Journey to Publication
Every book has a story behind the story.
When my son Jackson was fighting leukemia in Seattle Children's Hospital in 2011, I had a feeling that one day someone would write a book about what our family had experienced.
At the time, I didn't know that person would be me.
I simply knew that I never wanted to forget the moments that mattered. I took hundreds of photographs. I documented our journey through Facebook posts. I saved conversations, milestones, and memories because I believed that someday they might help tell a story worth preserving.
For years, I would occasionally tell friends and family, "One day I'm going to write a book."
I believed it.
I just wasn't ready.
Finding the Courage
In 2018, I finally opened a blank document and tried to begin.
It was one of the hardest things I have ever done.
Writing about those years meant reliving them. Most days I couldn't write very much before the emotions became overwhelming. The manuscript began less like a book and more like a diary, as I slowly pieced together memories that had been buried for years.
In 2021, everything suddenly made more sense.
Seattle Children's Hospital contacted me for the ten-year follow-up study I had agreed to participate in back in 2011. During that process, I finally realized something I had never fully understood:
I was living with post-traumatic stress.
Recognizing that changed everything. Instead of wondering why writing felt so difficult, I finally understood that I wasn't simply recalling memories - I was reopening wounds that had never completely healed.
Life Changed Again
Several events unexpectedly gave me the opportunity - and perhaps the necessity - to finish what I had started.
In January 2025, the devastating Pacific Palisades fire changed life for my family. My former wife, Donna, lost her home, and the ripple effects brought our son Jackson to Austin a few months later. Having him nearby again became a tremendous source of encouragement.
Then, in April 2025, another chapter of my life came to an end.
After a serious long-term relationship ended, I moved from Southern California to Austin, Texas to begin again.
The loneliness that followed could have consumed me. Instead, I made a decision.
If I couldn't change what had happened, I could choose what to do next.
I threw myself into finishing Two Miracles.
What had once been an occasional writing project became my daily purpose, some days writing 18 - 20 hours.
Journey Timeline
April 24, 1993 — A New Beginning
Donna and I were married, beginning the journey that would eventually lead to the family at the heart of Two Miracles. Like every young couple, we dreamed of the future without knowing how dramatically life would challenge - and shape - us.
September 2000 — Fiona Is Born
Our second child, Fiona, entered the world. Within days, our lives changed forever as she was diagnosed with a life-threatening congenital heart defect.
February 23, 2001 — Fiona's Second Open-Heart Surgery
After months of uncertainty, Fiona underwent another major open-heart surgery at UCLA. Against overwhelming odds, she survived. This became the first miracle that would forever change our family.
February 2003 — Meeting Sylvia Browne
I met renowned psychic Sylvia Browne, a conversation that became one of the most unexpected and thought-provoking chapters of my life. Whether viewed through faith, coincidence, or mystery, the experience profoundly influenced how I viewed the remarkable events our family had lived through.
June 2011 — Jackson's Diagnosis
Ten years after Fiona's recovery, our son Jackson was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). Once again our family entered a battle for life, this time documenting every step through hundreds of photographs and Facebook posts, believing that one day these memories might help tell a much larger story.
2018 — The First Words
I made my first serious attempt to write Two Miracles. It wasn't really a manuscript yet - it was more like a diary, an effort to organize memories that remained incredibly painful to revisit.
2021 — Understanding the Past
While participating in Seattle Children's Hospital's ten-year long-term follow-up study, I realized I had been living with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). That realization helped explain why writing the book had been so difficult - and why finishing it became so important.
January 2025 — Another Unexpected Chapter
The Pacific Palisades fire devastated part of our family's world when Donna lost her home. It was another reminder of how quickly life can change and another event that reshaped my own journey.
April 2025 — Starting Over in Austin
After a serious long-term relationship ended, I moved to Austin, Texas. Alone in a new city, I threw myself completely into writing. What had once been a promise to myself became a daily mission.
August 2025 — Buying "The Ghost"
To move my belongings from Southern California to Austin, I purchased a used 20-foot Isuzu box truck that its previous owner had nicknamed "The Ghost." At the time, I knew I eventually wanted to build some sort of adventure truck, but I had no clear vision of what it would become.
As I continued writing Two Miracles and reflecting on the direction I wanted the rest of my life to take, the truck slowly transformed from a moving vehicle into something much more meaningful. It became the foundation for a mobile storytelling studio—a way to travel the country, meet remarkable people, and share stories of hope, resilience, and extraordinary kindness.
Looking back, buying The Ghost was one of those decisions that seemed practical at the time but quietly changed the course of my life.
2025 - 2026 — Completing the Story
After years of writing, rewriting, remembering, and healing, Two Miracles was finally completed. I began querying literary agents while continuing to refine both the manuscript and my vision for what could come next.
2026 — The Two Miracles Project Begins
The book became something bigger than I had ever imagined. I launched this website, began building my social media presence, purchased a 20-foot box truck to convert into a mobile storytelling studio, and created The Two Miracles Project - a mission dedicated to sharing stories of hope, resilience, and the extraordinary people who quietly change the lives of others.
August 2026
Website launched.
More than twenty-five literary agents queried.
Expanded author platform.
Began building social media before publication.
Completed the first version of this website.
This project is only beginning.
Every Life Has a Story Worth Telling.
Thank you for visiting. Whether you're here because of Two Miracles, the historical trilogy, the truck build, or the Stories of Hope project, I hope you'll follow along as this journey continues.
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