The Beginning

It began in a wheat field.

Well, that’s not true. It began in a Toyota pickup in the parking lot of a convenience store, circa 1987. But that’s neither romantic nor fun. So, let’s pretend it began in a wheat field. Yeah, let’s go with that.

I was 13 turns old, and I promised my mom I’d write a fantasy novel. And I did. It just took me a few decades longer than I thought it would. Because, as they say, life happened.

We were on our way to the Oregon Coast. We stopped at a little store on the way. She went inside, and I stayed in the car, reading. I even know what I was reading. It was Crewel Lye, A Caustic Yarn by Piers Anthony. Excluding Narnia and The Hobbit, I’d never read a fantasy book. I was mostly a science-fiction fan. When she came back, I had an idea about writing a novel about a fantasy country. When we got to the coast, I borrowed a lot of printer paper from my grandfather and drew a huge map of Delaria. I thought about it a lot, but I never wrote it. I wrote plays, songs, poems, short stories. Even a novella. But no novels.

And then one day, I realized my mom was getting older. Not to mention that I was, too. And I still hadn’t written that damned book. I mentioned it to her, and she went into her craft room and pulled out a folder. Inside it was the map of Delaria I’d made when I was 13.

Well, obviously, that was a clue that I needed to write the thing. So, I did.

And now it’s yours to read.