I've completed the final draft of BEYOND THE CASTLE ON THE HILL. Talk about a relief. After going over the manuscript  numerous times that stage is finished. (BTW:  The greatest spell-check/grammar check  in existence is Grammarly, at least in my opinion. No, this is not a plug for the product. It's just easy to use and quite impressive).

My  friends and family are officially glad that I requested that they read my book. According to the critics, I've got a winner.  It's got mystery, suspense and enough believable future science that it will blow your imagination.

Here's the first of the Book trailers, just to give you a taste.

Like I said before, I'm on track for a March 2020 release. I'm confident  that by my next blog entry, I'll give the exact date of the release. See you in a week.

Hi, Readers.  It's the end of January  and happily, I'm still on track   with my new sci fi book, Beyond The Castle On The Hill. If all goes well, it will be published by March 2020. The  long road from the incarnation of the story, to the final draft of the book, has become a lot shorter.

In the  first book, Castle on the Hill: Secrets,   the story primarily takes place in the building formerly known as the High School of Music and Art (1936 - 1984), also known as "The Castle." The landmark site  was used as a backdrop for the story of a school for the artistically talented  and the ghostly goings-on, which take place there.

In  addition to revisiting the  old school,  scary scientific circumstances  also take place at the newly built space station , where the experiments in life extension and matter regeneration continue.

​I've read through the completed manuscript numerous times and it's time for me to move to the next scary step (and I don't mean anything having to do with the fear of ghosts).

Speak  to you again in a week or so. ​

Presently, I'm approaching completion of the second draft of  my  upcoming book, BEYOND THE CASTLE ON THE HILL.  I've always found that it helps the flow of my writing  to create drawings of characters that I'm trying to breathe life into.   One of these characters, Dora,   not only goes through an emotional evolution and   but a physical  one as well. I was curious to see if I could catch  these fleeting images outside of my imagination and make them come alive. The  following is the result of  that exploration, which I call:

I asked a few artists  from Fiverr.com to do  renditions  of my character to get a fresh outlook of what they believe the character might look like.   After giving a detailed description of my vision of Dora, I  was sent the following examples:

I was most impressed by the #4 rendition of the Dora character. With the help of Photoshop, I first  added grey tones  but that seemed too plain and just not real enough.   I then played with different color combinations  until I came up with something I was happy with for Dora's skin tone and uniform.

Finally, I found a background that suited the mood of the finished drawing.

Besides providing  more ideas for  my story, I plan to use  the drawings  to advertise the upcoming book, BEYOND THE CASTLE ON THE HILL. Who knows, it might  even be the  final book cover.

Read book one today.  
CASTLE ON THE HILL: SECRETS
Available at Amazon.com

Beyond The Castle On The Hill will be completed by March 2020 but why did it take me so long? ​I'm pretty certain that my experience as a writer isn't an  isolated situation and will sound familiar to many others.

Thanks to innovative gadgets, a warm love story and new ways to express ones artistic talents, it turned out to be a thrilling view of the school that's been in existence since 1936.

Fast forward to late 2016 - I had a great many ideas for the sequel to my Castle on the Hill: Secrets. For example: Adding new twists to the evolving relationships of Phillip, Dora, Ethan and Grace and their new connections with the Castle. Also, what's a marauding group of teenagers who feel they are indestructible have to do with an ominous space station orbiting overhead?  After many variations, the working title became Beyond The Castle On The Hill. ​I began running advertisements for the upcoming book and even picked out potential book covers.

One of the main characters, Dora, has gone through a quite a personality evolution as compared to book one, Castle on the Hill: Secrets. I'd like to say that most of these changes are due to the scientific experiments of her father, Dr. Zachery Stone or her flirty best friend, Grace but I won't. I will say that her change has something to do with the Castle on the Hill. ​

Watch out for the next journal entry. ​
Check out the previous journal entries for more info on Beyond the Castle on the Hill.

The school known as 'The Castle on the Hill' has existed since 1928 with countless stories to be shared. Whether dealing with the touching memoirs of generations of its artist students  or the sci-fi rendition of the future of the gothic styled building, the  Castle  will draw you into its fold.

*Up to 50% OFF  books in  The Castle Beckons series.

AUDITION STORIES - These are the true stories from alumni who experienced the anxiety of being tested and soon found that that glorious feeling of trying to get in was only the beginning. Audition Stories - "I Got Accepted to the High School of Music and Art" is both inspiring and painful but always triumphant as each storyteller bears their heart and soul.
PRECIOUS MEMORIES - Imagine anxiously walking in school every day and fulfilling your dream to explore your musical and artistic talents. Packed in this Kindle edition are inspirational stories and memorable photographs that take you to the place lovingly known as ‘The Castle on the Hill.” Alumni who hold Music & Art dear to their hearts contributed all stories and pictures to celebrate those wonderful years.
CASTLE ON THE HILL: SECRETS - ​Years of separation have not changed the warm feelings Ethan and Dora have for one another. The childhood friends reunite at the High School for Dimensional Arts (Formerly H.S. of Music & Art), which accepts only the most talented students and where mind-over-matter rules. But as their relationship blossoms, they discover that something sinister haunts the cold walls of the school. Dora is experiencing a fear of ghosts that she has not felt for years, and her blood runs cold when she finds that Ethan might be involved. Will their love survive? Will they? The answers lie within the not so hallowed halls of the high school of the future, the Castle on the Hill.

THE CASTLE

33 - 66% off - THE DREAM DILEMMA - Kindle Countdown
9/27/19, 8:00 am - 10/4/19, 12:00 am

Deidre is thrilled that her younger sister Kelly has married someone as easy-going as Dyllon, but she has troubling dreams involving the new groom. Hazy premonitions of dread, makes her blood suddenly runs cold. Her visions predict that Dyllon will soon be unfaithful. Three wishes mysteriously tempt Deidre, but each wish granted also brings disastrous debts. Are Deidre’s efforts being clouded by an insidious evil or perhaps by her own selfish needs? THE DREAM DILEMMA,  where things are not always what they seem in this story of deception, love, and hope.

​Available  at Amazon.com
It's

Check out the Audition  Series  through the Alumni & Friends (alumniandfriends.org) website  and  their Facebook site   (https://www.facebook.com/AlumniandFriends) .

Regardless of the year, every student had to go through THE AUDITION in order to be accepted. These are the stories from alumni who experienced the anxiety of being tested and soon found that that glorious feeling of getting-in was only the beginning. 

Book One in the series: "AUDITION STORIES - I GOT ACCEPTED TO THE HIGH SCHOOL OF MUSIC AND ART" is both inspiring and painful but always triumphant as each storyteller bears their heart and soul.

Book Two in the series: "PRECIOUS MEMORIES – AUDITION STORIES AND MORE FROM THE HIGH SCHOOL OF MUSIC AND ART" memorializes the excitement of getting-in and the joy of attending a very place you will never forget. Packed in this book are inspirational stories and memorable photographs that take you to the place lovingly known as ‘The Castle on the Hill.”

​Alumni who hold Music & Art dear to their hearts contributed all stories and pictures to celebrate those wonderful years.

Reflections of EL: In Search of Self​

Amazon 5-Star Review:
"The author does a masterful job of painting those mental pictures and re-creating the sounds and the mood, not to mention the trials, tribulations and tensions of growing up in the city in that era, trying to figure it all out and put it all together." 

Join the author on his quest to understand life, love and the demons that persistently haunt him in this coming-of-age fictionalized autobiography of the first twenty-three years of the his life.
​

Available from Amazon - Wed 5/29/19 - Thur 5/31/19

The Kindle edition of  'Reflections of EL'  will be available for FREE on Sunday, April 28 & Monday, April 29th.

EL

Dyllon lives with perpetual self-doubt as he grows up in a newly built housing community in Harlem, New York. His friends seem confident and untroubled when dealing with life, but Dyllon’s careful disposition is only holding him back. Idle curiosity driven by darker emotions causes Dyllon to release the seven deadly sins from his father’s clothing trunk, forever changing his peaceful world. Dyllon becomes an increasingly comfortable player in the dance hall of life as the lies and deceit pile up. Through reckless bouts with assorted girlfriends, he eventually falls for the cheerful and confident Kelly. Dyllon feels she could be the one but the demons that haunt him think otherwise.

Reflections of EL: In Search of Self - the fictionalized memoir of the author’s quest to understand life and love.

Precious Memories has finally been released and you have a choice.  Similar to  the first book, Precious Memories also has the heart-warming  stories  about the audition experience written by alumni of the High School of Music and Art . In addition, graduates have contributed  photographs  from their cherished time  at M&A.

Precious Memories is available in the  following formats:

Chose the one that's right for you.
​Welcome back to The Castle.