Dear Friends,

I want to share with you the cover of my book, Your Grandmother Raised Monarchs, which, if all goes well, should be released in a month, maybe sooner.

Front cover and spine with a lovely photograph entitled “Devotion” by Mary G. Birdsong

Mary was patient and generous with me in trying to get the photograph just right, and I’m grateful for her talent and spirit. She is also, by the way, a talented writer and editor who has steered me in the right direction more than once. Thanks, Mary!

And now for the back cover:

A rather unconventional back cover, but since I’m the publisher, I wrote what I thought best. The photograph of Cole Martin Thompson was taken by my daughter Elena Thompson. I’ll sneak that credit in on the copyright page.

And I am the publisher. The imprint is Shamatha House, but, of course, that’s me. I wrote in a previous post about how I came to the decision to get Your Grandmother Raised Monarchs (formerly entitled Darwin’s Beetle and before that Oh! Be Joyful) into print via Create Space. In short, here’s the deal: I write a lot, not unlike an old guy making wooden chairs in his workshop. After a long struggle to get this baby published conventionally, I thought, “I just want to get my work in front of people who might appreciate it”–in the same way the old carpenter would take a few bucks for his chairs so that they can live out their purpose.

When Your Grandmother Raised Monarchs is released, I’ll make a big fuss. The paperback will be available on Amazon first, then an inexpensive Kindle version will quickly follow. I’ll keep you posted about my success in getting the book into bookstores. I’m not quite settled on the pricing yet, but trust me, it will be affordable.

That’s enough for now. Peace and love,

John