About the Author, Ernest Meeder

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The author, having experienced the inhumanities man sometimes inflict on his fellow man,
has offered to donate the book royalties equal to $2.00 for each hard cover copy of the
"Death of the Phoenix" sold, to benefit abused and neglected children.
There are millions of children around the world who are the victims of neglect, and men's insatiable lust for power and wealth. They have no means of defending themselves and their lives are in the hands of those who have to courage and conviction to reach out and help them. I believe that it is the responsibility of each and everyone of us to assist them reach their ultimate potential.

I was born on the island of Ambon in the Moluccan Archipelago in present day Indonesia. At that time, before the second WW, it was a part of the Dutch East Indies. My father, an officer in the Royal Dutch Indian Army, was stationed in the colony. Many of the wartime events described in these books were personally experienced by my mother, my sister and me.
The first time I attended school was after I returned to Holland at the age of 10. When I was 19, I graduated with an engineering degree and promptly left and emigrated to Canada and thereafter to the US.
I have founded a number of corporations and am now retired in Florida. During my business life I have been awarded a number of US and foreign patents.

I have been asked many times why it took me so long before I wrote my first novel. I usually avoided the answer but I guess this is the time to tell the story ... well here goes.
When I was about 13, my classmates and I were told to write a short story. My language skills were poor, at best, but I had many stories to share. Being an introvert it was easier to write than to "tell". Well I wrote a story about something that I was familiar with.
The tale was about a jungle patrol which never returned to base as the members were one by one killed in booby-traps and ambushes. The day after I handed in the story, the teacher spent 40 minutes of the 50 minute period ridiculing me and accusing me of plagiarism. I had never heard the word plagiarism and did not know what he was talking about. It was a very painful experience to stand in front of the class and be made a fool of without understanding why. Well this made it clear to me that writing was not something I wanted to do again. Since that time I rarely read a novel and never again wrote a story. Much of my writing was limited to correspondence and instructional materials. This experience made it clear how our words and action effect our children and can change their lives permanently.
The "Spirit of the Shark" trilogy has messages hidden in the text. These are the author's thoughts and opinions that are relevant to the story. I am interested to know if you found any. Look for inconsistencies and small mistakes.

The "Spirit of the Shark", a trilogy, is my first attempt in writing a novel and. The Death of the Phoenix is the first book which will be published in March, 2009, with the "The Shark" volume 2 following in August, 2009 and the final volume "Liberation" in November, 2009.