It’s hard to believe it was over twenty years ago that it began, though one could argue it began even longer ago than that when I wrote my first story at age seven and had my “books” passed around by friends in school. Coming out of college and adrift in the world not long after the turn of the millennium, I wrote a lot of crap. The type of stuff any writer needs to write before they’re really a writer, ya know? But, hey, I thought I knew it all, and this stuff needed to be out there in the world. I fell victim to self-publishing through what were essentially predatory vanity presses, and ended up paying way too much at the time for their so-called and ultimately worthless services. Looking back on this period, I can’t believe I fell for it, especially since I was close to broke at the time. But I was young and foolish. The books that were released were dogs. I mean, I’m glad I wrote them to develop my style and figure out what didn’t work, but they were not ready to be published. Not even close.
Years went on, and I dived into short story writing. When Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) first arrived on the scene, I tried to start my own digital literary magazine and published three issues featuring stories by myself and others. It never really took off, but it was a noble experiment, and I was most proud of publishing the quality work of other independent writers. Some of my own stories, in turn, placed in a few contests and were published in anthologies or other now defunct literary magazines. During this time, I also completed a long-gestating novel that was born from my many trips to Upstate New York and fascination with the Great Depression. I sat on the completed manuscript for over three years, not knowing what to do with it or if it would ever see the light of day.
In 2018, our son was born. While on parental leave, sleep deprived and high on the hopes that new parenthood brings, I got the crazy idea to dust off that old manuscript, go rogue, and just put it out there. After all, KDP let you do it for free! It had already been edited by a well-read teacher friend, so my wife and I did final read-throughs. My wife also graciously used her former marketing skills to design a simple but striking cover. So, there I was, after celebrating the arrival of a real baby in my life, putting out my book baby to the world. Looking back, I don’t understand how we were able to find the time to do this with a new baby! But we did. It was the dawn of new era in more ways than one.
That book baby was Then Came Darkness, and it’s been like the little engine that could, still finding new readers each year. For all the research I did to write it, for how long it took to get out there, and for the fact I finally published it on a whim after the birth of our son, it will probably always be my sentimental favorite. One reviewer called it “The Grapes of Wrath…only creepier…and with more murder!” – a quote I will forever cherish. I always liked to think of it as “The Little Rascals Go to Hell.”
Following that, I released two thematically linked short story collections (And Then We Vanish and When We Come Back) curated from over a decade of work both previously published and not, for which I hired a professional cover designer. Like my novel, these collections continue to find new readers as the years go on, and I am very proud of the positive responses they have received.
I now have a forthcoming novel, due out in the summer of 2024, which started out pre-pandemic as the “murder that rocks a small town” novel I always dreamed of writing, but then virulently evolved into some kind of “in the moment mosaic” time capsule of contemporary life and traumas during the lockdown. But still with the murder, of course. It’s probably my most personal work, and I’m honestly a little scared putting this one out there in the world. For this, I hired a professional editor, formatter, and cover designer. I’ve learned over these past six years the importance of leveraging other well-vetted independent professionals to ensure high levels of quality, as well as the importance of developing a community of authors, artists and readers on social media who talk openly about craft, the business of publishing, and support traditional and indie authors on their journeys.
I’m not sure why I wrote this other than to say, this has been my journey as an independent author thus far. I’m also not sure where my journey will take me next. After the launch of the new novel, I plan to take a rest. Disappear again into short story writing for a while. I’ve learned a lot over the many years, buy by no means do I know it all. While each author’s journey is unique, we’re also wise to take note of the similarities more than the differences.
If you’re reading this, I hope you can take something away from the sharing of my journey. Or maybe I learned something from you in the past, and you’re simply learning a little bit more about me.
And just maybe, if I’m lucky, you found something else of mine to read.
The Schleicher Spin 