honor of the upcoming ONE YEAR anniversary book birthday for Green Ember IV: Ember’s End, we’re giving away 4 ebooks and discounting 4 more to 99¢! It starts today…

LET A FRIEND KNOW!

Here’s the breakdown:

APRIL 10-14

The Green Ember FREE
Ember Falls FREE
The First Fowler 99¢
Wreck and Rise 99¢

APRIL 14-17
The Last Archer FREE
Black Star FREE
Ember Rising 99¢
Ember’s End 99¢

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Why the Resurrection Means So Much

Happy Easter!

I love this holiday, this season of hope and resurrection. If Jesus rose from the dead, then everything else comes into focus and balances against that cloud-cresting mountain of meaning. The resurrection of Jesus shows us that our troubles aren’t final and our weakness and failures aren’t eternal. Our sickness, suffering, and sin are a part of our story, not the last, sad chapter. 

I need that news! We get that news each Easter.

I love Jesus. Glory to you, Lord Christ! 

You rule my heart, our home, forever,
Jesus, King of Endless Glory.
Following you is my best endeavor, 
You’re Author and Hero of the greatest Story.

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