​In the style of the Vlogbrothers' "Thoughts from Places" series, I proudly present:
The Solace of Reaching: Thoughts In-Between Places in France & Italy,
or, an endeavor to summarize my philosophy of self-improvement, an idea that plays a huge role in my next book.

"Reaching," much like "becoming" has this connotation of arrival, or end. The solace I'm referring to comes not by reaching a destination, but by reaching towards something better. "Approaching" is a word with a better-fitting definition, but "reaching" is more poetic and sounds better, so bare with me.

In short/TL;DR: Don't try to be perfect. Try to be better.

Interesting article I found helpful while preparing this video: http://themeaningmovement.com/arrival-is-not-the-point/

First non-piano video of 2016!

​Thumbs up for vertical filming!1! ;-))

I hit 30,000 twitter followers last week! Did some goofy periscopes to celebrate! (And to provide social commentary satirizing the social abandon of traditional mores, thus mockingly capitalizing on pseudo-sexualization and our culture's reliance on using internet follows and interactions to feed and validate our weakened self-esteems)

This video includes my attempt to perform 30,000 pull-ups in celebration of this virtual benchmark.

It includes a revolutionary concept in grilled-cheese making. Introducing: The Double Decker Grilled Cheese SammichTM

I even live-streamed a nap. If you're into that? (Social Commentary, remember!)

And finally,  I started learning how to play "Truce" by twenty one pilots. So there's a clip at the end (3:40) of that learning process.

"I have this thing against the letter W." - OliverWDahl

Yikes. 1 year and 2 days since I updated my vlog page here.

This video is the first of many to come that is a part of a collaborative YouTube channel I am a member of, the Dreamers of Cloud 9. Every other week, we post videos about a new theme. This week it was 25 facts about ourselves. I'm excited to see where this channel goes, and have already had a lot of fun with it. The other "Dreamers" of Cloud 9 are amazing people I've grown to love, and think you will too. 
     -Oliver

Trailer Copyright Oliver Dahl 2014.
Music Copyright White Wall Music - "Orchestral - The Gallows" (link here -  https://soundcloud.com/whitewallmusic/orchestral-the-gallows)

Please support White Wall Music, they are phenomenal and extremely talented. Their work is well worth the purchase!

Visit http://www.oliverdahl.com/lies to learn more about the book, download a FREE sample, join the BLOG TOUR, and discover interesting facts about the Salem Witch Trials.

Watch on YouTube Here.

I just made a fascinating and hopefully hilarious documentary. About wood. (Cue shouts of “oxymoron!”) Happy hunger games!

Tumblr Post: http://oliverwdahl.tumblr.com/post/74252618775/i-just-made-a-fascinating-and-hopefully-hilarious

Watch on YouTube here.

In Which... Oliver shares his desire to be a cute Tumblr boy when he grows up.

After sharing a look at his upcoming novel, "Lies," (more info at www.oliverdahl.com/lies) Oliver rants and gives you some cheesy inspiration about getting started now to accomplish what you want. 

"Why do we have to 'grow up' to be what we want to be?"

"Buy the train tickets to your ideal future destination now, so you don't find yourself on the wrong train going the wrong direction, with not enough time to turn back."

Think those'll hit the quote books eventually? Yeah, probably not. Maybe that's a good thing. Cheese overload.


Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorOliverDahl
Twitter: www.twitter.com/OliverWDahl
Tumblr (where I try to be cute): www.oliverwdahl.tumblr.com

This post on Tumblr: http://tmblr.co/ZCxWRs13I0BDT
This post on my blog: http://thedreamersadventures.blogspot.com/2014/01/new-year-on-what-i-want-to-be-when-i.html

Thank you. These two words are the brunt of this entire post. Thank you, Imgur for being awesome and supporting me as a rising author.

Thanks to your help, The Dreamers reached above #56 overall free--that's in the top 100 free books on Amazon!

After the promo, over FOUR THOUSAND copies had been downloaded. To think that The Dreamers is in that many little Kindles (and Kindle apps) is astounding. That's a big number. That'd take a long time to count to.

Now that it's over, and sales have spiraled down again, I'm gonna press my luck and ask for some more help. I can express with words (even as a writer!!) how grateful I would be if you did ANY of these, let alone all of them.

1. WRITE A REVIEW ON AMAZON!
    People don't realize how much of a difference a positive Amazon review can make. Five minutes of your time and some kind words not only mean a LOT to me, they can help influence other potential readers to give it a try. New reviews honestly make my day, and help inspire me to write more. During the free promo, I got a few troll one-star reviews that brought my rating down significantly. Please, if you read "The Dreamers," just write something as short as an Imgur comment or a tweet as a positive Amazon review. That will help me out so much more in the long run.
   
2. SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!
    I want this going viral, folks! Getting onto Bestselling charts is one of the best and most profitable ways to promote the book. But... It's also one of the hardest. A simple tweet, Facebook post or share, YouTube video, blog post... ANYTHING can help a LOT! If any of those results in ONE more download, that's one more satisfied reader, potential review, potential sale of "The Nightmarers," or even an Amazon review!  

Add "The Dreamers" to your GoodReads. Share it with your friends, there! It's super easy if you already have an account, and your friends will appreciate a quality free read. (Same goes with Facebook, Twitter... All of those!) Now that it isn't free anymore, now is the time for me to earn some of money that I'm going to need to publish my next book and get the word out about it.

3. GET THE SEQUEL!
    If you enjoy "The Dreamers," be sure to grab a copy of "The Nightmarers," too! I think, and from what I've heard from the first readers, it is BETTER than The Dreamers! (Can you imagine?? I didn't think that was possible, seeing as The Dreamers is so good! ;)) Oftentimes, sequels can be a let-down after the original book. I was worried this was going to be the case, but as I typed "The End" and heard back from beta readers, I knew that The Nightmarers was a new step in a better direction. Full of more mind-bending dreamstuff, gunfights, prison breaks, new worlds, new people, and new villains, "The Nightmarers" is a whole new kind of epic. Please be sure to check it out.


 For you other authors that may be reading this, look for an upcoming post highlighting the more fine details of how and by what means I accomplished this, along with what other promotion I did. I am proud to say, however, that Imgur was the BIGGEST help of all of the places I submitted by hundreds of times. Thank you guys over there. You guys rock.


Sincerely and thankfully,
Oliver Dahl

Watch on YouTube