I write fiction because there is nothing in the pages of my books that will ever hurt a person. You won’t come across any of my denizens of darkness, nor will your soul ever be in peril. What I produce through my stories are special effects that are seen through my words. My imagery, if my descriptions are written well enough, become your fantasy and I truly hope you are as immersed in each page as if you were there.

I draw inspiration from many sources.

Having grown up on such classics as Elvira’s Movie Macabre and Ray Adam’s Friday Fright night.  I have watched the work of Boris Karloff, studied the great Vincent Price and delved deep into hundreds of ‘B’ movies over the decades, and in doing so, I’ve discovered a place where I truly belong; no longer behind the story, watching, but on the other side, creating.

There is no greater inspiration, however, than from the world around us.

Music. Nature. The Discovery Channel. WIBW NEWS. CNN. War. Politics…

The true horror lies in the world around us. Only, most of us are numb to the atrocities that we see every day. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not preaching. I don’t have statistical facts in front of me. I only have my own experience, based on several years of activity with those around me.

Think about it. How many people do you know who are passionate with a cause; whether politics, war, (or peace), our rights as citizens and as people, religion, against (or for) GMO foods…

Are you surrounded by your brethren of beliefs? Or, are you one in a few?

My personal experience; I personally know one person who is passionate about his beliefs in religion, government and about his (as well as our) basic rights. He is the only person I have had constant contact with, from a large group of people, who isn’t numb.

Everyone else is what we would consider as ‘just a normal person, like you or me.’

Have you heard that phrase?

These are the people you know that talk about their family, their homes, cars and hobbies.  These are the guys and gals who you make small talk with around the water cooler, about anything and nothing at all.  They smile at you in greeting.  They wave goodbye.  They could be your family, they might be your friends and you know that you can always count on them to be ‘there’ in your everyday routine.

These others?  They follow current news, but, they aren’t passionate with it.  When you sit down with them, they might talk your entire break away about one or two issues.  They believe in what they are sharing with you and they either trust you enough TO share, or they don’t really care what you think and are going to push their ideals at or onto you.

Okay, that’s a whole other discussion there, but I won’t get into that for now.  What I want to express is my thoughts on how these people aren’t numb to the horrors around us.  They see it.  They embrace it and they want you to know about it.  Kind of a little like what I’m doing here.  I, however, don’t want you to follow anything with this, other than a simple idea.

For me, there’s nothing scarier than the world around us.  It’s tangible.  It’s real, and it’s a sonofabitch.

There’s no margin for error.  There is no forgiveness for what is done.  We can only live in the best way that we know how and try to make the world a better place, the best way we know how.  (And the problem with that, is that there is no common agreement as to how we should go about it.  Everyone has their own ideas, whether its an individual pressing his/her ideals, or a group pushing theirs, there is no one practice we all follow.)

Robberies, theft, murder on any count, religious fanaticism, political fanaticism, terrorism, car-jackings, home invasions, fatal accidents, (or non-fatal, but paralyzing accidents…

The list goes on.  I’m sure you might have thought of some things of your own as you were reading this.

The world is chocked FULL of horror.

I draw a lot of inspiration from the previous works of others, but my stories would have no emotion in them if it was only about this character doing that mission.  The real world is full enough sadness and sorrow that if I can draw just enough of it into my work, THIS, is where I believe the frights are made.

My faithful reader will know what I’m talking about here.  It’s not about rewriting stories that have already been done.  No, it’s about creating something new that will live on in your dreams and nightmares.  It’s about putting an emotion into you, the reader, that will bring you to laughter or tears.  (Or, if I do it right; screams, late, late at night!)

I love to write, yes, but I love to tell a story even more.  And a good story is memorable. A great story is immortal.

Will you remember me, if I recreate the same old shtick that has reused over the years? I will remember you, if YOU do!

If you know me in person; you know that I don’t have a strong passion for politics.  I could care less.  If we’ve sat together over a cup of coffee, you know that I’m not going to shake my finger at you for a few swears and suggest more time at church.  That’s not my thing.  I won’t talk about our rights, unless I believe enough in what you’re saying to agree.

But this doesn’t mean I don’t care either.  It affects me when children go missing.  I’m saddened when I hear about ‘x’ number of people who were killed while doing something that should be safe; such as going to a movie.  I’m frustrated when I see so many things going wrong around us, but my heart isn’t in trying to change these things by actions alone.

My love lies in writing and this is how I choose to express myself.  I write fiction, but I hope to do so well enough to channel real emotion into my creations.  It’s that spark of life that makes a writer into an author (and yes, I know how that looks.  Maybe someday I’ll share my thoughts on the difference between the two…if you’re interested.)

*deep breath*

What a long and seemingly directionless rant.  If you find yourself here, I thank you.  I had a purpose when I started.  I believe I followed through with it to the end.  And, I truly hope you enjoyed/hated/don’t care enough of this post to have reached this point.

Because any of the three means that my work is still being read, and as you might or might not know; if my work continues to be read, then I can call it a job well done.

(coming soon; She Has A Pretty Face Though (Part XXV) & The Box (Part VII)