Percival makes his debut

Yep, What Every Dragon Needs is out, and available on Amazon, B&N, Books-A-Million, as well as a host of other places. You can even take a peek inside on Amazon.

And there is a giveaway going on Goodreads until May 1st - hurrah for (potentially) free books!

I loved drawing that little dragon! So, go take a look and tell me what you think.

Cover Reveal for What Every Dragon Needs

     So back in April I posted concept art for What Every Dragon Needs on my facebook page (curious - go take a look here!) and said ~ coming fall 2013. Well it looks more like Spring 2014, but at least I can share the cover with you....

So without further ado, the cover for What Every Dragon Needs 

     We're down to the very end, final text edit, tweaking illustrations and book layout, all the little things that seem to take forever. The release date is March 1st, 2014 but it will most likely be available much earlier (fingers crossed). We'll see!

     I am extremely excited. I have loved drawing Percival, that would be the little dragon you see on the cover above. Whenever I start to work on his illustrations, especially the ones where he is on his quest, I here the opening song to My Neighbor Totoro - the english version. I can't seem to help it.

Well back to tweaking illustrations...

Free Books! What more can you ask for?

As I mentioned in the previous post, Butterscotch & Me - Collectors's Edition is just about to be released, so of course we are running a Goodreads giveaway! You can sign up from now until September 1st. There are15 copies of the collector's edition available and 5 of the first edition. Go take a look - Butterscotch & Me - Collector's Edition and Butterscotch & Me

Also, Indie & Debut Author Interviews just posted my interview. It is my first one and I am pretty excited!

To say or not to say...

The collector’s edition Butterscotch & Me is scheduled to come out in September (it's in hard cover and in a larger format), and while I was going through all the bits and pieces, (notes, dedications, etc.)  I was reminded of… let’s call it a dilemma… that I had when I was first publishing Butterscotch. Should I or shouldn't I mention that my daughter has autism.

That question swirled around in my brain the entire time I was finishing up the first edition. I thought, “is it really anyone’s business?" "Did it really have any bearing on anything at all?” Or worse, would people think that I was only doing it for marketing?

It bothered me a lot, so I talked with my husband about it, and he pointed out that it really isn't about what people think (and when exactly had that become one of my deciding factors?)

The fact is my daughter was a large part of Butterscotch, from it's conception to its completion, and autism plays a large part in her life, all our lives. Among other things, it was a factor in why a typical parental approach to bedtime (at least when all this started) wasn't a realistic option. Who’s to say that I would have even thought up the concept of Butterscotch & Me if I hadn't had to stay up with her all those nights reading and making up stories when she couldn't sleep? Would I have pushed forward if she hadn't sat for days and days on the arm of my computer chair, her chin on my shoulder, watching while I drew the illustrations for it? Perhaps not.

She is at once my biggest inspiration and my biggest obstacle, and I have a lot to thank her for. It is often her expectations that push me forward…whether I want to go forward or not.

From the time when all this started. If you've read the book this picture will look pretty familiar!

She is older now and I don’t think that she could fit on the arm of my computer chair if she tried, but she still has her opinions about what stories she thinks I should be working on. She also is my guinea pig as I tend to read my stories to her over and over, long before they go to print.

So thanks Lena-girl... for everything.

MBR's Children's Bookwatch - review for Butterscotch & Me

The Midwest Book Review is a wonderful organization that makes a point of giving consideration to small presses, as well as self-published authors and academic presses. I applaud their efforts, and I was extremely excited to get their review.

I had considered posting the review here, but who knows what else you could find if you go directly to the source. Take a look! Childern's Bookwatch February 2013 - Picture Books

Show your love - write a review!

So, I've been getting sidetracked, or more accurately, letting myself get sidetracked a lot lately. Mostly, by visiting other author's websites, or blogs, or facebook pages... in my defense, it was a natural progression since I was supposed to be working on marketing my own books...and there was a topic common to almost all of them that was very close to my heart - reviews.

They are hard to get, especially when you're an indie author or publisher. You can have fifty people a day tell you they love your book and only have one review on said book at the end of the month. I've been feeling pretty down, and sometimes even a little angry, about that lately, probably why certain posts kept catching my eye, but then I asked myself "well self, what have you reviewed lately?"

Considering how many books I've read, and in some cases re-read, and never wrote a review for..well apparently my hypocrisy has no bounds, and at that point I decided, I need to put my money where my mouth is!

You can't (or you shouldn't) complain about not getting reviews if you are unwilling, or too lazy, to write them yourself. So, that is what I plan to do. At least one a month which may not seem like a huge commit, but for me it's tremendous. They will definitely be on Goodreads and most likely on Amazon as well. I'll post links to them here, not right here, but in future posts.

You can't ask for something you're unwilling to give.

Just like I promised...

I've finally gotten around to posting some concept art for What Every Dragon Needs (working title) which is...tentatively...coming out fall 2013. I posted few more sketches on facebook, take a look.

Oh well, break time's over...