Random Thoughts From a Wandering Mind

I self published a hard cover children's illustrated book titled " Tommy the Courageous Bird " last year. I cannot sufficiently express the joy in seeing something you created come to life and being able to physically hold it. Simply amazing! I also had such a wonderful time promoting the book. From book reads to meeting new people online, it has been a great learning experience. And with that experience I hope to make my next book an even greater success. I am embarking on another children's book called "Walter the Turtle". It's a story about a turtle who learns to become comfortable in his own shell. With a cast of new animal characters and a great moral / lesson to the story, I'm sure EVERYONE will enjoy it. I'm going to use this blog to update my next adventure with this book. I hope you come along for the ride. Thanks!

It's so close. I approved the cover photo, back photo, illustrations, text, and even the dedication and thank you pages. It's almost here. It's an amazing feeling to finally have Tommy come to life. But at the same time it's a scary one. I've never tried to sale a book before. I'm entering unknown waters. BRING IT ON If there is anything Tommy and this whole process has taught me its this: Do it and its not that bad. Just like Tommy, I am courageous

Since the day Tommy was successfully funded I have been trying to figure out the best way to say 'thank you' and to convey what it was like to go through the whole Kickstarter process. Unfortunately I have not found the words in the English language that sufficiently conveys both of those things. But here goes my best effort. For anyone who backed this project one HUGE thank you is coming your way. Without you Tommy would still just be an idea and not a reality. Your generosity is what made this whole process worth it. It was an incredible feeling having all these friends, family, and strangers show their belief in me and my story by donating towards it. I cannot say enough times how much it meant to me. The entire proccess was a true blessing that I won't soon forget. I also don't want to forget everyone who tweeted, liked, posted, pinned, shared, and/or told someone about the book. You are all angels in my book so thank you too! This will probably be the close...

So I am half way through my Kickstarter project and the donations have slowed to a trickle. It's kind of hard to see your projections not look good with so little time left. But I do know that a lot of projects pick up the last two weeks so I hope that is true of mine. Tommy The Courageous Bird Kickstarter Project Page

I love telling this story. It's the story of how my idea for a children's picture book was saved by a co-worker who decided to go trash digging. Let me explain: A few years ago I came up with a story about a bird that was afraid of heights and thought I might be able to turn it into a children's picture book. I thought it was a good story but you never know how people will react. So I decided to give it to a few friends to read, including some friends at work. After I received some positive feedback, thoughts started to creep in my head that maybe my friends were just being nice. I mean, what else would they say? It's rare to have someone tell you the complete honest truth. So after a co-worker of mine read the story one night I threw the copy of the manuscript in the trash can. At that point I wasn't sure if I wanted to pursue trying to get it published. Now let's flash forward a couple days. I am back at work and I hear one of my co-workers named June (...

For anyone who happens to come across this in the vast internet, I wanted to let you know that I'm going to self-publish my children's picture book "Tommy The Courageous Bird". It's a book about a bird that is afraid of heights and what the true meaning of courage is. More to come soon so please check back! Http://www.facebook.com/GetTommyPublished