When and why did you begin writing?

Books are something I’ve loved for a long time, the stories, the literature, the way the letters look on the page. That lead to me finally starting to write about three years ago. I’ve always wanted to write a book before I died, but I kept pushing it off, year after year. But one day, I said, “screw it,” sat down and began writing.

What is the most important thing that people DON’T know about your subject/genre that they need to know?

Not everything has to be about the gods of the past, and not every monstrosity that lurks behind the veil of reality has to have tentacles.

What have you written so far?

I’ve written over a hundred short stories and novellas, but I did not start sending them out until 2015. Four are published (two via Shoggoth.net, and another two through Crimson Streets), and seven of them were released in my debut book, The Stone Man and Other Weird Tales, that recently released in November 2016.

Do you work to an outline or plot sketch, or do you prefer to let a general idea guide your writing?

It really depends on the story itself. Sometimes I will get an idea for a story, then it will just unravel without much work in my head. I will write that down, and when I go to actually write the story out on the computer, it’s already there for me. But other times, I will just get one scene and during the writing process, the story will tell itself (though, it doesn’t always end up great, or even good).

Usually the former has worked better than the latter for me.

What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

First your first draft without revising. I know you will think it’s bad because it probably is. All first drafts almost always are bad. But through countless revisions and edits, the story takes form into something not as bad, or in a best case scenario, something good or great.

Can you share with readers a little bit about your latest book?

The Stone Man and Other Weird Tales is a collection of seven short stories, consisting of weird fiction, Lovecraftian, and plain horror.

My favorite story out of it is, “The Stone Man,” in which a professor of geology stumbles onto something more than just stacked stones in his town’s river, and meets a homeless man who possesses otherworldly knowledge.

Although, “Hugo The Clown” is a close runner-up. It’s about a child performer in the suburbs who’s trying to open up a decayed portal to an unknown world in his basement with life force he’s stolen from the children he once entertained.

What was the hardest thing about writing your latest book?

The countless revisions. I revised the entire book several times through, then had beta readers go through it. One particular reader had so many critiques, I felt like I was back to square one. However, I am very thankful for his feedback, it really helped made the stories much better.

What is your next project?

I’ve just started going through the queue of stories I’ve saved over the last year for my second collection. It will be at least be double the length of The Stone Man and Other Weird Tales.

I would like to have it out in July, but nothing is set in stone just yet.

Who are some of your favorite authors that you feel were influential in your work?

A huge inspiration, obviously, is H.P. Lovecraft. But there are many others like A.A. Merritt, Ray Bradbury, Jack London, Robert E. Howard, Stephen King, and William Hope Hodgson.

If you couldn’t be an author, what would your ideal career be?

If there was some type of career that allowed me to hike forests in different locations across the world, that would be something I would love to do as well.  

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