First off, I want to thank God for my wonderful wife and son. The adventures of Dean and Jake are based off of our son and our new dog Jake. The Dean series of books have and will always be inspired by our son and the things he imagines or loves to do.
We adopted a spunky yellow lab in the early part of 2009. After watching our son and Jake play with each other, we couldn't resist writing and illustrating a book about the fun and enjoyment of a boy and his best friend. We wanted a fun, colorful book with a sweet enjoyable story. We also wanted a more classic, family kind of book that is fun for children and parents to read. All the ideas came from things our son said or did. The stuffed animals on the stuffed animals page came from the animals that are in his room.
We think reading is so important in a child's development. Just the other day we built a tent out of couch cushions. The first thing he did was grab some books to take into his tent and read. I find that amazing.