How we made A Train Story,
a letter from the Publisher.
Hello and Thank You for your interest in our book!
A Train Story is a classic story about trains and the joy and amazement they provide as they roll on by. One morning in the early 1980’s, a circus train stopped at a small train depot in our little town and unloaded, animals and all. My mom, Dolores Mosser, and my youngest brother were sitting right out in front and, needless to say, he went wild and my mom had an idea. Their morning entertainment prompted an idea that she would work on quietly for over 20 years until she read it to me over the phone one day in early 2006.
We invested in the talents and artistic creativity of Nathaniel P. Jensen.
Nathaniel took a pencil sketch to a master work of art. Then, he brings out the watercolor paints and brought them to life.
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Beginning sketches.....
Nathan really lifted the image off of the page.
He is a master of his craft.
Pencil to Watercolors....
Finished paintings to digital photographs....
.........and Alan Klemp to develop the beautiful artwork. Alan is our Graphic Artist and he has worked on thousands
of books. His guidance and experience was key to our success.
Digital photographs to graphic art. Can you catch all the places Alan added to the painting?
We didn’t have to look any further than my aunt, Brenda George, for the Educational Materials. She used her 35 years of Elementary education experience to work by helping with the story and developing our Activities Pages.
Finished book to Activities for the kids and a big Lesson Plan for parents and teachers. Yeah!!
The book was printed in Austin, Texas. That expense was paid for using proceeds from our small bank and a small section of farmland my mother and aunt were raised on. Our investment into Capital Printing covered their payroll for the last fiscal quarter of 2009. Our local investment resulted in paychecks going home from Fall 2009, through the Holiday Season and into 2010 New Year’s Eve, for over 40 employees and during the one of the worst economic year on record.
So, I do not take it lightly when I say; “This book is from over 60 years of tilled soil, the hard work and thoughtfulness of my family and friends, and the trust and faith in our local community.” It was our way to re-invest into a community that means so much to us and is a testament to what you can accomplish by investing in local industries and entrepreneurs. A Train Story was made in Texas and we could not be prouder of it.
Adrian Street is the name of the street where we were raised through elementary. A place where your imagination was our main entertainment and a place where you could do anything you set your mind to. And today, you can find A Train Story in Grand Central Station, NYC, the Slaton Bakery in Slaton, TX, bookstores, railroad and art museum gift shops like the Smithsonian’s Gift Store in Washington DC’s Union Station.
We are very proud of our first book and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
Thank you,
Kerry Mosser
Adrian Street Productions LLC
Kerry@ATrainStory.com