The Monster of Monroe Bay
It’s a book about vampires who kill humans, and humans who kill vampires. What more do you need?
Justice
A psuedo demon, a desperate wanderer, and a pact built on vengeance and mayhem. What could possibly go wrong?
My Creative Process
Brainstorm
Before I dream, write, or make any move to turn an idea into a novel I’ll usually spend days, sometimes even weeks, thinking over an idea. Sometimes I’ll have a vague idea of a situation. Other times I have the idea for a character and a world almost instantly. Monroe Bay went from idea to fully fleshed out world in a matter of days, although the world looks much different now that I’ve essentially rewritten the entire story from scratch. And finally, I’ve had at least one or two story ideas come to me in my dreams, which is a very strange, and frankly unnerving, way to find inspiration.
Dream
I daydream. Like, a lot. My mind is always racing. I realized early in my adult life that imagining being a uniquely powerful spell-casting vampire is a lot more fun that obsessing over important decisions or past mistakes, Basically, if my mind is going to be running at Mach 5 19 hours a day, might as well give it something fun to run on. Almost every book idea I have was once or is still a daydream, but not every daydream becomes a book idea. Beyond intellectual property concerns (I spent a lot of time creating an awesome X-men storyline that will never see the light of day), there’s also the simple realization that not everything I think of on the fly is interesting or appropriate for public consumption.
Write
In the past, I tended to write in bits and pieces. Monroe Bay is, to date, the only book I’ve finished; it took a very long time. While writing, I was often working long hours and 7 day weeks, two things I’ll likely never do again. Eventually I decided to make it my New Years resolution to write at least 10 minutes every day. I kept track using hash marks and usually wrote in 5 minute increments when my boss wasn’t looking. Finally, during a routine training trip to Atlanta I found inspiration from an Army Ranger and a Snoop Dogg concert, and I brought the last quarter of Monroe Bay from notes and summary to a fully fleshed out novel in about a month.
Continuous Revision
The final draft of the Monster of Monroe Bay is nothing like the original, which was dreamt up years before. For example, one of the main antagonists was originally a mentor before I changed course. This process leads to most of the changes happening while I’m writing. Once the writing is done, though, I feel it’s important to read the book once in its entirety. I also use a professional proofreader. I know not everyone can afford this, but I find it hard to take guidance from supporters to heart. I don’t think I have a friend who would tell me if my writing is trash and, at any rate, they’re far more familiar with my voice than a stranger. Since strangers make up the majority of my target audience, it seems reasonable to have one read my book.
Connect with Me Today
I’d love to hear from you! Share your thoughts, questions, or just say hi.