College has been crazy for me. If any of you followers are college students in a difficult major, then you know what I’m talking about. If you’re not in college, then give it a few years (or however long it takes you) and you’ll understand exactly what I’m talking about.

I’m in the process of getting the book edited, and looking at new avenue for publication as well. Authorhouse is not out of the loop, but there is always a welcome for change, or a new direction. It just depends on the deal, since right now, the combination of expenses of college and living on my own in the city of Chicago is a bit of a burden on the funds that are needed for publication.

I appreciate all the support and encouragement from the fans. It’s been a long road, and in the long run, this really means a lot. I’m hoping for this book to be done relatively soon, and we can have it published and available by the summer’s end, or by the fall at the latest, for everyone to enjoy and continue the saga at hand into its next adventure.

Keep checking for updates, and sending in emails. I have appreciated all the support from everyone from the beginning up to now. So let’s keep this going!

It was, without a doubt, one of the greatest experiences of my life. I had to admit, I was a bit amazed at some of the authors that were there in my presence. Prior to the night, I wasn’t aware of the names of some of the authors that were there. But I had to admit, they were all quite impressive. They’ve made progress into areas that I am still working on getting into, and they have my utmost respect.

I think the highlight was being able to be introduced to all these people. Librarians of all sorts, and members of agencies and companies far and wide were present, all who turned their eyes in interest to anyone who was able to be present as an author that evening. Dr. Richard Darga, the Dean of the Library at Chicago State, was the one who introduced me to the crowd. It was an interesting experience, being the youngest author there and the youngest person there all together. It sparked a lot of interest and questions by people, and even the President of the ILA and ALA (Illinois and American Library Association) spoke with me about being happy to have me present tonight. I was honored beyond all words.

Now that the Chicago portion of the tour is over, the book will continue to travel across the United States for the remainder of the year, finishing off the tour in San Diego, CA around the middle of November. Hopefully, the rest of the visits will be just as large success as Chicago was, as well as more to follow it.

As of right now, with the exception of the tour, there are currently no events scheduled for the book. This is something that we’re going to need to change together. It takes more than just my abilities as an author to put on great events for fans, and to get the word out. If anyone can think of anything, please don’t hesitate to email me and we can put two and two together to make something great. I am always willing (and would rather) do events where portions of money raised, books sold, etc go to some form of charity or benefit.

In other news, I’m working hard on getting the sequel to the first book finished up. The Renegade Union is almost completed, I just need a good weekend where I can sit down and work on it where I’m not bogged up by homework and studying, and then I’d be set. I’m actually planning on getting it done over this weekend if possible to finish it. I have a bit more free time than I thought. If not, Thanksgiving is the big break to finish it. From there, I’m hoping my editor and myself can take advantage of winter break and get the book edited. Then over the spring semester at Chicago State, I’ll be coordinating with the publisher to get the book released by the summertime. Hopefully I can get it done in time for a big event here in Chicago, or even back home in Ohio. We’ll see how things go. Keeping the faith and the heart in it is the only fuel that will keep the book thriving the way it does.

And to all the fans, thank you for all the support. Please keep up the good heart and keep the word spreading out. The more we do together, the more the series will grow and catch the hearts of others as well. If it wasn’t for you, this series wouldn’t have made it nearly as far as it has now. There’s still a lot more ground to cover, but rest assured that your support is never taken for granted. You’ve brought us to where we stand now, which is a lot further than I ever dreamed possible when the idea came to me when I started almost ten years ago.

I’m writing this blog to inform the fan base of what’s going to happen with this event, and primarily reach to the fan base that is looking to attend the event, or trying to. From what I have found out, the actual event is not geared too much for the public audience, but more for agents, publishers, librarians, etc. However, the public is still welcomed to attend. Registration for the Chicago stop is here at this link: https://www.ila.org/events/reg2010.htm. The issue is, there cannot be a massive distraction that will take away attention from other works that will also be on display, so a lot of the plans that I know some fans had will not be permitted here.

If anyone is still interested in attending the event, you are more than welcome to. I will most likely shut down the event listing on Facebook, or post a link to this blog for fans so they know that they don’t need to worry about attending, or making the efforts to, since the events and programs will not be geared for their interest. However, if any fan still wishes to pay the fees to attend, they are more than welcome to.

I will be looking to attend the Illinois Author’s Dinner that will be held in the Grand Ballroom of Navy Pier (which is where the entire event will take place, the Navy Pier area of Chicago) on a Tuesday night, I believe. Currently, I’m working with Chicago State to sponsor me for the event. Fans can expect loads of pictures and another blog about the event itself. Just from speaking with the representative from the Illinois Library Association (who is hosting the entire event) about the dinner, I all ready get goosebumps and everything. There will be a lot of people, a chance to introduce myself formally to the entire audience about myself and my work, and so much more. This will be a great opportunity, and I cannot wait until I get everything finalized to go.

To everyone reading, thank you very much for the support. A special thank you to all the fans who were looking to attend, or going to make an effort to attend. That support alone is what will make the series a great success.

There’s some big things coming for both myself and the book. For one, I’ll be staying out here in the Windy City for a more permanent change, as I begin working on research as well as continuing my passion for running by assisting my head coach by coaching his distance team in his summer track club. There are a lot of good things coming, and I’m excited for them all.

In regards to the book, this is where I’m going to reach out to you. The book is in need of continuous boost, and besides helping out by passing the book along to others, I think that it’s time for the fans to help me out by suggesting me to bookstores that might be interested in doing a signing. I’m hoping to book up some of 2010 with a nice selection of signings in the local and outlying areas. If you can make a connection, please email me at mattjordan@thenewearthsaga.com and let me know. I would like to get out there and reach out to more places and people, but to do this, I need some people to make that network for me.

During the summer, I plan on investing a lot of time in finishing the sequel, which I know a lot of people are looking forward to. Hopefully it will be an even bigger hit with people, and I’m looking forward to continuing the work. Also, ‘The Dawn of New Hope’ will be going on tour this fall. So don’t forget to make arrangements for that if you can!!

Thank you guys, again, for all the wonderful support!