Book 3 that I will be self-publishing is called "Children of Pandora". Here's a summary:

A thousand years ago, the people of Aloria built a kingdom among the Islands of the Sky. Soaring far above the earth, unseen by the lands below, the Kingdom of the Islands became great indeed. Sailing through the skies in their mighty airships, they befriended dragons and tamed the winds.

And the greatest of the Islands was Pandora.

But the other Islands grew jealous of Pandora. Whispers of secret wonders and powers echoed through kingdom — rumors that the Mages of Pandora had uncovered the secrets of life and heaven itself.
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And so the Kingdom attacked, determined that Pandora would never keep its secrets hidden again. Its people became hated, scattered, and hunted. And the Island’s wonders faded into memory and legends.
But the Children of Pandora remember who they are. They have preserved their heirtage. And the Children of Pandora remember the promise that one day, they would return to their homeland …

Today, I invite you to learn a bit about novel #2: "Red Horizons, Crimson Skies"

This novel was originally a story I told my own children as part of their going-to-bed routine back when they were young. They wanted a story about dragons -- so there's dragons. They loved imagining they could fly -- so there's people who can fly. They wanted music, a magical forest, and even a bit of creepiness. They wanted a Princess and a Farm Boy.

And so all these are there. In a magical forest, the people of the Shanra built their kingdom surrounded by threats: Dragons to the North and the East, the Dryads and sometimes hostile Spirits of the forest below, and the mysterious Old Ones who come and go without warning. And amid both turmoil in the kingdom, and tragedy in their own lives, Princess Fauna and the farmer Paladin unexpectedly meet. And their friendship becomes pivotal as the kingdom moves from what it was before into what it can become in the future.

That is Red Horizons, Crimson Skies:

Long ago, the moongods blessed the People of the Shanra with the gift of flight. Stretching forth their wings, they took to the clouds and built their cities in giant trees that towered miles above the earth below. For the Shanra were a People of the skies, and the earth was dark and unknown.

But one day, the King of the Shanra ventured back to the earth below. And when he did, he became the catalyst to events that could not be undone. A cataclysm of fire and ash, of dragons gone mad and desperate armies in the skies would unfold.
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The outcome, and the survival of the Shanra people, would depend on the unlikely bond between Royalty and Peasant that had to defy all the odds ...

So what is "Catch the Wind", the first novel to be released?

The genesis of "Catch the Wind" begins more than 25 years ago, when I had an idea for a story about two would-be-heroes who tried to save the world but ended up completely over their heads. Like JRR Tolkien once said about Lord of the Rings, my story "grew in its telling" to become so much more.

It's a story about dreamers who make sacrifices to build a better life for themselves and those they love. It's a story about people who fall short of their ambitions and have to push forward anyway. It's a story about people who turn to evil and have to find their way back. It's a story about fighting against evil even when you are completely outmatched. It's a story about being honest with yourself, with your motivations. It's a story about memories and accepting the truth of who you were, the choices you made, and they pain you inflict. It's about choices, change, regret, forgiveness, and growth.

I hope the story of Damarion and Wren, of Andelyn and Jasper, of Seraph and Jaren, of Wit and Lucin, of Breeze and Serena, and of Elizabeth and Raya can become as meaningful for you as it has been for me, and as meaningful as it has been for the students I wrote it for.

This is Catch the Wind:

Cast out from city after city, a desperate group of refugees turn to the wilderness in the mountains to build their kingdom. Protected by a Knight and a Sorcerer, and allied with the magical Faerie, the Kingdom of Waverly begins to prosper. In time, even their most dangerous enemies are pushed back.

But deep in the forest, the enchantments of the Faerie begins to touch the Kingdom in ways nobody could have ever foreseen.

The magic of the forest descends on the shoulders of Elizabeth and Raya, two young girls of the Kingdom, and they soon realize that they have been entrusted with power beyond anyone's ability to control. As they struggle to understand their gift, the girls unwittingly push the realms of both Humans and Faerie into a cataclysm of wind, fire, and darkness ...

As I mentioned, I wrote a novel. Finally.

Actually, there are three novels I've been working on for years -- and I have nearly 10 years of students who wonder how they will end.

I will be doing a Kickstarter campaign to fund the completion and self-publishing of the novels. Here's a little excerpt from "Catch the Wind" -- as Damarion's oldest friend, Witmer, tries to explain why so many follow and treat Damarion as their leader.

“Once upon a time,” Wit said, “there were two kings, and each had 10 subjects. The first king ordered his subjects to kneel, and then demanded one chop off an ear, so he could eat a sandwich. And the next day, another. He thought it would be terrific, because with ten subjects, that would make 20 sandwiches — tomato, lettuce, pickle, and ear. And then he could move on to toe salads. Roast Thumb! Feasts forever! And when he was done with those ten subjects, well he figured he’d just move on and find ten more to mutilate and feast upon.”

“I’m not in the mood for your stories, Wit!” Damarion said, angrily.

But Wit ignored him. He knew his friend, and he knew that no matter how much he hurt, Damarion would always listen. “The second king had a different idea. His ten subjects stood, while he knelt. And nobody went about eating ears or limbs. No cannibalism in this land! Instead, this king asked his subjects: what Truths would best help us live together in peace. And then I will do my best to be an example and live this way.”

“Well, the first king lived with euphoric gluttony — but only for a time. Because one day, his subjects had enough. And so he was overthrown — and they ate more than just his ears and toes. But since nobody knew any other way to live, one of the men with no ears and no thumbs took his place. It’s my turn to be the cannibal! the freakish creature believed. And so it went on and on and on and on.

“But the second king had a different experience. One day he knelt before his people and looked up: stunned to see that there were now eleven! Where did this stranger come from? Well, he just came. Because he had seen what this king was like, and so he wanted to be a part of this kingdom.

“Everybody follows a king, Damarion,” Wit finished. “Whether you use the title or not, everybody has a king. The real question is which kind do you choose to follow. Well, look around, my friend. Nearly three hundred have made their choice — and I am one of them.”

I wrote a book.

To all the people who have had to endure me talking about the genius novels I'll "someday write" (I was, of course, at my most arrogant and certain in my teenage years) are likely to be thinking: Wow -- took you forever, dude. Whether it is good or not will be the verdict of the rather small audience who ends up reading it.

I'm pleased with it -- if that means anything.

And I'll start offering it to the handful that would like to read it after it goes through all the revising and editing that I want. But at least it's done.

But that's not really the topic. I've been thinking about something one of the characters says. Which means it's really what I said (since Wit doesn't really exist), but still I think it most clearly states something that I believe. Anyway, Witmer of the Kingdom of Waverly explains to Raya, the hero, how the witch Elowyn came to be:

"Once upon a time there was a little girl who had a hundred different paths she could choose to take. And sadly, she chose the one that turned her into a witch and a tyrant.

"It's funny, you know. It's not like she sat down one day and said, 'I think I'd like to make everyone I love miserable forever.' But that's not how it works. We make little choices, not big ones. And then one day, we discover all those little choices carried us to the end of the path. That young girl chose her path, and no matter what she had in mind, no matter what she intended, her choices turned her into the miserable tyrant we all know so well."

And I've been thinking about all those little choices that Wit brings up. And I decided that, for me, who I become kind of depends on seven choices -- not seven big choices, but seven little choices that have to be made over and over and over:

1. What literature do I fill my soul with?
2. Who are the people I choose to surround myself with?
3. What do I choose to do with my spare time -- when no duties call and I have complete freedom to do whatever?
4. How do choose treat others?
5. What do I choose to do when nobody else is watching?
6. How do I choose to interpret what happens around me?
7. What attitude do I choose to have when challenges block my way?