Just Another Bigfoot hoax?

After the recent Bigfoot hoax in Georgia I thought I had sworn off believing in the beast. But recently new evidence has caught my attention that perhaps it is actually alive and well. Just look at this interesting image below. Is it just me or is that our book the creature is holding? Could it be that Bigfoot actually likes to read fantasy fiction?

August Rush - The Month that Nearly Escaped Us!

The past month has been a whirlwind of events and appearances and (to our shame) we have failed to post a blog update in quite awhile. So here is a blog entry to catch everyone up with what the Miller Brothers have been doing.

8/2: The VIP Pre-Release Party
We hosted an exclusive event for members of our VIP club (join at Luminationstudios.com for FREE) and family and friends. It was an exciting time and we had a super turn out this year. It was fantastic to see so many of you there. Those who came were treated to food, fun and a special game in which they could find the working title of the next book in the Hunter Brown series hidden throughout the room. For those who figured it out - great job! For those who are curious well let's just say that the title has nothing to do with Surfing On Mice or an Ice Forming Sun and leave it at that.

What a great looking family - if we do say so!

8/8: The Official Launch at WATCH Convention
Of course the big news since our last post is the official launch of the Hunter Brown book on 8/8/08. We kicked off the launch with an appearance at SPU (Seattle Pacific University) for the WATCH homeschool conference. The event was a huge success and we signed nearly 100 copies of the book for some new fans. The event lasted 2 days and we stayed in the dorm rooms with many of the other vendors and exhibitors. We also had a chance to present two seminars to homeschool families. One on "Inspiring the Artist in your Student" and another on "Inspiring the Writer in your Student". It was a lot of fun.

The seminar wasn't as boring as it looks in this picture, really!

See, I told you it wasn't all boring!

8/13 - 8/14: Writers Retreat for Hunter Brown Book 2
After a busy beginning to August, we were blessed to have the opportunity to get away for a couple days for a writers retreat. Escaping away to a cabin in Snoqualmie Pass we were ready to start planning for our next project. We were joined by our good friend and pastor, Ryan who helped us work through the many ideas we had been collecting for the next Hunter Brown book. The outline started to come together and we explored many details, events and characters that will be involved in the next story. It was an extremely productive time and one that we will long remember and cherish. Oh yeah, the Mt. High Hamburgers were very good too!

8/21 - 8/24: Church Campout
It is tradition every year for our church family (Valley Bible Church) to head for the hills and enjoy an extended weekend away. With clear skies overhead, and more than a million starts to capture the imagination at night we explored the wonder of God's green earth. How can you look at the world and not be amazed at God's artistry? One of my favorite memories from this trip was the night we used a video projector to project the movie "Ratatouille" on the back of the RV. There we were in the great outdoors roasting smores while watching a movie with our kids and other campers under the stars. Yeah - we were really ruffing it! :-) It was great fun anyway.

8/29 - Final Outline for Book 2 Completed
The final outline for Hunter Brown (book two) was due to the publisher today and we turned it in at the last possible moment. Karen and Robin (our editors at Warner) will be very happy. Now, we're waiting to hear if they like it or not...we'll keep you posted. Here's a quick teaser summary for those who are interested.

Hunter's connection with the Shadow has been broken, but the real battle has only begun. Upon returning home he discovers things are no longer as they used to be. For starters, he sees things no one else can. Yes, the Shadow are still alive and well in Destiny and they seem to be growing in number every day. To top things off, a mysterious figure seems to be following his every move.

Will Hunter be able to resist the Shadow alone...and who is this mysterious new stalker that haunts him as he goes?

The Stuff that fills in the gaps.
Well that brings us through the major events of the month. However, all throughout the month of August we have also been hard at work on several improvements to the Codebearers website as well as developing the next several Codebearer challenges that are scheduled for release early next week on http://www.codebearers.com/ Exciting stuff is on its way!

So, thanks for sticking with us through the August rush. I'm hoping the month of September slows down a bit so we can enjoy writing the next Hunter Brown book. Keep an eye out for some special events coming soon.

We love the muppets!

Go Beaker Go!

Making a Splash at ICRS!

The last couple of weeks were a bit of a whirlwind. July 14th kicked off the annual ICRS (International Christian Retail Show) event in Orlando, FL. Each day was jammed packed full of meetings, interviews and book signings. Our enthusiastic publishers (Warner Press) pulled out all of the stops on our behalf and really made us feel like the stars of the show. For those of you who aren't aware of what ICRS is all about, it is the primary trade show where publishers present their latest offerings to Christian and family-friendly bookstores and licensee's around the globe.

Allan and I felt very blessed to be able to attend for the fourth year in a row. This time, we were given the royal treatment and were able to take part in a lot of fun stuff. Here's a short list of some of the highlights of our trip:

• Book signing for Ten-Gallon Sam


• Trying to keep up with a line over 100 people long for our 2-hour Hunter Brown book signing (sorry if we had to turn you away at the end)


• Seeing a giant 20 foot banner promoting our novel


• Seeing our book promoted on the back of each show bulletin


• Several interviews by radio stations and TV


• Seeing one of the characters we created in our latest novel as a real-life costumed character along side Bob & Larry, 3-2-1 Penguins, the Bernstein Bears
  
• Chris nearly tackling Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungee
  
• Meeting some really cool movie execs who are interested in our book
  
• Signing books FOR renowned fantasy fiction author Bryan Davis (Dragons in our Midst)
  
• Dinner with Chris Waters of Angel Wars fame
  
• Personally giving away 200 Hunter Brown backpacks to booksellers
  
• Meeting Ben Stein (producer and star of the recent "Expelled" movie)
  
• Meeting "President Bush"

Here's a short photo snippet of our journey for you to enjoy!

Signing the Hunter Brown book for one of our young fans.

I asked Ben Stein for his money - but apparently somebody else already won it.

Not too many authors get endorsed by a "president".
He said he liked the book because it was easy to read.

One of the many interviews.

Signing a book for Bryan Davis, author the extraordinarily
successful Dragon's in Our Midst series

But after all the meetings had been made and the conference wound to a close, I must say my favorite part of all was receiving a special letter from one of the parents of the children who had acquired a copy of our Hunter Brown book at the show. She left the hand written letter at the Warner Press booth and it read as follows:

Dear Miller Brothers,

My Son Marek is thrilled with your book. The first thing out of his mouth this morning: "I couldn't put that book down last night. I love it! I stayed up past my bedtime."

He went on to tell me all he's read so far. I've never seen him so animated over a novel.

Thank you for your awesome novel. I'm sure its going to change Marek's view about reading. A mother's dream!

Thanks again,

Melissa

P.S. Can't wait to read it myself!

It's a message like this that makes all the long hours of writing completely worth it. Thanks for the message, Melissa. You really encouraged us as well.

NEWS FLASH: Hunter Brown Novel Reportedly Stolen from Publisher!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Book piracy is on the rise - publishers are getting worried their books will be next!

At approximately 11 AM (PST) author Christopher Miller (the balder half of the infamous Miller Brothers team) received an unexpected and disturbing phone call from his publisher Warner Press. The news was not good. Apparently, the first shipment of the long awaited novel, Hunter Brown and the Secret of the Shadow (written by Chris and his brother) arrived as scheduled to an undisclosed top secret Warner warehouse earlier this morning. However, within moments of the delivery, a disembodied hand emerged on the scene and swiped the very first copy of the highly anticipated book.

"When I first heard the news, I was stunned," Miller exclaimed. "I mean, I had heard there were a lot of people eager to get their hands on this book, but this is ridiculous!"

Photo evidence emerged shortly thereafter from the facility's security cameras confirming the incident and catching the criminal red handed (so to speak). Authorities on the scene were unable to apprehend the suspect before he/she/or...it slipped through their fingers taking the coveted first copy away.



Eyewitnesses on the scene were both shocked and outraged. "Whoever did this should be ashamed of themselves!" said one man who wished to remain unidentified. "Hands should have bodies...that's just the way it should be!"

Another woman, who was visibly shaken by the episode had this to say. "It's just wrong...and gross...and I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I mean, the thought of a hand just appearing out of nowhere, when you least expect it is...well...freaky."

One has to wonder what devious purpose does a disembodied hand have in stealing a book? After all, it has no head or eyes and will probably not be able to read it. The irony of the situation is astounding especially considering that the book is expected to be released for FREE online in its entirety as early as 8/8/08 (the official launch date of the book). You can also pre-order the book legally and have it shipped to your home when it is officially released.


So, while the motive remains unclear and the criminal remains at large (or small) we are asking for your help. If you recognize this hand or have any tips as to the whereabouts of the perpetrator we would appreciate hearing from you.

Help stop book piracy!

---------------------------------

Please forward this message to as many people as possible. The more people who see it, the better chance we have of catching the hand responsible.

You can PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY!

The Warner Press Staff

You know, we don't talk enough about how great it has been to work with the staff at Warner Press. These guys are awesome and we wanted to honor them by sharing a photo of the team. Here they are today after having happily recieved our first shipment of the Hunter Brown novel (due in stores 8/8/08).

Final Poster Design

Okay - here's the final version.
Some people didn't like the symbols because it made them think of witchcraft or the occult. So, keeping in mind that we wanted a family friendly design that Mom's will buy for their kids...we opted to make a few changes to "brighten" the tone of the image without removing the drama of the image.

Let us know what you think!

If you really like it - you can now Officially PRE-ORDER Hunter Brown from our website! We'll include a poster for FREE and it will ship in time for you to get your copy on 8/8/08!

PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY!

Enjoy!