Stuff Dreams Are Made Of

NATIONAL INDIE EXCELLENCE AWARD

Winner

FOREWORD MAGAZINE'S BOOK OF THE YEAR

Finalist

Simply put, Don Bruns wins awards. He grabbed three for Stuff to Die For, the first in the "Stuff" series. This second book carries the ball nicely, and a third will be out soon. The theme? A couple of twenty-something buddies near Miami get into serious danger each time they try a new business venture using their broken down box truck. James Lessor and Skip Moore barely get out with their skin intact, and the assorted cast of characters makes you cheer, boo, and sometimes hold your breath. A great read every time. Funny, fast-moving, and many say Don is creating a new genre, a guy's answer to chick lit. Published by Oceanview Publishing.

This time, Skip and James sell burgers to patrons attending the big tent events led by a very successful and influential evangelist. Big dreams of fast money are taken over by big trouble. Guns, conspiracy, suspense, romance, and belly laughs.

The first cover I designed looked like the Reverend's gold Bible with the box truck added. Not enough danger. Don suggested adding a gun. After a few different angles and sizes of guns, the Oceanview team abandoned the idea and we went for a night scene outside the tent. The palm trees are back, always good for identifying the locale. The box truck is parked on blood-stained money, an obvious metaphor. Assembling all these pieces together to create a somewhat believable scene using the trees, tent, crosses in the windows, truck, money, blood, and door sign for the business took some time. It was worth it.

You might notice a sticker on the truck with "A NOVEL" on it. I added the dash between the words so it might look more like a label on a truck and yes, the sticker is tilted. On the first book, we gave the truck's license plate the "novel" treatment. It really looks like a Florida plate, doesn't it? Details like this are always fun. Here is a look at both. On the left is Stuff to Die For, right is Stuff Dreams Are Made Of.