Announcement of first Public Signing

First official public signing for Johnny Dreamcatcher at "The Big Bodacious Christmas Boutique" to be held at The South Towne Expo Center in Sandy, Utah on Dec. 14th & 15th, 2012. The doors open at 9am on Friday and close at 9pm, Saturday the 15th from 8am to 8pm. I hope to see you there! Booth #239.

Tell me what you think about Johnny Dreamcatcher

Would love to start hearing what you the reader are thinking about Johnny Dreamcatcher. Please post your comments here.

Thanks,

Dave

Great Amazon Review

By

Toobusygranny - See all my reviews

This review is from: Johnny Dreamcatcher and the World of Dreams (Kindle Edition)

I absolutely loved this book! Even though it is geared to a younger audience, this Grandma couldn't put it down. I even bought a copy for my Grandsons Birthday present. I know he will enjoy it. I can hardly wait for the next book.

Volume 2- Johnny Dreamcatcher and the Sixteen Stones of Washaktoon

What a title. Believe it or not, Washaktoon is an actual ancient city in Belize that literally means "eight white stones" and from this city I based the premise of book two in the Johnny Dreamcatcher series. You may be asking yourself why then is the book called the "...sixteen stones..." well, that is where the story begins as Johnny's great grandfather is sent to find the sixteen stones. It is an epic adventure that closes the gap between Johnny and his great grandfather forever as he travels back in time to join his great grandfather in the adventure of a lifetime.

Now the real work begins

I remember being told that getting the book published was the easy part. The hard part is getting people to buy and find your book. So...this is what I am doing every evening as I strive to find new avenues to get my book out there. It is not the easiest thing I've ever done, but again nothing worth while is ever easy. I am reminded of the first summer football camp I attended as a freshman in high school. I was in great shape, but I used muscles I had not ever used before, by the third day I was so sore I could hardly walk, but by the end of the first week I was ready to go and did not experience any more sore days other then when I absorbed hits because I thought my 120lb frame could take it... I digress, I am open to suggestions from anyone on ideas to bring this book to the masses and allow more people the opportunity to read what I consider to be a great book. (My unbiased/biased opinion)

Amazon Author Page

Announcing my own author page on Amazon. Check it out!


https://www.amazon.com/author/davidmaughan

 

Finally the Book is available

Johnny Dreamcatcher and the World of Dreams is now available at www.johnnydreamcatcher.com as well as Amazon Kindle. It seems these last few weeks have just dragged on as I awaited the books printing and now distribution. For those who helped along the way, thank you! Dave

Three Days until the Book is Available

It is hard to believe that the day for my book to arrive at the warehouse is on Tuesday the 9th of October. This is a special day in two ways. It is my wife's birthday. Happy Birthday Jan. And it is the day the trucking company delivers the books...!!! Exciting! I hope I sleep the next few days.

Actually Printing

Whew! Details, details, this is what I've been asked for...so this is what I will give. Maughan-Thyme Publishing, LLC is please to announce that the first edition printing of Johnny Dreamcatcher and the World of Dreams is officially on the printing press...so to speak. It is being printed digitally in Michigan and then will be shipped to the fulfillment center(IntegraCore) in West Jordan, Utah. The website www.johnnydreamcatcher.com will be turned on the day after the books arrive. Then at this time, you can log into the website and order the book. The fulfillment center will then ship the book within 24 hours.
We are excited to have this important step/hurdle crossed.

Thank you for your patience, this has been a much longer process than expected. But it will be worth the wait. I promise to notify the day the books arrive.

Dave

Final Editing Stages

Great News!

Johnny Dreamcatcher is in the final editing stages, a few minor tweaks requested by the editor and then one more push through. Once the editing is finished, I will turn on the website which will allow for the pre-purchase of the first edition. I will personally sign all first edition copies before the ditribution center ships them out to you.

Dave

Website Construction Begins

Announcing http://www.johnnydreamcatcher.com/ Give it a couple of weeks and the website will begin to take shape. Exciting! For now just some of the artwork.

Johnny Dreamcatcher Prologue

                                                          Prologue

The fog rolled in thick and heavy as Johnny tried to focus his eyes and see through the thickening white wall. His legs and hands ached as he shifted his weight from one leg to the other searching the white haze for any sign of the coast he knew must be drawing nearer. Patches of fog rolled across his view, the watchmen yelled loudly from the crows nest.

“Rocks ahead!”

Everyone stopped what they were doing and ran to the guard rail each man long since trained in what to look for was straining to see through the thick fog, moments passed as everyone collectively held their breath, the fog thinned just enough to get a brief glimpse of the large black rocks that now loomed in front of the ship less than 20 yards away, Johnny yelled and began turning the wheel just as the ship lurched dangerously to the starboard side, he slipped, but held tight to the wheel and regained his footing as he spun the wheel as fast as he could, but there was no response. His mind reeled through the various possible escapes from the present danger, each step being eliminated as they quickly scrolled across his now racing mind. The ship continued on in its slow methodical rocking and reeling approach towards the large menacing rocks, a sudden yet futile thought entered his mind as he yelled for the crew to drop the anchor, nobody moved, everyone stood still as if frozen in their place and simply stared at the rock as it moved closer and closer. The ship moved on its own course, his mind screamed for action, he spun the wheel to the starboard side again, nothing. Leaving his post, he sprinted to the back of the ship and leaned out as far as possible and looked down at the rudder, it was nowhere in sight. Nothing, nothing but broken splinters of wood remained.

“Must have hit something.” He mumbled to no one in particular.

He sprinted back to the wheel and grabbed a tight hold just as the ship crunched noisily into the rocks knocking several deck hands overboard into the cold frigid water just off the coast of Iceland, he held tightly to the handles on the large wheel that should have steered the ship away from danger. Knowing full well that he and he alone was responsible for the untimely deaths of every single crew mate on board his ship. His stomach sickened at the thought. The ship begin to list to the starboard side, but he held tightly to the wheel hoping for a miracle knowing that in the rough winter seas in cover of darkness it would be impossible for his crew to swim to safety. Time began to race as the ship began to take on water and the beautiful carved woman of the sea who clung to the timber raised high in the dark sky above him.

Within moments his feet where dangling just above the water, he instinctively lifted them up to keep them out of the cold ocean that was creeping upward. The cold of the salty water bit into his legs; he wondered why he, the captain of a seafaring ship had never learned to swim. By instinct he yanked his legs up higher still and felt the handle in his left hand pull free from the wheel. Cold icy water engulfed him as men scrambled up the deck trying to stay away from the bitter cold water, his mouth filled with salt water as he struggled to return to the surface. But it was impossible to tell which way was up or down as the blackness engulfed him and it seemed to him to be an endless sea of darkness. His heart sank as he realized that he was going to die.

“So this is what it’s like?” he thought as his limbs quickly became numb from the cold water.

“Death in bitter cold water, no family around me…only loneliness and sorrow.”

He held tightly to the knob from the wheel as he sank slowly into his shallow cold watery grave.

Johnny awoke with a start, the sweat was dripping from his forehead and running down into his eyes and nose, his mouth tasted of salt. His thoughts turned to the air conditioning unit he and his father had repaired just the day before.

Must have blown the fuse again…I wonder why it keeps blowing the fuse?

He climbed out of bed and walked down the short hallway to the bathroom he shared with his brother and younger sisters. He raised his hands to turn the water on and began to fill them with clean water to rinse off his face and rinse out his mouth, he stopped his heart racing and stared at his left hand, he shook his head to clear any possible cobwebs that lingered and realized this was no figment of his imagination, this was real. In his left hand was a curious piece of wood, he brought his hand closer and raised it closer to the vanity light and carefully examined the object. He gasped audibly and dropped the curious looking piece of wood. It bounced on the counter and down onto the floor just behind the toilet.

“What is that thing?” He said out loud.

He bent down and reached behind the toilet to retrieve the item, wondering why he had been so thoughtless to forget to clean behind the toilet on Saturday like his mother had asked, he resolved to not neglect his duties again. He closed his eyes wondering just how disgusting the object would be. He finally grasped it and brought his arm up. He grabbed a handful of toilet paper and wiped the object clean of any possible debris as he turned it round and round trying to figure out what it could possibly be. He gasped audibly.

“It couldn’t be…”

His brow furrowed and his eyes widened as he realized it was the knob from the wheel of the ship in his dream. He held it up close enough to see that it was still wet and the end that had been in the wheel looked like it was still a brand new piece of wood, but the handle itself appeared to be very old. Carefully he set the knob to the side of the sink and rinsed his mouth over and over again wondering about the now realistic dream that had caused his death. The visions of his dream remained clear and real. He looked at himself in the mirror, turning his head from side to side wondering what it all meant. Thoughts raced through his brain at an amazing speed, “Am I going to be a sea captain someday? Or is this just a warning about my teenage years yet to come?”

October 29th, 1992

The following introduction is for a book I am writing about my experiences as an Air Traffic Controller in the United States Air Force. Please provide any feedback on your initial thoughts. Thanks, Dave

This day was my day of infamy, much like Pearl Harbor's infamous day of December 7th, 1945, the events that unfolded this day have shaped my very being. Little did I know as I put on my battle dress fatigues that night, that I would come home the next morning a changed man. Life is an adventure, live life.
The midnight shift began as any other normal shift with a few exceptions. On this dark cloudy night, the air traffic control tower was graced by an unusual visitor. A combat controller stood at the top of the stairwell periodically talking to the commander on the complex radio he held in his right hand. His hair was short cropped like all combat controllers, high and tight, he spoke with an air of confidence that comes from being able to survive the rigorous training each combat controller must go through just to be able to wear the insignia of the Air Force's elite force.
But this night was different, he was in my territory, he was on unfamiliar ground. I confidently went about my work in preparing for a major joint task force launch scheduled to depart at 1am. This task force included every branch of the military with the United States Army taking taking command of the joint task. Just 30 minutes before the scheduled launch a PIREP better known as a pilot report came in from a Delta pilot flying his 737 across the west desert en route to the Salt Lake International Airport. The pilot reported decreasing visibility with a projected cloud ceiling of just 500 feet and lowering by the minute. The chief controller instructed to ask for any additional reports from Salt lake International Airport.
"Salt Lake Approach this is Hill Tower."
"Hill This is Salt Lake Approach say request."
Approach, requesting any additional PIREPS from out West."
The reports were the same. Decreasing visibility and high winds coming in from the west. The front that was projected to arrive around 2:30am had arrived early.
As the designated hour approached, the combat controller looked to me for clearance for the C-141, C-130, 2 Pavehawk helicopters and 2 H-53 Jolly Green Giants to depart on this joint mission to the west desert. I advised that it wouldn't be wise to continue the operation. The combat controller conveyed the message to the commander who gave the word.
"Press on"
The chief controller nodded his head.
"Clear them for take off at their own risk, we warned them!" he said emphatically
I keyed the microphone feeling that gut wrenching feel that things were about to get ugly.
"Joint Command, you are cleared for takeoff at your own risk due to decreasing visibility and weather conditions out west. Wind 270 at one-six clear for takeoff."
"Roger, cleared for take off contact departure on 127.1 have a safe flight."
The Helicopters departed one after the other from helipad 7 just below the control tower to the south and east. While the C-141 Heavy launched first causing a 3-5 minute delay for the smaller and light F-16's, F-14's and C-130 that had yet to depart. The sound of freedom went passed the tower one after the other until all the aircraft were in the air and heading for this important mission in preparation for deployment.
I sat back in my chair and relaxed for a few minutes. Fully expecting that the entourage would see the decreasing weather conditions out west and all return home at once.
"Tower this is Ranger 2"
I checked the frequency, Ranger 2 was not transmitting on the normal frequency. I reached down and keyed the emergency frequency.
"Ranger 2 this is Hill Tower."
"Tower, Ranger 1 has crashed here at the north tip of Antelope Island, requesting assistance."
"Roger Ranger 2, Ringing out the crash phone now."

Coming Soon!

Johnny Dreamcatcher and the World of Dreams is finally at the Editor. Many of you have given me great feedback over the past few years as I have worked to bring this book to print. The art work is done and the press is set. Estimated date the book will be available is March 25th, 2012.