Photos

One of my friends took this shot of a dragon in the sky today. In Colorado we often have these puffy clouds. I saw an upside down dog today. Holly saw a dragon. It is so cool that she thought of me and snapped the picture.

BTW I know that these sentences are underlined, but I would have to go into HTML to get rid of the underlining. I don't know how to do that. I do know we have a cool place on the website for any pictures you might take of the dragony sort.  Here is the link for the photo gallery: http://www.donitakpaul.com/gallery/weird/index.html

And should you decide to have an Appreciate A Dragon Day at your school or library, you might want to suggest a photo contest.  Here's the link to learn more about AADD:

http://www.donitakpaul.com/fun/aadd/index.html

Appreciate a Dragon Day

Today, in honor of Appreciate a Dragon Day, we went to a store, Vacuum and Dragons, Inc. Yes, that's right--vacuums and dragons sold in the same store. This emporium is at 5643 N. Academy, Colorado Springs, CO 80918. It is called "The Vac Shop within the Realm." Very Tight, my friends.

Out of the many dragons to choose from, I chose one that combined my admiration for dragons with my love of books. This figurine is On Watch #4001 from the World of Krustonia series.

Later we took four of our best behaved dragons out for dinner at Texas Roadhouse.

A good time was had by all!

Collections

I have three collections. One is children's books, including textbooks about children's literature and illustrations. This collection occupies twelve shelves in a double 7 foot tall bookcase. I've been collecting them for a long, long time.

My second collection is related to the first. I have a collection of statues and pictures of animals reading books. This is a deliberate collection. I look for these wherever I go and in catalogues. I don't have a huge selection, but I really like what I have.

And the last is a collection that just sort of happened. The Dragon Collection!

Pictured here are the Christmas additions. Three glass ornaments. No, I don't use them on my Christmas tree. They sit on my dragon shelves.

The red dragon is made out of cornhusks.

And the box is a gift from my son and daughter-in-law.

I love my dragons. Many were made by readers and were given to me either at booksignings or as surprises in the mail.

Bryan Davis Interview Part Two

Often, it seems that when many Christian films or some books present the gospel, it seems to become cheesy.
Well, they are so message driven, they want to preach the gospel with such a fervent heart and with passion that they create a tacky story to dress it up. I think when the story comes first, and it comes out of a heart that loves Christ, the gospel is going to naturally flow. But at the same time, we can't bury the message. I have tried not to bury the message so that it can’t be seen. I think as the series continues on a natural progression, the gospel will become more and more clear.

Earlier, you mentioned Harry Potter, and there may be people who might not understand how your story about dragons, and even includes the Arthurian Legend, can still be Christian. What would you say to them?
People who like Harry Potter will love this book. But, there are two reasons it’s different. One is that all supernatural events come from God through prayer, and miracles, not magic. Second is that in the Harry Potter books, the main characters progress their stories often through deception, disobedience of rules, and lack of respect for authority. That doesn’t happen in these books – the stories progress through courage and wise choices, and if they don’t make a wise choice, they can get into trouble. One thing I want to make clear is that I’m not a Harry Potter basher, but I also don’t think that series is necessarily wonderful. My kids have read it with my parental guidance, so they know that we don’t believe in witchcraft, and we don’t appreciate the disrespectful attitudes.

When it comes to dragons and King Arthur, these are symbols that are used to teach Christian truth; even Jesus used symbols. All through the book of Revelation, we see really strange, marvelous symbols that teach things. I don’t know if there is going to really be a locust with long hair, but that’s what Revelation uses as a picture of something else. We shouldn’t be surprised that God would use great symbols to teach truths that are too deep to make simple – He uses symbols in a way we can remember. Stories that have great symbols are far more memorable and last a lot longer in our minds, especially for young people, if we use that method of teaching. Jesus knew it well. Unfortunately there are some people who say all fantasy is bad, or even all fiction is bad. It makes me wonder if they ever ask themselves why Jesus taught that way; He used stories and symbols to teach. I hope that people extend some grace and understand that these stories were written out of a heart of love that just wants to tell the truth in a story.

>an you name some people/authors whose works have influenced you? If so, can you say in what way these people have influenced your life and your work?
I really enjoy C. S. Lewis, two books in particular; The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and Perelandra. I loved the spiritual parallels in Dawn Treader. The debate between Westin and the woman when he tried to get her to sin in Perelandra fascinated me. I have somewhat similar dialogues in The Candlestone and Circles of Seven, so that definitely influenced me.

The works of Francis Schaeffer had an impact on me. The God Who is There and He is There, and He is not Silent are two that come to mind. I enjoy careful, analytical thought, and Schaeffer was a master in that field. I try to carry that kind of thinking into my stories, and those who read my fantasy series will find that they are far more than children’s fairy tales.

Does your faith influence the way you write? Would you like to elaborate on this?
My faith pervades all my writing, but my doctrinal stands on some issues make my stories quite different from most. My Christian protagonists depart from what many writers call “real” or “honest,” though they portray a more “real” Christian character than what is passing for that label in much of Christian fiction. On this point I could elaborate until your ears fall right off your head, but, briefly, I reject the notion that you have to write sinful acts or tendencies into Christian characters. Sin doesn't make them "real" or "honest." It just makes them sinful, and in most fiction I find too many characters with tacked-on flaws. It really seems clichéd.

I believe in the overwhelming power God gives us for holy living. My characters struggle in many non-sinful ways and find the power to overcome. I like successful heroes. God gives us victory in Christ, so it makes sense to write that way. And feedback from my readers indicates that they relate to the great struggles my characters go through, and they are inspired by my characters' successes. I believe this portrayal of obedient faith is what is truly real and honest.

Brian Davis Interview - Part One

Was it easy to get your work published?
I found it extremely difficult. In fact, after about 8 years of trying, I decided that I really wasn’t going to be able to make a go of writing unless I quit my job and did it full time. I couldn’t devote the time to learning the craft or going to the conferences to meet the editors and so forth while I was working another job. At about the same time I was trying to make that decision, another company bought the company I was working for, including my shares since I was a partner. That gave me a little nest egg that allowed me to decide to write full time. So I took that step of faithThe nest egg wasn't huge, but it was enough to put food on the table. I did it, and within 8 months I had contracts for 6 books. God honored the step of faith.

Were those all fiction books?
The first two were non-fiction. The first was The Image of a Father, and the second was Spit and Polish for Husbands.

The story for the novel came about when my oldest son, who is now 26, was 14. I told him about a dream I had, which was just one scene about a boy who could breathe fire. He and I brainstormed until we came up with the story. My publisher for the nonfiction books happened to be in my area and stopped by my house to see me. He asked me what else I was working on, and I told him about the novel. He said “Why haven’t you ever told me about it?” And I replied, “Because you don’t publish fiction.” He said, “Well, I’d like to see it anyway.” Since he was at my house, I printed out the whole thing and gave it to him. He showed it to another editor, who showed it to his wife and son, and they absolutely loved it. So they ended up launching their fiction line with my book. AMG, who has been a great supplier of Bible study guides, encyclopedias, word study materials and so forth, decided to create a new imprint, Living Ink Books, because they wanted to separate the fiction from their Bible study guides. They contracted for a 4-book series.

So, it was brainstorming with your son that inspired you to create the story for Raising Dragons.
Yes. My son is a fantasy aficionado. He loves fantasy, so after I told him the story, we just started going back and forth with questions. "So how could a kid breathe fire?" I said, “Well, maybe he’s a dragon.” “No, no, his father was a dragon.” “How did his father become a dragon?” We just pulled the story together. It took a couple days of going back and forth. I actually wrote the entire book 7 years ago. It has evolved over time – it's not the same book it was then. I wrote it before I had ever heard of "Harry Potter," but it turns out that we have the same formula: contemporary fantasy. Real kids, real time, real world and add the fantasy element. It's the kind of thing where you have kids in their real mundane world but they can escape to another one.

When people read Christian Fantasy fiction, they probably think of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia. Were these books and authors an influence on you when you wrote this series? For instance, Billy's cat is named Gandalf. Was that a sort of "nod" to Tolkien?
It was a nod to Tolkien, yes. I greatly respect what he’s done, and I respect what C.S. Lewis has done. I needed a name for the cat and my son came up with Gandalf because he loves Tolkien. It takes on an alternate reality because I am acknowledging another fantasy within a fantasy. But Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia are pure allegory – complete other worlds and other characters, different names for Christ and so forth. With my fantasy, I have to stay in the real world and add fantasy elements, which can be a lot more risky. Some people say you can’t mix the two because reality is reality and fantasy is fantasy. So it’s a bold step that some people might not understand, but I hope that they give me a little grace. I believe a good way to reach young people is to reach them where they are. It’s a lot easier to do, I think, if you give them a scenario in which they live, then add something fantastic. They can go on a wild ride and have a lot of fun, but still learn the themes in this book; themes like redemption, grace, courage, and facing your fears. Learning to forgive is also a huge theme in this book.


Most people see dragons as a symbol of evil. Why did you decide to make "good" and "bad" dragons?
Well, I think that dragons are rightly a symbol of evil. But we have to remember that Job chapter 41 tells us that God created Leviathan. He describes it as one of His greatest creations and He uses it to reveal His power. If you read that passage carefully, Leviathan has armored scales and breathes fire. It sounds just like a fire breathing dragon. That's certainly where the authors who have described such beasts got their inspiration, from this creature of God. God created this being in order to show His power. Now, I don’t believe that God created anything for the purpose of being born evil. Angels were created and some of them fell. They weren’t created to be evil, but some of them chose evil and fell. I'm putting dragons in the same mold, as a symbolic parallel to angels. They were created to be good; some of them fell. The greatest evil figure in all the world, and in all of the Bible, is a fallen angel, and the symbol of the fallen angel is a dragon. But why can’t there be good dragons as well? Some people would say that dragons are a symbol of evil. The Bible calls Satan a dragon. Therefore, all dragons are evil. Well, the fallacy there is Satan also appears as an angel of light. Does that mean that all angels of light are evil? I don’t think so. I wanted to make that angelic parallel, and it becomes even clearer in the third book, called Circles of Seven. Billy’s going to face a tremendous decision, and he'll have to discern between good and evil dragons. It’s such a great story.

I like how you interweaved Christian faith in your story, but didn’t "hit people over the head with it." Did you find it hard to strike that balance?
It really wasn’t that hard because it’s been my desire for a long time to be able to say, “I just want to tell a story that is filled with Christ.” There is no soapbox; no one is standing there shaking a finger, preaching at you. I want to have a natural flow of Christian thought and Christian love, without having to say “Jesus loved you and died for your sins.” It’ll flow out naturally. The reason I’m doing that is because so many people get turned off with the shaking finger and the soapbox sermon. But as we get to later books in the series, the Christian message of the blood salvation of Christ is going to come out a little more clearly. We want to hook our readers and not turn them off with a fire and brimstone, or an "Are you saved by the blood?" kind of message. It will come out later. I think you probably can tell that Bonnie is clearly a Christian, and Billy is probably not. He's got a lot of questions because he’s never been taught right. He’s in between because his father, being the dragon, revered the Bible, but he didn’t feel like he was a fallen creature that needs to be saved. This is one of these deep mysteries that I don’t think kids will get but I want adults to think about.

Often, it seems that when many Christian films or some books present the gospel, it seems to become cheesy.
Well, they are so message driven, they want to preach the gospel with such a fervent heart and with passion that they create a tacky story to dress it up. I think when the story comes first, and it comes out of a heart that loves Christ, the gospel is going to naturally flow. But at the same time, we can't bury the message. I have tried not to bury the message so that it can’t be seen. I think as the series continues on a natural progression, the gospel will become more and more clear.

More tomorrow.

Meet Bryan Davis

Bryan Davis is the author of the best-selling Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire series, contemporary/fantasy blends for young people. His book, Eye of the Oracle, hit number one on the January 2007, Young Adult CBA best-seller list.
His new series from Zondervan, Echoes from the Edge, debuted in May of 2008 with Beyond the Reflection’s Edge, and the second book in the series, Eternity’s Edge, came out in October.
Bryan is also the author of several other works including The Image of a Father (AMG) and Spit and Polish for Husbands (AMG), and four books in the Arch Books series: The Story of Jesus’ Baptism and Temptation, The Day Jesus Died, The Story of the Empty Tomb (over 100,000 sold), and Jacob’s Dream. Bryan lives in Western Tennessee with his wife, Susie, and their children. Bryan and Susie have homeschooled their four girls and three boys.
Bryan was born in 1958 and grew up in the eastern U.S. From the time he taught himself how to read before school age, through his seminary years and beyond, he has demonstrated a passion for the written word, reading and writing in many disciplines and genres, including theology, fiction, devotionals, poetry, and humor.
Bryan is a graduate of the University of Florida (B.S. in Industrial Engineering). In high school, he was valedictorian of his class and won academic awards in English, Algebra, Advanced Math, and Science. He was also a member of the National Honor Society and voted Most Likely to Succeed.
He continues to further his writing education by attending relevant writing conferences and conventions. Although he is now a full-time writer, Bryan was a computer professional for over 20 years.

And the last winner is . . .

Alassiel. She guessed a crown and that is correct!

You know the drill, Alassiel. I do not keep your addresses so you need to send it again plus the color you want to donitakpaul@msn.com.

One out of Three.

Katie G. guessed correctly. I got a belt to hold the sword.
We can have more winners though. I still have three other things on my list for you all to guess. And if you look at the list of comments from the last page, and find out all the things that those items are NOT. Katie G. email me your postal address to donitakpaul@msn.com.

Go look at Real Armor for God, button link is on the right side, and see if you can guess the other three items I bought.

Young Christopher or Grandma Paul?

Making it harder. The four hints below apply to me, Donita K. Paul, or Christopher Hopper. Sort them three and two and put your guess in the comments box. Same prize: the handmade beaded dragon bookmark.

1. I used to bleach my hair platinum blonde.
2. I dyed my hair black in college and was mistaken for the offspring of a drug cartel from Guatemala.
3. I almost failed French class.
4. I failed the Roschach Ink Blot test in college.
5. My father was a university professor.

Contest Winner!

Three guessed correctly, and one name was picked from the proverbial hat: auberne' rose ancalimon. Rose, send me your snail mail address and the color you want to donitakpaul@msn.com.

Christopher Hopper: I had a dog with three legs named MacGuyver; he was a Black Lab who was hit by a car in front of our house following me across the street to--of all things--a book store. He was only 6 months old at the time of the accident, but lived 14 years without his right rear leg, as if nothing ever happened.

Donita K. Paul: I had a Pekingnese that we acquired by default. My two best friends had German Shepherds. It must have been pretty funny to see the three of us walking our dogs. My friends also had gorgeous red hair and each had a horse. What can a girl do to compete with that? Sam (the Peke) and I overcompensated. That dog learned to do enough tricks to go into the circus. I also had parakeets that talked. Not one or two phrases, mind you, but dozens.

Tomorrow I will put up four hints for you to match between Christopher and me.

Two to Go!

We have two authors left who have not been identified by the clues given. Big hint: me and Christopher Hopper. So I gave the answers, now for the hard part.

Two clues. You have to guess which one belongs to Chris and which refers to me.

1. I had a dog with three legs.
2. As a child, I trained dogs, cats, and birds to do incredible tricks.

Match up who to what and put your answers in the comments box. The prize is a handmade beaded dragon bookmark.

What's Up?

Nobody guessed again!!!! What's up? I'll pull this one and save it for later.

For today, I have a message from Eric Reinhold. Listen up, because it'll save you money.
~~Thanks for being a supporter of "Ryann Watters and the King's Sword" and spreading the word. There is so much going on right now that I will sum each great piece of news in short snippets so I don't lose anyone's interest:

BIG BOOK SALE (up to 42% off!) - To celebrate the Fantasy Fiction Tour (8 Christian Fantasy Authors joining forces for a huge West Coast Book Tour in Oct (http://www.fantasyfictiontour.com/) the price for Book 1 has dropped (below Amazon) to $13.99. plus I sign it and you get a free 2-sided, full color glossy bookmarker! Go to http://www.ryannwatters.com/ to order 1 copy or an even bigger discount on "Buy 3 Get 1 FREE.
FREE NOVEL LINK - In regards to the Fantasy Tour, go to the following link and you can read an on-going fantasy story written by all the authors. As each author has time, they spontaneously jump in and continue the story. Even we don't know where it's going to lead! http://www.fantasyfictiontour.com/?page_id=248
BOOK 2 UPDATE - I was able to meet up with Corey Wolfe, the cover artist from Book 1, while on a family vacation to the Northwest recently. He is almost done with the cover for Book 2 and it is waaaay cool. Check out the latest news on my fancy new blog at: http://www.ryannwatters.blogspot.com/.
NEW CONTEST - There is a new contest to win any book from any of the authors on the Fantasy Tour. Unlike previous contests, you don't have to have read my book or any of the other authors. You can find out the details at my blog or website.
COOL PRODUCTS - Check out my new Zazzle site at: http://www.zazzle.com/ericreinhold. Customized buttons, shirts, magnets, coffee mugs, and mousepads with characters from my novel, dragons, and other fun stuff (for parents and kids!).
FREE DOWNLOADS - If you haven't been to my website recently, then take another visit. I've had the webmaster add new content; including, free wallpaper downloads, media updates and quotes from readers, and more!

Thanks again for reading and telling others about Ryann Watters. If you're on the West Coast, I hope to see you in October. The tour will be visiting churches, schools, and bookstores from Canada, to Seattle, Portland, San Jose, LA, San Diego, and several places in between. It's great to see what God is doing, and I'm very excited about how book 2 is coming along.

Combo Athlete/Chicken ~ Chicklete?

Time to guess again. This time I am going to take all the names of those who guessed correctly and put them in a hat and pull one out to be the winner. The picture to the left shows you the type of bookmark we are giving away. I love making these. It is very relaxing. I will announce the winner on Wednesday because I have more wacky disconnected facts about the other authors and I want to share them. Fantasy Fiction Book Tour is going to be awesome. I get to spend 8 days with these nuts!

So who do you think made these curiosity-rousing statements?

1. I played in a Heavy Metal Band
2. I spent several summers working in a strawberry patch
3. I once played beach volleyball against Olympic/Pro Beach Volleyball Champion Sinjin Smyth
4. I used to be terrified of unfinished basements
5. When it comes to nachos, I believe in the "Moundage Principle"

Contest Winner!

The winner is Alassiel! Send your address and your color choice to donitakpaul@msn.com and we will send you the beaded dragon bookmark.

Eric Reinhold

1. The first instrument I learned to play was the accordian. My folks enjoyed Lawrence Welk (yeah, who's he? Ask your parents), so I ended up in a class of 15 other kids playing my ruby red and white accordian.
   
2. I lived in 6 different states by the time I was in the 3rd grade. I was born in Michigan, moved to Rochester, NY one year later, then off to Dallas, TX two years after that, then Champaign, I'll three years later, next was San Bernadino, CA 9 months after that (my dad took a job with Campus Crusade for Christ), then 10 months later they transferred us to Miami, FL.
   
3. I can swallow my tongue (yes and keep breathing at the same time). Really want to be on Letterman's "Stupid Human Tricks." I found out I could swallow my tongue in 8th grade. I've never run across someone else who can do it. Once, when sitting in a dentist chair, I swallowed it and rolled my eyes back in my head. The dental hygenist screamed and went running out of the room (she thought I was having a seizure). She came back with the dentist and I was sitting up smiling (I have a mischievious streak).
   
4. In 5th grade I wrote, illustrated and sold a comic book to my fellow students.
   
5. I swam competitively until switching to football and got a college scholarship to play football at a div 1 school. I was recruited to play defensive end for the Navy football team back in 1983. David Robinson was playing basketball for the Naval Academy while I was there. I ate all the time to try and gain weight, but could never get over 225 lbs. I wish I could eat like that now and not gain weight!
   
6. I married my highschool sweetheart. We both attended the same church from gradeschool up and lived 1 mile from each other.

Tongue-Swallowing Accordian Player Makes Another Touchdown

Just so you know, I asked my fantasy fiction friends to give me two sets of clues, so you can't look back and say, "oh, it can't be so-and-so, because she/he's already done it." And even I have a list of weird facts, so it might be me.

And here is a pic of the type of bookmark that is the prize. You get to choose the main color of the beads.

Same as last time: put your guess in the comments.

1. The first instrument I learned to play was the accordian.
2. I lived in 6 different states by the time I was in the 3rd grade.
3. I can swallow my tongue (yes and keep breathing at the same time). Really want to be on Letterman's "Stupid Human Tricks."
4. In 5th grade I wrote, illustrated and sold a comic book to my fellow 4tudents.
5. I swam competitively until switching to football and got a college scholarship to play football at a div 1 school.
6. I married my highschool sweetheart. We both attended the same church from gradeschool up and lived 1 mile from each other.

Who's on First?

Actually this would be more "Who's on the Fantasy Fiction Tour?"

Your hints for today are

Who dressed . . .

1. like a boxer
2. in a lampshade
3. in top hat and tails
4. in a toga
5. in a Star Trek uniform
6. and like a super hero.

I'll announce the winner on Wednesday. The prize is a beaded dragon bookmark in the color of your choice. Leave your guess in the comments. Come back to see if you won. And I'll get your email address from you then.

Contest Winner!

The winner of our contest is Jordan! To claim your prize of a handmade (we make 'em) beaded dragon bookmark, send an email to donitakpaul@msn.com. And tell us the color you would like.

L. B. Graham was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1971. He loved school so much that he never left, transitioning seamlessly between life as a student and life as a teacher. He and his family now live in St. Louis. They would like one day to have a house by the sea, which he wants to call "The Grey Havens." He and his wife have two children. Both love books, which pleases him immensely.

Who is BOTH an American & an Australian citizen?

My father was born in Melbourne, even though he grew up in Ethiopia. When I married an Australian, I applied for citizenship "by right of descent" and became a dual citizen.

Who won the math award at his/her high school before abandoning the study of math entirely after 1st semester in College?

Math always came easy, but even though I had a brilliant Calculus professor my first semester at Wheaton, I knew math wasn't for me.

Who has a father who grew up in Ethiopia?

My grandfather was Australian and my grandmother was American. They both went to Ethiopia as single missionaries in the late '20s and early '30s where they met, married and raised a family that included my Dad.

Who wrote a "choose-your-own-adventure" story for his/her 6th grade project on the state of Georgia called "Killer Kudzu?"

I knew I wanted to be a storyteller, even in elementary school, so I spiced up my "boring" state project with a story about Kudzu run wild and terrorizing the neighborhood, written on 3x5 index cards. Fortunately, my teacher had a sense of humor and loved it.

Who found out as a teenager one afternoon in Scotland that sheep are surprisingly nimble and impossible to catch on foot so he/she spent the afternoon throwing and dodging hardened sheep manure instead?

When I was 13 and my older brother was 16 we spent a month in Scotland and several weeks in England when my father did a pulpit exchange with a Scottish pastor. While visiting the Isle of Iona we lost interest in the history and turned out attention to the sheep...

Contest winner!

Bryan Davis is the perpetrator of the list given last week.

Kaci, is the winner of our quiz contest. Kaci, if you would send me your snail mail address and the color you like best, we will make a beaded dragon bookmark for you and send it straight away. Send the information to donitakpaul@msn.com.

And here is Bryan Davis explanation of what really happened:

Who dealt with alligators in his backyard?

I had a large pond in my backyard filled with catfish, frogs, ducks, etc. On three different occasions, an alligator visited the pond. One was about six feet long. He killed two of our ducks, so we had to … ahem … dispose of him.

Something monumental happened to him at mile 23 during the Disney marathon.

While running mile 23, I had a severe cramp in the side of my right foot. I was going so slow, it seemed even the turtles were passing me. I still finished, and when I got home and took my shoe off, I saw a huge bruise that cover the entire right side of my foot. I had broken a bone! It was only a stress fracture, but I was on crutches for two weeks.

He knocked his second son's tooth out.

My son and I were playing catch with a baseball. He’s quite a good player, so we would really sling the ball it at each other. One time, just as I threw it, he was distracted and looked away. The ball hit him in the cheek, and a tooth flew right out of his mouth. Fortunately, it was one of his last baby teeth.

He had an odd nickname in college. (THINK TOES)

In college, several people called me The Hobbit. I have large, hairy feet and toes. I also have this strange ring, but that’s another story.

Why another one?

I keep saying I don't like to blog. And I don't. But blogs are very useful. I need this one to get the news about all things Dragon.
For instance, I have these great fantasy author friends and we are going on this fantastic book tour together. And I want you to be as enthusiastic about it as I am.

Here's clues for guessing the name of the first Fantasy Author I'm thinking of:

1. Who dealt with alligators in his backyard?
2. Something monumental happened to him at mile 23 during the Disney marathon.
3. He knocked his second son's tooth out.
4. He had an odd nickname in college. (THINK TOES)

Six of the fantasy authors or men, so don't go guessing Sharon Hinck.

To make it fun, I'll send a beaded dragon bookmark to the first one to guess. Just leave your guess in the comment box. I'll announce the winner on Monday. Be sure to come back. And you can email me your address to send the bookmark to.