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October 2020

The Tinder Box: Soldier of Indira

Craig Johnson

This is an odd Post-It to be writing after sixteen years on the literary trail. I don’t usually promote other writers in this venue, but this author is a bit different. There are lots of things I can tell you about Lou Diamond Phillips, things you probably know and maybe some things you don’t, but one of them is that he’s the living embodiment of my thoughts on performers of all types that intelligence is what makes the grade. Lou is smart, scary smart, something I became aware of in my first meeting with him in Santa Fe the night before the filming of Longmire was going to start. Lou told me that he’d begun reading my novels before the audition for Henry Standing Bear, a character he was soon to portray. The questions he asked about the character and the world he lived in convinced me that LDP was an intellect to be dealt with. Over the years of production we became friends to the point that I would send him the drafts of the Longmire novels to read so that he wouldn’t have to wait to see what his character was up to, and so he could flex his literary muscles by being the official Henry Standing Bear contraction-finder. I wasn’t too surprised when he admitted that he wrote a bit himself, that he had an idea for a novel and had begun working on it. I offered to give it a read, but he said it wasn’t quite ready, that he’d send it to me in a bit. A bit turned into a couple of months but soon the entire manuscript arrived with a letter explaining how the idea for the novel had developed in conversations with his wife, Yvonne. I started reading and was immediately surprised by the content. I’d expected a quiet, personal story of Lou’s youth in Texas or a partially salacious take on this Hollywood veteran’s combat-hardened experiences, but this was something else all together. Having not been content with writing what you know, where you know or when you know, Lou had jumped into the fantasy, sci-fi field with an epic tale based on the Hans Christian Anderson fable, The Tinder Box, with both booted feet. LDP hadn’t spent all those years wading through dramatic material to not come up with more than a few ideas of his own, but his novel bears the mark not only of Anderson but Shakespeare, Herbert, Bradbury, etc. The Tinder Box embodies the thought that no matter what, when, or where you are, there will be worlds at war, young people in love, and epic stories of persistence, vision, and treachery, ending with eventual triumph. The added benefit of awaiting this amazing piece of work is the addition of Yvonne Phillips’ personal illustrations in which you can see not only her talent, but the close proximity the artist has with not only the material but the writer himself. The Tinder Box: Soldier of Indira goes on sale today, and I hope you’ll join me in welcoming Lou Diamond Phillips and Yvonne Phillips into another facet of their Renaissance lives by picking up a copy or two. The Aethon Books hard copy of the novel is available for purchase at $24.99 on October 20th (ISBN-13: 978-1949890532). An e-book will also be released and is $4.99 on Apple iBooks, Nook, Kobo, and more. The audiobook, produced by Podium Audiobook, will be narrated by R.C. Bray and Julia Whelan and will be available to purchase for $34.99 or with 1 Audible Credit. Hard Copy Links: • Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Walmart • Books a Million • Waterstones eBook Universal Link Audible Link Signed copies of The Tinderbox: Soldier of Indira available soon at the Bucking Buffalo Supply Company. Here are some reviews of the novel so far: “A wonderful mashup of ‘Stars Wars,’ ‘Game of Thrones,’ and one of Hans Christian Andersen’s most complex fairy tales. An added bonus? Yvonne Phillips’s haunting, beautiful illustrations.” - Chris Bohjalian, ‘New York Times’ bestselling author of ‘The Flight Attendant’ “An amazingly prescient tale from one of the finest storytellers I know, ‘The Tinder Box’ is an otherworldly adventure combining a much-loved fable with the sweep and grandeur of a startling, science-fiction epic.” - Craig Johnson, ‘New York Times’ bestselling author of the ‘Walt Longmire Mysteries’ --------------- If you are looking for a special gift for someone, or maybe yourself, we have signed copies of Next To Last Stand for sale, which are available for personalization. Just follow the directions at the link to receive a personalize copy of this New York Times bestseller. See you on the trail, Craig Return to Post-Its

Sign up for Craig’s Post-It Newsletter using this link. If you need help, please see the Contact page.

October 2020

The Tinder Box: Soldier of Indira

Craig Johnson

This is an odd Post-It to be writing after sixteen years on the literary trail. I don’t usually promote other writers in this venue, but this author is a bit different. There are lots of things I can tell you about Lou Diamond Phillips, things you probably know and maybe some things you don’t, but one of them is that he’s the living embodiment of my thoughts on performers of all types that intelligence is what makes the grade. Lou is smart, scary smart, something I became aware of in my first meeting with him in Santa Fe the night before the filming of Longmire was going to start. Lou told me that he’d begun reading my novels before the audition for Henry Standing Bear, a character he was soon to portray. The questions he asked about the character and the world he lived in convinced me that LDP was an intellect to be dealt with. Over the years of production we became friends to the point that I would send him the drafts of the Longmire novels to read so that he wouldn’t have to wait to see what his character was up to, and so he could flex his literary muscles by being the official Henry Standing Bear contraction-finder. I wasn’t too surprised when he admitted that he wrote a bit himself, that he had an idea for a novel and had begun working on it. I offered to give it a read, but he said it wasn’t quite ready, that he’d send it to me in a bit. A bit turned into a couple of months but soon the entire manuscript arrived with a letter explaining how the idea for the novel had developed in conversations with his wife, Yvonne. I started reading and was immediately surprised by the content. I’d expected a quiet, personal story of Lou’s youth in Texas or a partially salacious take on this Hollywood veteran’s combat-hardened experiences, but this was something else all together. Having not been content with writing what you know, where you know or when you know, Lou had jumped into the fantasy, sci-fi field with an epic tale based on the Hans Christian Anderson fable, The Tinder Box, with both booted feet. LDP hadn’t spent all those years wading through dramatic material to not come up with more than a few ideas of his own, but his novel bears the mark not only of Anderson but Shakespeare, Herbert, Bradbury, etc. The Tinder Box embodies the thought that no matter what, when, or where you are, there will be worlds at war, young people in love, and epic stories of persistence, vision, and treachery, ending with eventual triumph. The added benefit of awaiting this amazing piece of work is the addition of Yvonne Phillips’ personal illustrations in which you can see not only her talent, but the close proximity the artist has with not only the material but the writer himself. The Tinder Box: Soldier of Indira goes on sale today, and I hope you’ll join me in welcoming Lou Diamond Phillips and Yvonne Phillips into another facet of their Renaissance lives by picking up a copy or two. The Aethon Books hard copy of the novel is available for purchase at $24.99 on October 20th (ISBN-13: 978- 1949890532). An e-book will also be released and is $4.99 on Apple iBooks, Nook, Kobo, and more. The audiobook, produced by Podium Audiobook, will be narrated by R.C. Bray and Julia Whelan and will be available to purchase for $34.99 or with 1 Audible Credit. Hard Copy Links: • Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Walmart • Books a Million • Waterstones eBook Universal Link Audible Link Signed copies of The Tinderbox: Soldier of Indira available soon at the Bucking Buffalo Supply Company. Here are some reviews of the novel so far: “A wonderful mashup of ‘Stars Wars,’ ‘Game of Thrones,’ and one of Hans Christian Andersen’s most complex fairy tales. An added bonus? Yvonne Phillips’s haunting, beautiful illustrations.” - Chris Bohjalian, ‘New York Times’ bestselling author of ‘The Flight Attendant’ “An amazingly prescient tale from one of the finest storytellers I know, ‘The Tinder Box’ is an otherworldly adventure combining a much-loved fable with the sweep and grandeur of a startling, science-fiction epic.” - Craig Johnson, ‘New York Times’ bestselling author of the ‘Walt Longmire Mysteries’ --------------- If you are looking for a special gift for someone, or maybe yourself, we have signed copies of Next To Last Stand for sale, which are available for personalization. Just follow the directions at the link to receive a personalize copy of this New York Times bestseller. See you on the trail, Craig Return to Post-Its