Straight From the Mouth of Children's Book Author Karen Charles

 

The Inspiration Behind Evan's Gift

By Karen Charles

I didn’t start out thinking I want to be an author. I started as a teacher and a listener. For years, I worked with children during moments of real upheaval, social unrest, trauma, fear, and uncertainty. I saw how deeply children absorb what’s happening around them, even when they don’t have the words to express it.

Writing became a way for me to make sense of those experiences and to offer stories that could help others do the same. Whether I’m writing for adults or children, my goal has always been to tell stories that heal, that open conversations, and that remind us of our shared humanity. Evan’s Gift came from that same place, wanting to reach children early, before the world hardens them.

Evan’s Gift is based on my experience as a kid earning my own bike, growing up in Africa. The idea came from watching how children respond to kindness, both when they receive it and when they give it. I’ve seen classrooms change because of one child’s gentle act or quiet courage. Evan’s Gift grew out of the belief that kindness is not small or passive; it’s powerful. I wanted to create a story that shows children that they already have something meaningful to offer the world, simply by noticing others and choosing compassion. Evan doesn’t have superpowers; his “gift” is something every child can access, and that was very important to me.

Evan is a thoughtful, observant child. He’s not the loudest or the most outgoing, but he pays attention. He notices when others are hurting or left out. Evan represents so many children who feel deeply but don’t always know how to express it. What makes Evan special is that he learns his kindness matters, that even small actions can ripple outward and change how people feel about themselves and each other.

The other characters are the people in Evan’s world, friends, classmates, roommates, and adults, who are affected by his kindness. They’re intentionally relatable so children can see themselves and their communities in the story. Each character reflects a different emotional experience, helping young readers recognize feelings like loneliness, gratitude, and connection in a gentle, age-appropriate way.

Kindness and empathy are skills we have to nurture, especially in children. Evan’s Gift opens the door to meaningful conversations at home, in classrooms, and in counseling spaces about how our actions affect others. It’s a story that reassures children that they matter and empowers them to make a difference simply by being who they are. In today’s world, that message feels more important than ever.

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Karen Charles grew up in West Africa and traveled to countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. Her rich background and lifetime experiences are reflected in the depth of her writing. In her stories, she transforms real-life narratives into gripping fiction thrillers. Her novels intricately weave the threads of truth into a tapestry of suspense, intrigue, and riveting storytelling. She is the author of two children’s books, “Freeman Earns a Bike” and “Evan’s Gifts,” and three thrillers based on true stories. “Fateful Connections” takes place in the aftermath of 9/11, and “Blazing Upheaval” takes place during the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles and the Northridge earthquake. “A Glimpse Too Far” offers all the mystery and heart-pounding suspense of a psychological thriller and is based on a true story.

Karen Charles has two businesses—a global company that trains international teachers to teach American English and an Airbnb on a beautiful bay in Washington State, where she currently resides with her husband. 

Visit her website at www.weaveofsuspense.com. 

Connect with her on X, Facebook and LinkedIn.

 

Straight From the Mouth of YA Fantasy Author Barbara Jean Weber

 

The Inspiration Behind The Welcome Sign

By Barbara Jean Weber

The inspiration for The Welcome Sign began when I received a beautiful metal Welcome Sign as a gift. I love and collect mermaids and my parents had found the beautiful sign with a mermaid on it. The store was going out of business so they purchased the sign for me. I have always loved stories that were full of magic, magical beings, intrigue and good vs. evil so I was familiar with fun adventure stories that included these elements. After I received the sign, I had a series of incredible dreams involving the origins of the sign. The dreams became the inspiration and basis for the book.  As it evolved, it became a fun adventure story that I was eager to share with my family and others as I felt they would also enjoy reading it.  This book allowed me to create magical worlds, interesting characters, intrigue and battles between good and evil. The Welcome Sign was written as the first book in a series of three. The second book is written but not edited or published yet and the third book is still being developed and is in outline form.  It's fun to believe that my metal mermaid welcome sign might actually have a magical origin story. You just never know.

How I got published: Initially I was going to go with a traditional publisher but didn't have much luck. I had started to make inquiries with publishers when a dear friend suggested I try Book Baby self publishing. I had never heard of that company before and did some research on it. My friend had a sister-in-law who had gotten her a booklet that talked all about BookBaby-self publishing. My friend shared a copy of the booklet with me. It was easy to follow and read. Once I contacted the company it was amazing and easy. I was assigned a BookBaby Publishing Specialist who answered my questions, guided me step by step throughout the process, kept me on track for time lines. She was amazing and super helpful. I was able to get suggestions and help from her whenever I needed it. We had consistent email contact and some phone calls. I am very happy with my decision to go with BookBaby self publishing.

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Barbara Jean Weber lives in Skagit County with her husband and two daughters, where she works as a speech and language therapist. Her novel, The Welcome Sign, was inspired when she was gifted a mermaid welcome sign. The more she studied the sign, the more her story evolved. She is currently an active member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.

Visit her website at https://www.barbarajeanweber.com/. 

Straight From the Mouth of Historical Paranormal Fantasy Author Kayleigh Kavanagh

 

The Inspiration Behind One Foot in the Ether: Whispers of the Pendle Witches

By Kayleigh Kavanagh

I wrote the first book in the series “Whispers of the Pendle Witches” because it always annoyed me how, even 400 years later, the people who died in those trials were being portrayed as villains. In our supposedly enlightened era, we were still besmirching these individuals as though they were evil. It annoyed me, especially growing up in Lancaster, where they died. I always felt a kinship with them and wanted to put out another narrative. One where they were real people. Ones who today would be considered alternative healers and maybe Wiccans (or the modern interpretation of the word witch), but not devil worshippers, making pacts with the devil and killing their neighbours through malicious magics. 

After I completed the first book, I wanted to do more with the characters, but the only option for following the history was to cover the trials, and I just did not want to do that. After many months of deliberation, the idea of reincarnation came to mind. Then I remembered the spell Demdike and Chattox had done at the end of the first book and thought, “What if it went wrong or had unintended consequences?” And I went from there. 

I initially wanted to set the book in 1812, exactly two hundred years later (and for the 3rd to be in 2012). However, whilst researching the 1800s, I realised just how much changed in the latter half of the century, and there was a huge potential to build on this. My books have a recurring theme of women’s issues—those which are still relevant today. The 19th century had a lot of advancements, but it also saw the rise of a rhetoric which we’re still impacted by today, even though it isn’t as old as people believe it to be; the notion that women are weak and dainty. 

This ideal rose out of a belief that women could lose children doing strenuous work, which is true for the first trimester, but the initial idea went from “women shouldn’t be doing heavy lifting whilst pregnant” to “women's wombs will fall out if they do anything remotely strenuous, and these frail creatures need to be controlled and protected”. Ideals we’re still fighting even now.

From this, the character of Claire, a well-informed midwife, was born. A woman in a position of power in a man's world, something many men do not like—especially in the 1860s. She finds herself fighting against the standardisation of medical practices. Not because she opposes it in principle, but because she fears what men will do to women. 

In contrast, Yana is a young woman who has grown up with this new mentality and doesn’t know to question many things, despite how she senses things aren’t quite right. Though she does have some wiles, taught to her by women who learnt to hide their strengths in plain sight. She’s in the process of going through marriage interviews, and is caught between wants, needs and the demands of society.

Things become even more chaotic when the two women start to remember who they once were, and the trappings and dangers of the spiritual world. 

This is where Demdike and Chattox, the original Pendle Witches, come in. They’ve been watching over their family all this time and are now needed to protect them. But how much can earthbound spirits do? Especially against an ancient force. 

The four women must come together, despite their limitations, to do what the cunning folk (the UK equivalent of shamanic healers) have always done: protect the physical world from the dangers lying in the ether.

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Kayleigh Kavanagh is a disabled writer from the North-West of England. Growing up in the area, she learnt a lot about the Pendle Witches and launched her debut novel around their life story. Her main writing genres are fantasy and romance, but she loves stories in all formats and genres. Kayleigh hopes to one day be able to share the many ideas dancing around in her head with the world.

Her latest book is the historical fantasy, One Foot in the Ether: Whispers of the Pendle Witches. 

You can visit her on Facebook, Instagram, Goodreads and Tiktok. 

Straight From the Mouth of Memoirist Mary Lawlor

  

 Remembering the 60s and the Cold War for Fighter Pilot's Daughter 

By Mary Lawlor

Fighter Pilot’s Daughter was one of the most difficult projects I’ve ever undertaken. It was also probably the most important thing I’ve ever done for myself. Putting the book together was like a process of self-therapy: it had a powerful stabilizing effect that stays with me now. Part of this came with the clear account the research and the writing made of my family’s zigzagging past.

Like most military families, we moved a lot (fourteen times before I graduated from high school). And like other Army fathers, my Dad was away often. My mother and sisters and I would worry about his safety, especially when he was flying in war zones. He would write my mother fairly regularly for a while, then his communications would dwindle off under the weight of more pressing matters close at hand. This would leave us wondering how he was, and I often had nightmares of him being captured, imprisoned…

In spite of the fact that we missed him fiercely, Dad’s homecomings weren’t as easy as we expected them to be. Familiar as he was, his tall frame in the doorway and his blaring blue eyes with that far-away look were strange and frightening. After a while, we’d get used to him; but I wonder how long it would take him to get used to being home. He’d been in such a different, all-male world where violence reigned. At home, there were only women. My mother and sisters and I knew little about what he’d been through, not just because we were too young to know but because a lot of what he’d been up to was secret.

We never talked about any of this, so our house was a tense, uneasy place when Dad came home. Indigenous people in many parts of the world have rituals for bringing warriors home—practices aimed at diminishing the potency of trauma and other effects of prolonged exposure to violence. I guess we’re starting to see something like this in the debriefings and psychological attention given to soldiers and marines returning from war. But in the sixties there wasn’t anything like it. Dads just came home, still warriors, and now being asked not to be.

The story of Fighter Pilot’s Daughter had to have a plot—not just the order of our moves but the dramas that accompanied them. It was difficult enough getting all my father’s military records so I could see the the crazy chain of our moves from one place to another. It was even harder to go back into memories that reawakened painful feelings of confusion and anxiety that came with being new all the time. All those scenes where I was a stranger and everybody else belonged still stung.

Making a story out my family life meant describing my parents, sisters, and myself as if we were characters. I had to give physical portraits, convey personalities and make us say things. The truth had to be the first priority, but the truth can be messy. These portraits had to be shaped so readers could make sense of who I was talking about. I think human character is, in the end, more complex than any literary character. Picturing human beings in their ordinary rawness is very difficult. A reader needs a writer to give their literary characters more specific shape and continuity than most of us usually have—features that allow a reader to recognize a person from one page to the next. In memoirs and biographies, those shapes and continuities have to be made from real materials—the habits and speech styles and surprising ticks of real human beings. So my family members and me ended up appearing in the book in more definitive shape than we actually had. Still, these descriptions adhered to the truth of my memory as much as I could make them.

Writing Fighter Pilot’s Daughter gave me a chance to air the ragged feelings still running in my brain and heart from those days long ago. Some of these feelings had to do with the work my father did. As a teenager, I had a hard time understanding how I felt or should feel about the things he did as a warrior. When I went away to college, I drifted from my parents and made friends with people in left political groups and the anti-Vietnam War movement. In Paris, in May of 1968, I participated in demonstrations against, among other things, the war my father was fighting At the time, he was posted outside Saigon. When I saw him again, the tension between us was almost too much. We had heated arguments, and then for a long we didn’t speak. Much later my parents and I got to be very close, and I’m deeply grateful for that. Being retired from military life, Dad had changed dramatically.

I wanted to write about all this so I could sort out those powerful emotions that were still with me. I hope Fighter Pilot’s Daughter strikes a chord with other military kids. And I hope it gives readers in general a better understanding of what military kids go through. When I tell people I grew up in an Army family, they often say Was it like “The Great Santini”? It’s surprising how often people ask that. The answer is no. Santini was an abusive father, and while many soldier fathers are professionally familiar with violence, they don’t necessarily bring it home with them. Pat Conroy, author of The Great Santini tells a great story, but as he says himself it’s his story, not a representative account of military family life. His book is is one of the few that features a Marine Corps pilot, his wife and children as the central characters, so it often gets taken as a model of military family life.

I hope readers of Fighter Pilot’s Daughter see that there are other ways of describing domestic life for service families. Many of the biggest difficulties for spouses and children are built into the structures of everyday life in military environments. I hope readers take from my book a sense of how complicated it is to maintain a healthy, optimistic family life when you’re having to move all the time and when a parent has to spend long months away from home on deployments. For all the good or ill the armed services might do for America, they can bear down hard on the lives of soldiers’ wives as kids. And they can make make their lives wildly interesting, as I hope Fighter Pilot’s Daughter shows.

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Mary Lawlor is author of Fighter Pilot’s Daughter (Rowman & Littlefield 2013, paper 2015), Public Native America (Rutgers Univ. Press 2006), and Recalling the Wild (Rutgers Univ. Press, 2000). Her short stories and essays have appeared in Big Bridge and Politics/Letters. She studied the American University in Paris and earned a Ph.D. from New York University. She divides her time between an old farmhouse in Easton, Pennsylvania, and a cabin in the mountains of southern Spain.

You can visit her website at https://www.marylawlor.net/ or connect with her on Twitter or Facebook.

Straight From the Mouth of Romance Author Richard I. Levine

 

 The Inspiration Behind Like Driftwood on the Salish Sea

By Richard I. Levine

I definitely didn’t plan this book or these characters in advance. This is my sixth novel and each time the idea came to me in a way that would make most people would think I need to be examined by a professional. Nonetheless, whether I call it my little voice, intuition, my spirit guides or angels, it’s not only the idea for the story that comes to me without warning and from out of nowhere, but it’s also an ongoing inexplainable inspirational feeling that seems to take over during the writing process. I suppose that’s called being in the zone. 

But as with my other novels, the people, the locations, and the basic story simply comes to me in a vision and music has always been the trigger that seems to set the wheels in motion. And there’s no predicting which piece of music will do that, but I suspect that it has something to do vibrational energies (mine and the music) that are vibrating at the same frequency. When it happens, it’s as real to me as anything that anyone sees in front of their eyes. So, it’s not just any music or particular songs, but it’s the way they are orchestrated--tempo, key, volume, types of instruments--that have instantaneously given birth to a story, its characters, relationships, locations, etc. For me, that kind of music, that vibration, simultaneously creates a feeling and a picture that resonates. It doesn’t happen all the time, but when it does, I know I have my next novel. And then there’s this little voice in my head (spirit guides? Guardian angels? Intuition?) that says something to the effect: “This one, do this one”. With Like Driftwood On The Salish Sea there were a couple of orchestrated pieces from a movie soundtrack that gave birth to Mitch, Jess and the Rockwell-esque smalltown in the Pacific Northwest where they lived.

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Richard I Levine is a native New Yorker raised in the shadows of Yankee Stadium. After dabbling in several occupations and a one-year coast-to-coast wanderlust trip, This one-time auxiliary police officer, volunteer fireman, bartender, and store manager returned to school to become a chiropractor.

A twenty-five-year cancer survivor, he’s a strong advocate for the natural healing arts. In 2006 he wrote, produced, and was on-air personality of The Dr. Rich Levine Show on Seattle’s KKNW 1150AM and after a twenty-five-year chiropractic practice in Bellevue, Washington, he closed up shop at the end of 2016 and moved to Oahu to pursue a dream of acting and being on Hawaii 5-O.

While briefly working as a ghostwriter/community liaison for a Honolulu City Councilmember, a Hawaii State Senator, and volunteering as an advisory board member of USVETS Barbers Point, he appeared as a background actor in over twenty-seven 5-Os, Magnum P.I.s, NCIS-Hawaii, and several Hallmark movies. In 2020, he had a co-star role in the third season episode of Magnum PI called “Easy Money.”

While he no longer lives in Hawaii, he says he will always cherish and be grateful for those seven years and all the wonderful people he’s met. His 5th novel, To Catch the Setting Sun, was inspired by his time in Hawaii.

Like Driftwood on the Salish Sea is Levine’s first foray into the romance genre.

Website & Social Media:

Website ➜ http://www.docrichlevine.com  

X ➜ https://www.twitter.com/Your_In8_Power 

Facebook ➜ https://www.facebook.com/RichardLevineAuthor/ 

Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/rilevinedc 

Straight From the Mouth of Cozy Mystery Author Kate Damon

 

10 Things You Might Not Know About Jury Duty is Murder

By Kate Damon

1.  The story unfolds following a high-profile trial, where jurors—sequestered for four long months—struggle to rebuild their disrupted lives. However, their attempts at normalcy are abruptly overshadowed when jurors begin dying under puzzling and unexplained circumstances.

2. The story features a cast of diverse characters, including Harold Ashman, whose marriage is on the rocks; CeeCee Laine, an exotic dancer dealing with personal betrayal; Alex Manning, an actor facing career decline; and Helen Ryder, a 72-year-old woman confronting family issues.

3. The four former jurors didn’t get along during the trial and hoped to never see each other again. Nevertheless, they must now work together to find the killer before the killer finds them.

4. While murder is a serious issue, the antics of these four amateur detectives on the hunt for a killer will have you laughing regardless.

5. The story explores themes of friendship and betrayals, both personally and within their group, as they navigate the danger surrounding them.

6. The novel offers insights into the responsibilities and risks associated with serving on a jury, highlighting how verdicts can impact not just defendants but also jurors' lives.

7. Readers can anticipate unexpected twists as the plot unfolds, keeping them guessing about who might be behind the threats against the jurors.

8. Each character faces unique challenges that lead to significant personal growth throughout the story, adding depth to their personalities and relationships.

9. The story is told from four points of view. This significantly enhances the narrative by providing depth, complexity, and a multifaceted understanding of what each of the four characters are going through as they face both personal and outer fears.

10. Writing as Margaret Brownley, the author has published more than forty-six novels and is a New York Times bestselling author. Known for her memorable characters and humor, Jury Duty is Murder is her first mystery.

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When Kate Damon is not writing, she and her husband enjoy RVing, spending time with family and friends, raising Monarch butterflies, and playing a wicked game of bridge.

Writing as Margaret Brownley, she has published more than 40 novels and is a New York Times bestselling author. Known for her memorable characters and humor, she is a two-time Romance Writers of America Rita finalist.

Not counting the book she wrote in sixth grade, and the puzzle of the missing socks, this is her first mystery.

Website ➜http://margaret-brownley.com/

Twitter ➜https://www.x.com/katejuryduty

Facebook ➜https://www.facebook.com/MargaretBrownleyAuthor/ and https://www.facebook.com/p/Kate-Damon-61565155275435/

Instagram ➜https://www.instagram.com/katedamonbooks

BookBub➜https://www.bookbub.com/authors/kate-damon

Goodreads ➜ https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4072660.Kate_Damon and https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/163681.Margaret_Brownley

Straight From the Mouth of Classic Epic Fantasy Author Christopher Kaufman

 

The Inspiration Behind Tales of the Ocean City 

By Christopher Kaufman

First, I would like to share that I am a creative artist of long standing. I have my ongoing classical epic fantasy series, Tales Of The Ocean City, music works for the classical concert stage and film, and ‘environmental works’ featuring live performance and soundscapes crafted from hundreds of natural sounds. I also have family audience-based theatrical works which, like Tales Of The Ocean City, are simultaneously books with colorful illustration where each page is a work of art, effulgent audio albums filled with cinematic/symphonic music, performance films and concert performance pieces. My readings performances of TOC feature live narration as the graphically illustrated pages stream on screen and the music pours through speakers.

I began writing fantasy stories with colorful illustrations when I was nine years old. Later, as a young student at The New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, I discovered music; there I played oboe and piano, sang bass solos in Handel’s Messiah and began composing. I continued my schooling in music all the way through a Doctorate in Music Composition (Cornell University) and followed that with leading a performing arts group titled CHIRON Performing Arts - through which I’ve presented the work of hundreds of artists of all disciplines. Later, I founded a series titled The Phantastic Theater - new music for people of all ages all at once, where I find creative ways to present new music and art and for which I’ve created and produced my theatrical pieces mentioned above.

All through the years of music school my stories never left me.  

I am the type of person that needs to dive into imaginative fantasy scenarios every night to get to sleep.  So, I finished my schooling phase with my music degrees and the vast event structure for Tales Of The Ocean City - through book eight, which I am completing now!

I started writing down these stories in the early 2000’s, but it was only when I initiated my home music ‘lab’ and began creating the text, music and narration at the same time that I found my voice as a storyteller. After two Audio Albums (TOC books 1-2), and then adding the element of the graphically illustrated pages filled with art and color, the style for these works was established.

Tales Of The Ocean City tells the tale of a young civilization turning the corner into the future. The city as a whole must do this by facing a terrible enemy from the deepest past, The Vorm - with whom they co-evolved in ages past on their ancestral isle. The main characters are young Harl’ut and his lifelong companion, Vispushin - who is a perianth (a kind of telepathic pegasus).  They are very close, like family. They speak to each other mind-to-mind.  Harl’ut too must face the past.  At the end of book two he undergoes an initiation adventure where he descends into the volcanic mountain, Pla’than’taa - from the belly of which The Ocean City was delved. There, he interacts with personifications of past god-like figures and battles a terrific monster. He then leads a cadre of young warriors into the Vorm Hive on a vital mission.

My work as a composer has informed my storytelling.  In musical harmony you have chords with great tension that resolve (cadence) into more consonant ones.  In TOC there are situations of conflict that resolve, such as the visceral battle scene of book one that ends with a heightened and inspiring resolution. Music has given me a strong sense of pacing. I know when to write short, direct sentences to move the action (of which there are tons) at a terrific pace, and when to take time and paint a glorious picture.

I believe in the transforming power of imagination. This is a theme that runs throughout all of my creative projects. I hope that the experience of my stories helps people see, hear and live with imagination more fully - this is the cure for all that ails us. 

I would like to acknowledge the writers that have informed my work and imaginative life and to whom I am eternally grateful; Tolkien, Lovecraft, McCaffrey, Dunsany, Lewis and my favorite,  Lloyd Alexander - who spoke about writing for adults for many years and enjoying it, yet, when he started writing for young people, the emotions became deeper and more powerful, not less so.

This may be why my Tales Of The Ocean City appeals, not only to YA audiences, but to Adult Fantasy Lovers as well.

Thanks for tagging along! Live with Imagination! 

See you in the places Beyond The Fields We Know, to paraphrase Dunsany.

Christopher Kaufman

My works are available at kaufmantales.com.

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Christopher Kaufman is an author, composer, presenter, illustrative artist and performer. He started imaginative fantasy books with illustrative art at the age of nine. During high school years he found music and attended The New Orleans Center for The Creative Arts and went on to major in music composition in college. He finished his schooling – earning his DMA in music composition at Cornell University where he studied with Pulitzer Prize Winning composers who prize his abilities as a composer.

Christopher is the type of person who needs imaginative fantasy scenarios to get to sleep. Therefore, he emerged from Cornell, not only with his degrees in music, but with the full event structure for his classic epic fantasy series Tales Of The Ocean City in his mind.

He began writing the story down in the early 2000’s, but it did not really come to life until he developed his home music ‘laboratory’ and started creating the music and text at the same time. Thus books one and two of TOC came about simultaneously as both graphically illustrated pages and effulgent audio albums filled with cinematic epic symphonic music.

They exist now as physical books and audio albums (that go together) and the new Video Book version.  He performs live tours with the music pouring through speakers, live narration and the colorful pages streaming on screen – a true immersive multi-media experience.

He also maintains his career as a composer for the concert stage with a full body of work, from solo works thru orchestral. He specializes as well in ‘environmental works’ which feature soundscapes crafted from hundreds of natural sounds, live musicians (from soloists, chamber groups and to full orchestra), videos filled with both natural and artistic images and readings from the works of John Muir and others.

Kaufman’s books feature full-page graphic illustration and go-with audio albums filled with epic cinematic music, narration and sound design.  All available, with generous discount packages, at kaufmantales.com (epubs and the new Video  Book version available there!).

His author page is talesoftheoceancity.com.

His you-tube channel is SOUNDARTUS.

Visit him at Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/talesoftheoceancity.

Christopher believes in the transformative power of imagination.

“Live with imagination!”