"Songs for Sam(antha)" is finished! Here's how to get a FREE copy...

"Songs for Sam(antha): the I AM DRUMS Soundtrack" is finished and ready to rock.

It has soaked in the sun and stored up energy like the J.J. Abrams Death Star 3.0.

And now it's ready for your ears.

Did I mention it's free until the book releases if you've preordered I AM DRUMS? Well, it is. And you can. You should. You must!

Email preorderprize@mikegrossoauthor.com with proof of your I AM DRUMS book purchase. What will suffice as proof?

1) A receipt for your purchase or picture of you at a book store preordering the book.

2) A screenshot showing your online purchase.

3) A picture of you and the book store clerk drumming on a stack of David Foster Wallace novels.

4) Record yourself sending ESP signals telling the story of where you bought the book so we can test if that sort of thing even works.

5) 3 and 4 are just a joke. Or are they?

Want to hear a few tracks? Hear three full streamable songs below:

My "Autism Awareness" Wish List

I know we're over halfway through April, but it's also silly to assume April is the only time these things need to be said.

So here is my "Autism Awareness" wish list -- things I wish got more attention during the complicated, often off-the-mark, month of April.

1) Call it "Autism Acceptance" Day/Week/Month instead.

2) Stop talking about causes.

3) Stop talking about cures.

4) Stop talking about gluten free diets.

5) Stop talking about vaccines.

6) Stop saying "Aren't we all a little on the spectrum" (we're not).

7) Stop speaking as if autistic people can't hear you (they can).

8) Be aware that not everyone likes the puzzle piece (or lighting it up blue).

9) Stop insisting on person-first language when many autistic people (see what I did there?) don't prefer it.

10) Read a blog post and/or interview by someone who has autism.

I understand that a list comprised of things you shouldn't do can come off as negative, and that is not my intent. So here are some things you should do:

1) Be patient with autistic people.

2) Acknowledge and accept that autistic people are DIFFERENT, and that's not a flaw.

3) Let them be themselves. There is no benefit to training them to appear normal.

4) Say something positive when you find out someone is autistic or a person has an autistic family member.

5) Read a blog post and/or interview by someone who has autism (yeah, I put this in twice).

And then there was a tracklist...

So... did you hear that my debut novel, I AM DRUMS, has a soundtrack? And did you also hear that it was written, recorded, and performed entirely by me, the author?

Because I AM DRUMS does have a soundtrack, and it's pretty much done. I'm really proud of it. It's some of my best work. I like to describe it as "11 songs of energy and emotion fueled by Sam Morris's story."

And now (I think) I have a final track list that corresponds to the narrative. The titles are specific enough to make sense after reading the book, but vague enough that nothing will be spoiled.

So here goes. Please note that song titles with links lead to a Bandcamp page where you can listen to the song and/or name your price to download it.

1. Encyclopedia Toms
2. Your Message Has Been Deleted
3. The Worst Percussionist in Band
4. A Chance to Really Play
5. The Student Who Does Not Surpass Her Teacher
6. Lawnmowing Under the Orb of Death
7. Dr. Pullman's Phone Call
8. Housebound Until Further Notice
9. One Deep Breath
10. Thunderous Applause
11. I'm the One Playing

My Next Book!

I'm thrilled to announce my next book! It has taken me a while to decide on a direction for my writing career, but I've found my calling and am happy to be carving out a new path.

I'm excited to announce that next year I will officially publish my first biography. That's right, I'm giving up middle grade literature and becoming a biographer.

Weird, huh? Not really when you think about it.

I've wanted to document the lives of famous drum technicians for a while now. And I finally have the perfect first subject...

Sasquatch.

I know what you're thinking -- what has Sasquatch contributed to modern drumming? A whole lot, if you look closely.

Sasquatch spent his entire life trying to build a drum set in the woods. A life in hiding made it almost impossible to purchase reliable equipment, and thanks to his gargantuan size, every drum head, pedal, and cymbal exploded after repeated use.

Sasquatch set to work on designing the URDH (Ultra Reinforced Drum Head) when he was a spry young sixteen-year-old. By the time he was seventeen, he had a drum material that could withstand multiple blows from 3S sticks, and even, under certain circumstances, a felled tree.

Following the URDH came the IDC (Interplanetary Drum Collection), a star system in the shape of a five-piece drum set. I am hoping I will be able to end Sasquatch's story with his discovery of a deity capable of playing the IDC, but we'll have to wait and see.