At last, Koen: Quills from the Raven’s Nest takes flight today, unfurling its dark wings and carrying readers into a tale of fate, defiance, and the shadows that bind us. This release marks not only the beginning of Koen’s struggle against the unseen hands of destiny, but also the opening of the Raven’s Nest itself—anContinue reading “Koen: Quills from the Raven’s Nest is here!”
Tag Archives: books
Koen’s release is amost here!
This is my last post before Koen: Quills from the Raven’s Nest releases on October 1. It’s hard to describe what this moment feels like, standing on this edge. Terror, exhilaration, sadness, joy, relief—it’s all there, tangled together. Will this book succeed or fail? I have a lot riding on it. It’s my first traditionallyContinue reading “Koen’s release is amost here!”
Koen and the Circle of Eight
The impetus for the journey in Koen: Quills from the Raven’s Nest is that the prince must cement peace between his father, the emperor, and the Circle of Eight of the Northlands. But who are these warlords, and why didn’t the emperor simply impose his will as he did across all of Lucardia? In theContinue reading “Koen and the Circle of Eight”
Interview with Grendel Press!
Every story begins with a spark. For me, it was a forgotten name in a 13th-century chronicle—Lucardis—an obscure figure accused of heresy and erased from history. That mystery became the seed for Lucardia, the dark, myth-steeped world at the heart of my writing. Recently, I had the chance to sit down with Grendel Press toContinue reading “Interview with Grendel Press!”
Relativity, Memory, and Twenty Years of Marriage
On a warm fall day, we took the train to Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei Province in China. It was only the second time I had been there; the first was for a medical checkup. The city bustled, strange and foreign —a blur —as we searched for our destination: the magistrate’s office. We were onContinue reading “Relativity, Memory, and Twenty Years of Marriage”
October 1 approaches: a three year journey
October 1 is coming, and with it the release of Koen: Quills from the Raven’s Nest. I’ve been sitting with this story for almost three years now, and to finally be able to share it feels surreal. It isn’t “just another book” for me—it’s a piece of my life, a rollercoaster, a soul that’s beenContinue reading “October 1 approaches: a three year journey”
Wrong Turns, Right Stories
Writing is a system of choices. That sounds simple, almost mechanical, but when you are in the thick of it, the simplicity disappears. Every word is a crossroad. Every pause is a possibility. Every decision branches into another, until a forest of paths stretches out behind you. Some lead to brilliance. Some lead to ruin.Continue reading “Wrong Turns, Right Stories”
Koen arises!
The journey began on January 27, 2023. As I worked through the first three books of the Absolution of the Morning Star (AMS) series, I felt compelled to explore the three-year disappearance of Prince Koen the Gray, the father of Erikson Gray, the protagonist of the AMS series. I finished the first draft on AugustContinue reading “Koen arises!”
Chasing ghosts
I don’t believe in ghosts — not in the flickering, sheet-draped sense of spirits rattling chains in the night. My rational mind resists that. And it’s not as if I didn’t conduct my own tests to arrive at my conclusions. Throughout my teens, I searched. I wandered into places that must surely have been haunted:Continue reading “Chasing ghosts”
A Million Words in Lucardia
When I first set foot in Lucardia, I never imagined I would still be walking its shadowed roads a million words later. The very first scene I wrote was simple, almost innocent: a rainbow-barked tree within a cave, sparkling in the sunlight pouring through a fissure. At the time, I thought I was sketching theContinue reading “A Million Words in Lucardia”
