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In 2005 I ran into an old friend, Dennis, from grade school. We had run into each other occasionally before that but really decided to keep in touch with each other at that time. It was also about the time Revenge of the Sith was about to be released. Some friends and I came up with the idea to do a Star Wars marathon. We were sure that as geeky as that sounded, we probably weren't the only ones to do it. So I called Dennis and he gladly accepted the invitation to attend. We started early on the Friday of its release, watched Episodes I & 2, catching the matinee of Sith and heading back to view the orginal 3 movies. As Dennis and I rode to the theater we talked about how, since fourth grade, we'd always wanted to write a book together. Mission to the Stars was born. We talked about a really vague story line, trading ideas back and forth. In the following weeks I started on the story.
Within those first few months the story was taking shape nicely. Unfortunately Dennis' work was taking up much of his time and the project was put on hold. I kept getting back to it, on and off for almost a year, adding bits and pieces to it. In November of 2007 Dennis and I agreed that I should go forth with the book on my own, as I was able to free up some of my time. So I began writing in earnest, squeezing it in whenever I could. Before work, during lunch, after work and even on vacation. There were many nights that I burned the midnight oil as they say. My family was very supportive during the whole process. There were times I wondered if it would ever end. I learned a whole new respect for writers. One would think that it's, think of a story, write the story and publish. Wrong! The hours of research on the subject and genre alone was staggering. I wanted to strive to make this book believable. Not being a real science geek I was forced into checking out books from my local library which were imported from colleges around the country just for me. The mathmatical formulas and theories were crazy! I still wonder how anyone can read them, let alone understand them. But I got enough out of them to bring my propulsion system and other theories alive. The internet is a very good source also, thank goodness most of those sites were in layman terms!
Finally in Decemeber of 2008 Mission to the Stars was completed (my wife, who helped me with editing, probably has the book memorized!) and the manuscript submitted. Now the next process, publishing, had begun. There were many steps involved during this process but I won't bore you with those details. I hope that you enjoy reading the book as much as I did writing it. I am currently working on Book II of Mission to the Stars and if all goes as planned the Bindls may return in print for many years to come!
One last item. Dennis and I are still hoping to collaborate on future projects and, I for one, am looking forward to that day!
How Mission to the Stars Became a reality: