Me as an author? It's more likely than you think!

6:00 PM on 10.24.2020 (server time)0

This is the most important blog I've ever written. All the other ones I've done here are but puddles of piss next to this mighty ocean of... lemonade or whatever.

While everything else was fun to write and helped me engage with this delightful community, this one is an announcement of significant weight. It's one I have been wanting to make for well over a year, but it hasn't made sense to do so until recently. I've done things, contacted people, set events in motion and made a distant dream come closer than ever to reality.

I've gotten some wonderful feedback from this community over the years. Blogs I'd start out being nervous about posting would get encouraging comments that'd give me the boost I needed to continue blogging, and with each little success I'd overcome a bit of self-doubt. It made me wonder if I was capable of telling whole stories. Could I really crack the secret of immersing people in a whole narrative?

In 2018, I gave it a shot. I wrote some stuff down, just a little bit each day. It's weird at first. Imposter syndrome is never stronger than when you try something new all by yourself. Without a teacher or mentor to guide you through the basics, there's this sensation that you're suddenly trying to live another person's life. No wonder some people never start. Then there's all the Youtube videos that are supposed to help new writers along, none of which are relevant at first because your primary concern is not if your character archetypes are a tad played out or if the POV you've chosen is right for your story; it's whether your writing makes any goddamn sense to people other than yourself. For all you know as a first timer, everything you've written is incomprehensible gibberish that won't even qualify as a story to those who read it. It's a silly fear, but a very real one.

Time has passed and lessons have been learned since then, and yeah, I think I might've cracked it. Back in April, I started an account over at Booksie.com and posted a bunch of things I'd written. This has since resulted in some pretty flattering comments, indicating that people out there enjoy the things that pop up in my head and move through my fingers. You can check out my account if you're curious to read some of my stuff yourself. Just beware that none of it has been through an editor and none of the novel-length stories are finished there.

There will soon be a better way to experience my writing, however. Next February, I'm planning to self-publish my first finished novel: Up Against Mooneye! It's a whole ride of a fantasy story about sorcerers, monkeys, mountains, conspiracies, flowers and underwater societies. Figured that'd be a good one to start with. The story is going through a proper editing process right now, and will receive a cover of professional quality soon enough.

As an author, I've gotten a pretty good sense of my strengths and weaknesses over the last two years. I'm not a natural wordsmith or an English major (it's not even my first language), but I try to make up for that with imagination and a sense of fun in everything I do. Fresh and flavourful is what I aim for, all while trying not to take myself too seriously, and it seems like that's working for people.

I don't know how hard the road ahead will be. I'm far from the only one in this game, and that competition will prove to be a challenge when it comes to finding an audience. Lots to learn about online branding and growth and all that before the day comes.

Until then, consider following me on Twitter. I'll follow you right back (within 24 hours)!

And thank you. Seriously. Without this site and this community, I'm not sure I would have dared to take all the steps required to get here. As far as I'm concerned, it all started on this site and among you guys.