So from what I understand of these things I am supposed to sit down and talk about my “process” and “where the idea came from”.  I feel like those are worthwhile ideas on which to speak, but I will save them for a later date.  For this – my first – blog post, I will speak briefly about pressing “go”.

I have enjoyed writing and telling stories for years.  There is just something awesome about the creativity I can bring to bear on such ideas.  I need a character who drags his left leg as he walks down the street.  Why does he drag his left leg?  Is it completely dead?  Does he have a cane?  I love figuring out all of those fundamental parts.  It’s just enjoyable to me.

In November of 2011, I sat down and wrote the first draft of a Grenheim’s Thorn.  It was part of the absolute chaos and fun that is National Novel Writing Month.  50,000 words in 30 days.  It’s pretty mental.  But in 2011 (my second attempt at NNWM), I was successful.  I won.  I finished my first draft on the 29th of November.  It was more than a little shocking to me.  I had my lovely wife give it a read, and she pointed out some critical (a topic for another blog entry) issues.  But she also pointed out that there was a decent story. So I continued polishing.  I approached a few friends and they gave my book a decent review.  Yes, there was work to be done, but it was certainly decent.

I will save you from having to read the full story of how my book came to be.  Needless to day, it took way longer than I thought it would and there was a great deal more work than I could’ve ever imagined.

The night I pressed “go”, to publish my story on Amazon was somewhat surreal.  I had to decide if I wanted to deal with potentially noone reading my book, or even liking the story.  At the end of the day, what’s the point of sitting on the sidelines? Go big or go home.  Risk the strike-out for the chance at a homerun.

So there it was, my book was available to the masses.  Good, bad or other, my book is there.  I hope that people read it.  I hope they like it.  I hope that people adore my storytelling and world-building.  And if they don’t I hope that they find something to like about my story.

— CL