2024 June 16
Father's Day
Two months after I published my novel, Barry Maddox was taken from us. His passing radically altered the lives of my family; in the aftermath, we pulled together and did our best to handle all of the responsibilities he had so diligently shouldered. In doing so, I haven’t put pen to paper or really done anything to further my writing career/hobby/whatever since then, despite the incredible support of family and friends.
And then came today. This is my first Father’s Day without the man it’s supposed to be honoring. He always encouraged and supported me in everything I did, and I’ll be eternally grateful that he got to hold my book in his hands. It would’ve never happened without him.
So it’s time to get back at it. Happy Father’s Day, Dad. Love you more than the world can hold.
2023 September 28
The Journal Begins
Congratulations! You've discovered my website, whether by happenstance or by me demanding you check it out. Take a moment to cherish this occasion.
Okay, enough cherishing. Let's get on with it.
There's a scene from Mad Men that's stuck with me over the years. A slice of a scene, really, so for brevity's sake I won't recount a bunch of plot detail. The relevant bit involves Roger Stirling (played by John Slattery) making the observation, "I guarantee you that in the bottom drawer of every desk in this place is the first ten pages of a novel."
He might as well have panned to the camera and said, "HINT. HINT."
The bottom drawer of my desk did indeed contain the beginnings of a novel. It had been kicking around in there for more years than I'd like to admit. Life got in the way, writer's block set in; you know how it goes. But finally, in August 2022, I decided I would finish it come hell or high water, even if that meant typing out, "and then, you know what, an asteroid crashed into Earth and everyone died so there's no more book THE END."
Luckily for my sanity (and for this fictional Earth) it didn't come to that. I made life squeeze to the side, I valiantly fought through writer's block, and decided two self-gratifying metaphors was probably enough for my first post. The important part is now here we are: a finished book, available in e-format and actual, physical paper.
On a serious note, I want to thank my family and friends for believing in me during this whole writing and editing process. I couldn't have done it without y'all, and I wouldn't be making this silly little blog post without your support.
Maybe that's what Mech-9, Monolith, and Riotmaker, and all the other supervillains in Today, the City truly needed. Someone to believe in them.
Or maybe they truly needed to knock over every bank in town. Guess you'll just have to read it to find out!