Thought-Drive

 I have an update, if brief.  This cover comprises the best collaboration between my artist and I thus far. I imagined this situation about a decade ago. I didn't realize it was unrealistic at the time, but what I wanted was for the artist to read the work to develop a conversation, from which would come an image that would benefit from their creativity and their intimate understanding. To his credit, he did start my first book, which is more than I could probably ask for. But we did have that conversation. I substituted his reading with my explaining, themes, metaphors, allusions, foreshadowing. He did have questions. He did go away and come back and the sketch brought to light some of the perspectives I wasn't considering, which is really all I wanted the whole time. So, the work continues.  I'm also writing this because not everyone has platforms, and I think it is important to speak for the better, no matter how tall ours may be. A friend brought this to my attention,

 A while back, years, I explained how my first book series came about. At least, I think I did. Eight books were the result of a process set purely on following the story. I didn't so much have an outline as events I anticipated from various protagonists pursuing their wants. A mentor once told me to progress a story all one has to do is move a character closer or farther away from their goal. This contraction and expansion idea has become a bit more complex and nuanced over the years, but in the beginning that's all it was for me. That's how I ended up with eight books. After the first book, it made the most narrative sense for the characters to go in different physical directions. I was not so much energetic as curious, so I followed along. Those three books gained sequels of their own, before things bent back on themselves narratively and wrapped up with the eighth book. When it came time to release them, I did not have the luxury of choosing to put them out simultaneous

 In 2007, I was gifted my first glut of free mental space in years. I had graduated college, and before all the stresses of adult life had fully taken root, I reveled in the freedom from all the stressors of college life. I hung out a lot at a new friend's rented home. I say new because these were not the people I had met in college; these were my first post-college friends. Eventually, upon sharing present and past interests, I was introduced to a supernatural show that "everyone" had seen and "thought was awesome." I never had, but with the entire box set being pushed at me, I eventually relented and started watching them. I ended up in a place that was very reminiscent of where I was in 2000, when I started a journey through what I called the door-stop fantasy novels: brick-shaped, popular fantasy series that were very popular at the time, the kinds of things that have become very popular television shows in the past decade. At the time, in 2000, the foremost

 Facebook informs me I haven't posted to my page in a while. That must mean it's been an extra long while.  I haven't done a good job juggling my online presence. For a bit there, I was using Instagram about once week, definitely once every other week. I felt good about that, and really good that I can't completely recall all the work I've posted there. I saw an interview once with a navy S.E.A.L. about the work and the rigor, and he explained that looking far down the road can make the task seem overwhelming, so his advice was instead to focus only on the next step. Then the next step. Then the next. I like it, but maybe I agree because it fits my process.  Speaking of, I had a conversation with my cover artist, and that went really productively. I continue to be amazed at his progress. He told me talking things out with his clients helped him develop ideas in his mind. I told him I wanted to do whatever I could to take advantage of the energy I saw in some of his

The cover came in this week, and the fact of the matter is I was not ready. So, in lieu of putting down my thoughts about how all of that is going, I will instead be elsewhere, making it go.