These are dark days for Naphthali. The king has been murdered, the land invaded by the Imperial Army. It will absorb Naphthali into an Empire that stretches across all of Enialé at any cost. The ravaged people cling to an ancient promise, an assurance that a Prophesied savior will come to set them free…
Daniel Martin is trapped in a life that hasn’t gone as expected. His pharmacy is struggling and he is losing all hope of making a difference in his patients’ lives. His family is the one shining light in his disenchanted life, but he is torn from them when an accident draws him to Naphthali. The people need him but Daniel is driven by his need to return to the family he loves. Is he the Prophesied One? Only time will tell as both the Empire and the Resistance battle for Daniel while the fate of Naphthali hangs in the balance…
It’s funny, my wife and I were discussing this awhile back and I asked her what one word she thought described me. She said confident, and I think that is spot-on. There is almost nothing that I don’t believe I could do it if I put my mind to it…is that a strength or a weakness? Hard to say, although it is the quality that I think I most associate myself with. That, and a sense of humor; after all, if you can’t laugh at yourself, who can you?
What is your least favorite quality about yourself?
I really struggle with being judgmental. I try to live my life to be open to other views and ways of life, but it is so hard sometimes! Why can’t you see that what you’re doing is wrong? It would be so much easier if you’d just do what I tell you to…see what I mean?
How long have you been writing?
I remember first trying to write a novel when I was in probably the fifth grade. I had a great opening sequence and wonderful characters…and it lasted for about three pages. That was when I realized how hard it was to write a good story, but I guess you could say I’ve been experimenting with writing ever since then. Prophecy Foretold is the first book that I’d written, which I finished about five years ago…I guess you could say that I have been writing successfully for five years, but it has certainly been a life-long pursuit!
How did you come up with the title of the book?
The series as a whole is based on the adventures that Daniel has as he travels throughout this world that believes him to be a prophesied savior, so The Prophecy Chronicles seemed to fit, and it has a nice ring to it. Prophecy Foretold is about Daniel learning of the prophecy and maybe…no I can’t ruin the surprise. Does he fit the prophecy or not? That is the question in the book so Prophecy Foretold seemed to fit.
Are there any current books that have grasped your interest?
My tastes in books are pretty varied, but right now I am reading a historical fiction series by Simon Scarrow. It is a fictional retelling of the Roman invasion to conquer Britain. Very interesting reading!
What was the hardest part of writing your book?
For me the hardest part is always putting the first word on the page. I have all of these ideas in my head, but how do I START the thing? That can be really hard! It’s also the part that I usually end up rewriting the most number of times before the book is finally finished.
Give us three “Good to Know” facts about you. Be creative, you can talk about your first job, something that inspires you, anything fun that might grab the readers attention.
1) I love to challenge myself! Every year I try to come up with a new challenge to push my limits. In the past that has included being a missionary in Haiti, teaching college level classes, volunteering more at my church, competing in a triathlon, oh and writing a book! This year the goal is to compete in a Warrior Dash, which is a combination of a 5K road race and a pretty tough obstacle course. When I showed my kids footage online they were very excited to see that I’d be running through fire!
2) I’d love to be a full-time author, but until that becomes a reality my full-time job is as a pharmacist. I also direct a program at my local community college where I train future pharmacy technicians, the pharmacist’s assistant.
3) I love summer! To me if you have to wear more than a t-shirt and shorts you’re living in the wrong climate. Unfortunately I live in Iowa, so I get the pleasure of experiencing every season. Thankfully our winters are usually mild and only really last about two months…otherwise I’d be living on the beach in Florida!
Tell us a little bit about the cover art. Who designed it? What made you choose that particular image/artwork?
When I originally finished writing Prophecy Foretold I wanted to give a copy to my family members for Christmas. Just using photo software on my computer I took a picture of myself, added a gray beard and a big swirly scar on my cheek. Consequently when it came time to pick a cover for the published book I had an idea what I wanted. I knew I didn’t want it to look cartoonish or a painting, like a lot of fantasy novels do. I felt having someone staring out at you was a good attention grabber, so my publisher (Rouge Phoenix Press) found a much more handsome man than me to be on the cover! They added Daniel’s scar and voilà…only I think of Daniel being more middle-aged than the cover depicts. The cover art was designed by Ms. G.
ABOUT RON HARTMAN
Ron Hartman has had a life-long passion for the written word and is an avid reader. The Prophecy Chronicles are his first written works. Ron graduated from the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy in 2000 and lives in Ottumwa, Iowa with his wife and three children. Read more about Prophecy Foretold, as well as excerpts from the other books in The Prophecy Chronicles series, at www.prophecychronicles.com.
A mother tells the journey of her daughter’s recovery from Autism and Sensory Processing Disorder to Functioning Recovery and independent living, giving tips to parents on how to navigate the medical and educational domain. This story is an example of the unique obstacles facing a parent raising a child with Autism. The challenges they face getting supports. What is Sensory Processing Disorder, CranioSacral Therapy and Bio-Medical Therapy, and what roles they play on the road to Functioning Recovery and independent living? See actual projective trials pertaining to sensory supports. Is educational discrimination the reason there is difficulty getting help in school? As this story unfolds it provides useful tips to other parents to help them on their journey with their child. This story is notable because this mother’s daughter was successful overcoming numerous obstacles while providing useful tools, inspiration and hope to others.
I’m passionate about my work as a Certified CranioSacral Therapist.
What is your least favorite quality about yourself?
By nature I’m impatient. Patience was something I had to teach myself in order to work with Heather.
How did you come up with the title of the book?
The title of the book came from a conversation with Heather. She had had a bad day at work, when I asked why she said to me, “I wish I was still in a fog, and then I wouldn’t know when people were making fun of me. “
What was the hardest part of writing your book?
The physical writing of the book was the hardest part of writing for me. It was such a heart wrenching emotional journey I couldn’t start. My good friend, Cheryl, “Smitty,” Smith brought me a tape recorder and told me to start talking,” I spoke the entire book into a tape recorder. She then transcribed the tapes and gave me a section at a time until the book was complete.”
Give us three “Good to Know” facts about you. Be creative, you can talk about your first job, something that inspires you, anything fun that might grab the readers attention.
Here are some interesting facts about me;
1) I was a travel agent who had traveled around the world, before I decided to become educated in CranioSacral Therapy because of the benefits it provided Heather.
2)Everything I’ve learned about autism, sensory processing disorders, the educational system, how the insurance works and CranioSacral Therapy I learned since her diagnosis 13 years ago.
3)My parents were entertainers, magicians. My parent’s best friends were magicians, clowns and escape artists. I was frequently an assistant, I have been sawed in half, had my head chopped off, had knives and swords put in my body and my body rearranged.
Tell us a little bit about the cover art. Who designed it? What made you choose that particular image/artwork?
The cover art was all Heather’s idea, she had the vision for it. We scoped out a place in the woods, she set the camera and posed us. Outskirts Press helped fulfill Heather’s vision by adding the fog.
ABOUT TAMI GOLDSTEIN
This journey begins with a mother’s love for her daughter. After learning her daughter was on the Autism Spectrum Tami began to tirelessly educate herself in the sciences of: Behavioral Health, Child Psychology, Human Anatomy, Occupational Health, Pharmacology and Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork and has been a parent advocate for her daughter since 1997.
In 2002, as her knowledge and passion grew, Tami began reaching out to other families in need of help. In 2005, Tami founded the Rock County Autism Support Group and she is the community resource liaison for the SPD (Sensory Processing Disorders) Parent Connections Support Group of Rock County and the surrounding areas. Since 2005, Tami has been State and National Certified in Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork and in 2013 she certified in CranioSacral Therapy with the Upledger Institute in Florida.
Tami currently has two offices where she facilitates CranioSacral Therapy. Approximately 38% of her clientele are children, teenagers and young adults on the Autism Spectrum or with other neuro-developmental delays. When asked to lecture, Tami uses her personal experience, extensive knowledge, and dedication to help others learn about and understand the medical and educational aspects of Autism, Autism Spectrum Disorders and SPD.
Age Re-Defined
Robert Henry
Publish Green/Hillcrest Media
Health/Fitness
Your state of health, how you feel, and how you look are more within your control than you think – even in your forties and fifties (and beyond). This book addresses exercise, fitness, nutrition, wellness, and the mind-body connection. Its purpose is not to promote a particular exercise program or a particular diet plan – although its coverage of exercise, fitness, and nutrition is extensive – but rather to inform, educate, and motivate the reader on the importance of being proactive in one’s own health, fitness, and wellness.
Even if you are already physically active, this book can assist you in evaluating the effectiveness of your current exercise efforts. A foundational background in exercise and fitness concepts is provided. Not only does this book cite to numerous authoritative sources, but it also conveys the author’s own philosophy of exercise and an informative overview of his own exercise and nutrition regimen. The author, who is 56, shares his own motivating journey and the positive results he achieved through exercise, nutrition, and the mind-body connection, with particular emphasis on the challenges faced by him in his early fifties and the favorable results he achieved at that age by “re-booting” his commitment to health and fitness.
The importance of nutrition is explained and heavily stressed. A Registered Dietician with a Master’s Degree in Nutrition is a contributor to the nutrition content. One comes away with an awareness of quality nutrition and its role in optimal health, fitness, and wellness, and with a good working knowledge of the kinds of foods and eating habits which are most beneficial.
As stated in the book’s Introduction: This book is about believing in yourself, maintaining inner strength, and understanding exercise, fitness, nutrition, and wellness. This book is also about getting younger instead of getting older, discovering your inner athlete, and becoming and remaining healthy and fit in both body and mind. This book is for people who have never exercised but who would like to start; for people who would like to know more about good nutrition; for people who exercise but have not seen results; for people whose fitness level has declined and who want to re-ignite their fitness quest; for people who choose to be proactive about their own health, fitness, and wellness; for people interested in the mind-body connection; and for people who reject negative self-talk and self-limiting stereotypes about life after the age of 50. All ages are welcome.
Robert Henry, age 56, is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, a Certified Personal Trainer, a Certified Specialist in Fitness Nutrition, and a Certified Wellness Coach. His awareness of fitness and nutrition began at the age of 29. When Robert first started to exercise, it was mostly for the purpose of increasing body weight through the addition of lean muscle mass. However, more than 20 years later, at the age of 52, after years of being lean and enjoying good health, Robert’s experienced an undesired increase in body fat and his health profile changed in the wrong direction The loss of that body fat and the reversal of new and undesirable trends in his health profile became Robert’s new exercise goals. By re-booting his exercise regimen and further “tweaking” his nutrition, he successfully accomplished his new goals and, as he likes to say, discovered his “inner athlete”.
Although he had worked out for more than two decades, the journey he experienced in his early fifties ignited something within Robert and he voraciously sought to increase his knowledge and his credentials. It was then that he earned his numerous certifications and set about to share his passion for health and fitness with others.
Robert’s background extends beyond fitness. He holds a Juris Doctor degree from Southern Methodist University and worked for many years as an attorney. He also discovered a love of aviation early in his life and, while still a teenager, became a Commercial Pilot and a Certified Flight Instructor. After law school, he went on to become an Airline Transport Pilot and eventually earned three jet ratings. Now in his fifties, he values his health, fitness, and wellness very highly, and seeks to inform and inspire others.
Robert’s latest book is the health/fitness book,Age Re-Defined.
Nalah and the Pink Tiger is a picture book by Anne Sawyer-Aitch. She drew inspiration for this story from her lively little niece, who lives so intensely in her imagination that grown-ups around her view her as a troublemaker. Things come to a head when – in addition to all the exotic animals that Nalah has “placed” in the house – a pink tiger “follows” her home from the zoo and creates havoc. The story also celebrates the joyful explosiveness of a child’s imagination. To illustrate the book, Anne developed a style which she calls illuminated iIllustration, featuring multiple layers and backlighting that create vibrant, textured pages.
Since the 3rd grade. I had a teacher named Harriet Asimov, niece of the great Science Fiction writer. She made us learn our multiplication tables, but she also taught creative writing with flair and enthusiasm. We got really groovy-looking notebooks and we had to do a different exercise every day. She’d take us to the park and make us record everything we could hear, see, touch, smell. Or pose wild what-if questions. I can’t remember any specific ones right now, but they were things like “What do you think life on other planets looks like? What if you could travel to one – what would you take as a present to represent earth?” She made all of us feel like writers. Since that time, I’ve had other wonderful creative writing teachers in college and grad school, but Harriet really got the ball rolling.
Who or what influenced your writing over the years?
I love fiction most of all. Our parents read to us every night when we were kids. But if I had to name one writer, it would be Minnesota-born Maud Hart Lovelace, author of the Betsy-Tacy series. The girl protagonist in that series also aspired to be a writer. The picture books by the D’Aulaires and Wanda Gag made want to create visual art.
What made you want to be a writer?
Ever since I learned to read and draw, I’ve been creating stories in my head and making sets for them from the junk drawer. Like most kids, I liked to play make-believe. I just never grew out of the habit.
Are there any current books that have grasped your interest?
As an adult I read a variety of things, from Young Audience novels (The True Meaning of Smekday); contemporary stories (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close) and classics. I’m currently reading Queen Margot, by Alexandre Dumas. He’s always good for a suspenseful yarn.
What was the hardest part of writing your book?
The writing piece was not nearly as complicated as the illustration part. The story came to me in the middle of the night after playing with my niece and her imaginary animal friends. I story-boarded it out, and the essential plot stayed the same. It was figuring out how I wanted to illustrate it that took longer. I experimented with different styles for more than a year. Then I started borrowing techniques that I use for making my color shadow puppets. That includes a lot of cut-out patterns to let the light shine through. My husband photographed the illustrations on a light table.
Did you learn anything while writing your book? If so, what was it?
I learned that it’s important not to wait for someone to give you permission to pursue a creative dream. I knew that from being a puppeteer, but I had to learn it all over again when I decided I wanted to create a book. It seemed fantastically out of reach, and it took me some false starts before I got momentum on the project. Some people won’t believe you can do a thing until you do it. Then they say, “Oh, you do that.”
Give us three “Good to Know” facts about you. Be creative, you can talk about your first job, something that inspires you, anything fun that might grab the readers attention.
1) I’m a stilt walker, and belong to an all-ladies group called Chicks on Sticks. We’ve performed at the local girls roller derby, the State Fair, and in parades all over MN. And the funny part is, I’m afraid of heights.
2) I have an undying love for Cheetos. It’s really out of hand. I can’t even keep them in the house.
3) I once rode on the back of a small Japanese motorcycle from Ohio to Kentucky in the driving rain, wearing tie-dye long underwear, overalls, and a poncho. No helmet. That was pretty idiotic. My present self can’t believe my past self did that. Compared to my wild youth, I’m positively stuffy now.
ABOUT ANNE SAWYER-AITCH
Anne Sawyer-Aitch (pronounced like the letter “H”) is a puppeteer and stilt-walker. Nalah and the Pink Tiger is her first children’s book. She has worked for years with Minneapolis-based groups In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre and the all-women’s stilting troupe Chicks on Sticks. Anne likes to create all kinds of puppets: parade floats, giant stilt puppets, and intricate color shadow shows. Currently, she is performing her Nalah and the Pink Tiger puppet show in English and Spanish around MN. She is a recipient of awards from the Jim Henson Foundation, the Puppeteers of America, the MN State Arts Board, and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council. She lives in Minneapolis with her computer genius husband and a pack of imaginary dogs.
ABOUT THE PROPHECY CHRONICLES: PROPHECY FORETOLD
ABOUT TAMI GOLDSTEIN
ABOUT ANNE SAWYER-AITCH
Recent Comments