A Balance Broken (Dragonsoul Saga) (54 page)

Photograph by Bradley Daniels

I
t is well known that J. T. slew several dragons in the pasture near the farm where he grew up. He found the hidden Waterfall of Life deep in his grandfather’s woods, with only his little brother and their dog, Pongo, to aid him. Many other quests, often borne from the classic books of fantasy literature, consumed his days and nights.

After a long dark quest through a much feared land known as “Q’orp’orate Qubicle”, J.T. Hartke was cast out to find his own way. He spent a short time cooking for a mad master and another stint as a fool. He learned many lessons during his exile, the greatest of which led to his muse. At last, J. T. took it upon himself to create his own quest—and thus was born The Dragonsoul Saga.

W
e here at I.I.I. would like to take a moment to thank all of the fans of The Dragonsoul Saga. It has absolutely blown us away that this series has been embraced so fast and with such loyalty by so many of those who have been with us over the past few years.

But, our company slogan, “Built by Fantasy Fans for Fantasy Fans” is more than just a catchy tagline. It is a call to action, and my friends, we still need your help.

We have all been victims, my friends. Victims of having a favorite T.V. show canceled. We ask ourselves, “Why? It was well written. I know lots of people who enjoyed it. Why was it canceled?” The answer is simple – the fans did not get involved.

We live in a new world, my friends. A world of information. You, the fans, now have more power than you can possibly know. The power to propel something that you enjoy. The power to help it thrive and grow.

Sure, it is our job to put out quality products. Give the fans an interesting and thought-provoking story to sink their mental teeth into. But, it is you who will decide if this series continues. And it takes very little time or effort on your part to do this.

If you liked this book, please, tell a friend. If you tell even one person who picks up this series, you have done your part to ensure you will get the opportunity to read this series to its completion. I am willing to bet, without straining too hard, you can think of someone you know, just one person who would enjoy reading this story as much as you just did. They may have not even heard of it. Why not tell them? Let them know how much you enjoyed it. Give them the opportunity to enjoy it as well.

If you are feeling energetic, write one or two lines about this book on your Facebook page. Or My Space, or Good Reads, or whatever you use. We know you have one of them, we see it in your “favorites” folder. Send out an email to a few people you know who are fantasy fans. Just a line that says, “Hey, I just read this book. You should check it out.” And that is just the beginning of what you can do, my friends! (Queue the patriotic music and let the flags wave in the breeze) Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com are wonderful places to let the world know how you felt about this book. With just a few minutes of your time, you could write a review. You can blog about it. Sffword.com, goodreads.com, librarything.com are all wonderful places to connect with other readers. Let them know you enjoyed this book!

My fellow fans, I stand before you today to let you know that you have the power to ensure this series does not go gentle into that good night! We have a dream... that The Dragonsoul Saga will continue to entertain people for years to come. So, ask not what a good fantasy saga can do for you. Ask what you can do for a good fantasy saga!

Thank you,

The I.I.I. Staff

“Hi. My name is J.T. Hartke, and I approve of this message.”

H
ey everybody… Thanks so much for reading this eBook edition of A Balance Broken. I hope you had even a portion of the fun reading it as I had writing it.

But while I enjoyed writing this tale, and am honored that you might have enjoyed it, I just wanted to take a moment to talk to you about piracy. And not the fun, high seas, “shiver me timbers” kind. I’m talking about illegal copying of copyrighted material on the internet.

Now, I know most people think that if you are published, you must be making huge amounts of money, and for our favorites like King, Sanderson, and Martin, that may be true. But for most of us beginners out there, we are trying to feed our families with a lot less marketing behind us. Not to mention how much the evil corporation squeezes out of the price!

So, please, if you have not paid for this copy (and especially if you had fun doing so), please swing on over to
www.shop.imaginedinterprises.com
and purchase it. It will help insure that my next story is out there for you to enjoy, because I didn’t have to go back to work in a cubicle… ;^)

Thanks for reading!

jth