Day 3 update-rethinking rewards

Yesterday I updated the project & wanted to post the update here. I should have trusted my first instinct and gone with a print edition rather than ebook.  I'm shooting for that now, albeit a few days too late. If the project pulls in $12,500 I'll be doing a soft cover printing of the book for any pledge over $30 ($25 pledge +$5 shipping).  Also for the $10 pledge level I've added a PDF of the finished book & for the $25 level I've added an 8X10 inch print from Phoenix and The Moon.  Thanks for all the support!

Many years ago, a mother watched in awe as her children grew.  She marveled at their enthusiasm for life and the happiness they found in small, seemingly insignificant things.  But above all, she admired their sincerity.  The sincerity to love everyone and everything without pause, and the sincerity to believe so openly in themselves that no thing was impossible.  So she wrote stories for each of these three little souls. The stories were meant to envelop all the amazing things that made her children so individual, and they did, and the stories were lovely.  Then a funny thing happened.  The mother watched other mothers with their own children, and the other mothers were equally affected by all the magic that their children possessed.  And the mother saw that those children were just as amazing as her own.  So the stories were taken off the shelf and dusted off.  Thus began the process of revision, and the stories became so much bigger than this one family.  They became about the intricacies that connect all children together as part of the human story.  The stories became an homage to childhood and to all the qualities children possess, the qualities, that as parents, we hope will remain a part of who they are forever. 

Phoenix and The Moon is one of those stories, it is a story inspired by my son Phoenix, and written by my wife Kari.  The book was written about three years ago, and because of my busy schedule I haven't had the time to finish the art for it.  Last September I started the story boarding process and soon found myself staying up into the wee morning hours to get a chance to finish more art for Phoenix and The Moon.  I have all the concept pencil work finished, and seven of the full page spreads fully finished, and I'm enjoying each piece more than the one before it.  This project has become the work I am most passionate about and proudest of.

Why am I doing this as a Kickstarter?

There are a couple of reasons that I need this Kickstarter.  First and foremost; I want proof for the industry that you cannot fit a proper adventure into their 32 page box.  The publishing world is changing and I once read that traditional publishers are just serving drinks on the Titanic.  I know that's not true, however, change is upon them and they have to evolve.  People are becoming more connected every day, and all who want  it, have a voice in what happens around them.  AS A KICKSTARTER COMMUNITY, WE GET TO CHOOSE WHAT WE SEE IN OUR LIBRARIES! I believe this book belongs on a Library shelf.  Secondly, and equally important, I need time!  I need to put aside work projects and focus.  If I can secure a six-eight week swath of time to devote entirely to Phoenix and The Moon, I will finish every last piece of art for the book and prepare it for publishing it as an ebook. 

It is my hope that this project will inspire you and that you'll be compelled to be a part of Phoenix and The Moon.  Thank you for taking the time to look! 

Nearly every child has found joy in something as simple as a stick or a rock.  If you haven’t, or even if you have, I suggest you go right this minute and see if you can’t find something amazing outside your own front door!  If you look hard enough, you’ll see it.  All you have to do is really open your eyes.  Now;  with your something amazing in hand, take a deep breath, settle in next to someone you love and ready yourself to go on an adventure.

Stretch Goal

I have bigger plans for Phoenix and The Moon, I can't wait for the day when I can hold a nicely printed hard cover copy of the book in my hands.  For now, I will be deeply satisfied to finish the artwork and get it turned into an ebook.  However; if the stars align and we overshoot, I intend to have a limited edition printing done.  If we reach $17,000, anyone that has pledged over $30 ($25pledge + $5 shipping) will get a hand signed first edition hard copy of the book.  I said it before, but it bears saying again, I will be deeply satisfied to get the artwork finished and turn this into an ebook, but an artist can dream...