My House of Dreams is my first published work. It is the fictionalized story of the beginnings of the Mission San Luis Rey de Francia. It is also about respect and understanding between people of two totally different cultures.  

     My House of Dreams is by no means my first written work. I had written stories back when I was in high school and college, but they were never finished. After college, my time was taken up with work and then raising a family. All my stories remained in my head. I always meant to write them down, but never got around to it.

     That changed with computers. The world wide web opened up a vast horizon of opportunity. I met many new friends, some of whom were writers. Around 1997, I wrote several novel length stories, one about my pets and others based on the Zorro stories by Johnston McCulley and Walt Disney. That was also when I began dreaming about publishing.

     I continued writing but did very little about publishing other than a few half-hearted queries and submissions. Most of my writing was based on old TV shows and their characters. Of course, all this writing provided good practice. Interacting with other fanfiction writers gave me experience in being edited.

     Then came the opportunity to travel to California the summers of 2001, 2003 & 2004. Among the sites I visited was the Mission San Luis Rey. (www.bookscape.net/dedications/mission1.htm ) I was hooked by the charm and history of that wonderful place. I began researching the history of the mission and My House of Dreams began taking shape.

     During my writing, I wondered if continuing was worthwhile, but even as I doubted, I continued my research. I discovered a glossary of Payomkawichum words. Imagine my shock when I read the word, noki, the name I had given one of my protagonists. I thought I had made it up, but it was a real word! I decided this book was meant to be.

     Should you choose to buy a copy and read it, (either from me, bookscape1@comcast.net or from Booklocker: http://www.booklocker.com/books/4727.html, or through Amazon or Barnes & Noble's online sites, I sincerely hope you feel the characters speaking to you as I did.

      Susan Kite

  The mission today.

I am also on Blogspot: http://bookscapesblog.blogspot.com/

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