Photo by Gerrit Hansen:  Powder Mill Creek, Everett, WA
NEWS / ANNOUNCEMENTS
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June 9, 2025: The Last Kalethar has been published. Here's the link to purchase: Purchase The Last Kalethar
March 2, 2025: The Last Kalethar (renamed to the original title) by Gerrit Hansen has gone to the publisher, and I expect sometime in the next couple of months that it will be released on Amazon and beyond! After so many years of working on it and waiting, this is such an exciting time. I am 40% into the sequel and am pleased with how well it's going. Finally, Claudius Rifius 5  was published last month with two new stories: "Claudius Rifius and the Monkey Thief" plus "Claudius Rifius and the Stormy Sea." To check them out, click on the red "Claudius Rifius 5" link above or go to the "Children's Literature" tab under "My Writing" to purchase.
October 2, 2024: I've been able to publish four of my children's books over the past month—two stories in each volume. Claudius Rifius stories were first created for my kids, but after the third story, they were all created for my grandson. Great illustrations by a longtime Indonesian friend as well as a new one. Go to the Children's Literature page to find out more and order them
January 1, 2024: I've been working on the cover for publication of The Last Kalethar. Will be meeting with a small imprint on Saturday, 1/6/2024 to discuss publication, which will likely happen in late spring or early summer. Otherwise, I will self-publish sooner, most likely by the end of this month. Stay tuned—it's finally happening!
As far as Claudius Rifius is concerned, we're working on the artwork. The illustrator for the first two stories is making progress, just more slowly than planned. Hopefully, we'll have some progress by mid-year and the stories will go up on Amazon
December 24, 2022: Don't worry, I haven't stopped writing. I've been working on several projects at once, putting a few extra touches on The Last Kalethar. I've written 15,000 words into its sequel. A new children's book, The Adventures of Claudius Rifius (current title) is in the works, and I'm working with an illustrator for this project. Then, I've written a few more chapters in my memoir. Finally, I've edited another book that was published just a few months ago. With more free time now, I will be pursuing writing more earnestly. I'm expecting to publish The Last Kalethar soon, by whatever means possible, so be looking for that. I wish everyone a wonderful holiday season!
December 29, 2021: And the pandemic never ends. This past year hasn't focused as much on writing as I would have wished. However, I have actively started working on Book Two as well as charting out a Book Three. Also, I revised the names of the characters to sound like ancient Indonesian names. From history, we know that Hinduism was dominant in Java from 500 BCE to 1500 AD. So, the names are a mixture of traditional tribal names and Sanskrit names.
February 3, 2020: A re-write is underway. The new beginning chapters are posted. These may not be what I finalize as the beginning chapters, but they are what I have at the moment. I intend to experiment by moving some chapters around. Hopefully, this re-write is even more engaging than the previous version.
November 2, 2016: The first draft of The Last Kalethar has finally been completed. Its 56 chapters will undoubtedly be tweaked over the next several days, especially the last three chapters. Comparing this book to my first novel attempt (The Hold), the ending is far more compelling, brings a series "first-installment" to a more complete ending, and leaves plenty of material to build on for sequels. 
June 13, 2016: The Last Kalethar is taking another turn. After consulting with the head of the NY Pitching Conference, we decided that to make the novel more marketable, I needed to jettison the made-up names and root the story in actual Indonesia. I've chosen pre-Hindu Indonesia (pre-500 BC), and setting the story in none other than West Java where I lived for 26 years (1986-2012). I'm even using local landmarks and creating legend out of them. It will also lend some exciting new additions that will make the story come alive even further. The characters, personalities, and exchanges between them will be enhanced by the realism of the setting. Super fun to write. I will be posting new chapter 1,2, 8, and 10 soon—after I work through chapters 8-10
March 6, 2016: 2984, The Sea-dweller Series, is now available in paperback. All four previously published pieces (listed on my "Young Adult" page) plus two never-before published segments are included in this short book. Click on the red link to purchase.