A Lost Link Recovered

I am indebted to my dear friend Anne.

Yesterday, I apologized on Facebook to folks for posting an incorrect link to access my book, “Bitter or Better”. The book was initially printed by Tate Publishing Company in Mustang, OK in 2015.

I initially reached out to Tate Publishing Company to inquire if they’d have an interest in my book “More Than Enough”.

I was disappointed to find that most new writers finance the publication of their books until they create a following of several thousand people who create a demand for their writing. Since I didn’t have a following, there was no demand.

After submitting my book proposal to Tate Publishing Company, I talked on the phone to Richard Tate, the founder of the company.

I ask a favor of him. Would you read the book from cover to cover and let me know if you think the book is worthy of publishing?

When I went to visit him in person, he was very complimentary of my writing ability. I’m certain that being complimentary was part of the job requirement and he excelled.

He told me exactly what I wanted to hear. His kind words put me on a level playing field with a hummingbird discovering nectar for the first time. I was eager for my books to be published.

In fact, not only did I pay to have “More Than Enough” published, I also chose to have Tate publish “Bitter or Better” as well.

My experience fell short of my expectations. Long story short, they promised much and provided little.

I placed several book orders with the company for copies of my books. Would you believe, at one point, I waited over nine months for books to be delivered?

Of course, they were in the middle of a mess at the time and I didn’t know it.

Within two years of my beginning the publishing process with Tate Publishing, Richard (founder) and Ryan Tate (CEO) were charged with several felony counts related to fraudulent business practices while operating Tate Publishing.

In December 2019, both father and son, the former founder and CEO, pleaded no contest to 44 criminal charges, including embezzlement, attempted extortion, conspiracy, and, racketeering.

Obviously, with the publishing company closed, I was out of the book business.

Anne Boykin, who was a friend of Ronnie’s while he was at Texas A&M, came to the rescue. She knows her way around the world of books and suggested I self-publish through Amazon.

I have the skill set to turn a computer on and off, but that is the extent of my knowledge. Getting a book ready for printing was beyond my skill set.

However, I do have the gift of gab. I won’t suggest that I came across like Tom Sawyer charging his friends for the privilege of painting his aunt’s fence, but Anne did come to my rescue. Out of a heart filled with kindness, she republished both of my books through Amazon.

Somehow in the process of Tate Publishing having also made my books available through Amazon when they were still in business, soon after getting set up on Amazon, the new publications didn’t appear in searches for persons wanting my books.

So, Anne has now come to my rescue a second time. She provided me the link to access Bitter or Better. I am grateful.

The link is: https://a.co/haMRzeJ

All My Best

Don

The Importance of Family

It has been several weeks since I’ve had an opportunity to visit my mother’s youngest sister. She is the only remaining member of my mother’s birth family.

Her need for 24-hour awake care and supervision to ensure safety and well-being necessitated her need for placement in a memory care facility. I was a little anxious concerning the visit.

The first time I visited my mother in a similar setting for the same reasons, she didn’t remember me. I’ll never forget how painfully awkward it felt when Mother seemingly had no awareness of my identity.

At some level, I feared the same might be true with my aunt. Much to my relief, when I entered the open living area where she was seated, she called me by name and expressed how good it was to see me.

She is receiving care in a small facility, and seemingly most of the residents were present in the open living area. The lady in charge suggested that our visit might be more enjoyable if we went to the second living area. There was no one else in that room.

The visit with my aunt Trula was delightful because we talked non-stop about the enjoyment we’ve experienced across the years from being part of a closeknit loving family.

During our visit yesterday, my aunt asked several times how my parents were doing? I told her they were having a wonderful time in Heaven visiting with my brother and other family members.

She was good with that. I reminded her that she and I were the only older people from our family still on this side of eternity, but that we both still needed to be here because we had many more enjoyable times ahead.

I did tell her tongue in cheek, that if she had any family secrets to share, now would be a good time to tell me the rest of the story.

Throughout the visit, there was playful banter between us. Honestly, she was having a cognitively good day.

Together, I followed her lead in traveling down memory lane and recalling so much that has enriched both our lives.

Our family’s primary rule had to do with the importance of loving one another. Nothing ever preempted any of us from doing that.

In fact, my aunt articulated it well yesterday when she said: “Nothing is more important than family. I’m thankful that has always been true of our family. I know many people where that is not the case.”

I am thankful that my aunt was right. Our family is intact with a bond of love.

All The Best!
Don