Last winter when I was traveling all over the state talking to students about being a writer, and teaching writing assemblies, I made a memorable (if insanely long) trip to the Four Corners area. Since we were broke, as most new writers are, my husband posted a request from his friends to see if anyone knew someone who would put me up for a night in that area. Yeah, I thought it was a little scary too, when I heard.

However, my good friend Karen Hoover hooked me up with this family in Blanding who had put her up on a similar trip in the previous year. JD Raisor and his wife some of the sweetest, nicest people on the planet. They fed me meals, came to my sparsely attended speaking opportunity at the college library (which his wife arranged for me), visited when I signed books the next evening at the grocery store, and gave me directions to the tiny school I spoke at in the day in between.They didn’t know me or anything about me, but it didn’t make a difference to them. And, of course, while I was there, we talked about books (because writers always talk about books when they get together–it’s like the law or something.)

Today I got word that JD’s first book is finally in print. Check it out:

Zeld has never done anything grand with his life, like fighting a dragon or riding on a cloud to London to save the king. But in an age of magic and mystical creatures, his life is about to change as he emerges from exile to attend the Castles and Caverns School of Knighthood.

The Hesse family, on the other hand, has long awaited his return and are only too glad to greet him with innocent smiles on their faces and sharpened daggers behind their backs.

The book’s gotten some great reviews including:

Read an excerpt and learn more about the author on his website.