*11 Let's Take a Break

A letter to all of my lovely readers.

Hello dear Web novel readers,

First of all, I'm taking a short break from our story for just today. I have seen other authors who have done a chapter like this in their novels to both avoid plagerizum from others and to connect with you our dear readers. Thank you for taking a chance on this book.

The idea for this story sprouted from when my son was small. My Dad and I used to take my son gemstone hunting, fossil hunting, and panning for gold along the way on family trips in the Appalachian Mountain Range. Two places in particular were in Georgia, USA and in North Carolina, USA, that we stopped at frequently. Though my Dad and I did a ton of the work, and my son loved picking out anything that was sparkling or metallic from the piles of material that we were cleaning. Plus huge bonus for him, as a little boy, to be splashing in the water and mud for hours. He has now a treasure chest (1 ft x 2 ft x 1ft cedar box that once contained kitchen knives) full of raw gemstones, fossil specimens, a couple tiny gold nuggets, and a load of Grandpa time memories. So worth it. One in particular is an Emerald that starts out light green and gradually goes to a very dark but brilliant green (hence the inspiration for the Emerald character). Our family has done so for years, even after my Dad's passing. We also got a crash course a few years back in identifying gemstones from an accredited gemologist that helped us to sort, document, and label my son's collection.

Thankfully with encouragement from fellow authors and artists, I began to write for the first time since being in Art School. As a person that has a thirst for always wanting to learn something new... I figured that it was time to put to use this seemingly arcane fount of otherwise useless knowledge that I have come to possess, according to everyday life, into motion.

I grew up in Pennsylvania, USA from age 7 to adulthood. So if you noticed two characters names are loosely based on the state name but at the same time part of the scientific and Latin names for wood mouse, Apodemus Sylvaticus and Microtus Pennsylvanicus. Of course the name of the lead gemstone and his close friend are the gem type that they are. Essper I got a bit fancy with hers. Also the Human names thus far have been my Dad's and Son's names. As I continue on there's bound to be cameo names of other loved ones and a few friends as well.

Side note: Dear daughters,

Your names won't be left out. I promise.🤞.

Question that I often get from friends, ::: Why do I have an undercurrent of Native American themes in my writing and artworks for the most part? Simple. My Dad's half of the family is of Cherokee and Smokey Mountain Settler ancestry. So from very tiny to about age 6, I was heavily influenced by all of the mountain and family stories. As I got older I sought out anything and everything that I could find to learn more about the tribes and clans in my Homeland. There are a ton of things that have been lost to time and tide, but also stuff that Hollywood has white washed over with Cowboy and Western movies to the point that many in the world don't know about the great many cultures that the US had prior to immigration. There is also a huge amount of stereotyping that is associated with the Native People's. Along with this I studied a lot about European history to know more about my Mom's lineage. This may also may play a part in the story, but I am undecided at this point, thus far. Yes I admit my passion projects tend to get the better of me.

Well as the novel progresses there will be more involvement with Emerald and Ruby as they interact with the outside world beyond their cave home. But this is all that you will get as far as spoilers for now.

As I get more experience here on Web novel I will strive to get my word count and continuity more stabilized. I get a bit caught up on building backgrounds. I suppose that is part of my artistic training coming out. Hopefully I can also get to a point to where I can be consistent in releasing chapters. So please take care of me and by all means give both constructive criticism and feedback to help me and this story grow.

Please remember to vote for this or my other book, "Fire Fox, Fox Fire", These are my first two attempts at writing here on web novel.

Alright folks this shall be enough of my shameless pandering and promoting for today. I'll be planning on how the next chapter will be laid out now. Blessings to you all of you. Good night and good reading.

Sincerely,

Dawn

( aka: bindedangel or Nonnie Louise)