
I thought I would tackle, in my own meandering way, some of the questions I’ve been hit up with recently regarding writing and, more specifically, my writing and books. I am not and don’t claim to be anything but what I am: a day-to-day writer who has managed to do pretty well (so far). So, if you’re looking for pearls of wisdom, you are reading the wrong blog.

First, a bit of background/ I’ve been putting pen to paper and fingers to keyboard as long as I can remember. I wrote my first novel at about the age of eighteen/nineteen on an old Royal manual typewriter. No, it wasn’t any good. Probably for the best that I have no idea what became of it. I did a fair number of free-lance newspaper articles, starting in the late 1980s, and received my first rejection letter (from Rolling Stone) in the early 1990s. Other than writing a Doctor Who movie review and penning a recurring newspaper technology column, most of my storytelling from the mid-90s through the early 2000s was oral — tales made up for my young kids. Some of those have found their way into written form and will be published starting next year.
What am I working on right now? I am just finishing the first round of editing on an early chapter book, King Pictairn, that is planned for release next January, starting the editing of another realistic/contemporary fiction novel, Brotherly Love, currently scheduled for release in November, and diving back into the first draft of Neil T. Jacobs’ new horror novel. And just writing that tires me out.
Am I an author or writer? Depends on who you ask. I am self-published when it comes to books, and the common term these days is indie author. But some folks only consider those people who are traditionally published (i.e., got an agent, the agent convinced a publishing house to publish their book) to be authors. Egos on both sides tend to come into play and I have seen/heard some heated discussions about the topic. Me, I'm not particularly concerned about it. Since I write music, lyrics, the occasional essay and poem, newspaper articles as well as books, writer seems to best suit me.
Where do story ideas come from? It depends. My first book, Rathcrog, is a dark horror novel. The impetus for it came from my wife. The story itself, from way down deep. I’ve always had very vivid dreams, generally of the dark persuasion. While Rathcrog doesn’t come from any specific dreams, it certainly touches upon various things that I keep buried way down deep. You can read a bit more about the novel’s background here.
My most recent novel, Lost and Found at Sun Market, as well as Brotherly Love (due out this November) and other, both written and planned, novels are both easy and more difficult to put into a genre box. Contemporary fiction is about as big a genre bucket as any out there and it's easy to get lost in the shuffle, so let’s call them realistic fiction involving life, love, and loss - the real world, but about ten degrees off kilter. They are all books that I could not have written in my twenties. Some things require extra living for perspective. The pleasure and the pain of living.
The kid lit stories and books that will start coming out in 2026 (starting with King Pictairn) are me channeling my inner (and sometimes not so inner) youngster. Some started life as ad hoc bedtime stories. All of my kids have taken great delight in putting me on the spot to make up stories right then and there. The results varied, obviously. A few were short, but others ended up becoming multi-week affairs that were added to night after night. The best of them will see the light of day but also require teaming with an illustrator since my drawing skills never progressed beyond stick people.
Why not stick to one genre? The common wisdom is to stick to one area and keep churning out books in that genre. Yeah, that probably would be the wise decision. But (a) I am not particularly known for taking advice, however good it is and (b) I write what I write because that is what I write. A circular statement, sure, but it doesn’t make it less true. I enjoy writing. It’s what I do. And when a story burbles up from the recesses of what I use in place of a soul, I write it. And if it is published, I simply hope that other folks get some enjoyment out of reading it.

Ever get writer’s block? If so, how do you get through it? Do you ever hear a distant scream coming from the direction of northern Massachusetts? That would be me when I hit a mental wall. It happens. I’m not a true full-time writer since my primary gig is as house spouse, chasing and shuttling a thirteen-year-old and various critters around. Sometimes when I haven’t been able to sit and work on whatever new book is in process, it takes a bit to get back into the right mindset. How do I get through it? I write whatever I can—music, lyrics, blog entries…anything to just keep writing, even if it never sees the light of day. Helps me refocus. Sometimes it takes longer than I’d like, but it works for me. Your mileage may vary.
Favorite genre(s) to write: Whatever I am working on at any given moment.
Favorite genre(s) to read: It has changed a bit over the years, but it is still safe to say that it

isn’t the genre so much as the story. I read a lot more sci-fi and fantasy in my early years than I do now and these days I often have a non-fiction book going simultaneously with some type of fiction. About the only category of book that I don’t recall reading in recent years is self-help. Fair to ascribe that to me being a lost cause versus any slur against those books.
I think that covers the biggest questions I have been asked of late. If y’all have any other specific or non-specific ones, including not directly writing related, feel free to drop a line on the blog or via email.
And as always, thanks for reading.
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