When I'm hard at work, it feels like everything slows down yet speeds up. I can't catch a breath yet all I'm aware of is just how my chest rises and falls. I sit on the edge of my seat and yet I'm perfectly calm. Writing, I'm still learning, is all about balancing paradoxes.

It's for this reason that I like to give myself ample time each day and specific goals to measure my progress. My phone and web browsers are heavy with tabs and spreadsheets tracking word counts, to-do lists, and little scatterbrain notes to help me stay on track. I'm currently in the middle of reworking this gnarling and tangled writing method but--for now--it's working for me.

Current Projects

Aussie & The Rescue League Book 1 Draft 4 (B1 D4)

Started in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Aussie & The Rescue League was originally called An Herbalist's Tale and clocked in at 72.4k words. The most recent draft is upwards of 130k words with significant improvements to character and plot design. This project took nearly five years for me to identify what the plot should look like despite the fact that the characters came easily to me. Plots are not as easy for me as characters are, it would seem. Regardless, D5 (the anticipated final draft) can expect to refine what D4 excels at while trimming down on word count and fatty prose. D5 is slated to begin in January '26 with an expected due date of April 31st.

Welark Wisp & Star Boy (WIP Title) Book 1 Draft 1 (B1 D1)

This story is still very early material. While Welark's character, Alkor's character, and Alkor's narrative arc came to me very naturally, Welark's main plot design still eludes me. He remains an interesting character with a compelling origin story, but I am having trouble finding a set of problems that both speaks to him and myself. I suspect I will solve these issues in D2. Currently, D1 weighs around 100.8k words and features three major character-centric plots. I am currently of the mindset that I will be minimizing one of these plots (belonging to Kala Kezerek) to a more supporting role in the next draft.

The Matchstick (WIP Title) Book 1 Draft 1 (B1 D1)

My current project, and estimated to be completed by Dec. 31st, '25, Matchstick revolves around the matchmaker Viktor Dutel and his efforts to get two feuding royals to fall in love. The story was originally pitched as a fantasy-based rom-com, but I am not very well versed in writing rom-coms. I suspect that these threads are things I can bring out later in subsequent drafts. My goal for this draft is to get it to around 80k words. It is aimed primarily at fantasy-enthusiasts, but I am hoping that the romantic qualities present will charm wider audiences.

The Oglethorpe Academy of Magical Arts Book 1 Draft 1 (B1 D1)

This was a NaNoWriMo piece that I worked on shortly after returning from the Peace Corps in '22. That November, desperate to figure out what I was doing with my life, I took a month off work and traveled to visit friends and family in what would become probably my least pleasant trip to date. Regardless, I took Oglethorpe on the road with me and wrote about a bunch of skateboarding and GameBoy™ rocking mages in the Y2K era. The story is set in Savannah, GA because I want there to be more fun and charming fantasy stories like Harry Potter that are set in the American Southeast. I've not worked on the draft since the end of NaNoWriMo, but I have ideas of how I'd revamp it. I'm looking to do D2 sometime next year after completing Welark.

Future Projects

Aussie & The Rescue League Book 2 Draft 2 (B2 D2)

This project was relatively simple and straightforward to produce even though I wrote it in between B1 D3-D4 in the summer of '24. Clocking in a little over 100k words, it's still not quite complete. I haven't written the end of the 3rd act though I have plenty of notes and ideas of what is going to happen. Regardless, the project simply required that I reach 100k words and helped me when revising B1 for D4. I suspect much will change in between B2 D1-D2 including tossing entire plot devices and certain sequences, but I am absolutely committed to three major events in the narrative. The characters here were easy to write as well as their voices had already been settled matters in B1 D2. I'm not sure when I'll begin work on D2 but it will at least be after D2 of Welark B1.

Ganimore (Unnamed Project) Book 1 Draft 1 (B1 D1)

I have a set of characters starting to take shape for this story. This one has the feeling of a "main" story much like Aussie and Welark. At this stage, it is mostly a set of impressions and daydreams, but I get the feeling that this project will be much longer than anything I've attempted previously. Inspired by the design of Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series, I am thinking of adopting his trilogy style approach to designing these plots, though I am tinkering with the concept of time-travel writing. One thing I would ideally like to accomplish in this story is telling three sets of intertwining stories at different points in time (i.e. Medieval, Modern, Future). This project is still so early that I haven't even settled on character names yet. No ETAs for when this is slated to begin, but I don't think by the middle to end of '27 is unrealistic.