A Thousand Souls to Save

Posted on October 14, 2017 by russtowne

I found this story both heart-warming and heart-breaking.

With Love,

Russ

A Thousand Souls to Save

 

Posted in Animals, Heroes, Stories That Touched Me, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Misty Reimagined

Posted on October 13, 2017 by russtowne

Misty redo

Since most of my children’s books have had young boys or male animals as their primary characters I’ve been putting additional focus on books with more young female characters. The first of my books that fell into the latter category was titled Misty Zebracorn. Though it’s one of my most popular books for young girls to date, I’ve never really been satisfied with the story and the illustrations. I’ve decided my next project will be the complete reimagining of Misty Zebracorn now that the second edition of The Duck Who Flew Upside Down is at the design and formatting stage.
The new “Misty” will feature a different illustrator than the first. I’m delighted to announce that I’ve selected Jack Wiens. You’ll remember the great work he did for my books Flora Belle and Dreami Dragon and Sir Alex Sleighs a Dragon. The illustration above is one of the concept illustrations he sent to me. My first reaction to seeing it was to burst out laughing. Her pink hair. The hearts and curlicues in her stripes. Her fluffy tail and main. The pink tufts near her hooves. The golden wings. It’s so far over the top that it’s perfect! I sought a magical, whimsical, fluffy, uniquecorn and I believe he delivered exactly what I hoped to see. Hopefully my revised story will be just as unique, creative, magical, and whimsical.
With Love,
Russ
Posted in Children's Picture Books, Fantasy, illustrations, Project Updates for Children's Stories/Poems I Wrote, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

Brian and our 38th Wedding Anniversary

Posted on October 9, 2017 by russtowne

 

I confused a lot of people by the way I wrote my post about our son’s promotion ceremony. Brian was the son being promoted. Our other son Ben was there to  honor him. I apologize for the confusion.

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Above is Brian being pinned by his wife Kristi, twin sons Zachary and Alexander, and his mother-in-law Carol.

That day was special to my Beloved and me for another reason: We were celebrating our 38th wedding anniversary.

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Family, Marriage, military, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 17 Comments

A Major Celebration

Posted on October 9, 2017 by russtowne

My Beloved Heidi, our son Ben, and our grandson Thomas just returned from a whirlwind (6,000 miles in three days) trip to Maryland to experience our son Brian’s pinning ceremony and his taking the oath of office as a Major in the USAF.

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Every family member present was asked to pin one of the gold oak leafs onto his uniform.The third photo down shows his wife Kristi, their four-year-old twin sons Zachary and Alexander, and his Mother-In-Law Carol, doing their part during the pinning ceremony. My Beloved and I replaced his shirt epaulettes that had his Captain’s “Railroad Tracks” with ones that had a gold oak leaf.

The Lt. Colonel presiding read off a long list of Brian’s major (no pun intended) positions held, some of which we had never heard about for security reasons. As just one example, we had no idea he led a group of 67 people. As you can probably tell, we’re all very proud of Brian.

The fourth photo is of an engraved plaque that one of his subordinates from an earlier assignment had made to honor Brian’s promotion to Major. He was touched by the thoughtful gift.

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Family, Making Memories, Uncategorized | Tagged | 16 Comments

Today’s Quote

Posted on October 8, 2017 by russtowne

And what a loss to oneself and the world it would be.

With Love,
Russ

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Just Perfect!

Posted on October 4, 2017 by russtowne
Shortly after the birth of their second child, a husband offered to take his wife shopping for a new dress.  He endured more than two hours of listening to her complaints about which figure flaw each dress accentuated.
As she emerged from the dressing room, having tried on the last selection, she asked for her husband’s opinion.  By this time he had learned just the right things to say.  “It’s perfect!” he exclaimed.  “It makes your waist look smaller, your legs look longer, and slenderizes your hips.”
Just then another lady in the dressing room spoke out.  “If there is a dress here that will do that, I’ll buy them all!”
With love,
Russ
Posted in Humor, imperfections, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

They’re Here & Bigger & Better than Ever!

Posted on October 3, 2017 by russtowne

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My first shipments of all three titles arrived last night. Thank you for all those who pre-ordered copies. Buyers in the U.S. saved $3.05-7.99 per title versus the Amazon price! I plan to sign, package, and take your copies to the post office this afternoon.

It’s not too late if you didn’t pre-order them. You can now buy a hardcopy signed by me for $20 each. I’ll pay shipping charges via USPS Media Mail in the U.S, handling, and any applicable sales tax.

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Book Deals, Book Releases, Chapter Books, children's books, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Not Fair Picking on Old People!

Posted on October 2, 2017 by russtowne
Three little boys were bragging about how tough they were.
“I’m so tough,” said the first boy, “that I can wear out a pair of shoes in a week.”
“Well,” said the second boy, “I’m so tough, I can wear out a pair of jeans in a day.”
“That’s nothing,” said the third boy.  “When my parents take me to see Grandma and Grandpa, I can wear them out in just one hour.”
today’sThot============================
Doctor to patient: I have good news and bad news. The good news is that you are not a hypochondriac.
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Source:  www.mikeysFunnies.com
With love,
Russ
Posted in Children, Grandparenting & Grandkids, Humor, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

returned to nature.

Posted on September 30, 2017 by russtowne

This letter brightened my day, as I hope it does for you.

With Love,
Russ

beth's avatarI didn't have my glasses on....

Returned To Nature - Kids

“I’m a park ranger in Yosemite National Park and receive many letters from visitors. This is my favorite.”

—

“no legacy is so rich as honesty.”

-william shakespeare

—

credit: yosemite national park

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Posted in Uncategorized | 9 Comments

The Whole Flock’s Talking

Posted on September 30, 2017 by russtowne

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The whole flock’s talking about my latest project, the second edition of my favorite and most popular children’s book so far, The Duck Who Flew Upside Down. It features a bigger (8.5″ x 11″) trim size, even more illustrations from Josh McGill, and an enhanced story compared to my already highly-rated (all 5-Star reviews on Amazon.com at the time of this writing) first edition.

I plan to release the second edition in a few weeks via Amazon.com and elsewhere, but you can now reserve a hardcopy signed by me at a price guaranteed to be lower than what Amazon initially charges for unsigned copies (or I’ll refund twice the difference), plus I’ll pay shipping charges via USPS Media Mail in the U.S, handling, and any applicable sales tax.

With Love,

Russ

 

Posted in Animals, Book Releases, books, children's books, Children's Picture Books, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 8 Comments