Once again, it has been a long while since I have blogged and once again, I am vowing to try to do so on a more consistent basis. But just because I haven’t blogged in a while doesn’t mean I haven’t been writing—I most certainly have as writing continues to be a big part of my life. In the last two years, I have treaded into the world of horror fiction, writing two horror shorts that were included in the 2020 and 2021 horror anthologies published by Tell-Tale Publishing. It’s never been my goal to be a horror writer, but I knew that Tell-Tale has an annual horror anthology released at Halloween, and I wanted to challenge myself to try to write something different. Turns out, writing horror fiction is a blast, and I plan to continue to write short horror stories—someday even a novel.
Separate from writing horror fiction, I’ve been working these last couple of years on re-writes and edits of two middle grade/young adult novels I have coming out, both anticipated for 2022. The first is Tripp Unleashed, for which my publisher just revealed a very cool cover. That coming of age, strange superhero origin story will be out early in the new year. A little later will finally be the third book in my Last Princess Of Latara series, a magical fantasy filled with epic battles and non-stop adventure, once again for middle grade readers and young adults.
So, I’ve been busy as a writer, which is the fun part of being an author. The really hard part is getting your work out to readers and that’s where it becomes essential to keep up outreach, like maintaining this website, which I have utterly failed at in recent years. But going forward, I am vowing to not only keep this website up to date but also to really work at getting my novels out to readers. I really do believe the young readers in your lives will enjoy the stories I’ve written, including my pirate series, Pirate’s Calling, an historical fantasy pirate story weaving fictional and historical pirates into a fun time-traveling adventure.
That said, I thought I would take a moment to talk about why I enjoy writing, and to offer to you that you might enjoy it as well—and that anyone can do it. Anyone who knows me knows that truly believe writing is a craft that can be learned—not a God-given talent. It’s a skill you have to develop through time and practice, but anyone can do it. If you feel you have a story to tell, then do it, and try to quiet any voice in your head that tells you you’re not good enough—because you are. I consider myself still a student of writing, and I have a lot to learn as I am far from perfect—but writing brings me a sense of satisfaction and joy. Building a world and characters through words and creating a story that hopefully will bring joy to others makes writing a wonderful endeavor. And that’s why I do it. I do it, in part, because it’s just fun, and I do it because I want to bring some enjoyment to readers—and maybe in some small way inspire them to tell their stories.
Some people have asked my why I don’t write more serious novels. Why do I focus on fantasy? I guess it comes down to personal taste. Look, I like reading Star Wars novels and growing up I loved Lord of the Rings. I also loved reading comic books—yes, I am both a DC and Marvel nerd. But, that’s okay. It’s who I am. And, it’s what I like to write. I enjoy reading action and adventure stories with epic battles and good versus evil, so that is what I like to write. Who knows, maybe some day I might write something else, but right now, I am ready to turn my attention to a science fiction novel—and I have this great desire to write a young adult Western, even if that’s what the book market today is screaming for. As a writer, you have to be true to yourself, and that is what I try to do.
Anyway, I’ve rambled on enough in this my first blog in a very long time. If you take anything from this, just know that writing is hard and time consuming, but more than that it is fun. If you think you might enjoy it, give it a try—and go easy on yourself. And if you don’t want to write, just do what brings you joy. I would suggest, however, that reading is one activity that could bring you joy if you are not already a reader. But, if you’ve hung in there this long with this long blog, then you probably are a reader.
I wish you all the best, and I welcome you back to my website.