S.D. Smith's Blog, page 24
January 10, 2020
Q4 (Oct-Dec) #GreenEmberKidArt Winners and 2019 Grand Prize Winners
Our Best #GreenEmberKidArt for Q4 (Oct-Dec) and Year End Grand Prize Winner for 2019
and the best #GreenEmberKidArt winner and Year End Grand Prize Winner for 2019 is…
By Clive, age 14! Congratulations!
And…
Our Randomly Selected Kid Artist Winner for Q4 (Oct-Dec)!
And Now…. Our Randomly Selected Grand Prize #GreenEmberKidArt Winner for 2019 is…
By Aryssa age 7, Congratulations!
Congratulations to the winners!
Follow this tag: #GreenEmberKidArt to see the wonderful art by the kids (posted by parents) on Instagram.
And here for the same tag on Facebook.
#GreenEmberKidArt 2020 Official Rules
Official Rules: To enter, simply share your child’s Green Ember art (publicly) on Instagram or Facebook. Use the hashtag #GreenEmberKidArt (along with #RabbitsWithSwords and #TheGreenEmber if you would) and tag Sam’s author account in either Facebook or Instagram (both for more entries). Please indicate the child’s age. Use of child’s first name or picture is optional, and up to parents’ judgement. Parents are entering for kids. Kids may not enter on their own. Good luck!
Quarterly Winners
1) Randomly Selected Kid Artist!
EVERYONE who does the above is entered to win this! Any age. Any skill-level. Just have fun!Prize: Wild Glee, Contagious Joy, and $20 Gift Certificate at www.SDSmith.net/Store!
2) Best #GreenEmberKidArt of the Quarter
This will be the piece judged (by our secret, unscientific formulas) to be the “best.” Age will be considered, so each will be judged against expectations appropriate for the artist’s age. Come all ye diligent artists!Prize: Unimaginable Glory, Prodigious Esteem, and $25 Gift Certificate at www.SDSmith.net/Store!
Year-End Winners
A GRAND PRIZE will be awarded in both categories at the end of the year. All quarterly winners of the “Best” Category are entered for one Grand Prize.
Everyone who posts (according to the rules) is entered for the Random Grand Prize!
Grand Prizes will include an on-line Author Visit with S. D. Smith and a signed set of the The Green Ember Series.
Note: Q1 (Jan-March) Winners will be announced in April, Q2 (April-June) Winners will be announced in July, Q3 July-Sept) Winners will be announced in October, and Q4 (Oct-Dec) Winners will be announced in January. 2019 Grand Prize Winners will be announced in January as well.
The post Q4 (Oct-Dec) #GreenEmberKidArt Winners and 2019 Grand Prize Winners appeared first on S. D. Smith.
December 17, 2019
Imagination isn’t a Diversion, it’s the Way
Make believe makes believers.
Imagination. A silly, harmless habit of immature kids? I don’t think so. Imagination is seeing what is not obvious. It is seeing what lies beyond the mere visually present. But what if there’s more? More than, “It is what it is?” More than the middle part of the story we’re seeing right now. What if the secular fundamentalist scolds are wrong? What if the stories are true and life is more like a fairy tale than just accidental animals having predictable chemical reactions and stupidly mistaking them for love and poetry and art and meaning and religion?
I think the stories are true. I believe we’re in one. Imagination isn’t a diversion, it’s the way. Fostering imagination isn’t an innocent frivolity, it’s boot camp. It’s preparation for war. The war that matters more than any other: the war for our hearts. It’s cosmic politics. The enemy employs the Imagination. But he cannot invent, only pervert. Satan bends what God intends. That’s his only play.
The Imagination, like the Intellect, is a capacity that will serve any master. So Imagination must be looked after, and brought under the lordship of Christ, or it will, like all our other capacities, serve other masters. Like the self. Or worse. If Imagination is not doxological it will be diabolical.
So play is serious work. Fostering holy imagination is crucial. Kingdom anticipation is the call of every believer.
Make.
Believe.
Make believe prepares the way.
The post Imagination isn’t a Diversion, it’s the Way appeared first on S. D. Smith.
November 22, 2019
SAVE $50 on Incredible Green Ember Gift Deal LIMITED TIME and FIRST 1K SIGNED!
FIRST 1,000 SIGNED!
Okay, this is the final deal and it is BONKERS. SAVE $50 when you get these five copies of The Green Ember as gifts for loved ones!
These books are five bucks each. Hard to beat that for gifts. Act fast for signed copies!
Note About SigningI’m signing the first 1,000 books (not first 1,000 orders). We also will not be able to answer questions about whether or not your order was in time to be signed. We understand the desire to know, but we are a small family operation and if we checked all those order questions we’d do nothing else! We will err on the side of signing more, not less, than promised. Thank you!
Reminder: These books are preorders and will ship December 9.
The post SAVE $50 on Incredible Green Ember Gift Deal LIMITED TIME and FIRST 1K SIGNED! appeared first on S. D. Smith.
November 21, 2019
November 20, 2019
LIMITED TIME Christmas Deal on All S. D. Smith Books–SIGNED!
FIRST 1,000 SIGNED! These are all the books available this Christmas! Looking for a special gift for beloved family or friends? Maybe you’re eager to get all the books signed? If so, jump on this quick. It’s a huge discount and we’re excited to share it with you!
~Note About Signing~
I’m signing the first 1,000 books of the All Books MEGA-BUNDLE (not first 1,000 orders). We also will not be able to answer questions about whether or not your order was in time to be signed. We understand the desire to know, but we are a small family operation and if we checked all those order questions we’d do nothing else! We will err on the side of signing more, not less, than promised. Thank you!
Reminder: These books are preorders and will ship December 9.
The post LIMITED TIME Christmas Deal on All S. D. Smith Books–SIGNED! appeared first on S. D. Smith.
November 19, 2019
Last Chance to Preorder “My Place Beside You…” Shirts for Christmas! Ends Nov 30.
Just days left to get in on orders for the new and limited run blue oath shirts. Soft, durable, and great for adults or kids, these shirts make for excellent Christmas gifts.
The post Last Chance to Preorder “My Place Beside You…” Shirts for Christmas! Ends Nov 30. appeared first on S. D. Smith.
November 18, 2019
Popular Green Ember Mug Waitlist
We sold out of the mugs pretty fast. But we may have a limited run again next year. If you’re interested, join the waitlist!
The Oath Mug Waitlist
The post Popular Green Ember Mug Waitlist appeared first on S. D. Smith.
October 8, 2019
Q3 (July-September) #GreenEmberKidArt Winners
and the best #GreenEmberKidArt winner is…
By Lindsay, age 11! Congratulations!
And…
Our Randomly Selected Kid Artist Winner for Q2 (April-June)!
By Leah age 4 , Congratulations!
Congratulations to the winners!
Follow this tag: #GreenEmberKidArt to see the wonderful art by the kids (posted by parents) on Instagram.
And here for the same tag on Facebook.
#GreenEmberKidArt 2019 Official Rules
Official Rules: To enter, simply share your child’s Green Ember art (publicly) on Instagram or Facebook. Use the hashtag #GreenEmberKidArt (along with #RabbitsWithSwords and #TheGreenEmber if you would) and tag Sam’s author account in either Facebook or Instagram (both for more entries). Please indicate the child’s age. Use of child’s first name or picture is optional, and up to parents’ judgement. Parents are entering for kids. Kids may not enter on their own. Good luck!
Quarterly Winners
1) Randomly Selected Kid Artist!
EVERYONE who does the above is entered to win this! Any age. Any skill-level. Just have fun!Prize: Wild Glee, Contagious Joy, and $20 Gift Certificate at www.SDSmith.net/Store!
2) Best #GreenEmberKidArt of the Quarter
This will be the piece judged (by our secret, unscientific formulas) to be the “best.” Age will be considered, so each will be judged against expectations appropriate for the artist’s age. Come all ye diligent artists!Prize: Unimaginable Glory, Prodigious Esteem, and $25 Gift Certificate at www.SDSmith.net/Store!
Year-End Winners
A GRAND PRIZE will be awarded in both categories at the end of the year. All quarterly winners of the “Best” Category are entered for one Grand Prize.
Everyone who posts (according to the rules) is entered for the Random Grand Prize!
Grand Prizes will include an on-line Author Visit with S. D. Smith, a signed set of the The Green Ember Series, and more!
Note: Q1 (Jan-March) Winners will be announced in April, Q2 (April-June) Winners will be announced in July, Q3 July-Sept) Winners will be announced in October, and Q4 (Oct-Dec) Winners will be announced in January. 2019 Grand Prize Winners will be announced in January as well.
The post Q3 (July-September) #GreenEmberKidArt Winners appeared first on S. D. Smith.
October 2, 2019
Author as Ally: S. D. Smith’s Green Ember Notes From the Front
I’ve been working hard the last few weeks sharing about the new books, hustling to remove obstacles for families who are keen on these new stories with an old soul. It’s easy to lose the big vision in the hustle and hurry of urgent tasks. But again and again, you guys are reminding me why good stories matter. My friend Heidi says the best stories (anchored in truth, goodness, and beauty) are not as escape from reality, but an escape into reality. She’s right.
Your notes of encouragement, in messages online and in the mail, are helping me remember the big picture. You’re helping me see beyond the veil of clouds to the Mending.
Often these notes are just joyful expressions of a shared adventure as a family. But I’ve heard from families whose reluctant readers have fallen in love with stories after beginning with The Green Ember. I’ve heard from more and more military families who feel understood and appreciated. I’ve heard from countless missionary families who feel encouraged. Most sobering, I have notes from many families who say they have felt joy and hope in the midst of serious illness—often of a child—while walking together through these books.
I don’t take these notes lightly. They mean that we are allies, and that my modest reinforcements have arrived and helped in some small way at the front in which you are so heroically fighting. I have so badly wanted to be an ally to you. Your battle is crucial, because it’s another fight for the hearts of your children against the ever-threatening darkness. I’m on your side.
Your notes are fuel for my desire to serve and love you the best way I can. So, I’m working on the stories. Honest, hard, hopeful stories. Not sneaky-teachy, or manipulative and dominating. Not allegory, but applicable (to use Tolkien’s words). Real stories, the best this West Virginian can do. I’m getting them ready for you. We are all complicated creatures with complex desires and aims. But I have no doubt about the main mission of my vocation. I make these stories for you, to delight and quicken your heart, because I love you and I want to serve you.
God bless you. Keep up the fight. I’m on your side.
Thanks for letting me know that you’re on my side, too.
The post Author as Ally: S. D. Smith’s Green Ember Notes From the Front appeared first on S. D. Smith.
September 26, 2019
Beloved Green Ember “My Place Beside You” Shirts Are Back!
Preorder NOW ONLY AT SDSMITH.NET/STORE!
For a limited run, these very popular shirts are back in stock for PREORDER. Soft, breathable, and durable, these shirts have been a family favorite for all ages! The only difference between the new and older version of the “Oath” shirt is color.
The new ones are navy and white, instead of grey on grey.
New shirts on left, older model on right. Preorder NOW ONLY AT SDSMITH.NET/STORE!
The post Beloved Green Ember “My Place Beside You” Shirts Are Back! appeared first on S. D. Smith.
