“Where have you been?”
“How is book 2 of The Warrior Poet Archives coming?” Well, I’ve been absent without leave and these are two questions I’ve been asked with some frequency lately. The answer to the first is that it’s been an interesting year in the Doughan household. We broke ground on a new home this past fall, and I’ve been building that since. When I say, “I’ve been building that,” I mean with these two hands. It apparently takes longer to build an entire home by one’s self and during nights and weekends than it does going all day long with a crew of guys to help. We also had a house fire at Christmas time in the home we were living in. Blessedly no one was hurt, but the home was not livable afterward so we had to scramble and find a temporary rental for our family to live in while we dealt with insurance and continued building the new home. It is a singular experience going to sleep in a hotel not having a place for your family to call home. Not one I recommend, but God is good in all things and provides in all things. Walking away from a fire with all of my family unscathed is an incredible blessing. Adding to the excitement, our youngest son was hospitalized twice, once in February and again in May with respiratory issues. The temporary rental we were in sold on a cash offer, so we had to get out. Our new home was far enough along that we could move in there, which is a wonderful blessing. There is still some work to be done, but we are definitely enjoying the new space. All in all, the majority of the last year was so crazy busy with “have-to” things that my writing got slid to the back burner. I am now slowly beginning work again. (This is where question two comes in.) Book 2 is underway and I will try to bring it out for all of you wonderful, patient people as quickly as I can while still doing due diligence in bringing the story to life. You all deserve that after the too long wait. For now, I am trying to continue spreading the word about MIST FALCON! To that end I am running a 99¢ Sale for the next week. It would be wonderful to reach 50 reviews on Amazon. Their algorithm kicks in around that point to help give a boost by offering MIST FALCON in “You may also enjoy…” and “Customers who purchased abc also purchased xyz…” The largest hill a book has to climb is the one of visibility. Readers can’t buy a book they don’t know exists. To that end, I’d love for you to help share MIST FALCON and this super cheap sale with others. And, if you’ve read and enjoyed Mist Falcon, please consider reviewed. However short or long, all honest reviews are welcome…unless you didn’t like the book…in which case you probably are reading this post down this far…in which case disclaimers are a bit superfluous at this point…so… Anyway, if you have time, help me share the sale around, I’d love for others to have a chance to enjoy it. If you haven’t grabbed your copy yet, click to the right and get yours for only 99¢ now before the sale ends. Blessings and thanks for everyone’s support. |
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![]() As a writer, I am regularly asked how my writing is going, when Warrior Poet Book 2 will be out, and what the next project is. At the moment, writing is going a little slower than I’d like. Adding the fourth child to our family has certainly been an adjustment. You can read more about this in my earlier post. It has an awesome line about drowning while someone hands you a baby. Anyway, book 2 is started in process, but to hold your Nine Cities starvation at bay, I have THE TOUCH HEIST. This is a novella starring the twins Lem & Rem with a glimpse into their earlier life. It has been a blast to write, and I trust you'll enjoy the read as well. Here is the cover reveal. The artwork was put together by the same artist who did MIST FALCON, the talented Martin Wright over at Busy Bee Book Covers. I had hoped that this would be released by now, but, well, see afore mentioned drowning. Final edits are underway and THE TOUCH HEIST should be available soon. Stay tuned, and I’ll post out some updates in the coming days. Blessings.
![]() Just recently, my wife and I had our fourth child. She did all the hard work obviously. (Don’t be fooled. That’s not a huge departure from normal.) None-the-less, life has become a bit crazy in my house as sleep deprivation battles exhaustion in an epic battle of king of the mountain. This quote from Jim Gaffigan pretty much sums it up. Don’t get me wrong. Our new little boy is awesome. He’s adorable and healthy, which is a wonderful combination. We are blessed. Life is blessed…hectic, but blessed. I’ve talked before about how busy life can become between being a husband and father, running a business, and wanting to produce the same page volume as a full time author. I’ve talked about how important goal setting is for high achievement. I’m not reneging on any of my lofty aspirations nor my plans for utter world dominance. (Please insert maniacal laugh here.) I did want to post a small piece of wisdom that I learned at a young age from a fount of incredible knowledge, my dad, (even if I didn’t understand its application until I was grown). When I was a kid, my dad would sing, Cat’s In The Cradle by Harry Chapin to me and my brothers as a lullaby. For those of you who don’t know the song, it tells the story of a father and his son. It starts like this: My child arrived just the other day He came to the world in the usual way But there were planes to catch, and bills to pay He learned to walk while I was away And he was talking 'fore I knew it, and as he grew He'd say, "I'm gonna be like you, dad You know I'm gonna be like you." And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon Little boy blue and the man in the moon "When you coming home, dad?" "I don't know when But we'll get together then You know we'll have a good time then." As Cat’s In The Cradle continues, we follow along as the boy grows step by step into a man. Father and son grow apart even as the son idolizes the dad. In the end we hear: I've long since retired, and my son's moved away I called him up just the other day I said, "I'd like to see you if you don't mind." He said, "I'd love to, dad, if I could find the time You see, my new job's a hassle, and the kid's got the flu But it's sure nice talking to you, dad It's been sure nice talking to you." And as I hung up the phone, it occurred to me He'd grown up just like me My boy was just like me The obvious current of the song is one of a life wasted only on work and ignoring the importance of family. I’ve continued the tradition of singing this as a lullaby to my kids. I told one of my friends this, and he thought it seemed depressing, and I admit, at face value, it does seem sad. “Hey kids, let me sing you a song about a dad who works too much and a kid who grows up to live a distant life from his family in turn. Ok, night-night. Sleep well.” What my friend didn’t understand though, is that when my dad sang this to us, he sang it as a promise, a promise that this wouldn’t be him, wouldn’t be us. He was incredibly busy, putting himself through a four-year, full-time grad school while working full-time to provide for our family, and later, working a high-stress, high-commitment job. Cat’s In The Cradle was my dad’s promise, that his work, schedule, and goals wouldn’t trump his commitment to his family. When I sing it to my kids now, I’m making that same promise. I’ll set my written goals. I’ll set an aggressive agenda in an attempt to fulfill all the hats I wear, but as a parent, I refuse to forget that oh-so-important hat entitled “Dad”. So, if you find that life changes for you at some point, and your family needs a short hiatus from your writing, don’t sweat it. Take care of your family. Live in life’s moments. Then set a new plan, new written goals that stretch and push you, and get back to that world dominance. Read with Joy! Write with Joy! Live with Joy! Blessings! |
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Ryan J. Doughan |