The Book

My Livin' The Dream trilogy will consist of three books, separating the story of my life into three distinct phases that can be boiled down to my Foundation, Discovery, and Fulfillment.  As I outline below in the summaries of each book, my greater story is both universally-relatable and wholly-unique by way of its dynamic combination of a timeless coming-of-age narrative arc (called Bildungsroman) with a modern eye and contemporary voice that uses casual, 21st-century language to give highly-personal accounts of both familiar and foreign experiences.  For this, the strengths of my story will be its authenticity, depth, and engaging delivery, bringing reality to the reader by blending traditional storytelling techniques with my own authentic voice and 100%-original documents, photos, and writing samples from the past, creating what I'm affectionately calling a "literary collage" or "multimedia memoir," which I believe the reader of any age--but especially "Millennials:" from my generation--will find relatable, entertaining, insightful, and enlightening.

Now, before I get to the summaries of the books and pricing, I just want to say briefly that what you, the reader, will be potentially investing your time, energy, and money into is not a random collection of narcissistic, self-indulgent short stories that I've embellished to make my life sound better than it is; in fact, to the contrary, although this book is based 100% on true events from my life, my reason for telling these stories and sharing my experience with the world comes from Love, Gratefulness, Humility, and Hope that others may learn from my lessons and not make the same mistakes that I have.  Yes, I realize that I am young and still have quite a bit of my own growing and maturing to do--and that I will surely make more mistakes along the way--but 26 years in, with this specific array of experiences behind me, I feel that I have something important to say right now about the world as I see it, and my ambition is such that I truly believe I can be the voice of my generation.  That said, I want to emphasize here that in addition to a few F-bombs (Come on, they're just words!) and less-than-polite slang, this is also the book of a man who has chosen, based on his experiences at Home and abroad, to ultimately reject his American culture and identity in favor of the "third-world" culture of Simplicity, Sharing, and Love that he's found in Latin America.  This means that you should not be surprised when I disagree with building a border wall, side with Colin Kaepernick and speak out for African-American equality, and in general defend the disadvantaged from the selfish elites that dictate our society.  Now that that's out there, I want you to please also know that this book, first and foremost, is written with Love for the world and Hope for a better future, and my greatest wish is that by reading my story, somebody else's life will be better.

Summaries:

I.  Livin' The Dream, Part One: American Millennial

A boy grows up in the middle-upper-class suburbs north of Atlanta, Georgia in the 1990s, where he is influenced first by his family, who shower him with love and encouragement, followed later by neighborhood friends, role models, teachers, and coaches, who all leave distinct impressions on his early identity.  By adolescence, peers become most important, as do soccer, girls, and my baby brother...and then poof--the boy's childhood comes to an end when his parents get divorced.  As a subconscious response, the moody teen takes out his anger and emotions at Home, on the soccer field, thru Gangsta Rap music, and late at night with his friends in the streets throwing eggs at cop cars and toilet paper on houses.  He then transitions into high school, where Love, Lust, success, failure, alcohol, marijuana, and a variety of other substances and cultural influences form his desires and ambitions.  "The Dream" is briefly attained by the young man during his freshman year of college, but when his goal of playing professional soccer fizzles out for good, he's forced to fill a void: Who does he become?

II.  Livin' The Dream, Part Two: Adventures Abroad

At the age of 20, the young man has discovered his new identity as a writer, which takes him to Spain, where he follows in his literary idol's footsteps, studies Spanish for four months, and treks the famous Camino de Santiago before train-hopping through the rest of Western Europe with the love of his life and two best friends.  Heartbreakingly, the young man's newfound independence ruins the trip by evolving into narcissistic, uncompromising selfishness, which drives everyone important out of his life--including his girlfriend, who dumps him.  Upon return to the U.S., a period of depression is spent writing poetry, reading philosophy books, and trying to write a novel before being remedied by a final college semester in the jungles of Costa Rica, where the locals' Pura Vida mindset is in stark contrast to The Real World waiting for him at Home as a college grad.  A stalled novel-writing attempt, then, eventually leads to two soulless restaurant jobs and the decision in 2014 to flee to Brasil for the FIFA World Cup.  There, in the Amazon city of Manaus, the young writer in search of new stories and experiences is given more than he can handle in the form of a cute, local girl who asks him to live with her...and then almost gets him killed.  Three months later, recovered from his two broken arms, Dengue Fever, and a toxic Love experience, the young man returns Home, writes a book about his crazy time in Brasil, self-publishes it online and orders three hundred paperback copies delivered to his mom's house, and then loads up his Jeep Wrangler and sells the books by hand during an epic two-month roadtrip up and down and across the Eastern United States.  Once again, the young man's Dream is briefly obtained--the freedom is sublime--but when he doesn't hit the jackpot like he hopes, The Real World sucks him up and forces him back to South America.

III.  Livin' The Dream, Part Three: The Definition of Happiness

Teaching English in Ecuador is decent enough for the short term--at least it delays the pressure at Home to get a "real" job and a "normal" life--but the young man, ever in search of new experiences, allows his instincts to steer him to volunteer on a sustainable farm in the Andes Mountains before cruising through the Galapagos Islands with his grandmother, hopping down for a month in The Sacred Valley of Peru, and spending an exhausting but exhilarating two months backpacking through the rest of South America.  Home again then after ten months--but this time with a "real" job selling luxury travel from his computer--the young man passes a pleasant enough six months living rent free in his dad's comfy basement, while coaching soccer on the side and casually reconnecting with his dream girl from high school.  The mirage is shattered, however, during a music festival meltdown in the spring, which leaves the man frustrated man depressed and in the same place he'd been so many times before: broke, alone, and under pressure to start his adult life.  So, with five thousand dollars to his name, the 25-year-old man decides to make an all-out, once-and-for-all effort to finally reach his Dream of being a writer by packing his bags and returning to Ecuador, where he finds the woman of his dreams and time to tell his story.

Pricing:

• $10 - Audio + Digital Package (all 3 books)
• $18 - Paperback (with shipping, sold individually)
• $36 - Paperback Trilogy 
• $50 - EPIC Limited Edition Hardcover (3-in-1)
• $75 - Legend Package (Audio + Digital + 3 Paperbacks + Hardcover)
• $100 - 10-Pack of Paperbacks
• $200 - G.O.A.T Pack (Hardcover x10)

Payment:

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