Five Reasons Why I Wrote The Desert Between Us
Final Update--Launch Day: April 23, 2024
The long-awaited launch of my second novel, The Desert Between Us, is almost here—April 23rd. To say I’m excited is an understatement. As many of you know, I have thought about writing this novel for over a decade. Then, when I actually sat down to write it—with all of life’s interruptions—it took two years to complete. Then the publisher had it for a year and a half as we worked together through the detailed editing, design, and layout process. (All normal by industry standards.) Now launch day is eleven days away.
While I hope to write several more novels in my life, (the third is already finished and is with my agent and four publishers), this one is different. Special.
“I doubt I will ever write a book that will mean more to me than this one. This one is personal. Let me tell you why.”
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For those of you who are new to this newsletter, I lost my mother to cancer when I was a boy. I had five siblings. Ages ranged from four to fourteen. I was eleven. My father was forty-four. On that fateful Sunday afternoon, he came home from the hospital, assembled his six children into his bedroom, and broke the news. All it took was five words to alter our lives forever. He set his mouth in a straight line. “Your mother passed away today.”
Chaos and tears erupted. My father had wisely brought my aunt and uncle with him to console us, but they were still outnumbered—two to one. It was awful.
For me, it was a long, lonely night of fitful sleep.
I awoke before 5:00 AM Monday morning. I laid in my bunk bed—terrified. The darkness had suddenly taken on new meaning; separation and uncertainty. I pulled my covers up to my chin and wondered how I was going to live without her? How will I go through my life without ever seeing her again? I will never hug her again. She will never hug me. I felt a sudden surge of desperation within me. To hear her laughter again, feel her tousle my hair, smell her perfume, and watch her tease Dad.
In the morning stillness, I wondered if I would ever be the same or if my life was suddenly on a new trajectory. How can I possibly be the same person without her influence, her guidance, her touch? Will the pain ever go away?
The Desert Between Us captures many of these thoughts by Clay, the eight-year-old son who lost his mom. He and his 37-year-old father, Chase Kincaid, will strive to find their way out of the fog of grief together.
Growing up, I watched as my father led us through our grief. He kept us moving forward—by just keeping us moving. So, deep inside me, from observing my father and the depth of his loss, the two major dramatic questions of this novel were born.
1) If you lose your spouse or soul mate prematurely, can you ever give yourself “permission” to love again?
2) If you can give yourself permission, can you ever love in the same way? To the same depth? Or will you always hold something in reserve—for the one lost?
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I feel a deep connection to this story. Here are five reasons I wrote it.
1) I desire to honor my father and pay tribute to the love he felt—and never stopped feeling—for my mother after he lost her forever. He quietly loved her for 43 years after she died--until Alzheimer's erased his memory of her and he passed.
2) My goal is to bring help, hope, healing, and a sense of victory to people who have suffered devastating loss.
3) As an inspirational writer, I want to remind readers that adults and children grieve differently and may be out of sync. If they can grieve together, they may recover together.
4) I wrote this story to inspire others to believe you can love again. This book is much more than a story about victory over grief. It’s an uplifting account about how a father and son bond as they find their way back to each other.
5) My final goal is to depict the value of faith and the "magic of friendship" in helping us heal.
Now, as this touching story is released to the world, I only wish my parents were alive to read it. And to witness how the love they shared impacted their son so profoundly--he wrote a novel about it.
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If you have purchased this novel, I hope it speaks to your heart. In fact, I would like to personally invite you to join me at my first BOOK SIGNING. Here are the details.
Join me for my first “Sip & Sign” Book Signing. It will be Saturday, May 18, 2024 at Mocha Lisa Coffeehouse, 2825 Four and a half Mile Road in Racine, WI from 9:00 AM till Noon. Please SAVE THE DATE and join me. Bring your pre-ordered book or buy one there for you, a family member, or friend. While you sip a cup of coffee, I’ll sign your book(s).
You can order for AMAZON here: https://amzn.to/4c1twi8
If you have purchased a book, will you please consider writing an Amazon review after you read the novel? You do not know how much this helps an author. Thank you in advance.
May you be inspired by reading The Desert Between Us. Please tell others.
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