Welcome to my secret, special page where I get to share a book that I’ve been writing for many, many years.
DISNEYLANDS: REFLECTIONS
SYNOPSIS:
Willie and Alice (brother and sister) dread going to school. It seems that every say there is some new way for them to get picked on by the school gangs, “The Hotties” and “The Wrecking Crew”. As timing has it, being pushed around by their own jobs and other family members their parents have to immediately go to Anaheim to attend a conference and handle family matters, and so they surprise the two kids with a trip to Disneyland. The two kids aren’t really familiar with Disney at all, but figure it’s better than going to school and getting picked on again. At the park, they meet with LJ and Timothy who also have more than their share of feeling out of place and being bullied. And they all agree to tour the park together.
At the same time, in the kingdom of Anamania–which consists of all the animated lands and characters of the Disney lore, Maleficent has discovered powerful secrets that allow her to gather all the villains together in one location and with one purpose–to take over Animania. Even worse, the heroes and heroines are gone and cannot help, Mickey and the fab five have disappeared, and it’s up to the everyday characters to find a way to stand up for themselves and fight back.
And when the two Disney lands converge, we have an epic tale that’s part adventure, part learning to trust, part finding your power and your place in the world, all wrapped up in a delightful love letter to the lands that Walt built.
About this book.
This story idea began I think back in 2012 when Pam and I were on a Disney cruise. While sitting on the deck, sipping my coffee drink and staring blissfully out into the south seas, my mind began to wander and I came up with this initial idea of what it might be like if all the Disney villains and all the heroes duked it out in an ultimate battle. (This is pre Avengers: Infinity Wars and Endgame and was more inspired by Marvel’s “Secret Wars” series from the 80s.)
Sure, the idea of villains banding together has kind of been done to varying degrees–from Fantasmic! to the Magic Kingdoms video game to other things, but I thought that there might be something different here to explore.
And the more I thought about it, let it stew from time to time, i finally got down to writing what eventually became chapters 2 and 4, followed quickly by chapter 5.
All right. Off to a good start.
But the more I thought about this the more I realized there were some other characters that were popping up in my head–children from our world that somehow got caught up in this mess. And instantly their stories started popping up in my head. I knew these kids well, and the story started to unfold.
Occasionally I would go for weeks or even months without writing, but I was always thinking about it, wondering what was going to happen next. And various inspirations popped up that I would be compelled to write way into the wee hours of the night. And before I knew it, the whole story was mapped out–the four children would come to Disneyland, meet, somehow get into a real animated world of Disney and get caught up in the epic battle. I had the beginning, middle and end all written or outlined, I had special twists and plotlines and events that I knew had to happen, and I had about 150 pages written out and then came the task of filling in the gaps and connecting everything together.
And then a new idea, a deeper layer, a side story, something would pop up that felt completely right in the moment.
And then I would have to figure out how the characters in chapter 10 would get to the next place, thus creating brand new chapters 11, 12 and 13.
And then I got to thinking about what happened to the characters in Chapter 8 and that storyline that would eventually converge with the main storyline near the end, but to keep that other story evolving.
And then chapter 2 was way too long and needed to be split. But what would go in-between, I would ponder. And then the idea would be so clear.
And then I realized that there needed to be some action here, less talking, or something needed to be justified (like how do the kids get into the land in the first place, and why?) and then other inspirations would appear.
And before I knew it i was setting myself on a path to creating something like an 800 page book.
Yep.
And that’s not all.
I also have an additional 60 pages outlining (and even written) for books 2 and 3 outlined that reveal what happens after (cause I would get curious myself sometimes in my thinking.)
And all the while I was researching Disney, watching countless videos touring the park, highlighting scenes from movies, and reading backstories in an attempt to keep the characters as loyal to their initial creation. After all, as LJ says in the story, these characters are well established.
What I wasn’t expecting was how fond I became of the characters–old and new, and how I couldn’t shake this story.
Disclaimer 1:
The storyline, content and new characters are my own creation. All the established Disney characters (and there are puh-lenty of them) are strictly property of Disney. However, I’ve done tremendous research to make sure that I’m honoring the characters and the park as accurately as possible.
That’s right. It’s highly likely that this book will never actually be published because 95 percent of the characters involved (and we’re talking literally over 80), including the locations, storylines, etc. are all owned by Disney.
But that’s ok. If this turns into an international best seller/ movie franchise Disney production and I make lots of money and endless J.K. Rowling fame, that would be cool. But I’m also content just sharing this story with you.
DISCLAIMER 2:
Which brings me to my request. I’ve copywritten this material to protect it, just in case it falls into the right hands it doesn’t get taken away from me. However, you can share this with others if you’d like by inviting them to this page–especially if you happen to know someone at Disney Productions. After all, it’s free. I’m not charging for it, and so I’m not making any money off of this.
Consider this currently “Fan Fiction” (with the hope that it becomes something more.)
DISCLAIMER 3:
This is basically the first version, everything written out in it’s fullest vision. I’ve tried to correct errors along the way, but i know there are may spelling and grammatical errors throughout. Please be kind.
Also, I’ve never shared anything like this before, so please be kind with your thoughts when reading it. But remember, this is about as long as the longest Harry Potter book. This story takes its time to unfold. It’s meant to be more than just a story, but also a chance for us to enjoy some of our favorite characters.
I’ve had fun adding little Easter eggs, little moments, and nods to the Disney history. So you may also delight in those as well.
How to read this book
First off,
It’s not complete. There’s likely about another 200 or so pages to go. I know how it ends (actually the ending is already mostly written) but it’s the development and discovery of how we get there that still needs crafting and clarifying. And as you will discover, there are MANY dots in this story to connect.
You are warned: this is a long story. As I said, it is projected to be between 800-850 pages. (Yeah, it’s long. But it’s also meant to be an adventure that you just don’t want to end.) It just kept evolving and growing and deepening. (There’s basically about 10 separate storylines that all converge.) Should this ever get to a final iteration and publishing it would likely get a serious slashing, so here’s your chance to enjoy the entire saga. Many of the chapters might be seen initially as extraneous–for example, Piglet just appears, and so do other characters in their own little stories, but everything has a purpose and it all ties in together at the end.
If you lose interest, that’s fine.
If you wish to unsubscribe, that’s ok.
And if you love it, stay with it, and can’t wait for the next installment, that is also more motivation to complete this epic journey and I will do my best to make it well worth your time.
And I hope you enjoy it.
HOW TO GET IT
Fill in the form to sign up and you’ll get a new chapter through email every week that you can either right right there or print out and enjoy later.
Keep it to yourself.
Read it to your kids.
Share it with your friends.
It’s here for you to go on a magical adventure.