The four Cole boys suffer abuse at the hands
of an alcoholic father, while largely being left to their own devices by a
heartbroken and overworked mother. Their adventures on their island home
have become a welcome escape, and one of the only things in
life the boys can truly rely on. Jessie, the youngest and a dreamer,
becomes enamored with US plans for manned space flight and its race to the
moon, stirring his own dreams of one day becoming an astronaut. In a strange
twist of fate, it is the space program and the momentum it gains that
abruptly brings their beloved island life to an end. The family is forced to
move to the city and start anew.
Life in town creates new
challenges, financial pressures, news of the Vietnam War and the impending
threat of the military draft for Max the eldest of the Cole brothers.
Guest Post:
So, Who's
Your Publisher?
My best friend's son text me out of the blue
to tell me his buddy was finishing up a book that he thought had a great
plotline and wanted to know if my publisher only took Christian books. I smiled
at the text from this kid I've known for twenty years but haven't seen since
his high school graduation. This was the latest in a serious of similar
inquires from friends, relatives, or perfect strangers who happen to be friends
with someone who knows me.
I replied to the text with the answer I am
starting to get down pat. Self-publishing is the way to go if your friend has
the nerves for it. Have him call or email me and I'll share everything I know.
When I started this publishing journey I was
working with a writing partner, DiVoran Lites, who is several years
older. She'd gone to writing conferences as a young woman and even had one of
her books considered by HarperCollins. She never got published though and
focused her energy on raising a family. We both finished our books and while I
started working on a new story she went back to do more polishing and refining.
With my second book written I decided it was time to start looking into
publishing.
I read tons of articles, started following
literary agents on Facebook and Twitter, subscribing to their blogs, and
crafting query letters. I sent out a few queries and kept reading everything I
could find on publishing. That's when I discovered self-publishing.
I liked the idea of having complete control
over my manuscript, being able to follow it from start to finish, keep track of
sales and manage pricing. I talked about all I was learning with my writing
partner, hoping she would take the plunge with me. She smiled and encouraged
me, but didn't think her book was ready yet. In October 2011 I uploaded my
first book, Summer Storms, and learned that
publishing was only the second step in the writing journey. Now I had to learn
how to get my book in front of people who might find it interesting.
About six months after I published Summer
Storms, DiVoran started asking questions about my experience and before I
knew it, she was pulling out that old book that had been sent to HarperCollins,
dusting it off and getting it ready to publish. I'd found an editor and a cover
designer by this time and they were both working on getting my second book
ready for print so I put my friend in touch with them. At this point our publishing
journey took a small split as DiVoran was more than happy to have the editor do
the book formatting while I like to maintain that control.
Another friend of a friend, Dean Gaschler,
asked me for direction when he started working on his book of short stories
from his career at Walt Disney World. For many years Dean chose the family that
would be the grand marshal of the Magic Kingdom parade and had collected their
stories. I shared with him all I had learned from my first two books as he and
his wife helped me complete the trailer for my third book. In the end, Dean
chose to go with a local small press and he seems very happy.
Everyone is going to have a different comfort
level and I try to make sure those who ask for my advice know the pros and cons
of self-publishing. If you want your book to succeed, this becomes a full-time
job and there are days when it may not seem worth it. But then there are the
days you get to interact with a reader and hear what they enjoyed about your
book and there are the days when aspiring writers will come to you for advice.
Those days make all of the hard work worthwhile. I love sharing my experiences
with others as well as learning from those who have more experience. That is
one of best parts of the indie writing scene, the camaraderie and support.
Set Back
April 25, 1961
Jessie stood at the edge of the playground with two other
boys, anxious for the next space launch. Recess would be over any minute. There
would be no time for a hold in the countdown. Two weeks earlier the Russians
had announced the successful launch of Yuri Gagarin
into space. Once again the Americans had been left behind but today’s launch
would hopefully be the last before America put their own man into space.
Jessie held his breath as the rocket appeared
above the trees. Then it happened. The plume of white
smoke erupted into a fiery ball, debris flying in all directions. Jessie didn’t
wait for the teacher’s frantic call to take shelter in the school. He shook his
head and turned his back on the carnage. At the door,
the teacher gently laid a hand on his shoulder and gave him a sympathetic look.
Any other day and Jessie might have resented it, but he knew, today, it had
nothing to do with his father and the reputation he’d developed for himself the
past couple of years.
When school was out, Jessie dragged his feet
along the familiar path home. He kept walking when he came upon his brothers,
his head down, watching the sand shift beneath his worn-out sneakers.
“I heard the explosion.” Max draped an arm over Jessie’s
shoulders. “Sorry.”
Jessie nodded.
“Maybe we should go out to the beach, see if we can find
any pieces,” Ricky suggested.
The thought turned Jessie’s stomach, but then
he stopped. “That’s not a bad idea. I’d like to have something to remember we
at least tried to get to space.”
“Don’t talk like that,” Sam said. “We’ll get there, it’s
just going to take time.”
Jessie knew Sam was trying to be encouraging,
and so attempted a smile of thanks before shifting course across the large
field of scrub grass.
The boys spread out when they reached the beach. The tide
was low but turning. Jessie took the section closest to the water, knowing the
rising tide would cover it in another hour. The salty tang of sea spray filled
his nostrils and he inhaled, while his eyes and ears locked away every detail
of the sand and surf.
He saw a flash of light ten feet ahead and quickened his
pace, keeping his eyes on the spot. The ocean foamed up, then slowly retreated.
Jessie squatted down to find a silver and black triangle, partially buried in
the sand. Another wave rushed toward him, splashing over his feet and soaking
the bottom of his shorts. He held onto the metal afraid the undertow would pull
it out to sea. When the water receded, Jessie pulled the debris free of the
remaining sand. It was five inches tall and three wide. Turning it over in his
hands he noted scorch marks and part of what he thought might be the letter U
or A from the USA painted on the side of the rocket.
“Guys,” he waved to his brothers.
Max arrived first. “What’d you find?”
Jessie handed him the piece of metal.
“Cool.” Ricky joined them and reached for the newfound treasure.
“Good job, Jess.” Sam clapped his brother on the back. “I didn’t think we’d
find anything that big.”
Jessie reached for the metal and traced the rough edges.
“You don’t think they will give up do you?”
Sam shook his head. "Since the Russians have gotten
into space already, I don’t see how we can give up now."
"I hope they don’t.” Jessie tore his gaze away from
his find and looked at his brothers. “I want to be an astronaut."
Max laughed. "You can't be an astronaut."
"Why not?"
"Cause you gotta have money to be an astronaut. You
don't think Shepard and Grissom and all those other guys are dirt poor do
you?"
"Maybe they’re not dirt poor, but they aren’t filthy
rich. They were chosen because they were in the military and had good
records."
"So you gonna enlist when you turn eighteen? We'll
probably still be in that dag gum Vietnam and you'll go and get yourself killed
the first day in the jungle."
"Nuh-huh. I know how to take care of myself. I hide
from you in the woods all the time." Jessie balled his hands into fists
and planted his feet.
Sam stepped between them. "Cool it, Max. If Jessie
wants to be an astronaut, then maybe he can be. Lots of things are
changing."
Max snorted. "Yeah, and I could be President."
"If that happens, then I'm moving to Mexico,"
Ricky quipped.
Jessie laughed and unclenched his fists. Yet again Sam
had brokered peace without anyone coming to blows. Maybe Sam was the one who
would become President.
Sam stepped back. “Let’s head home.”
“Did you hear Mom and Pop got another letter from the government
yesterday?" Max asked as they walked along the hard packed sand.
"About what?" Jessie asked, turning up the
beach, shuffling through the soft sand to a well-worn path across the dunes.
Thick saw palmettos, sea grapes, and sea oats grew on either side of the path,
slowly thinning as the boys moved farther from the beach.
"About buying our land. They want to expand the
missile complex more. They've been buying up all the land around here."
Max swatted at a dragonfly buzzing around his head.
"But they already have so much land, what do they
need more for?" Jessie ducked under the wispy needles of an Australian
Pine tree, his brothers close behind.
"How'm I supposed to know? I didn't see the letter,
I just heard them arguing about it after we went to bed. Mom wants to take
their offer, but Pop doesn't want to move."
"I don't want to move either," Ricky agreed.
"I like being close to the beach and huntin' in the woods."
"I don't think we have much choice. Sounded like the
government letter said we take the offer or they'll just take the land away
from us."
"They can't do that," Jessie cried. "We've
lived here forever."
"Not forever, you moron," Max sneered.
"Mom and Pop only moved here during the war, when Pop got assigned to the
Banana River Naval Air Station."
"Still, that's practically forever." Jessie let
his fingers run through the thin pine needles as they emerged from the copse of
trees into a clearing.
"There are families that have lived here since the
1800s and they’re being bought out too. I don't think the government is going
to consider our twenty years here more important," Sam replied.
Jessie rolled his eyes. Leave it to Sam to know the
history of the island.
"But they can't just take our land," Jessie
insisted.
"Yes, they can, it's called eminent domain. If they
can prove to the court that private property is needed for public use and fair
compensation has been offered, the court will likely rule in favor of the
government."
"But this isn't public use," Ricky interjected.
"Yes and no." Sam leaned forward, obviously
warming to the subject. "A public park isn't being created, but the
research being conducted and the satellites being launched are for the public
good. Plus, the government will probably be able to make a pretty good case for
public safety. Think about how close this piece of the rocket landed to our
house. The government can use this incident and the others before as evidence
of danger to the people still living on this end of the island."
"All right, professor, we get it, but it still
doesn't mean I want to move," Ricky interrupted.
Up ahead, Jessie could see the orange grove that bordered
their land, and glanced back over his shoulder. He couldn’t see the beach
through the trees, but it had taken less than five minutes to stroll home. Sam
was right. This one had been a little too close for comfort.
About The Author
Rebekah is a Christian with a heart for new beginnings. She is a Florida
native and a graduate of Jacksonville University, Jacksonville, Fl. A love of
history, research and journaling led naturally to a passion for writing. She
enjoys travel and has traveled extensively across the United States and Canada
as well as Europe and the Caribbean. Her reading taste run from the classics to
light fiction. When she is not working or writing, she enjoys cooking, baking
and sharing recipes on her blog.
Her current works include, Summer Storms and Winter's End, books one and
two in The Seasons of Faith series, and Julianne the first book in The Coastal
Chronicle series. She is currently working on Jessie a coming of age novel set
in coastal Florida during the early days of the United States manned space
flight program. Jessie is the second book in the Coastal Chronicles Series.
Connect with Rebekah through:
Website: http://www.rebekahlynbooks.com
Blog: http://www.rebekahlynskitchen.wordpress.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/RebekahLyn1
Facebook: http://facebook.com/authorRebekahLyn
Rebekah Lyn Books
Faith-Adventure-Hope
379 Cheney Highway
#230 Titusville, Fl 32780
JESSIE by Rebekah Lyn (16 - 18 July) Giveaway
Please find below the giveaway link or code (whichever you prefer to use.)
The giveaway consists of:
So for the US
Gift Bag
Autographed book $15.99
NASA Retrospective DVD $29.95
Tote bag $10
Necklace $10
Apollo 11 patch $5.95
Pen $3
Space Ice Cream $4.00
Magnet
International
$50.00 PayPal Casand and digital copy.
Gift Bag
Autographed book $15.99
NASA Retrospective DVD $29.95
Tote bag $10
Necklace $10
Apollo 11 patch $5.95
Pen $3
Space Ice Cream $4.00
Magnet
International
$50.00 PayPal Casand and digital copy.
Reviewers:
$15 cash or amazon GC and autographed copy for favorable review.
Link:
Code:
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<script src="//widget.rafflecopter.
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