Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Merry Christmas
A belated Merry Christmas to everyone! And a happy new year to come! We had a very relaxing and comfortable Christmas. Mineko, Christopher and I spent the weekend together resting and enjoying each other's company. All of my friends and caregivers and family were so generous to us this year! Thank you thank you thank you to all of you. You're all so special to us and make each day wonderful. Thank you. I can't say that enough...
Monday, December 13, 2010
"Dolphin's Dance"is coming in 2011
Hello friends and family! I'm very happy to announce that my first attempt at a fiction novel "Dolphin's Dance" has been accepted by PublishAmerica. below is part of the query letter I wrote to several publishing houses and literary agents. It gives a good summary of why I wrote the book at what it's about!
My name is Richard Raker and I am 54 years old. I have lived in Honolulu Hawaii with my wife and son for 25 years. I have ALS, a terminal illness diagnosed in 2006. Prior to 2006 I worked as an educator teaching ESL and as a computer trainer for a healthcare organization. Very soon after my diagnosis and a quick disease progression I was totally bedridden relying on a ventilator to breathe. I spent most of my time reading, watching TV and movies, when one day I discovered the therapeutic joy of writing. First I struggled through a memoir about the first 25 years of my life. This I hope to publish sometime in the future. After that I realized that I had a few other stories that I needed to write. "Dolphin's Dance" is the first and I have already begun my third manuscript titled "Sealand 1001" which is a more complex science fiction semi-sequel. I love writing and it is clearly a therapeutic endeavor for me. I happily write at least two or three hours each day, often until my dictating voice and frozen body become overly fatigued. I would love to be able to publish my writing so that it can be shared with a broad audience. It would also be wonderful if my work could somehow help pay for my rising medical costs and son's college tuition. Published or not, I will continue my writing therapy, it gives me something constructive to do each day and eventually I will be able to share my stories with my family and friends.
(By the way, I'm not looking for sympathy here. I want my manuscripts to be judged based on their merit not on my personal history. I described my current circumstances in detail because I want you, my prospective literary partner to be fully aware of my situation.)
"Dolphin's Dance" begins with an ordinary Honolulu man who has lived with ALS for 12 years and determines that it is time to gracefully leave this world. He gathers his family and friends for a final farewell. Per his wish, his ashes are spread in the ocean off of Makapuu Point. After passing his spirit is reborn as a Pacific Bottlenose dolphin off the coast of California. In an anthropomorphic style we follow the life of this dolphin as he grows up and is enigmatically drawn to the Hawaiian Islands. The story carefully blends known scientific fact about dolphin behavior and other marine mammals with fantasy. Issues that affect their existence are explored with a definite conservationist message that is achieved by looking at the world through the dolphin's eyes.
The dolphin rescues a young USC-San Diego college student after a surfing accident and begins a quest to understand and communicate with humans. The college student's life is irrevocably altered by the experience and the subsequent relationship they develop. She joins a dolphin rescue and relocation team led by her Professor at the university. One of the dolphins the team rescues from a failing marine park in Mexico was originally from the Hawaiian Islands and was captured off the coast of Asia when she was just a few years old. She is brought back to health at Sea World and released into the wild. The female dolphin is introduced to the main character at the time of her release. They form a bond and together they travel back to the Hawaiian Islands.
Readers who love the ocean and are fascinated by the mammals of the sea will enjoy this short novel. The author hopes that by sharing this story more people will become aware of the fascinating and beautiful animals of the ocean and will be moved to protect and preserve our world.
stay tuned for more information about the publication date and possible excerpts posted on my website!
My name is Richard Raker and I am 54 years old. I have lived in Honolulu Hawaii with my wife and son for 25 years. I have ALS, a terminal illness diagnosed in 2006. Prior to 2006 I worked as an educator teaching ESL and as a computer trainer for a healthcare organization. Very soon after my diagnosis and a quick disease progression I was totally bedridden relying on a ventilator to breathe. I spent most of my time reading, watching TV and movies, when one day I discovered the therapeutic joy of writing. First I struggled through a memoir about the first 25 years of my life. This I hope to publish sometime in the future. After that I realized that I had a few other stories that I needed to write. "Dolphin's Dance" is the first and I have already begun my third manuscript titled "Sealand 1001" which is a more complex science fiction semi-sequel. I love writing and it is clearly a therapeutic endeavor for me. I happily write at least two or three hours each day, often until my dictating voice and frozen body become overly fatigued. I would love to be able to publish my writing so that it can be shared with a broad audience. It would also be wonderful if my work could somehow help pay for my rising medical costs and son's college tuition. Published or not, I will continue my writing therapy, it gives me something constructive to do each day and eventually I will be able to share my stories with my family and friends.
(By the way, I'm not looking for sympathy here. I want my manuscripts to be judged based on their merit not on my personal history. I described my current circumstances in detail because I want you, my prospective literary partner to be fully aware of my situation.)
"Dolphin's Dance" begins with an ordinary Honolulu man who has lived with ALS for 12 years and determines that it is time to gracefully leave this world. He gathers his family and friends for a final farewell. Per his wish, his ashes are spread in the ocean off of Makapuu Point. After passing his spirit is reborn as a Pacific Bottlenose dolphin off the coast of California. In an anthropomorphic style we follow the life of this dolphin as he grows up and is enigmatically drawn to the Hawaiian Islands. The story carefully blends known scientific fact about dolphin behavior and other marine mammals with fantasy. Issues that affect their existence are explored with a definite conservationist message that is achieved by looking at the world through the dolphin's eyes.
The dolphin rescues a young USC-San Diego college student after a surfing accident and begins a quest to understand and communicate with humans. The college student's life is irrevocably altered by the experience and the subsequent relationship they develop. She joins a dolphin rescue and relocation team led by her Professor at the university. One of the dolphins the team rescues from a failing marine park in Mexico was originally from the Hawaiian Islands and was captured off the coast of Asia when she was just a few years old. She is brought back to health at Sea World and released into the wild. The female dolphin is introduced to the main character at the time of her release. They form a bond and together they travel back to the Hawaiian Islands.
Readers who love the ocean and are fascinated by the mammals of the sea will enjoy this short novel. The author hopes that by sharing this story more people will become aware of the fascinating and beautiful animals of the ocean and will be moved to protect and preserve our world.
stay tuned for more information about the publication date and possible excerpts posted on my website!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)