Survivor - my memoir

[vripley]

Survivor is completed. I am finalizing the proposal and will send it out to my chosen agent soon. As soon as I have more information, I will post it up.

-V
 

[Generalissimo JJPGPMCD]

WTG!!!!!

[mvslider]

what the... I posted a reply on this earlier... I guess it didn't take?

anyway... CONGRATS and GOOD LUCK!!

[vripley]

Peeksie Into the Mind of Vaughn

I thought I would share a blurb from my memoir, Survivor. I was 19 years old...


Four days after Liane and I started dating, my parents called me into the den and told me that the family doctor had called. In the moments that followed, I spilled into a numb world that can only be found by facing death. On January 3, 1987, I had a mental collapse as my mother and father explained to me that I was dying. Our family doctor had called with the news that I was HIV+. To add insult to injury, my parents were in the middle of a painful separation. My positive life had suddenly become miserable.

Deep down inside I knew that my parents weren’t getting a divorce because of me contracting HIV, but I couldn’t help wondering if I was the cause. In addition, this was a time when I needed my parents more than ever before or ever again and they were consumed with their own problems. Rightfully so, they were busy trying to work out their marital differences and seeing if they could patch their marriage. They had been married for nineteen years and were watching the wonderful family that they had built crumble apart right in front of their eyes.

I stoically pressed on with life while my insides felt like they were wrenched and twisted into a pulpy mess. I bravely faced each day with a smile and feared going to bed where I would shake uncontrollably and cry myself to sleep.

My parents brought me in to see the family doctor and he proceeded to explain the simple fact that I was going to die. He did not give me a timeframe, but it was clear that he was talking about sometime in the very near future.

Turning from my nearly tearful family physician, I found my mom’s tear streaked face sadly looking at me. Swallowing, I then turned to see my dad who also had tears welling up in his eyes. I had never seen my dad cry, and there he was crying freely. The entire room was lugubrious. Finally I turned back to my doctor and started laughing. I laughed sheepishly as if I had some hidden joke that they didn’t know about. My mother came to me and hugged me and my laughs turned to cries. I cannot remember how long I wept, but we did leave the doctor’s office lucidly understanding that my days were numbered.

We didn’t talk on our ride home and I desperately grasped at strings to figure out what was going on in my life.

I was a teenaged boy facing my untimely death. Words cannot do justice to the waves of emotion that tore through my mind and body.

[ripscousin]

This is a great passage.  When I first read your biography I remember thinking how strong this part was.

I also remember the day (probably not long after this) that my parents sat me down and told me that you were HIV+.  I remember being shocked and really not understanding it.  Back then it wasn't nearly as well known as it is now.  It was still very mysterious.

[ripscousin]

Can you post another segment from the book?

Maybe a part about your struggles on certain medications or something?

[vripley]

G - Per your request, here are some blurbs from my memoir which detail some of the ailments I have experienced that are associated with either HIV or my HIV medication...


This is a summary near the end of my memoir:
For more than 21 years I have dealt with daily diarrhea, peripheral neuropathy in my feet and hands, periodic vomiting, occasional joint bleeds, hives, random pains, depression, sleep problems, nightmares, night sweats, trouble waking in the morning, dry eyes, sensitivity to sunlight, allergies, loss of fat in my butt and cheeks, added fat and bloated belly, gas, sore throat, phlegm, skin problems and nausea. All of these problems have brought me down at times, but I pick myself back up and think of ways to better myself. Worrying about these silly effects is a waste of my time. I choose to grin and bear it. I try to avoid focusing on the things that I have no control over.


Here are some more stories (from Survivor) that go over some of my tougher ailments I have endured...

Shingles
In the fall of 1989, I started getting these itchy bumps on the left part of my forehead. Slowly, the bumps spread to the left half of my nose and around my left eye. They were getting painful. Before long, the pain was unbearable and I could not sleep. Finally, a family friend drove me to the metro so that I could travel to the hospital.

At the hospital, I was diagnosed with herpes zoster (shingles). Normally this disease is reserved for the elderly, but it also affects people with immune disorders (and in a few cases even people without immunity problems). The pain and irritation grew worse over the next week and the hospital could not do much for me except tell me not to itch. As the bumps grew larger they were followed by intense itchiness and severe pain.

Because shingles is based on the nervous system, the afflicting wounds were only on the top left quadrant of my face. It was bizarre how they started at my hairline on the left half of my forehead and crept maliciously down to my nose before stopping. The rest of my face was perfectly clear and normal.

After a weeklong rest in a hospital bed, I was released with huge, ugly scars on my forehead. If I was ever handsome, I no longer believed it. My face was permanently scarred along with my pride.

On top of the damage that the shingles had done, many friends and family members who saw me during this ordeal thought for sure that I was dying. Afterward, I ran into some old friends who had heard that I did die. Quoting Samuel Clemmons, I coolly replied, "Those reports were exaggerated."


Pneumonia
In the fall of 1990 I was catching colds and things much easier than I used to. Since I was not taking any medication for HIV and I was drinking heavily, my body was starting to pay the toll. One night in particular I was extremely sick. I was coughing so hard and loud, that I started to worry for my life.

I spent the evening hanging out with friends at Kristine's sister Dawn's house for a party. I was so sick that I could not move from my seat on the couch. Kristine sat with me and clearly was worrying for my life.

As I sat there, I noticed that two guys who showed up for the party were harassing my friend Lesley. Besides the fact that Lesley is my friend, I absolutely will not stand for men bullying women. I watched them as they continued to tease her and finally one of the men threw Lesley over his shoulder and quickly moved to the back of the apartment with her.

I grew suspicious since it did not look as though Lesley wanted to go with these guys. So, I forced myself up and lumbered down the hall toward a bedroom where they had taken her. Along the way, I asked my friend Brian and my brother Laine to come with me. I was dizzy and barely able to walk as I approached the closed door.

Knocking on the door I casually asked if everything was okay in there. No one responded so I tried the door and found it was unlocked. The opened door revealed Lesley sprawled out on the bed with the two men on each side of her. One of the two guys glared at me and said, "This room is taken."

I stood my feeble ground and asked Lesley if everything was okay.

Lesley looked scared, but she did not say anything. Just then the second guy leaned forward and said, "Everything is fine, dude. Close the door."

I stepped into the doorway and tried to appear tough as I asked, "Lesley? Is everything okay?"

Lesley nervously shook her head no but said nothing. Just then one of the guys stood up and he blurted out, "Hey man, everything is fine here." He started toward me as if to push me out of the door.

I drew in a deep breath and put on my strongest face before stating, "Lesley said it's not okay, so stop whatever you're doing and let her go."

By now the second guy was standing up and acting perturbed. It was at this point that I realized just how big the second guy was. My guess would be six foot three inches and 230 pounds. He appeared to be a solid wall of muscle. That may not sound huge, but back then I weighed 145 pounds soaking wet! I am sure that my sickened state was not helping matters, but it was starting to look like a dire situation.

Standing my ground I said with a look of finality, "Lesley, come with us."

The larger guy was stepping forward and saying something like, "She ain't goin' nowhere!"

I knew from experience that this was going to end ugly, so I quickly pushed Lesley out of the room and stoically stood my ground. As I prepared myself for the pain that was about to come, my brother Laine stepped in front of me and stood up to the looming danger. My pride grew as I proudly watched my brother get punched squarely in the face. His glasses flew off and he fell across the room like a puppet on strings.

Shock crossed his face, but he determinedly got to his feet and was preparing to take another beating. Knowing I was the oldest and most experienced, I once again started forward to take my brutal attack that would most definitely end with me in the hospital receiving factor VIII. This time Brian stepped forward and he was yelling something at the assailant.

Brian looked heroic following in Laine's footsteps as he took his beating with dignity. This guy was big and mean and he went through my brother and friend like he was running through sheets hanging on a laundry line in the backyard. I knew it was my turn to get punched in the face, so I started forward again.

At this point, the ominous bad guy was starting to realize that we were going to keep coming, and he pulled a pocketknife out swinging it in my direction. The knife sent shivers up my spine as I envisioned being stabbed and killed trying to protect Lesley's dignity.

Even though I felt like dying internally, I dug deep and tried to think of a possible solution to this desolate situation. I immediately turned and moved into the kitchen where I found what I was looking for. On the counter was a butcher-styled carving knife and I grabbed it making my way back to the would-be rapist. My head was spinning and I must have been swaying as I moved toward the big guy. I growled, "Pull a knife on me will you?"

By now the entire party was centered on the situation and people must have seen the determination on my face. I knew that I was outmanned and in a precarious position, but I was not going to go down without a fight. As I approached the knife-wielding attacker calm filled me. I believe that some things are worth dying for. This just happened to be one of those things. A smile cracked my lips as I stepped toward the now agape attacker.

It all ended in an instant as I was smothered by a mob of my friends. They all saw where this situation was quickly headed and they piled onto me to stop me from attacking back. I was pinned to the ground and someone removed the knife from my grip.

By the time that I was up again, the two would be rapists were already out of the apartment and people were chattering about how brave Laine, Brian and I had been. I collapsed on the couch with shivers and started coughing uncontrollably. I moved to the bathroom and continued my coughing fit until blood and bits of flesh emerged. I was convinced that I did not have more than a day or two to live.

The next day, I traveled out to Annapolis to my mother's apartment. After another restless night, Mom decided to take me in for a check up. I had pneumonia and was immediately admitted to the hospital.

Over the next two weeks I lived in a hospital bed eating crappy food. I had been so close to death that many of the nurses and doctors did not know if I would make it or not. Doing my standard miraculous recovery I fought with death and overcame it once again. If there were sides to choose between death and me... You had better lay your money down on me, because I refuse to give up without a nasty fight. Take that to the bank and deposit it.


Rosacea (circa 1993)
I already had sensitive skin before the HIV, but my medicines and the disease have attributed to more skin issues. I started getting this weird Rosacea type of rash on my face. One day, a coworker Jim asked, "What's wrong with your face? You got AIDS or something?" Of course, he was joking, but it hurt deeply. I cannot tell you how many times I have had to pretend to laugh at some sort of AIDS joke. It is hard to explain, but every one of those jokes steals a piece of me.

I immediately went to see a dermatologist to see about fixing this latest skin issue. He could not determine what was wrong, so he did a biopsy using a chunk of skin from my face. This test did not prove anything, so he asked to do another biopsy and I allowed it. The second biopsy still revealed nothing. But, I now had two scars on my face that would never completely go away.

After the biopsies, the doctor wanted to try an ultraviolet application, which was similar to using a tanning bed for your face. This did not work either, but it did leave me with nasty sunburn that lasted for longer than a month.

Finally, I gave up on my face and decided to just live with the acne type blemishes and blotchy rashes that flare up without any warning.


Peripheral Neuropathy (circa 1997)
I started noticing that my toes were feeling tingly in the mornings, but did not realize that it was a problem. Soon, the tingling had spread to my entire foot and lasted longer than just the morning. The feeling is reminiscent of having your foot fall asleep with a little more pain involved. I tried not to pay any attention to this newfound problem, but some days it got so bad that my feet ached to even walk on them.

Finally breaking down, I went to see my doctor who told me about peripheral neuropathy and explained that DDI is known for this side effect. He immediately took me off the DDI because some cases have shown that continuing on the medicine after seeing the peripheral neuropathy can result in a lifelong problem.

After switching drugs, the pain and tingling did not go away in my feet, so my doctor sent me to a neurology specialist. Since that visit I have often wondered if one of the prerequisites of becoming a neurology doctor is being a sadist. The neurologist used long needles to probe different area of my feet and lower legs. The pain associated with this "probing" was considerable and I would not wish this problem solving technique on anyone.

Using the probes, he stabbed into sensitive areas looking for muscle contraction spots and nerve endings. Once the needles were in place, the doctor sent electrical pulses through them to see if my nerves and muscles were responding and working properly. The pain associated with this whole process was excruciating to say the least.

My test results showed that my nerves and muscles all seemed to be okay and the doctor determined that my tingling would go away. Of course, I now had the issue of being deathly afraid of neurologists.

After several months of numb and tingling feet, the peripheral neuropathy did start to slowly fade away. All in all, it took nearly a year for it to heal almost completely. And, I still feel the remnants to this day.

[ripscousin]

Thanks for posting, V. 

Interesting that I also had shingles.  I was about 14 or so when I got them.  They didn't get too bad and the good news is that supposedly I will never get them again since I've had them.  Much like Chicken Pox.

[beanie]

Survivor is completed. I am finalizing the proposal and will send it out to my chosen agent soon. As soon as I have more information, I will post it up.

-V

Words cannot express my feelings except to say that I am forever in your debt for what you did for me that night - Lesley

[vripley]

Lesley,

Thank you for the kind words. What I did is something that everyone should do. If we did, the world would be much mo better.

Love ya kiddo,
V

[Saddle Tramp]

Vaughn,

I truly like your writing style and find it an easy read...I can not wait to read the whole thing.

Knowing you, I find it hard to separate the writing from the story, and I want to apply equal attention to both.  The very fact that you have completed the effort deserves some respect.  It appears that you  have done it well, too, and that makes me smile.  I know so few people who have gotten as much from life.  Without doubt, you remain one of my life's "most unforgettable characters."

R

[ripscousin]

Survivor is completed. I am finalizing the proposal and will send it out to my chosen agent soon. As soon as I have more information, I will post it up.

-V

Words cannot express my feelings except to say that I am forever in your debt for what you did for me that night - Lesley

Wow.  You're Lesley? 

[vripley]

Beanie is my friend Lesley. Kristine and Dawn grew up with her since elementary school and I went to school with her older sister. She is the one that my Pneumonia story is about...

Kristine and I introduced her to one of my best friends (John - AKA Kartqueen or something on here). They were married shortly after and I had the honor of being his best man.

[vripley]

Here is another of my favorite stories; which happens to include TylerDurden in the starring role...

The Paintball Incident

My new group of friends and I were into similar hobbies and recreation, so we soon started venturing out to do things together on the weekends. Joe, Sean and I all started to gravitate toward paintball. Before long, I had gone out and purchased a fully automatic paintball marker (gun) that was capable of firing 11 rounds per second.

Paintball was fairly expensive, so we found a local wooded area where we could gather and play without paying fees. Soon, we were all playing at a pretty decent level.

Occasionally we would invite other friends along to play. One day, Joe brought along a fraternity brother named Eric to join in our festivities. Eric made the mistake of showing up in gym pants. Because gym pants are not very protective of certain sensitive areas, this would prove to be a rather large gaffe.

During one of our paintball matches, I came upon Eric hiding behind a fallen tree. I could barely make out the tip of his mask, which told me that his head was exposed to potential fire. Normally, it is unkind to take a headshot without first giving the player ample warning. Headshots can be extremely painful, so we usually will give an oral warning and ask the player to give up. If they choose to ignore the treatise, then their head is fair game.

I was hidden well and could see the apex of Eric’s head. I decided to be fair and I called out, “Give up, I have your head in my sights.”

Eric did not respond. But, he also did not move. This concerned me, because if you do not respond to a called headshot, you almost always immediately move your head to avoid the sting of the ensuing batch of paintballs. Eric did neither. So, I yelled again, “Headshot, do you give up?”

Again Eric refused to either move or cry out his truce. At this point I decided he must already be out by someone else’s fire. So, I questioned, “Are you hit?”

To this question, Eric did not even flinch. I was worried that he was sitting there waiting to fire on me as soon as I stopped paying attention to him. So, I decided to move to a more commanding position. I got up and quickly moved to cover that gave me an even better angle on his head. This also allowed me to see more of Eric’s face. Once again I queried, “Are you hit? I have you in my sights and I will fire if you do not respond.”

Eric’s stoic expression revealed nothing so I screamed, “If you don’t say something, I’m gonna shoot you in your face!”

I thought I heard a faint murmur or whimper so I carefully listened and asked, “What?”

This time I was positive that I heard a soft cry come from him. With reckless abandon, I stood up and left my body open for a cheating shot and wandered over toward him. As I approached, the color faded from my face as I realized the situation. Eric was lying on the ground in a fetal position with both hands holding his nether regions.

Understanding hit me as I figured out that he had been shot and left for dead by someone. This well placed group of paintballs had hit him square in every paintball player’s worst nightmare spot; the family jewels. Poor Eric was lying on the ground with tears streaming down his cheeks.

To this day, Eric refuses to play paintball. He has actually become the brunt of a horrible joke in which we all occasionally ask him with an ear-to-ear grin, “Hey Eric... Wanna play paintball?”

[ripscousin]

Eric, Wanna play paintball?

 

[vripley]

Here are another two quips that look into my lack of MOA and need for adrenaline...

My First Day at the Track

My first day at the racetrack with my brand new beautifully painted motorcycle ended in a pretty serious wreck. I was getting pretty used to the nice curves of Summit Point Racetrack, when I went into turn one too hot (faster than I should). Attempting to scrub a little bit of speed, I ended up shifting my suspension just a tad too much and breaking the front tire loose. The bike quickly went into a lowside (a slide where the bike is on its side and the tires are out front). I slid like this all of the way through turn one thinking about how silly it was for me to brake that hard during a lean. Mentally I was kicking myself and already preparing to pick the bike up and march back out with some improvements when the bike lurched as it bumped over the outer rumble strip.

Excruciating pain shot through my body as my ankle spanked the rumble strip with splintering shock. Next, my knee banged into the bumpy edge of the track and finally my hip slammed into the concrete bumps. Pain was starting to issue throughout my body when the bike suddenly stood up. As the bike slid off the track and bounced around, the tires had snagged a piece of the rutted grass and dirt and forced itself into an upright position.

Since I was still straddling the motorcycle during this process, I was thrown upward for an airy highside (where the motorcycle violently throws you up and over itself). Painful realization impacted me as I was flung from my comfortable seat.

Flying through the air in slow motion, I watched in terror as my bike tumbled along below me. I did not have to be a rocket scientist to see that my trajectory was going to land me with a high impact into my somersaulting motorcycle. A split second before the impending collision, the bike took a bounce off to the side and I landed on the hard ground narrowly missing getting tangled up in my flipping piece of metal.

Sitting up, I looked around and assessed the situation. I did not appear to have any broken bones, and I felt fairly okay. So, I stood up and waved an "okay" symbol to one of the closest corner workers. I patiently waited for the "wreck truck" to come out and help me remove my scrap metal and plastic from the area.

By the time I had gotten back to the parking area and my trailer, I realized that I was feeling pain throughout my body. My elbow, hip, knee and ankle were all already starting to swell with the internal bleeding that only a hemophiliac can feel and intimately understand. Besides my aching body parts, my right thumb was really throbbing and turned out to be dislocated.

A quick trip home and then to the hospital resulted in a couple of days of receiving factor VIII. I visualized how lucky it had been that I had not gotten tangled up with my tumbling motorcycle. I also felt that I got off easy with minor scratches and bruises compared to the possibilities. However, I knew that I would be back on the track in a week or two.


Close Call

Amid my motorcycle mayhem, Scean and I decided to take another crack at Rainier. Since my last attempt did not even leave the comforts of Tacoma, I agreed to avoid all dangerous activities (including rock climbing and motorcycle racing) for two weeks prior to our attempt. I started my arduous training and was quickly improving my endurance and stamina in no time.

Since my training included hiking and climbing, I would go to Sugarloaf Mountain as often as I could. On one occasion I was top rope climbing a fairly easy route with MVSlider. I noticed that the rope was starting to get some slack in it and I asked MVSlider to pull the rope in a bit. He responded by telling me that he had me tight. I looked up and found that the rope was jammed in a crevice between two rocks. I told him the rope was stuck and that I would try and get it out from my end. Grabbing the rope while I hung on to the overhanging rock with my other hand, I tried to tug and shake it free. The rope was stuck pretty snugly in this crack and I could not break it out of the rock's grip.

Considering my situation I could only see three ways out. I could continue climbing through a tough part of my climb and get up to where the rope was stuck about 15 feet above me and try to pry it free. This option would leave me with a pretty nasty fall and pendulum into a jagged rock wall and did not look very promising to me. Plus, hanging in that position for a couple of minutes and tugging on the rope had started to burn my forearms a bit. I was looking at a stout climb that would be loads tougher with swollen forearms and pumped muscles.

The second option was to just let go and hope that weighing the line would pop the rope out of the snag. This option was a tad scary because the rope was over and through a fairly sharp edge where it might cut once weighed. On top of that, if the rope didn't come unstuck I would be left hanging in the air 20 or more feet off the deck swinging without a way to get back to the rock. This option could potentially turn into more of an epic than my current predicament.

My third option was to untie and downclimb the way I had come up. This option was a bit disturbing to me, because I was already starting to feel worn out and downclimbing an overhang tends to be considerably tougher then climbing up. Not to mention the fact that I would be sans my rope and therefore could possibly fall 20 feet landing on my back. On a good day, 20 feet is a long way to fall. Falling 20 feet onto a jagged rocky floor is a death sentence for a hemophiliac.

Weighing my options, my arms were getting more pumped and I was wasting time. I asked MVSlider for his opinion about letting go. He responded letting me know that the rope was on a sharp edge and might break under the added pressure of my body weight and swing. He didn't like that idea.

By this time, my arms were actually aching and I was getting sewing machine leg (this is when your calf and thigh get so burned out, that they start to shake uncontrollably). I decided that my best option was to untie and attempt to downclimb. My pump was getting worse and I had to start moving.

I yelled down to MVSlider, "I'm gonna untie and downclimb."

MVSlider blurted back, "You're gonna do what?"

I calmly explained to him my predicament and that I was planning to untie and downclimb. During this discussion I started working on untying my knot from my harness. MVSlider tried talking me out of this course of action and was attempting to come up with a better (read: safer) way to achieve this goal.

Horror started to creep in as I realized that my knot was tight and my pumped hands couldn't work properly to untie the knot. Unfortunately for me, I found this out after getting part of the knot undone. I could feel the edge of panic creeping in as I twisted and tugged one-handed trying desperately to get the tenacious knot free. I envisioned popping off the rock with a partially untied knot that would surely slip and drop me to the rocky ground. Sweat was creeping into my eyes and I found myself taking time to wipe it out with the back of my arm. It was during this wiping procedure that I noticed how perilous this assignment was. My arm was completely pumped and my hands were shaking from the adrenaline that was coursing through my body. Simmer down now!

Digging deep inside myself, I made a last ditch effort to finish untying the knot. My arms and legs were barely able to keep me on the rock as I finally got the knot undone. Now I was faced with the difficult (to say the least) job of downclimbing without the safety of a rope with completely blown forearms.

Just as I had freed the rope, MVSlider told me again that he didn't think it was a good idea for me to untie. He was still trying to figure out a way to help me as I made the first backward move to free myself from this precipice. I cut him off by yelling down that I had already untied and was coming.

I slowly worked my way back down to an easier section and finally off the rock wall. My arms screamed with relief as I was finally able to leave the rock and shake them out. I was so pumped that I could not untie my shoelaces or even hold a bottle of water.

My hands shook uncontrollably as I turned to MVSlider and said, "That was a close one."

We both laughed and moved on to another climb.

[thompsojmd]

When am I going to be able to buy a copy?

A friend of mine was just diagnosed with ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) or Lou Gehrig's Disease.  I think that how you have dealt with adversity could help her through her final year or ten... likely closer to a year though.  It is very sad.  She is 40 years old, with 3 kids.  She made the comment, "I am just sad I won't be able to see the kids grow up."  That may be the saddest thing I have ever heard.

JT

[ripscousin]

When am I going to be able to buy a copy?

A friend of mine was just diagnosed with ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) or Lou Gehrig's Disease.  I think that how you have dealt with adversity could help her through her final year or ten... likely closer to a year though.  It is very sad.  She is 40 years old, with 3 kids.  She made the comment, "I am just sad I won't be able to see the kids grow up."  That may be the saddest thing I have ever heard.

JT

That is very sad.  That is the kind of thing that freaks me out.  And, dying of ALS is a very hard process.  Your mind is fine and your body just stops functioning.  I know a guy who recently died of it. 

[thompsojmd]

Not hard?  That's interesting.  I hope that is the case.  I had heard the actual end was like being suffocated, which certainly doesn't sound easy.

I just hope it isn't that hard on her.

JT

[ripscousin]

Oops.  That was a typo.  Fixed now.

[vripley]

Quite the typo!

[ripscousin]

Yeah, I know!!!

[Generalissimo JJPGPMCD]

So, what's the latest on books and such?

[vripley]

Survivor is with my editor and I will be doing an agent sweep soon. I decided to donate 10% of my royalties to AIDS research.

The others are kind of stagnant...

[Generalissimo JJPGPMCD]

Not stagnant... fermenting.
Fermentation brings wonderful things.

[Sixty Feet Under]

Any update on release dates for survivor?

[vripley]

it is on hold until I finish my fiction. My hopes are that a published fiction will make my non-fiction more wanted...

[vripley]

Latest on Survivor... I have an agreement with iUniverse publishing. The book is in it's final draft mode and I will be uploading it to them this weekend.

I have selected 25 photos that will be published in the book. I edited them and also converted them to B&W.

My cover artists (JT and James) have been banging away on the cover art. It is really coming along nicely and I am very excited about the outcome. Once the cover has been finalized, I will post a picture in here.

the publishing process is a drawn out one, but I anticipate my book hitting the shelves late Summer 2010.

I will keep you all posted.

Thank you all for your support and help with this project. It is nice to be finally getting put on paper.

BTW - Once it is published, I think we should all get together and drink some champagne!

[Kronin]

This is great news, Vaughn! What an accomplishment!

[mvslider]

+ a billion

[Rockatansky]

Congrats Vaughn.  This is a huge accomplishment.  I can't wait to get a copy - I'll be proud to own it.

[vripley]

Update
My editorial changes have been made and my book is going back for a second evaluation for the "Editor's Choice" award.

*fingers crossed*

Everything is still on schedule... I am updating a couple of the photos, because they were not high enough quality (scanned 40 year old images ain't perfect). I am overwhelmed with several things, including my new book... I cannot wait to get this bad boy in print and move on to the next one.

(:

[rtough]

WE CAN'T WAIT EITHER!!!!

[Rockatansky]

Right on.  Can't wait to see it. 

[vripley]

Time for another update ...

I have completed my end of the publishing of my autobiography. I sent my finalized manuscript, cover artwork, 25 photos, and my author's photo to my publisher last night. Their design team is compiling everything and I should get a "proof" in the next couple of weeks. At that point, I look it over and make sure that everything is kosher ... Then I say, "go!"

Looks like my book will hit bookstores and Amazon mid-September. As soon as I have approved the manuscript, I am going to start recording the audio version; which will be available around the same time as the book releases.

To whet everyone's appetite, here is the cover of the book:

[MissA]

+1~

[vripley]

I just got off the phone with my publisher (the primary contact during my design and proofing part of this journey). She informed me that the book has gone into the final design and proofing stage. We are still close to three months away from my book being "officially" ready, and I am going a bit bonkers considering that the project has taken me nineteen years overall. However, I do feel like we are very close!!!

Here's a breakdown of the final schedule for my release (these dates are approximate):

• Three weeks design and proofing (10/1);
• Two weeks for updates based on the e-proofs (called gallies) (10/15);
• Two weeks for miscellaneous revisions and so on (10/29);
• One week to setup for printing (11/5);
• One week I get a final printed proof in hardcover and softcover (11/12);
• Book launch marketing!

By adding two additional weeks for "stuff" that Murphy's Law insists will occur, I come up with a rough estimate of 10-12 weeks total for the official release on November 30, 2010.

Promotional copies of my book will be available about nine weeks from now (11/12/10).

Once I know the book is final, I will begin recording the audio book; which I think will take ~four weeks, so it should be available unabridged on CD around December 10th.

I am currently working with a local news station for an interview. I will try and push it back to after the book becomes officially available. More information on this will appear in the "Where I'll be appearing" section of my forum and on my web site ( http://vaughnripley.com ).

Even though it is still quite far away, I am really getting excited about this. I can't explain the feelings bubbling inside me to finally have a platform for my fun story!

I love you all, and would never have made it this far without your support!

-V