We like to tease here at Eximious Press, so here's an image from the upcoming Dear Santa, Let Me Explain... by the brilliant David Michael Beck. Of course, it's not the whole image; just enough to whet your appetite.

Labels: dearsanta, tease

More times than not, a lot of thought and creative imaginings go into finding just the right artistic style to match up with a writer's story. But when Caleb Monroe pitched me his idea for Dear Santa, Let Me Explain... I knew immediately who had to do the art: Noel Tuazon. Noel's watercolors are perfect for Caleb's heartwarming story. And I do mean perfect. It's as if the stars have aligned and I've been given this supernatural vision that is a perfect future. I'm telling you, these two creative geniuses were meant to work together on this story. (The fact that they've worked together before is beside the point, not to mention much less romantic.)

Anyway, I'm putting together the book proposal and asked Noel to work on a sample piece, knowing that without a script it'd be a placeholder that shows the style more than specifics. What he sent me reaffirmed for me that I made the right decision in getting Caleb and Noel together...

Labels: creators, dearsanta

Every now and then, a Christmas comes along that doesn’t quite go according to plan. Like the time Mom forced you to wear that ugly green and red sweater to school (you know, the one Grandma hand-sewed with the reindeer and the little bells). Or the time Uncle Rico had just a little too much eggnog and tripped into the Christmas tree.

We all have a similar story of our own. A true holiday disaster story. These are the moments that define us; these are the tales that give each family its character. And the telling of these stories become a holiday tradition all their own, just like watching Frosty the Snow Man or suffering through a slice of Aunt Martha’s fruit cake. These stories make us laugh, they make us cry, they make us shake our head in shame.

Told through illustrated essays and sequential comic art, Dear Santa, Let Me Explain... is the book that collects these stories. These aren’t just the stories your family laughs about each year as they gather ‘round the table for Christmas dinner, but also the ones the adults repeat in barely contained giggles over spiked hot chocolate after the kids have gone to bed.

Dear Santa, Let Me Explain..., edited by James W. Powell, is 24 of the funniest, most heart-warming stories ever told about Christmas, even if they aren’t all about bows and candy canes.

Dear Santa, Let Me Explain... is available for acquisition. Please contact James W. Powell with any questions.

Labels: dearsanta, jameswpowell