Book Signing - Part 2

I have a second book signing schedules on January 4th at River Row Books in Owego, NY from 1 to 3 PM.  Follow the link below to the Facebook event page and get the details.  The invite is open to the public, so you anyone can accept it!  Hope to see you there!

https://www.facebook.com/events/564873746929197/?context=create&ref_dashboard_filter=upcoming

Busy busy busy!

What a great week last week!  I was privileged to read to the Harpursville, NY sixth grade class where I got to answer some really great questions, including "Do you like cheese?"  (I answered 'yes' for everyone that was curious)  Then, the next day, I read to not one, but two classes at Jenny F. Snapp middle school in Endicott.  I was met with a gasp from the students as I walked through the classroom door.  Apparently, they were excited to see me.  Usually if I get a gasp when I walk through a door, I have either done something wrong or I forgot to button or zip something, so this was a pleasant change.  I ended up on the school's web site, so if you want to read the article, you can go here... http://www.uek12.org/protected/ArticleView.aspx?iid=4Y022&dasi=2GI  It was so much fun and I had the pleasure of donating a copy of the book to the school library.

Then, my first book signing happened at River Read Books in Binghamton, NY.  First I need to mention how great of a store River Read is and if you are ever in the greater Binghamton area, stop by and visit them.  Unfortunately, the 6 to 8 inches of snow that day kept a lot of people away.  Still, I was able to sell quite a few books, and the people who did stop by were welcomed with smiles and open arms.

The holidays are quickly approaching, so perhaps Jason and the Draconauts would be a great gift for that reader in your life!  

And who knows, maybe we will get another book signing scheduled soon, like...I don't know...the first week of January?  (That was a spoiler...stay tuned)

Oh, and Chris Pousser...the guy who drew quite a few of the dragons from the story...yeah, I just contacted him for, well, that would be telling now, wouldn't it?

My first interview

Please check out this interview from a personal friend and art enthusiast Tamara Murphy!

http://livingpalm.blogspot.com/2013/12/buy-more-art-this-christmas-paul-d.html

Kirkus Independent Review is in!

Part of my package through Createspace was an independent review from Kirkus Reviews.  It arrived late last night.  But there are spoilers in the review so SPOILER WARNING!

Here it is...

'Dragons compete with humans and try to integrate into 21st-century life in Smith’s clever, witty YA debut.

Jason Hewes is an ordinary American kid living on a farmstead in Montana with his dad, an archaeologist at the Montana Archaeological Society. One night after a terrible storm, Jason discovers a dragon in the barn, and his ordinary, if slightly troubled life—his mother and older brother were killed in a car crash, and he’s preyed upon by school bullies—suddenly takes a surreal twist as he tries to understand how this great mythological being suddenly entered his life. The dragon, Petros, can understand human speech, and after Jason’s initial reservations, the boy strikes up a friendship and agrees to help the beast learn more about modern human society, which will hopefully result in peaceful coexistence. More dragons join, along with a group of select teenagers—later known as the Draconauts—and an agreement is made to seek out a mage who can help disguise the creatures so they won’t be so conspicuous in city life. The entry of Norm the mage signals a turning point in the book: An experiment to disguise the creatures goes awry, resulting in dragons only being able to exist in human form and children in dragon form. Once this highly unusual premise is accepted, seeing the human world through dragons’ eyes, and vice versa, becomes quite compelling. It’s hard not to laugh when the rather formal-speaking dragons occupy the teenagers’ bodies; in a particularly funny scene, Petros (transformed into Jason) tries to conduct a children’s party at the local museum. But Norm’s magic has drawn the attention of an age-old enemy and a sinister sect intent on ridding the world of dragons, which puts the children in terrible danger and gives the book an edge to keep the tension rising as the kids try to outwit a menacing foe.

An unusual book for dragon lovers, with plenty of action and a good balance of humor and suspense.'

I have my first book signing set up!  It will be at River Read Books in downtown Binghamton, NY.  The date is Saturday, December 14th from 1 to 3 PM.  The event on Facebook is open to the public, so anyone can view it and click "Going".  The link is below...

https://www.facebook.com/events/560392880709620/?ref_dashboard_filter=upcoming

The latest news!

I know I haven't posted an update in a while, but things have been a whirlwind of late.  The book is available on Amazon.com, on Kindle, and in the Google play store.  A couple of embarrassing typo's were found (one of which eluded 4 rounds of editing) but I just recently corrected what I could find and re-submitted the file.  So that mean the Second Edition of Jason and the Draconauts is available!  Those of you with the typo-ridden edition can now be excited because you have a limited run First Edition of the book.  (See...lemons into lemonade!)

I also have a couple of school "gigs" coming up.  I will be reading to the 6th grade class at Harpursville Central School in Harpursville, NY and to one of the middle schools in Endicott, NY.  Plus, I have a public book signing coming up, and will release the details shortly.  It is all very exciting.

The book is still close to 20% off at Amazon and would be a great gift for the budding young reader in your life.  And don't forget to like the book on Facebook or follow me on Twitter @PaulDSmith4321. 

The book is ready!

Jason and the Draconauts is live!  You can order paperbacks or Kindle versions on Amazon and also on Google Play (still working on iBooks).  The holidays are coming and this book would be a great gift.  Plus, if you buy a paperback on Amazon, you can get the Kindle version at a reduced cost!  So share this update, get the word out, and lets make the book a success!

Exciting day!

A super exciting day yesterday.  I got the Kindle version out to the Kickstarter backers, which was very cool.  But even better; the hard copy proof arrived in the mail yesterday, which means I actually have a physical book in my hand.  I have to fix a couple of things before giving the "OK" to print, but we are so close now!

Still having some difficulty with getting the thing on Google Play and iBooks.  They are not very user friendly processes, but I'm working on it.

Monumental progress!

All of my promotional text came back, which was the last missing piece!  I finished laying out the cover, uploaded the files to Createspace, and actually saw a digital proof of the finished book.  But better than that, I ordered a PHYSICAL proof which should be here Wednesday!

This then allowed me to send the $25 reward to my Kickstarter backers, which is the PDF version of the book.  I am working on getting the book on the Google Play store, but need some help getting it on the App Store or iTunes or whatever it is.  Anyone have any wisdom on that?

It is happening so fast now!  Just...wow!

Big news!

The finished cover has arrived!  I'm so excited; we are getting so close to having a finished product!

Meet the Dragons, Part 2

Next, I would like to introduce you to Tonare, a Thunder dragon of the line of Air Dragons

Jason and the Draconauts will be available soon from Amazon.com in both paperback and Kindle formats.

Meet the dragons, Part 1

Meet Petros the dragon, a Stone dragon of the line of Earth Dragons.  He is one of the main characters in our story...

Hey! I'm a twit...terer!

I have now ventured into the Twitter-verse!  Hang on, because it is going to be a bumpy ride.  You can follow me @pauldsmith4321.  Hope to see you there!

The latest and (not so) greatest...

Well, my goal to have a finished product by the end of September isn't going to happen.  I have a finished manuscript submitted, but some other peripheral, but equally important, items for the publication are still finishing up.  So, I'm moving the "live" date to mid-October.  Thanks for being patient, everyone!

Good tedium

I have almost half of the book edited in a week.  It is pretty easy work, but tedious.  Just clicking over and over and over again to accept or reject changes.  I have to grit my teeth and muscle through it.  But my goal is have the final edit done by the end of September.

Surprise!

In a surprising turn of events, the edit showed up in my mailbox today!  I have to say, Createspace is pretty good at staying on top of things.  

I have A LOT of work to do to get this final edit done, but what made me feel good was this quote at the beginning of the letter...

"Overall, the manuscript is in excellent shape: unique, well written, and absorbing with fleshed-out characters and a nice blend of modern and mythological. "

So now, I have to go through the whole thing again and get the edits fixed.  Not sure how long that will take, but I should have a finished manuscript by then.  WOW!

Finally heard from the editors!

Well, the editors got back to me and...

They need more time :-(

Apparently, they have fallen behind so the latest word is I will get the manuscript back by the end of the day Monday, the 16th.  I know that is not too much longer of a wait, so I just have to be patient.  Ah well.

Another Update

The final edit should be coming back tomorrow!  I'm not sure how long it will take to apply the edits, but hopefully we will have a final product ready soon.  The digital/kindle versions of the book will probably get out quicker than the print copies, but I'm excited to have a final product in hand soon.

Kickstarter Update

The thank you letter rewards have been sent out and I had a little fun writing the notes from the dragons.  I am also close to completing the digital sketchbook, so that will be ready soon as well.  Its fun being able to get stuff out to people; can't wait to get an actual book in people's hands,though!

Update and a request for advice...

So the ISBN Number and LCCN Number are assigned and official. I also have gotten confirmation that the edit is underway. Exciting and nervous at the same time!

Have you gone to follow the new blog yet? Please do so! Also, any twitter users out there? I have been advised by knowledgeable people that I should register with Twitter because it can be a powerful marketing tool. But, I am unfamiliar with the Twitter-verse. Any advise or wisdom from all of you reading this?

Welcome!

Welcome to my new blog page!  We moved to a) get a fresh start at the books launch and b) for a better integration with all of the Google based stuff I have.  I will start using the page actively once the book is published.