Help Dan publish his book to pay living expenses

Hi Everyone,

For those of you who do not know, the past few years have been extraordinarily challenging for me in terms of my burn injuries, addiction, and the loss of my career, finances, and marriage. But I now have a chance to put all that behind me with the publication of my book In Pursuit of Calm through an amazing person, Nick Courtright at Atmosphere Press.

Between my hand injuries and loss of psychology career, I have been living on $1500 a month disability retirement in addition to occasional help relatives. They have helped emotionally and financially as much as they can, and I can ask no more of them. My rent, phone, electric, insurance, and wifi bills in San Luis Obispo exceed this amount, and weeks go by when I can't buy groceries. Months ago, I sold my car, road cycling bike, clothes, and books to help pay expenses only to be left without transportation.

As part of my contract with Atmosphere Press, I was to pay them $3800 for their editorial, design, print, and promotional services in getting the book on the market. They have so far done an excellent job of creating a beautiful book inside and out. I have already given them $1900. I had planned on giving them the rest, but that was before my unemployment benefits ran out two months ago. Despite applying for jobs that don't require a lot of use of my hands or no DUIs on record, I have not found anyone willing to hire me.

I remain happy, fearless, and unswerving in my conviction that this book will be a success. The messages of hope and inspiration it carries for addicts, lost young people, and anyone looking for meaning in life are sure to attract a large audience, and Nick would not be publishing it if he didn't think the same. So you know, this is NOT the old book I worked on years ago, but an entirely revamped manuscript brought to life with rich dialogue, in-depth characters, beautiful scenery, heartbreaking tragedies, and triumph of the human spirit.

However, I understand if others may be cautious, especially due to my behaviors stemming from my addictions (which, by the way, were a direct result of chronic extreme job and marital stress that went on for years). But this is what I have dreamed of for twenty years - a writing career - and I can't let $1900 get in the way of that dream being fulfilled. With that said, I am asking for contributions to help me pay the remaining amount to Atmosphere Press in upcoming weeks so this book can get in the hands of the many people who could benefit from it. Thank you.

Love, Daniel