Contest winner!

A few weeks ago I blogged about Darin Steele, the 2012 "Draw a Mythological Creature" contest winner. (Scroll down to find the original post.) This is a picture of me giving him his award. As you can see, he is all smiles.

   Darin is a member of the Everafter Fan Club. You, too, can join the club HERE.

Notes on "The Thousand-Year Voyage"

I would like to clear some things up concerning my novel "The Thousand-Year Voyage." I feel this is necessary both because I do not want misunderstandings to hinder my reputation, and also because I believe I owe it to you, the reader.

Those of you who have been following my writing for a while know that I published a novel back in 2009 called "The Thousand-Year Voyage." (Innovo Publishing, 2009) It is a very controversial novel in the sense that it attacks many aspects of society. From the very beginning, the lead character (whose name goes unannounced) has something against people in general. He embarks on a mission to discover why people have evil tendencies, and what can be done about it. He becomes a self-proclaimed preacher, spreading his beliefs throughout the world and gaining a huge following. The book is written from the perspective of this man, and so at times it feels as though he is trying to convert even the reader! He eventually ends up leading an army of people and angels in a bloody battle against Satan and his demons.

   Apart from the controversial (and, at times, preachy) nature of the book, the book is written with a very unique style of writing that I feel like I need to explain. The Thousand-Year Voyage contains a number of mistakes, this I know. There are a few errors with punctuation, a few misused words and some sentences could have been written better. I am well aware of these errors, my publisher and I was aware of them before we agreed to publish the book. At the time I thought the reasoning behind these "mistakes" would be obvious. However, I am learning that some readers do not pay close attention to what I mention in the Forward part of the book, and are writing me asking me if I am aware of the errors in the book. One obvious error that has been pointed out a number of times is in the title. On the book, the title reads "The Thousand Year Voyage." It SHOULD read "The Thousand-Year Voyage." The fact is that I intended for the title to read like it does because it is all part of the story. The same with MOST of the errors in the book--they are all part of the story!

   Let me explain myself. In the beginning of the story we learn that a mysterious book has been discovered by an elderly gentleman. The book--which we learn has traveled through time from the far future--was written, in great haste, by an ordinary young man whose only reason for writing the book was to convey to the world the amazing events that he witnessed. He was not so concerned with errors, and he sure as heck didn't have an editor sitting there with him reviewing his work! The book that the elderly gentleman discoveres at the beginning of the story came straight from the writer. Therefore, to maintain MY book's authenticity, I have left the book just as he wrote it--errors with punctuation, misused words and unusual sentence flow.

I realize that my decision to purposefully publish a book that contains errors in it may seem to most people to be foolish...or just plain weird. The truth is that I wanted to create something unique for the literary world; something off the wall and strange. A bold move for a first book, yes. All I know is that I do not regret my decision. I only ask that you please try to have an open mind when reading my book "The Thousand-Year Voyage." After all, that IS the message behind the book.

   In spite of the controversy and mixed feelings that my novel produces, it still has managed to receive rave reviews from creditable sources:

"...Has all the hallmarks of successful fiction, it draws and keeps the reader's attention, and is thought provoking during and after reading."
-Tony Murrell, Wordsru

"It is full of irony, wisdom and humor, wonderfully written. I really enjoyed it, at times laughed out loud at its subtle humor. Good story and positive morals."
-Jon Huer, author and Professor of Sociology

"The Thousand Year Voyage is a fictional story of an unassuming man who embarks on an inspiring and thought-provoking journey, revealing that all things are possible through faith in God..."

-Bart Dahmer, Innovo Publishing

"This is a literary tale reminiscent of H.G. Wells, C.S. Lewis or Isaac Asimov at times. As such, plenty of attention is given to surroundings, character motivation and thought."

-Brian Reaves, author, Stolen Lives

   AND it has maintained a 4.5 star rating on Amazon.com.

   To learn more about one of the most unique books that you will ever read, visit THIS LINK.

  

   Thanks for reading,

   Casey Sean Harmon

Liam Phillip Harmon

Dear son,

I know that one day you will grow curious and look back at some of your father's old blog posts just to see if he wrote anything about you while you were still in your mother's womb. Well, this post is for you, my son. You may be seven years old when you read this, you may be thirty-seven, but what I have to say will never change. Today, as I sit here typing this, your mother is almost 30 weeks pregnant with you. That means that you will be born sometime within the next two months. Your mother and I both have never been so excited about anything! I just want to say that you are a blessing to us. I know that there will be times when you are older when you and I will have our disagreements. We may not always see eye-to-eye about things; this is normal. But just remember that, through it all, I love you. And if ever I slip and fall and I do something to hurt your feelings, I ask that you please forgive me, just as I will forgive you. I understand that life can be tough, and I speak from experience when I say that growing up and finding yourself is one of the hardest things a person will ever go through. But remember that I will always be there for you. Even when my job places a thousand miles between us, you and the rest of my family will always be in my heart. No matter what. I am, and forever will be, proud to be your father. So as you read this, wherever you find yourself in life, never forget these words: I love you, son.

Love, Your dad

Fan-made book cover (Not official)

Not bad, huh?

Google+

Just started a Google+ account. You should join! https://plus.google.com/106785314447830556922?hl=en#106785314447830556922/posts

Book Production Update (Illustrations)

I have spent the last few hours with my editor going over interior illustration and cover design ideas for my book. Exciting stuff! Can't wait to see the finished products! Also, the first step in the developmental editing stage should be done by the end of the month!

Young Writers

It warms my heart to see young people writing. This may sound strange coming from a 24 year old. (Many would argue that I, myself, am young; the truth is that I feel much older than what I really am!) There are so many distractions out there, so many things that a young person could be doing instead of writing. According to a recent study conducted by Harris Interactive, "The average child age 8 to 12 plays 13 hours of video games per week, while teens ages 13 to 18 play 14 hours of video games per week." That's two hours a day! And according to Huston and Wright, University of Kansas, "Children spend more time watching television than in any other activity except sleep." It is estimated that the average kid spends 4 hours a day watching television. If you combine the hours spend playing computer games with the hours spent watching t.v., you're looking at 6 hours a day! On top of school, meals, homework, chores (for some of us) and all the other things that MUST happen in a day, that leaves zero time left over for anything else. What happened to playing in the woods, building tree houses and having pinecone battles? These are things that inspire creativity and improve social skills and physical health, and yet it is rare nowadays to find a young person doing these things! All I'm saying is that I know how hard it is to stay focused on the important things. Believe me, there are times when I would rather spend all of my free time watching television or playing Super Mario Bros. (Yep, it's my favorite.) But I have to remind myself that I have a mission, and that mission is to write X amount of words a day. So I just want to say that I tilt my hat to you young people out there who, in spite of the distractions, find the time and the motivation to write.

References:

http://www.diyfather.com/content/interesting-statistics-about-video-games

http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/facts/mediafacts.asp