EVOLUTION

Artists and writers and their careers are historically marked by distinct periods or phases. Some greater than others, some just wildly experimental. It's a necessary form of evolution to avoid creative stagnation. Perhaps it is a search for a voice or a style that clicks with the masses. For me it is a blend of both. My "Blood and Shadows" period (2011-2015) held me enthralled in a midnight world of vampires and elegance, and produced five books. I experimented with short horror/sci fi tales in the summer and fall of 2015, inspired by my lifelong love for the genre, and to appeal to quick-attention-span readers in our so-fast modern world. This was my experimental "Dreadfuls" phase, produced three more books, and also served as a bridge to carry me away from vampires and into a fresh new writing frame of mind. I feel stronger and more energized than ever. My latest projects swept me through 2016, two adventure-fantasy novels with a character that made every new page more fun and exciting to write than the one before. They are as yet unpublished, my secret weapons for 2017, but I can't wait to share them with the world. I plunged into them using a first-person narrative, something I'd never done before, and found it wildly liberating and crazy fun. I'm still only in the beginning of this new phase, and I'm enjoying writing in a wonderful new way. For now I'm calling this my "Max" period, and only time will tell how long it will last. Each distinct period of my writing has taken me to thrilling places and given life to unforgettable characters, characters I will forever cherish, and even as I revel in the now I wonder where the muses might take me next.