I grew up as an older brother in a family of nine kids. This meant entertaining my siblings with drawings and stories I came up with. I found out what children enjoyed in a good story, which led me to becoming a children’s book author. I learned early on that without engaging characters, and valuable lessons, a story couldn’t stick with a child into adulthood.
My new book, Charleton’s Purpose, is about a snail that has to overcome his biggest challenge at a time when nobody else seems to believe in him. He’s told that he’s too slow to have a purpose in the kingdom and he almost believes it. With some guidance from a few others, Charleton learns that it’s because he’s so slow that he can achieve his purpose. A purpose only he could complete. We also learn that all it takes is a few others to make a difference and help someone achieve great things in their lives.
I have big plans for this little snail and he will be in many more stories to come. My biggest hope is that he becomes a symbol for never giving up for those that need it most. If there’s a purpose for the slowest snail in the land, then there’s one for you too.
To make this dream a reality, I’ll need support from people like the community to spread and share Charleton with others. I invite them and everyone to participate in his global growth together.
With inspiration drawn from Bill Peet’s whimsical stories about animals, Joe Ledbetter’s light-hearted paintings, Hayao Miyazaki’s animations, and Dr. Seuss’ rhythmic timing, I’d like everyone to learn from Charleton…
1. Never give up.
2. Listen to the few that can help.
3. Ignore the negativity from the naysayers.
4. No matter how many challenges you face, there’s always a purpose for you.
If you’d like to help spread this message, check out our Kickstarter campaign. Click here to add it to your To-Do list.
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