To the stars!

Whatever your dream is, chase it. Follow where it leads you, even if that’s in an unexpected direction. Though I didn’t know where my dream would lead me, this has been such a wonderful journey. When people ask me when I wrote my first story, I usually say, “When I learned how to write.” Because I’ve been writing stories as long as I can remember, and those stories have lead me to some amazing places and new insights.

And now: Eeep! I’m so thrilled! Overall, Caretaker is on the top 100 Amazon Best Selling Science Fiction books!

And . . . I’m now on the Amazon Top 100 Science Fiction Authors! See how happy I look, there next to such great writers?

I love books. I love the way they feel and the way they smell and the excitement of the places and people within them. I love bookstores and notebooks and pens and paper. I love writing, and I’m so excited to be involved in the publishing process. And I love dreams. And hats.

Crackin’ the Top 100

It sure was fun meeting so many great readers at Comic-Con. Thanks for dropping in to say hi and for your enthusiasm about Caretaker! A little update: Caretaker cracked the top 10 best seller list on Amazon a couple of days ago, and today I see it’s up to NUMBER 6 in its category! Whoo!

Something else new and exciting has happened, too. I made the top 100 most popular authors! See, here I am, #82:

Thanks, everyone, for all the support of Caretaker! I hope it is as much fun for you to read as it was for me to write!

5 Reasons You Don’t Want To Miss Salt Lake Comic Con!

1. Samwise Gamgee is going to be there! 
2. Start ’em young: You can begin to steep your children in geek culture at the KidCon!
3. Star Wars + Star Trek + Chocolate=Pure Happiness. Don’t these look amazing!? Check them out at the Truffle Cottage’s booth!

4. You can see Amazing Lego Creations!

5. You can pick up a copy of the hot new novel, Caretaker! And I’ll sign it for you!

I’ll be signing at the Future House Publishing booth: #1903 in hall A. You can pick up the book anytime, but I’ll be there signing them Thursday 7-9, Friday 10-2, and Saturday 2-4, so drop by and say hi!

Come See Me at Barnes and Noble!

So, you’ve been wanting a signed copy of Caretaker? Well, come see me at Barnes and Noble’s Authorpalooza in Sandy tomorrow! I’ll be signing from 1:00-4:00 and I’d love to see you!

In case you haven’t been there, here’s the address to the Sandy Barnes and Noble-

10180 S. State Street
Sandy, UT 84070
801-233-0203

Welcome Back, Pluto

So we all love Pluto again, huh?

Remember when, just nine short years ago, astronomers demoted Pluto? Remember how we couldn’t say we had nine planets in our solar system anymore?

But now that New Horizons has flown by, everybody wants to be Pluto’s friend again. Why? Because Pluto is awesome.

Well, just for the record, I never stopped loving you, Pluto. And here’s why:

-I love that your name is easy to remember.

-I love that you’re adaptable. Your atmosphere changes from gas to solid as you go around your orbit.

-I love that you’re a little tiny guy out there on the edge of the solar system, standing between us and who-knows-what.

-I love that you have water.

-I love that you have a heart:

Image Credit: NASA/APL/SwRI

You’re my favorite little ex-planet, Pluto, and it’s good to see you again.

(For an amazing animation of how we’ve seen Pluto through history, turn on the Kenny Roger’s song “Through The Years” and click here: NASA Pluto Animation.)

Creating Space

I’ve been revising Caretaker in preparation for its publication later this year, and immersing myself in space has given me a new perspective on Earth.

I think it’s hard for us, walking around under the warmth of our sun, to understand the true immensity of space and its vast contrasts to what we know here on our planet. It isn’t until I’ve immersed myself in images and accounts of it (both first-hand accounts and theoretical accounts) that I begin to be able to imagine it myself.

New Horizon’s jaw-dropping flyby of Pluto this week was a great reminder of both the similarities and the differences between our world and what lies beyond our atmosphere.

Image Credit: NASA/APL/SwRI