Author-
Blade-my personal Griffin compliments of Amy Winfield.
I've been a soldier with the U.S. Army for three years now. Before that I had my own business for seven years in Arizona and worked several construction jobs for years before that. After Joining the Army I was stationed at Fort Eustis VA where I was waiting for school to start to become a Chinook helicopter mechanic. During my wait I was placed on night staff duty desk at my company for thirty days. While on the night shift I conceived the idea for my first book which became a series. The first book is The Griffin Chronicles Part One: The Transition Man.
After writing the initial manuscript while in Virginia I was stationed at Fort Campbell Kentucky and assigned to 6th Battalion 101st Combat Aviation Brigade. I'd been there for only a couple of months when I was deployed to Kandahar Air Field in Kandahar Afghanistan where I served for four months. During this time I revised the Transition Man twice. I often felt the only thing that kept me sane, was being able to escape into the world of the Transition Man and spend some time with my friends, watching their world develop.When I came home I finished my work on the book and sent it to some beta readers and test readers to see if anyone liked it.
The response was overwhelming. I'd never written before but everyone who read the manuscript praised it and told me they would buy it and I should try and publish. After a little polish I started to shop the manuscript around to see if i could get picked up by a publisher to get the book on the market. I was originally signed to a small publisher but didn't like the direction things were headed. Also I had only a few months until my next deployment in August of 2012. I changed publishers to Little Acorns Publishing LTD headed by Kristina Jackson. She had a great vision on how to publish my book and a plan I could agree with to get everything done fast but not rushed and sloppy. Amy Winfield a member of her team created Blade the Griffin you see on this page just for me and my books. The whole team at Little Acorns from the editor to the social media coaches have helped me with my own transition.
My wonderful family has been so supportive allowing me to spend so much time and focus working on the series and spending so many hours editing and revising. They also have listened to me ask if this sentence sounds good or that. or should i change this or that. In the end it is truly them that are at the heart of this work. They have truly inspired me to work harder and be better. My wife of 14 years Julie is still as lovely as the day i married her and I love her with all my heart. My oldest Daughter Laynee is 12 and as spunky a teen as I could hope for. She is also quite a little writer herself. My middle boy is Jaxon my mini me as he looks so much like me. He is a very talented performer and singer and I love watching him and seeing him succeed. My youngest boy is Evan. His light nature and easy going spirit brighten my heart when I'm stressed or troubled and I just love that boy to death.
I am a proud member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints and am very active. I served a mission for the church for two years in New Zealand and had such powerful life experiences that I can never again doubt the existence of God and his great Son. I am firm in the faith and use the knowledge I have gained to teach my kids and empower those around me. I have been blessed to serve as clergy for the local branch of the church at Fort Campbell for the past several months and will continue to do so until I leave for Afghanistan. I can say this, miracles do happen never stop believing!
Now that this dream is coming true, I'm so proud to be able to tell my children that if you really want something and you are willing to work hard for it anything is possible. All I know how to do is work hard and never back down. My personal philosophy is play to win and I try to bring this out in everything I do. I first dreamed of being a soldier and being a Chinook crew chief and I worked hard and made that happen. Second I wanted to write a book and inspire others, and I am working hard to make that happen. Thanks for checking out my site and your interest in me, God bless and if your gonna play, PLAY TO WIN!
After writing the initial manuscript while in Virginia I was stationed at Fort Campbell Kentucky and assigned to 6th Battalion 101st Combat Aviation Brigade. I'd been there for only a couple of months when I was deployed to Kandahar Air Field in Kandahar Afghanistan where I served for four months. During this time I revised the Transition Man twice. I often felt the only thing that kept me sane, was being able to escape into the world of the Transition Man and spend some time with my friends, watching their world develop.When I came home I finished my work on the book and sent it to some beta readers and test readers to see if anyone liked it.
The response was overwhelming. I'd never written before but everyone who read the manuscript praised it and told me they would buy it and I should try and publish. After a little polish I started to shop the manuscript around to see if i could get picked up by a publisher to get the book on the market. I was originally signed to a small publisher but didn't like the direction things were headed. Also I had only a few months until my next deployment in August of 2012. I changed publishers to Little Acorns Publishing LTD headed by Kristina Jackson. She had a great vision on how to publish my book and a plan I could agree with to get everything done fast but not rushed and sloppy. Amy Winfield a member of her team created Blade the Griffin you see on this page just for me and my books. The whole team at Little Acorns from the editor to the social media coaches have helped me with my own transition.
My wonderful family has been so supportive allowing me to spend so much time and focus working on the series and spending so many hours editing and revising. They also have listened to me ask if this sentence sounds good or that. or should i change this or that. In the end it is truly them that are at the heart of this work. They have truly inspired me to work harder and be better. My wife of 14 years Julie is still as lovely as the day i married her and I love her with all my heart. My oldest Daughter Laynee is 12 and as spunky a teen as I could hope for. She is also quite a little writer herself. My middle boy is Jaxon my mini me as he looks so much like me. He is a very talented performer and singer and I love watching him and seeing him succeed. My youngest boy is Evan. His light nature and easy going spirit brighten my heart when I'm stressed or troubled and I just love that boy to death.
I am a proud member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints and am very active. I served a mission for the church for two years in New Zealand and had such powerful life experiences that I can never again doubt the existence of God and his great Son. I am firm in the faith and use the knowledge I have gained to teach my kids and empower those around me. I have been blessed to serve as clergy for the local branch of the church at Fort Campbell for the past several months and will continue to do so until I leave for Afghanistan. I can say this, miracles do happen never stop believing!
Now that this dream is coming true, I'm so proud to be able to tell my children that if you really want something and you are willing to work hard for it anything is possible. All I know how to do is work hard and never back down. My personal philosophy is play to win and I try to bring this out in everything I do. I first dreamed of being a soldier and being a Chinook crew chief and I worked hard and made that happen. Second I wanted to write a book and inspire others, and I am working hard to make that happen. Thanks for checking out my site and your interest in me, God bless and if your gonna play, PLAY TO WIN!