Mikey Brooks's Blog, page 21

Blog Tour: Day 1

First up on the Blog tour for THE DREAM KEEPER is a REVIEW by the fantastic, Jane Dunn McBride. You can visit that at: http://onbecominganauthor.blogspot.com/ Also we'll be visiting the Kindle Book Review at:  http://www.thekindlebookreview.net

Book Feature: Ganwold’s Child

Synopsis:
Tristan grew up a human among aliens. Now he must use his alienness to survive among humans.

The Sergey Chronicles, one military family’s saga and a large-scale epic of interstellar war, begin with the odyssey of Ganwold’s Child. Combat surgeon Darcie Dartmuth is taking her toddler son, Tristan, to rejoin her husband, Lieutenant Lujan Sergey, when their military transport is captured by alien slavers, the masuki. Darcie and Tristan manage to escape in a lifepod and land on Ganwold, home of the primitive and alien ganan. Tristan is barely eighteen when Darcie contracts a life-threatening illness. Accompanied by his gan “brother,” Pulou, Tristan sets out to seek help for her. When he ventures into an enemy colony, he is captured and turned over to Sector General Mordan Renier, his father’s nemesis, who uses Tristan as bait to trigger a new war for Renier’s lost homeworld. Now an Admiral and commander of the Unified Worlds’ special forces, the Spherzah, Lujan must repel Renier’s impending attack, realizing he could lose the family he has just learned is still alive.

“A very good first novel,” wrote Orson Scott Card, “in which a youngster plunges into a demanding military environment and is forced to find out just how good he is. This novel is exemplary for showing how the effective military mind really works—you’ll find no romantic military nonsense here.” Buy the book:http://www.amazon.com/Ganwolds-Child-Sergey-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B009SS3GM4/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1367249438&sr=1-1&keywords=ganwold%27s+child About Diann T. Read and Her BooksOriginally from northern Utah, Diann Thornley wrote her first story at the age of five and never stopped writing. She taught herself to type—with two fingers—on her father’s ancient manual typewriter at the age of six because it was faster than pushing a pencil. After winning a statewide writing contest, junior high division, at the age of fourteen, she began her first novel, which was based on the Arthurian legends. This endeavor filled most of her high school years and freshman year of college, until a handful of friends introduced her to science fiction by “kidnapping” her to go see an obscure little movie called Star Wars. The rest, as they say, is history.
Ganwold’s Child , first book of the The Sergey Chronicles , took seven years to complete, due to completing college and entering the U.S. Air Force. Following a year-long tour of duty in the Republic of Korea, Diann finished Ganwold’s Child while stationed at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio. Echoes of Issel and Dominion’s Reach , the second and third books in the Sergey trilogy, were also written in Ohio.

Diann transitioned into the Air Force Reserves following Desert Storm, but her military career spanned 23 years and included deployments to Bosnia and Iraq. In December 2000 she married Jon Read, NASA rocket scientist and martial artist, and moved to Texas. Diann retired from the Air Force in June 2009 to return to her writing career and spend more time with Jon.Check out Diann’s website at www.diannthornleyread.com, find her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/Diann-T-Read/291193624316145?ref=hl, follow her blog, “Hero Journeys,” at www.diannread.wordpress.com and on Twitter @DiannTRead.  You can find her books on Amazon at www.amazon.com/author/diann.t.read.

The Sergey Chronicles (military science fiction)When Tor Books originally published this trilogy in the late 1990s it was called The Saga of the Unified Worlds. It would have been more accurate to call it The Sergey Chronicles because it is, more than anything else, the story of one warrior family—Admiral Lujan Ansellic Sergey, his combat surgeon wife Captain Darcie Dartmuth, and their teenage son, Tristan Sergey—who become caught at the fulcrum of interstellar politics and the demands of their military duty. Wrenched apart and scattered across the galaxy by the brutalities of war, they face captivity, torture, coercion, and epic space battles to be reunited. Only then do their most devastating challenges begin. Having been separated by decades of time as well as lightyears of distance, each of them must confront his or her internal demons to make their family truly whole again, and to defeat a new and more insidious threat to their civilization. Among deadly special operations missions and scenes of deep-cover political intrigue runs a thread that proves how much one family can accomplish with patience, forgiveness, trust, dedication, and unity of purpose. The Sergey Chronicles are all available on Kindle at www.amazon.com/author/diann.t.readand are now available on Nook as well.

Excerpt from Ganwold’s Child             Darcie didn’t expect to live.
            With the hand she could move enough to reach them, she tore unit and command patches from her uniform shirt, leaving only her nametag, rank and combat surgeon’s insignia. She drew out the chain from around her neck, yanked off the two crystal pendants hanging with her ID tags, shoved them into the corner behind her.
            “Mama?” The child stirred on her lap, trying to push himself back. “Why are—”
            She put a finger to his lips, her other hand cupping his head to prevent its bumping the metal bulkhead. “Hush, Tris.”
            She could barely whisper. She sat on the bottom of a locker meant only for a pressure suit—one of four lockers in the maintenance compartment—with the toddler held snug between her body and her drawn-up knees.
            Outside noises reached her: the roar of engines crescendoing toward thrust into lightskip. The fourth attempt.
            She braced her head back in the corner behind the pressure suit, hugged Tristan to her breast and locked her teeth. Clumsy masuki! They won’t have a catch left if they strain the transport to disintegration first.
            Lightskip warning horns screamed through the corridor outside the maintenance compartment. The vessel shook and groaned. In its turbulence, the child threw up.
            Darcie swallowed against her own nausea at its sour odor. She wiped his mouth and the front of her uniform. “Don’t cry, little soldier,” she whispered. “Here now, hold onto me.”
            The horns wound down as they had before, and she relaxed her brace against the plasmic sensation of entering lightskip.
            She waited what seemed hours in stifling darkness. Her legs grew cramped, then numb from their position and the toddler’s weight on them. She tried to shift a little, to ease them, and pain arced up her back.
            Her thoughts tumbled over each other without any order. She thought of Lujan, her husband, waiting for them at their destination. Remembered the way he had kissed her good-bye months ago on Topawa.
            The locker had grown hotter, almost suffocating, despite the vents in its door. She wondered, in an oddly detached way, how long it would take for her and Tristan to smother. Wondered what Lujan would do when he learned they were dead.
            The tremor of explosions shattered her reverie. Shooting?She heard the transport’s minimal weaponry reply, and then running footfalls, thudding up and down the corridor beyond her hiding place.
            Another hour passed before the craft rocked at the impact of electromagnets and shuddered in 
whine of winch cables. She started at volleys of light arms’ fire and bootfalls ringing through the
passages. Armored bootfalls this time, not scuffing masuk footsteps.
            Catching her lower lip in her teeth, she began to stroke the child’s hair.
            The maintenance compartment’s door slammed open. Voices reached her—two or three of them, only yards away—but their words, modulated by their helmets’ electronics, weren’t understandable. Boots trod the circumference of the maintenance compartment. Over her pulse in her ears, she detected an oscillating hum.
            She pressed a hand tight over Tristan’s mouth and bit off a groan. She had used lifeform sensors before; the locker’s construction wouldn’t jam them.
            The hum shot to a sharp whine; the boots stopped outside her enclosure. She heard an order, and then banging. Metal clashed on metal until she thought her head would split and Tristan’s wail would be drowned in its clamor. When the locker door tore away, she stared up at three armored shapes silhouetted against the dull light.
            Dominion legionnaires.
            The nearest one shoved aside the pressure suit, seized her by the wrist, and hauled her to her feet. She staggered, numb legs nearly buckling, and almost lost her hold on her child. From behind tinted helmet visors the other two soldiers’ gazes roamed her body.
            Darcie jerked her wrist from her captor’s gauntlet and wrapped both arms around Tristan. “This is illegal, you know! It’s been a month since the hostilities ended at Enach, and the talks are—”
            “I don’t think so,” the squad leader said. “Where’ve you been for the last few years?”
            She glared at him. Forced herself not to let her breath catch when one soldier stooped to search the locker. Straightening, he handed something to his sergeant. “Look at these.”
           The crystal hologram pendants. Her wedding portrait, and a picture of Lujan with Tristan.
           The sergeant held them up to the light, and she saw his eyes widen behind his visor. “Yeah, I thought the nametag looked familiar,” he said. “The colonel will probably promote us for this!” He tucked the holodiscs into his utility belt and reached for her arm. “It’s my duty to inform you, Lieutenant Dartmuth, that at no time in the last nine years has the Sector General recognized the governments of the Unified Worlds. He sealed the Accords under duress, so it wasn’t a legitimate treaty.”
            She evaded his hand. “Nine years? Surely you can lie better than that . . .”
            Her voice trailed off as she remembered the futile attempts to make lightskip. The masuk slavers must have succeeded at entering a time track whether or not they had crossed space. She questioned the legionnaire with a stare.
            “The Enach Accords weren’t ratified as easily as the Unified Worlds had hoped,” he said. “They didn’t fail as completely as Sector General Renier had hoped, either. You may be able to make that up to him.”
            “Mordan Renier?” Darcie stiffened. “Sector General?”
            The squad leader smiled. “I wonder what kind of plea bargain the Unified Worlds might be willing to make in exchange for you?”
            “It won’t work, you know.”
            “We’ll see.” His smile turned grim. “Move.” He shoved her shoulder, indicating the corridor. “Maybe the war isn’t over yet.”
            She yielded, her thoughts racing ahead. This transport has a cross-corridor aft of the bridge with an emergency shield door. . . .
            Hugging the child to her body, one hand rubbing up and down his back in reassurance, she set her teeth. One soldier strode before her, two behind. They hadn’t applied restraints; they had no firearms ready to hand. They appeared to trust her feigned submission. But a glance back showed one soldier’s hand resting on the hilt of a boarding knife, one of a dozen strapped naked about his hips like armor’s tasses made of steel teeth. Boarding knives, she knew, could double as throwing weapons.
            Several members of the crew lay in the corridor. She recognized Rahb Heike, the ship’s captain, and recoiled. He lay face down in his own blood. Masuk work.
            A hand pushed her back when she paused. She stumbled, slipping in Heike’s blood before she could catch her balance, and moved around another bloodied body. Lieutenant Baraq. He had also died before the legionnaires arrived. She swallowed dryness and turned her head away.
            She felt brief satisfaction at spotting several masuki sprawled in the corridor. The Unified soldiers had died fighting. But the ship was too empty, both of military personnel and civilians.
            Light from the intersecting corridor cast a square across the concourse deck ahead. She shifted Tristan to her left arm and curled her right fist, keeping her head lowered.
            Ten paces. . . .
            She lunged left into the cross-corridor, her right fist punching the manual trigger on its bulkhead. The shield door dropped behind her with a whoosh that ended in a crunch and her pursuer’s garbled scream. She pressed Tristan’s face to her shoulder and forced herself not to look back.
            The cross passage opened on one parallel to the corridor she had sealed. It led to the lifepods. If they’ve not been jettisoned already.
            She pressed herself to the bulkhead to listen for pursuers and peer into the corridor. She saw nothing, up and down, but the smoke-obscured shapes of bodies on the deck. She tried to set the child on his feet, to rest her arm, but he clung to her, wide-eyed with confusion and fear. She smoothed his hair, kissed his forehead. “Come then, little soldier,” she said, collecting him again, and slipped into the passage.
            Smoke from screen grenades stung her eyes, making them run and blurring her vision. She stumbled over a body and paused, panting. One of the surface troops, a young man she didn’t recognize. An energy pistol lay in his out-flung hand. She stooped to snatch it up. Glanced at the power cell in its grip when bootfalls echoed up the corridor behind her. Its charge light still burned.
            Five or six armored figures emerged through the haze. She leveled the E-gun, squeezed the trigger. Its energy burst seared off the bulkhead into the knot of oncoming men. A cry rang back to her as one of them crumpled. Another, too close to avoid, sprawled over him as the rest sprang for cover. Darcie turned for the lift.
            Its door stood jammed open, its platform suspended between decks. She glanced over her shoulder. Two armored shapes advanced on her, steel glinting in their hands.

Book Feature: ONTARIO by Heidi Nicole Bird

“Don’t worry, Ontario, I’ll never leave you. You will always have me here to protect you and your brother.”Those words from a childhood memory would haunt Ontario Stratton for the rest of her life. Losing her father had been difficult enough, but her life would change even more drastically at the beginning of her senior year of high school. Only weeks into the school year Mrs. Stratton abandons her two children for a more carefree way of living. Suddenly thrown into a very different life, Ontario clings to her brother Eddy, her new legal guardian, and to no one else. Could she trust anyone anymore? Even her best friend isn’t there for her. . .In order to feel like less of a burden on her brother, Ontario gets a job at the local fifties-style diner. It is there that she meets her new “family,” including the oh-so-intriguing Austin, the only one who can help her truly heal. In time, Ontario discovers that Austin has his own demons, and that he needs her just as much as she needs him. Some things in Ontario’s life begin to come together again, but others continue to fall apart. Though her world seems to be breaking, she is introduced to a kind of happiness she has never known before, and her new found friends show her that maybe, just maybe, she can learn to love again.
Excerpt:I opened my umbrella and stepped out onto the grassy lawn, twirling my toes through the wet blades of grass. It was definitely chilly, especially since I only had my night dress on, but I didn’t care. It just made me want to go even more. I slowly began to walk through the grass that lined the sidewalk on my street. My house was the last one on our little road, and it wasn’t long before the sidewalk ended. I breathed in deeply as I walked through the now pouring rain. I was now far enough away from the street that the house lights no longer reached me, but I walked on under the gorgeous light of an almost full moon. After a while I started to feel like I should turn back. By now I had entered the woods that were near my house, and I was not familiar with them. I turned and started going the way I had come, but it wasn’t long before my emotions got the better of me. I stopped and looked around in fear. Not the fear of my mother that I had been running from. Now it was the fear of being totally lost in a dark forest on a cold and rainy night. I bit my lower lip as I searched for something familiar, but in my efforts to focus on something other than my mother I hadn’t paid attention to where I was going at all. I’d only been thinking about the rain and the beautiful moon, which I couldn’t see anymore. Only shards of light fell on the ground around me. After a few minutes I picked a direction and started to walk again, hoping that I was going the right way. I knew that these woods were deep, and I certainly didn’t want to be heading deeper into them. I tried to use the moon as my guide, heading for what looked like lighter areas, but that only seemed to turn me around even more. Finally after doing this for some time I sat down on an old fallen tree, which was mostly dry, thanks to the surrounding trees. It didn’t take long for panic to set in, and it didn’t help when I heard a noise behind me. I froze, stiff with bated breath. Nothing. Had I imagined it? Just as I was starting to think that it hadn’t been real I heard the sound again, and louder this time. I wasn’t alone after all. Someone, or something, was also in the woods, and it was coming my way. I listened to the crunch of half-soggy sticks as the thing grew closer and closer. What should I do? Run? Wouldn’t the thing just run after me? It was probably faster than me, especially since I didn’t know where I was and my feet were bare. All sorts of thoughts ran through my head, telling me I never should have done this, but that only worsened my panic, and so I just sat there, stiff as a board, waiting for my attacker to appear. It wasn’t until I felt a hand on my shoulder that I found my ability to move. I jerked around, screaming, ready to defend myself, and came face to face with . . .
About the Author:Heidi Nicole Bird has been writing for as long as she can remember and it is her favorite thing in the world. Heidi is a regular NaNoWriMo participant and is mostly a young adult fantasy writer, but also likes to write juvenile fiction and other genres. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Brigham Young University and she looks forward to exploring the genre of historical fiction. Heidi lives in Utah with her family and three dogs, and loves working from home as a full time writer.Also by Heidi Nicole Bird, Through the Paper Wall http://www.amazon.com/Through-the-Paper-Wall-ebook/dp/B00BF1MNT4
Links:www.facebook.com/HeidiNicoleBirdwww.twitter.com/HeidiNicoleBirdhttp://heidinicolebird.blogspot.com/
Links to Ontario:Paperback    Kindle Store   Ontario on Goodreads

The Dream Keeper Blog Tour

Check out this amazing lineup! There are some talented people hosting me throughout the next month. Please make sure to stop by and visit.
The Blog Tour:May 15: http://onbecominganauthor.blogspot.com/ (Review)May 15: http://www.thekindlebookreview.net(Review)May 16: http://cindymhogan.blogspot.com/(Conflict in Middle-Grade Books)May 17: http://antagonistinterviews.blogspot.com/(VS Gernier Interview)May 20: http://www.wordpaintingsunlimited.com/ (A Step Forward)May 21:  http://andreapearsonbooks.blogspot.com/(Blurb)May 22: www.diannread.wordpress.com (Book Feature)
May 24: http://peacewrites.blogspot.co.uk/ (Guest post & Giveaway)May 26: http://interviwingauthors.blogspot.com/(VSG Interview) May 27: http://heidinicolebird.blogspot.com/(Inspiration from Classics)May 28: http://www.saythiswrite.blogspot.com (Review Blog)May 29: http://bonniegwyn.blogspot.com/(On Writing)May 29: www.carolethayne.blogspot.com (Interview)May 29: http://thomstratton.com("Where did THAT come from?!")May 30: http://nothoughts2small.blogspot.com/(Review and Giveaway)May 31: http://thewritingmama.blogspot.com/(Interview)June 1: BOOK LAUNCH!!
June 1: http://lindzeearmstrong.blogspot.com. (Reading with Kids)June 1: http://rebeccalamoreaux-anauthorinprogress.blogspot.com/(Review)June 3: www.chuchimommy.blogspot.com (Review and Interview)June 4: http://abrokenlaptop.com/(Scaring Kids)June 5: www.writethroughthenoise.blogspot.com(Oz, Wonderland, and Dreams)June 6: https://www.ryanhunter.blogspot.com(Getting and Keeping Ideas)June 7: www.benschwensch.wordpress.com (Interview)June 8: http://www.astorybookworld.blogspot.com/ (Review and Interview)June 10: http://moniquebucheger.blogspot.com/ReviewJune 11: http://www.jamesduckett.com/(Book Feature)June 12: http://www.bradenbell.com/bradens-blog.html(Book Feature)June 13: http://annadelc.com/blog/(Interview)June 14: http://shirleybahlmann.blogspot.com/ (Adventure Interview)June 15: http://jenniferjbennett.blogspot.com/(Book Feature)

Book Feature: DISPLACED by: Joni Heirtzler

Joni Heirtzler is living the dream, even when it takes a tremendous amount of work, sweat and tears.
In the ninth grade, she began attending an early-college high school so she could graduate with her associates degree at the time of her high school graduation. She’s attained that degree, earning two scholarships in the process to further her education.

At the age of eighteen she’s ahead of most students her age, academically, and she wants to do more. She has a dream to see the world, but not only see it, to serve others while she’s overseas.
She’s chosen to do this through the International Language Program, a nonprofit organization that places people from the U.S. with schools in other countries to help teach the students English.
She’s signed up for Lithuania.

But there’s a setback. Because Joni has been enrolled in college courses, serving the community in association with the National Honor Society, finishing her high school degree, and participating in track and orchestra, she’s had little time to find regular employment. Her family has helped, but she needs more.
She’s worked hard to earn her own way to go to Lithuania with ILP, and she’s drawing on her talents any way she can to get the remaining funds.

As a talented writer, she’s compiled three short stories to sell as an ebook, all the funds going to help children she doesn’t even know.

The three story compilation is entitled Displaced and can be purchased on Amazon for only $2.99. It contains three stories, The Influence, Last Minute, and Rain.

To make additional donations, an account has been set up on Razoo: http://www.razoo.com/story/Help-Joni-Teach-English-In-Lithuania or buy the book at: http://amzn.to/17pW9PD

Excerpt from The Influence:
“Precious memories swam through my mind. I hadn't realized how dull life was without a body until I'd received one. The world had become vibrantly beautiful. I remembered the first day; all of the senses overbearing.”

Bio:
Joni Heirtzler is the second of five children. She’s active in track, plays the violin and loves to serve others. She’s kind and compassionate and dreams of seeing more of the world before settling down to complete another two years of college to obtain her bachelor’s degree. She’s planning on pursuing a degree in marketing through Southern Utah University as soon as she returns from Lithuania.

THE COVER: THE DREAM KEEPER

Congrats Levi on winning the GRAND PRIZE: A FREE signed copy of the hardback book (retailed at $19.95), A FREE Bookmark, a FREE hand-drawn illustration (whatever you choose) by Mikey Brooks, and YOUR first name will appear as a character in Book 2: THE DREAMSTONE.

Help Choose the Cover for the Dream Keeper

THE DREAM KEEPER is about to hit book shelves but first we need a cover. Below you’ll find a link to InsideMikeysWorld.com where you can vote on your favorite cover. You can also enter to win a GRAND PRIZE. Winner of the contest, and the cover reveal will happen April 29, 2013. The GRAND PRICE: A FREE signed copy of the hardback book (retailed at $19.95), A FREE Bookmark, a FREE hand-drawn illustration (whatever you choose) by Mikey Brooks, and YOUR first name will appear as a character in Book 2: THE DREAMSTONE. Good luck and make sure to spread the word!

GO TO: http://www.insidemikeysworld.com/  or click the picture below:

FREE today on Kindle TROUBLE WITH BERNIE

That's right! TROUBLE WITH BERNIE is FREE today only on Kindle. So please, please, please, get a copy and share the link with your friends. 4-year-old Ean says, "it's my favorite book!" although he calls it "Mikey in Trouble". http://www.amazon.com/Trouble-with-Bernie-ebook/dp/B00AA2VTBC/ref=sr_1_1_bnp_1_kin?ie=UTF8&qid=1364903810&sr=8-1&keywords=trouble+with+bernie

Gratitude for “Little Miracles”

I heard it said that every now and then God likes to throw us a curve ball just to see if we can hit it. The past few weeks have been just that—a curve ball. I was diagnoses with Crohns disease about four years ago; never did I think it would be a life altering condition—boy was I wrong. In early October I woke up and was unable to move. My body ached everywhere. My legs seemed to be rebelling against me and refused to let me stand. Over the next few months I underwent test after test, going through specialty doctors like a kid would go through a bag of candy. Most experiences were not sweet and the results often left me with a stomach ache. 
In the end they determined the Crohns disease had begun to cause arthritis in my joins and that was the reason for so much pain and the struggles with my arms and legs. My doctor counseled me to find a desk job, something that would allow me to sit. My employer, a company I have been with for 11 years as a bakery manager, had no such position. Short term disability ran out, my job was gone, and I was on my own—or so I thought.
I took a week off Facebook (something that I am highly addicted to because I crave the social interactions I miss at work) as a type of fasting. I wanted to show God I was serious about finding a way to support my family. When I returned, I made it a goal to be more optimistic and not be one of the “those” people who complained all day long. Then the little miracles started happening . . . 
Suddenly angels were donating money, sending job referrals by email, giving book reviews on Amazon and Goodreads, and eBook sales increased. These “little miracles” really showed me that I was not alone in this situation. And it helped me see that God is mindful of everyone—especially so when he throws that curve ball your way. The overwhelming display of friendship and compassion for me and my family has literally brought me to tears. I want those involved to know how much I love and appreciate each of you. And not just for what you did, but because you had the compassion and strength to do it. So many times we see someone broken down on the street and we pass by thinking someone else will take care of it. I am so grateful no one passed me by when they saw that I was broken. 
Thank you all so very much! You have taught me a valuable lesson: We are never alone in our trials, God will send his angels to help; and sometimes he throws us a curve ball because he knows we CAN HIT IT.

Choosing the Right Publisher

Recently I was offered a publishing contract for my middle-grade book, THE DREAM KEEPER, which I turned down. Many have asked the reasons why and I’d thought I’d share that here. I was absolutely thrilled when I got the offer. I couldn’t wait to shout it from the rooftops that finally someone (besides me, my wife, my sister, and my freelance editor) took interest in this awesome book. I had tried for over a year to find the right agent. When that yielded no results I went to small publishers. 
My last attempts got me two publishers interested—one that quickly offered a contract after three days of review. I carefully read over the contract and highlighted all the portions that I didn’t feel comfortable with. After tons of amazing advice from successful authors (as a note: do this!) I made my decision. I was going with a fairly new publisher because certain members of their team really made me feel like they loved my book. I thought that if they loved it as much as me—this was the team to be with. Throughout the process of reviewing the contract, once again, warning bells started to sound in my head. And I was reminded once again of the quote I have hanging next to my computer screen: “Never, ever, sacrifice what you want the most, for what you want most at the moment” –James Owen. Then I prayed.
I had prayed before I accepted the offer but I was so overwhelmed with voices in my head and the thrill of getting published I wasn’t listening properly. I remember the warning bells then and I am glad I listened later. It wasn’t that this publisher wouldn’t have done an awesome job. In fact I think they were enthusiastic and show great promise as a small publisher—but they weren’t for me. I had concerns about their distribution, something I had learned a lot about during my struggles in self-publishing my picture books. As an indie author I could do so much better with distribution then they presented. The bottom line was that I was sacrificing what I wanted most for what I wanted most at the moment. 
So I did one of the hardest things that I have ever done before. I declined the offer to be traditionally published. I took a moment to breathe. I am no further in getting this book traditionally published then when I set out on this journey a little over a year ago. But I have learned more in this process. I have made great strides as an author/illustrator. In the time I finished THE DREAM KEEPER I have released six picture books, planned two more, and two novels—one a sequel to The Dream Keeper book. One day my dreams will come true—I know this! I will see my books in the hands of readers and I will be making a living as an author/illustrator. That is my goal—that is what I want most.