Eternity's Edge is Finished!

I finished writing the second Echoes from the Edge book, Eternity's Edge, and turned it into Zondervan. It's a great relief to have it done. I am very excited about this story. It could be the most emotionally charged story I have ever written, and I think it could very well stir some controversy, unless, of course, the controversy gets edited out along the way.

I will urge Zondervan to make it clear that the story is designed for readers thirteen years and older.

I have heard that the cover for this book will be ready soon. I will post it here when that happens.

Eternity's Edge is scheduled to arrive in late 2008, maybe November.

Now, I will begin work on Last of the Nephilim, book 3 in the Oracles of Fire series. Please pray for me. My time to write this is very short, and I want to write the best book ever.

Tour Photos

Now that I have a few minutes to upload a few photos, I can show you what I've been doing.

The photo to the left shows me speaking to the students at MEI Middle School in Abbotsford, British Columbia. The four hundred or so students were a polite, attentive group, and they gave me an enthusiastic welcome. I talked about how God has guided me through my author's journey, and I gave them good reasons to believe that reading Christian fantasy is an excellent way to grow closer to God. I told my "dime and two pennies" story, and that seemed to make quite an impression. (I told that story in an earlier blog entry.)

In the photo to the right, I am speaking to the fifth graders at MEI Elementary School. They also proved to be a great group of kids. It seems that the younger the students are, the more willing they are to ask questions, so we had a great Q&A time.

Finally, in the photo to the left, I have a chance to rest for a moment as we are setting up for a signing at the Angel Christian Supply store in Surrey, B.C. We had a nice turnout, and the proprietor, a lady named Marlene, was a great host. I am thankful for the bookstore managers who have helped me so much during this tour.

Tomorrow, I have a signing at the House of James bookstore in Abbotsford, then I begin my journey home. Thank you everyone who has been praying for us!

Northwest Book Tour winding down

So why haven't I posted many updates during this book tour? Because the schedule has been insane.

Monday included a homeschool group, a bookstore signing, a long drive out to Poulsbo, a banquet speech with a writers' group, and a drive back to the motel.

On Tuesday, I spoke at a school's chapel service, then stayed to speak five more times to various classes. When that was over, I promptly drove to Sequim, which took well over three hours, and spoke for two and a half hours to a homeschool group. Then, I had to drive three hours back to my motel.

On Wednesday, I did a 4.5 hour seminar with a homeschool group, drove to North Bend to pick up my daughter, then drove to Canada.

Thursday included a one-hour talk to the entire MEI Middle School, then four writing workshops for various grade levels. When I got back to my motel, I collapsed on the bed and slept until morning.

Now it's Friday, and I have it pretty easy today. I speak to the MEI Elementary School this morning and drive to Surrey for a bookstore signing this afternoon. Saturday will include breakfast with fans at House of James bookstore in Abbotsford and a signing afterward. Then I will drive back to the Seattle area, spend the night with friends, and fly home on Sunday.

I appreciate your prayers. I have a sore throat, and I'm losing my voice. Please pray that I will endure and speak effectively. May God use me to reach many more young people with the love of Christ.

Spokane Appearances

My time in Spokane has been great. I visited two public schools--Salk Middle School and Shaw Middle School--and one private school--Northwest Christian Elementary School. I spoke to five groups of students at Salk and then a parents' group in the evening. We had about eighty show up for the evening sessions, which was fantastic.

The feedback was phenomenal. I heard from a teacher that one parent was so moved by my appeal for positive fantasy for children, she was in tears (in a good way). Apparently many parents gained a new perspective. I'm very happy with the results.

The bookstore appearances went very well, too. I sold about sixty books at the Christian Supply Store, so that's really good.

Tomorrow, I'm off to Seattle. Please pray for a safe journey, good health, and positive results.

Northwest Book Tour Travel Day

I am sitting at the Nashville, TN, airport waiting to take off to the state of Washington for my ten-day book tour. I will be traveling all day, and I will begin my tour tomorrow. I hope to keep my blog up to date with stories from my school, homeschool group, and bookstore appearances.

Stay tuned!

Change to Schedule in Washington

I posted that I had a book signing scheduled in Federal Way, WA, on November 13. That was moved to Monday, November 12, from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. Here are the details.

November 12 - 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Family Christian Store
31835 Pacific Highway South
Federal Way, WA 98003
(253) 839-3920