I have been a writer since I started reading. I love building new worlds and stories. The experience of writing is the closest thing we can come to magic in our world.
What I Write
I started off wanting to write Epic Fantasy. Books like The Lord of the Rings and the series The Belgariad were foundational to my reading experience. I wanted to craft whole new worlds. To build them up from the shimmering sparks of imagination that filled my mind.
Science Fiction was a close second love because I was always the science kid at school. I took every science class offered and then did extra credit. The hard science fiction of Asimov combined with Clarke and Heinlein was the foundation here. From there I ventured into other worlds and thought spaces that inspired me.
Horror was a later ingredient to the mix. I didn’t know I was a horror writer until I was taking a writing class and did an in-class writing prompt exercise (the prompt was CARNIVAL) that made everyone in the class shiver… a new love was born.
My stories tend to be mix of either fantasy or science fiction with horror. I especially love to create stories that instill creeping dread.
My style is more fast-paced and trimmed than many of the works that inspired me. I like to write stories that move quickly – leaning towards a thriller pace – than traditional fantasy or science fiction. I hold writers like Stephen King and Neil Gaiman up as masters of the art and aspire to be as concise and evocative as they are. I still love deep and multi-layered world building though. I want to present the reader with a story that is compelling in a world they want to come back to over and over again.
What I Read
Here is a list of some of my favorite things:
The Dresden Files – Jim Butcher
The Dark Tower series – King
Stardust – Neil Gaiman
Starship Troopers – Heinlein
Dune – Herbert
The Fifth Season – N.K. Jemisin
The Lady Astronaut series – Mary Robinette Kowal
In general, I like faster paced stories these days. Ones that don’t spend copious amounts of time describing things but instead trust the reader to fill in the blanks with whatever makes the most sense to them.
Resources
Elise Volkman – https://writersblocksolutions.ca/ is an excellent editor who provides detailed and tailored feedback. I especially like working with them on story structure and refinement.
The Creative Academy – https://creativeacademyforwriters.com/ is an excellent community for writers of all stages of the writing lifecycle from stary-eyed newbies to those jaded old scribes who need a pick-me-up. Check out the character building stuff by Eileen Cook – its transformative.
Mary Robinette Kowal – https://maryrobinettekowal.com/ is one of the most thoughtful and detailed oriented writers I have ever met. Their insights into the craft have been revolutionary for me.
Surrey International Writer’s Conference – https://www.siwc.ca/ – this is the best craft-oriented conference in the world. I attend every year and love it every time. If you attend, I recommend SIWC IDOL, anything by Mary Robinette Kowal, Eileen Cook, Crystal Hunt, and Naomi Davis.