Inspiring the Next Generation

October 20, 2022

Last month, I mailed three copies of my book, Journey to Jumbalot, to Harvard Elementary located in Toledo, Ohio. I was pleased to receive a message from Harvard's principal thanking me for the books and they will be placed in their school library. He invited me to speak to the students, but I told him I would provide a video message since I currently reside in Florida.

I attended Harvard between 1984-1990 and I have very fond memories from my childhood. I loved sledding down a large hill next to the school and my friends and I spent countless hours on the playground. I loved to draw during this time, and I think some of the earliest versions of my book's characters were sketched with crayons.

It's a great feeling to know that my books are now available in Harvard's library, and I hope it inspires one of their students to use their imagination to build fantastic, new worlds.

The Latest Jumbalot News!

Author Update

By Ryan Wakefield • August 31, 2026
I’m currently writing the sequel to my novel, and it will be titled The Knights of Jumbalot. Its roughly 50% written and it has been a joy creating new jumboos and magical lands preteen readers will enjoy exploring. Here is a short list of new jumboo species readers will learn more about: mothanzeebras, leopardiles, snaillamas, and bobcrows. Here’s a preview of one of my favorite lines from the sequel. It’s brief, but it captures the heart of what this next adventure is about: “Alby, your journey is just beginning.” Alby receives this message from the most powerful object in the first book, The Gem of Jumbalot. He believes his heroic journey is over, but he soon discovers it was only the beginning of something much bigger. ๏ปฟ Alby will find himself called back to Jumbalot to face a new threat that he will not be able to face alone. This threat is more dangerous and powerful than the first novel’s antagonist named Rozer. The Knights of Jumbalot must rise again to face this threat!

Jumbalot AI Animated Short

By Ryan Wakefield • April 27, 2026
Introducing the first AI animated short for my book, Journey to Jumbalot. This project features multiple clips of the main characters, Alby the housecat and his guide, the annoyingly lovable Fremmy the froguar (frog and jaguar hybrid), as they walk through a colorful forest on their way to the magnificent Kingdom of Jowla. I envisioned my book as an animated film or series while I was writing it and learning how to use Seedance 2.0 helps me bring my characters to life. I know there is a lot of unpleasantness with folks regarding the use of AI, but I certainly cannot afford to pay a professional animator thousands of dollars for something like this. Who knows, perhaps an agent or a movie studio will see one of these clips and realize that the world of Jumbalot has the potential to become much more than a book. I'm not giving up on my dream :) ๐Ÿˆ‍โฌ› ๐Ÿฏ ๐Ÿฆ ๐ŸฆŠ๐Ÿฆ“

Student Book Media Kit Presentation

By Ryan Wakefield • April 27, 2026
A huge shout-out to University of South Florida Zimmerman students Regina Segovia, Nicholas Bowen, and Ashika Patel for an outstanding presentation of their final media kit project featuring my book, Journey to Jumbalot. They provided valuable ideas on promoting my book through social media, press releases, in-person events, and interactive drawing contests. I would also like to express my gratitude to Dr. Mimi Perreault for reaching out to me about her PR Writing course’s media kit project. It’s hard to believe that I released my book five years ago. Despite winning several awards and receiving positive reviews, selling a self-published book has proven to be quite challenging. Nicholas, Regina, and Ashika showcased their creativity with excellent promotion ideas that will help me spread the word, and I am forever grateful. They have bright futures ahead of them!
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