Illustrating Your Book

The first two in a series of short videos on my experiences working with an illustrator.

Transferring the Image in Your Mind to that of Your Illustrator’s

Making Effective Illustrations

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The Moon Coin “charming and clever and beautiful and daring”

A Perfect Tales-Told-By-the-Fire Book

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By Tricia Rightmire

I’ve been working on how to phrase this review for a while, but I sit down planning to sound all clever and erudite and end up getting all wistful and making lots of hands-over-my-heart gestures at the screen, so I think this time I’m just going to go with that. . . .

The Moon Coin is lovely, folks. It is charming and clever and beautiful and daring; it’s full of adventure and surprises and courage and puzzles and characters with whom I fell immediately and permanently in love. It’s written with a younger audience in mind—think “older elementary school, some middle schoolers”—but it’s the sort of book that just begs for a blanket and some comfy pillows and a crackling fire on the hearth, with everyone piled in together and hearing about far-off lands full of faeries and dragons and cats big enough to ride (they get really crabby about that, though, so I don’t recommend trying it). It doesn’t shy away from big words or complex ideas, but couches them all in a universe that’s so rich and consuming that they’re not “too hard” . . . and it’s just. so. fun.

The downside is that it’s the first of an as-yet uncompleted series, so you can’t just sit down and binge-read through them all; the upside is that every minute in this world is delicious and grand, and makes you want nothing more than to have your own Moon Coin so you can go adventuring. Grab the youngsters who mean the most to you, settle in, and enjoy!

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From Sketch to Chapter Art, an Illustrator at Work

For me, getting to work with Carolyn Arcabascio was a dream come true. We worked from a master list of scene options, with Carolyn picking out scenes she liked and making sketches. For the prologue, Carolyn drafted three options. All three were great, but two in particular were spectacular. I first went with option 3 (one of my scene suggestions). I think we spent more time on this sketch and subsequent color drawing than on any other piece. But it never seemed right. At the eleventh hour, I asked Carolyn how hard she’d hit me if I suggested scrapping the thing and instead going with the pinky promise scene you see below (one of her scene suggestions).  Carolyn responded: “There would be no hitting involved!” and told me it wouldn’t be a problem. You sure can’t ask for better than that.

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From the Prologue: Bedtime Tales.

Click on image to enlarge.

Richard: Did you make all these sketches in the same location, Carolyn?

Carolyn: Yes, I do all of my work at a drafting table that’s situated in a little nook of my apartment in Acton, Massachusetts. There’s a bookshelf to my right and a wall of “inspiration” to my left, where I hang prints of other artists’ and illustrators’ work. On either side of my drafting table are drawers of supplies, and stacks of sketchbooks and old paintings. The drafting table faces a window overlooking a quiet street and the woods beyond it.

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From Chapter Two: A Coin of the Realm.

Click on image to enlarge.

Richard: Do you use models when you’re sketching?

Carolyn: I use a combination of models and photo references. If I need to work out the nuances of a character’s posture and really understand the perspective of it, I’ll ask whatever friend or family member is handy to pose for a sketch. Often, I’ll get into the position myself or mimic the facial expression I want to portray in order to get the feel of it. And sometimes, if there’s a character being portrayed multiple times across scenes, I’ll make a rough model of their head out of clay so I’ll have it to refer to.

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From Chapter Four: To Barreth.

Click on image to enlarge.

Richard: When drawing fantastical creatures, do you use bits and pieces of real animals for inspiration, or have you actually seen a wirtle and you’re just not telling us? 😉

Carolyn: No wirtles native to Massachusetts, fortunately! When figuring out the look of fantastical creatures, I use photo references of different animals to understand the way the anatomy might work, and then combine features as I see fit and as the story calls for. To understand the wirtle’s legs and paws, for example, I referred to a series of photographs of show dogs leaping over hurdles. The severely arched, scruffy back was influenced by photos of hyenas on the prowl. The bone-structure of the face ended up being something of a cross between a cow and a warthog, and I wanted the snout to be bare—kind of gross and raw-looking. Add it all up and, voila! We have a wirtle.

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When Lily and Jasper’s uncle disappears, Lily must search for him in the most unlikely of places: the fading realms of her childhood bedtime tales.

Gold Medal Winner of the Moonbeam Children’s Book Award.

Epic fantasy for ages 9 to 99. Visit the Moon Realm

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❍

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Copyright © 2011-14 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

No portion of this website may be used in any manner without the expressed written consent of the copyright holder.

Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

.

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The Moon Coin (Book Trailer)

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When Lily and Jasper’s uncle disappears, Lily must search for him in the one place she never imagined possible: the setting of her childhood bedtime tales: the Moon Realm.

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Copyright © 2011-14 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of Ingenious Inventions

Run Amok, Ink^® The Moon Realm^®

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Illustrations and Excerpts from The Moon Coin

Illustrations and excerpts from the

The Moon Coin.

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From Chapter One

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From Chapter Two

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From Chapter Three

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From Chapter Four

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From Chapter Five

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From Chapter Six

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From Chapter Seven

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From Chapter Eight

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From Chapter Nine

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From Chapter Ten

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From Chapter Eleven

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From Chapter Twelve

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From Chapter Thirteen

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From Chapter Fourteen

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From Chapter Fifteen

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From Chapter Sixteen

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From Chapter Seventeen

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From Chapter Eighteen

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From Chapter Nineteen

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From Chapter Twenty

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❍ ❍ ❍

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Copyright © 2011-13 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

No portion of this website may be used in any manner without

the expressed written consent of the copyright holder.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of

Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

.

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THE DRAGONDAIN Print Edition has Launched!

“Tales, unlike stories, never lie. You see, a tale is an account of

things in their due order, often divulged secretly, or as gossip.

Would you like to hear one?” —Lord Autumn

It’s the middle of the night, you need to send your brother to the Moon Realm, and he won’t wake up. So you improvise. . . .

When a confused Jasper awakes, he’s convinced he’s dreaming. But by the time he meets Greydor, Jasper understands that this is no dream. In fact, persuading the King of the Rinn to work with the men of Dain to defeat their common enemy is a nightmare. Then there’s the other side of the coin: convincing Tavin and Dubb that saddling a Rinn isn’t certain death. (“It’ll be fun!”) And perhaps even a greater worry: can he make friends with Dubb’s daughter Darce before she punches his lights out?

Lily has problems, too. There’s a little mousie scratching in her closet. Or at least, it sounds like a little mousie. Oh, and her second confrontation with Curse, and trying to form her first peerin. (Don’t you have to be from Dain to do that?) And where’s Ebb?

One thing’s for sure: now that Lily and Jasper have entered the Moon Realm, nothing can ever be the same again.

Illustrated by Carolyn Arcabascio. Book Two in the award winning Moon Realm Series.

For a Two Chapter Preview: click HERE.

Book Two / A Moon Realm Novel

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The tale continues . . .

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Two chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

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The Dragondain

Book Two / A Moon Realm Novel

Now available in paperback and ebook.

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, iTunes iBookstore, and Second Looks Books.

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❍

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 The Moon Coin

Book One / A Moon Realm Novel

Now available in paperback and eBook...

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, iTunes iBookstore, and Second Looks Books.

......

❍

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved. Gibbering Gnome Press,

A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^® The Moon Realm^®

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Reads4Tweens Reviews THE MOON COIN

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I would highly recommend this for anyone who enjoys fantasy. It’s suitable for ages 8 and up, although younger readers might prefer to have it read out loud to them. Lily is the main character of this book, but it will appeal equally to boys and girls. —Reads4Tweens

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Click the image directly above or HERE to read the review.

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THE DRAGONDAIN

The Dragondain Now Available on

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and iTunes

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The Chronicles of Narnia meets Game of Thrones

Precocious reader to adult: 304 paperback pages, 85,000 words, full-color illustrations. Book one of the Moon Realm series.

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When Lily and Jasper’s uncle disappears, Lily must search for him in the most unlikely of places: the fading realms of her childhood bedtime tales.

Gold Medal Winner of the Moonbeam Children’s Book Award.

..

It’s the middle of the night, you need to send your brother to the Moon Realm, and he won’t wake up. So you improvise. . . .

When a confused Jasper awakes, he’s convinced he’s dreaming. But by the time he meets Greydor, Jasper understands that this is no dream. In fact, persuading the King of the Rinn to work with the men of Dain to defeat their common enemy is a nightmare. Then there’s the other side of the coin: convincing Tavin and Dubb that saddling a Rinn isn’t certain death. (“It’ll be fun!”) And perhaps even a greater worry: can he make friends with Dubb’s daughter Darce before she punches his lights out?

Lily has problems, too. There’s a little mousie scratching in her closet. Or at least, it sounds like a little mousie. Oh, and her second confrontation with Curse, and trying to form her first peerin. (Don’t you have to be from Dain to do that?) And where’s Ebb?

One thing’s for sure: now that Lily and Jasper have entered the Moon Realm, nothing can ever be the same again.

Illustrated by Carolyn Arcabascio. Volume Two of the The Moon Realm Series.

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Two chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

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The Dragondain

Now available in paperback and ebook.

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iTunes iBookstore.

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Paperback Edition

On Sale at Amazon

Click HERE.

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❍

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 The Moon Coin

Book One / A Moon Realm Novel

Now available in paperback and eBook.

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Amazon, Second Looks Books, and Back to the Books.

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Paperback Edition

On Sale at Amazon

Click HERE.

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Available for E-Readers:

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iTunes iBookstore

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❍

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved. Gibbering Gnome Press,

A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^® The Moon Realm^®

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Preview: THE DRAGONDAIN / A Moon Realm Novel

Book Two / A Moon Realm Novel

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The tale continues . . .

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Two chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

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The Dragondain

Book Two / A Moon Realm Novel

Now available in paperback and ebook.

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iTunes iBookstore.

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Paperback Edition Regularly $12.99

On Sale at Amazon

20% Off

Click HERE.

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❍

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 The Moon Coin

Book One / A Moon Realm Novel

Now available in paperback and eBook.

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Amazon, Second Looks Books, and Back to the Books.

..

Paperback Edition Regularly $12.99

On Sale at Amazon

20% Off

Click HERE.

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Available for E-Readers:

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iTunes iBookstore

..

❍

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved. Gibbering Gnome Press,

A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^® The Moon Realm^®

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Sharon the Librarian Review THE MOON COIN

Sharon the Librarian reviews The Moon Coin

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Click HERE or the image above for the review.

 

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The Paperback Pursuer Reviews THE MOON COIN

Clean Getaway (5/5)

Click HERE or the image directly above to read the review.

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Preview: THE MOON COIN / A Moon Realm Novel

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The Chronicles of Narnia meets Game of Thrones

Precocious reader to adult: 304 paperback pages, 85,000 words, full-color illustrations. Book one of the Moon Realm series.

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When Lily and Jasper’s uncle disappears, Lily must search for him in the most unlikely of places: the fading realms of her childhood bedtime tales.

Gold Medal Winner of the Moonbeam Children’s Book Award.

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Six chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

ePub is good for Nooks, iPads, and generic eReaders. Mobi is good for Kindles.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

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Table of Contents

Prologue

Bedtime Tales

…….Their uncle had a habit of arriving late or not at all, but when he showed up at bedtime, he always had a new story in need of telling—as if a thousand-year-old publishing factory resided in his head.

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Chapter One

Oscar Knows Things

…….With an explosive flapping of wings, Oscar popped upward a foot or more before settling down and once again clasping the golden perch with his long tail. He shook his head, ruffled his feathers, and opened his eyes wide to take stock of his surroundings, eventually settling his blinking gaze on Lily and Jasper. This appearance of wise scrutiny was completely at odds with his birdbrained nature. And yet. . . .

…….Lily nudged Jasper. “Oscar knows things,” she whispered.

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Chapter Two

A Coin of the Realm

…….Lily lifted it off the mannequin’s shoulders and examined it in the light. The pendant was made of an outer ring and an inner disk. Connecting the two were a dozen thin tines, evenly spaced like the spokes of a wheel or the hours on a clock.

…….“What’s that? In the center?”

…….Lily flipped over the pendant, examining both sides as best she could in the thin veil of light. The tines grasped only the very edge of the coin, allowing both sides to be easily viewed.

…….“I think it’s a coin, a gold coin.”

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Chapter Three

Mr. Phixit

…….Uncle Ebb’s workshop, which occupied the entire third floor, was a giant windowless room filled with aisles of parts, cannibalized and half-finished inventions, and junk—lots and lots of junk. The staircase emptied right into the middle of it. The walls gave off a dark blue light, as though these reefs were deep under the sea. The electrimals that lived here were also different: large-mouthed, bulbous-eyed, with long dangling spines. They moved slowly, gliding along the walls like miniature deep-sea dirigibles.

…….Mr. Phixit sat directly in front of the landing.

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Chapter Four

To Barreth

…….The little rider’s eyes were were small, black, and deeply burrowed in its furry face. It regarded Lily with shock and surprise, as though she were something it had never seen before. Lily stared likewise. Its pelt was dusty-brown and thick under its clothes, and it wore a small metal cap on its head, looped under the chin by a leather strap. A jerkin of stiff leather completed its armor. Tied at its neck, flapping like a cape in the breeze, was a small cloak, which Lily thought made it look like some kind of otter superhero.

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Chapter Five

Roan’s Charge

…….“Surround her!” roared Roan. “Surround her! Do not allow a single arrow through!” He dove toward Lily and lashed out his paw in a violent stroke toward her head.

…….Before she could even scream, Roan’s massive paw flicked scant inches from her face, the wind of it ruffling her hair. The Rinn had swatted down an arrow that just a moment before was hurtling toward her.

…….“Brace yourselves!” he roared. “They are upon us!”

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Six chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of

Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink

is pleased to present:

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The Moon Coin

Available in paperback:

Amazon and SecondLooksBooks.

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Paperback Version 

On Sale at Amazon

Click HERE.

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Available for E-Readers:

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iTunes iBookstore

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

..

❍

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The Dragondain

Now available in paperback and ebook.

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iTunes iBookstore.

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Paperback Edition On Sale at Amazon

Click HERE

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Two chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

..

❍

....

Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved. Gibbering Gnome Press,

A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^® The Moon Realm^®

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THE MOON COIN Adds New Content for eReader Devices and Apps

New Content for eReader Devices and Apps!

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Amazon introduced a new Kindle format with the release of their Kindle Fire, called KF8. It allows me to do things I couldn’t do when The Moon Coin first debuted in September of last year. With KF8 I can embed fonts and add fun formatting features that heretofore were only available on the iPad. If you already own The Moon Coin and you want to get these new features and content, just email kdp-support@amazon.com. Include your Kindle account email and tell them that you want to re-download The Moon Coin. They’ll email you back with instructions. It’s completely free. The new content (cover, map, and character pages) is available for all the Kindle Reader Devices and Apps.

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If you have an iPad, simply open the iBooks app, hit the edit button, tap on the old version, hit the delete button and then download it again. Very intuitive. I didn’t even have to google that one.

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The update has gone live for the Nook devices (Barnes & Noble), too!

First up: it’s got a new cover!

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DropCaps at the beginning of every new chapter! Yay! (For the Kindles, this feature only works if your device supports the new KF8 format.)

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This map of Treling, which was made for the print edition, is now available for all eReader devices and apps , and if you have the iPad, Nook Color, or Kindle Fire: it’s in color! Whoo-hoo!

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These character pages were another addition planned for the print edition that’s now included with the eBooks. And if you have a Kindle Fire  or iPad, then you’ll get to see the character names in sporty SmallCaps! These are the features that make typesetters drool, people! 🙂

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Free Sneak Preview!

Six chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

❍

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

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Blue-lines!!!

Some pics of the blue-lines the printer sent me:

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Technically, these are digital proofs, but they’ve been made to look exactly like traditional blue-lines burned from negatives, which I think is really cool! (Although dang hard to read!) Each page is a separate piece of paper, double-sided, formatted, and paginated exactly as it will appear in the book—except, of course, the light blue will be replaced by black ink! 🙂

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I love the Gibbering Gnome Press colophon (that’s the little silhouette thingy above the press name) Carolyn designed.

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This map of Treling is new for the print edition.

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The pages with illustrations are on normal paper so I can spec the color.

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Paperback and eBook now available:

Amazon and Second Looks Books.

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Click HERE to Read Reviews of The Moon Coin.

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❍

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

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Universe in Words Reviews THE MOON COIN

“Lily is a great protagonist. In books, female protagonists are often dependent on men and I could never recognize myself in them. But Lily has an adventurous spirit that makes it more feasible she would survive all the different moons she is thrown onto.”

4 Stars

Click HERE or the image above to read the review.

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The Muses’ Circle Reviews THE MOON COIN

“The Moon Coin is truly a beautifully written fantasy novel with rich, memorable characters and gorgeous illustrations that brings the Moon Realm to life.”

4 Stars

Click HERE or the image directly above to read the review.

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New TMC Poster

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After the print editions of TMC arrive, a 20″ x 30″ poster of this is going to go up on the door at Second Looks Books.

Here’s the blurb:

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“Tales, unlike stories, never lie. You see, a tale is an account of things in their due order, often divulged secretly, or as gossip. Would you like to hear one?”

—Lord Autumn

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Uncle Ebb was so good at telling his tales of the Moon Realm that sometimes it sounded like he’d been there himself.

As children, Lily and Jasper listened raptly to his bedtime tales of a place where nine moons swirled around one another, each inhabited by strange and wondrous beings: magical lunamancers; undersea merfolk; wise birds; winged dragons; and Lily’s favorite, the heroic, leonine Rinn.

There was only one rule: don’t tell a soul.

But now, years later, Uncle Ebb is missing. Lily has learned the secret behind the tales, and soon Jasper will too. But there’s one big problem. You see, something terrible has happened in the Moon Realm. . . .

Featuring twenty-two stunning full-color illustrations by Carolyn Arcabascio. Volume One of the young adult fantasy adventure series The Moon Realm.

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Preview: The Moon Coin.

Six chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

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Paperback and eBook now available:

Amazon and Second Looks Books.

For more information, visit: TheMoonRealm.com.

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Click HERE to Read More Reviews of The Moon Coin.

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❍

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

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Book Nerd Review and Interview

Book Nerd reviews The Moon Coin, plus interview.

5 Stars

Click HERE or the image directly above to read the interview and review.

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The Moon Coin Print Edition Book Cover

“Tales, unlike stories, never lie. You see, a tale is an account of things in their due order, often divulged secretly, or as gossip. Would you like to hear one?”

—Lord Autumn

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Click the image above to enlarge or HERE to download a PDF.

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Here’s the final cover. The book measures 7.5″ x 5.5″, has 3″ flaps, and an inch spine. It’ll will weigh in at 304 pages. Should be ready by June.

2012 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards: Gold Medal Winner

Preview: The Moon Coin.

Six chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

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Paperback and eBook now available:

Amazon and Second Looks Books.

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Click HERE to Read Reviews of The Moon Coin.

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❍

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

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Map of Treling

Treling Tree Nursery

Est. 1701

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Click HERE or the image above to enlarge.

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This map will appear in the front matter of the print edition first, and later in the ebook.

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