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How do you find time to write? That’s one of the most common questions I get from family, friends, and fans of The Black Lens. It’s a crucial question, especially since my wife and I are both working from home full time with three children under the age of six in a small Ohio home. Each day, we must somehow balance our own jobs while home schooling, changing dirty diapers, and trying to keep our house at least somewhat clean. I don’t have time to [...]

  Writer’s Digest just agreed to publish my third article in the 100th anniversary edition of their magazine, which reaches about 70,000 subscribers across the country. My article will appear in the November/December issue, specifically in the regular IndieLab column that follows trends in the self-publishing business. This article focuses on my experience conducting journalistic research for both The Black Lens and my upcoming novel, Real Girl, which my agent is currently pitching to publishers. Here's just a brief overview of the piece: Too many [...]

  After more than three years of writing, editing and pitching my new novel, literary agent Paula Munier has agreed to represent my work to traditional publishers based in New York City. Paula is a senior agent at Talcott Notch Literary, an agency that has an impressive list of bestsellers with the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today and Amazon. She has worked at Talcott since 2012 and is also a USA Today-bestselling author of the Mercy Carr Mystery series. I met Paula [...]

My new novel just advanced to a Top 25 finalist in the 2020 Launch Pad Manuscript Competition. Now in its third year, this manuscript competition searches for the most impressive, cinematic and captivating prose from emerging writers. It has resulted in over 40 projects set up and 12 books published in collaboration with Inkshares. The winners will be announced July 16. Set in a near future Midwest city, REAL GIRL is about a lifelike robot who tries to escape from an augmented reality competition where [...]

My new novel, REAL GIRL, just became a finalist in the 2020 Launch Pad Manuscript Competition. The Launch Pad Competitions have led to more than 450 signings, 164 projects set up, 68 writers staffed, seven bidding wars, and 156 appearances on annual "best of" lists. That includes the Black List, Blood List, Hit List, and the Young & Hungry List. Now in its third year, this specific manuscript competition searches for the most impressive, cinematic and captivating prose from emerging writers. It has resulted in [...]

  Writer’s Digest just published my second article in their magazine, which reaches about 70,000 subscribers across the country. The article appears in their regular IndieLab column that follows trends in the self-publishing business. It focuses on my experience creating successful media kits for The Black Lens novel: "Indie authors often spend more time publishing their book than they do promoting it. But if you want to sell copies to more than just family and friends, you must rely on others to spread the word. [...]

I just participated in my first interview with NPR on our local All Sides with Ann Fisher radio show. All Sides is a two-hour, daily public-affairs talk show designed to touch upon all sides of the issues and events that shape life in Central Ohio. This interview focused on my work as a board member of She Has A Name educating men arrested for soliciting sex through an innovative "John School" program. Ann Fisher interviewed myself and two other abolitionists from the local anti-trafficking community: [...]

My new novel just beat out more than 1,000 other books to become a quarterfinalist in the ScreenCraft Cinematic Book Competition. This unique literary contest seeks book manuscripts with cinematic adaptation potential. Literary agents from The Gersh Agency, United Talent Agency and 3 Arts Entertainment selected 100 quarterfinalists from over 1,200 submissions. While Real Girl did not advance to the next round, I am really encouraged that my still unpublished science fiction thriller even made it into their top 10 percent of books. It also [...]

I just received some of the most encouraging feedback yet on my new novel, Real Girl. Literary agent Paula Munier reviewed my query letter and first chapter as part of the Writer's Digest University Literary Agent Boot Camp. Paula provided some excellent edits, along with this overall assessment of my science fiction thriller about a lifelike robot who tries to escape from an augmented reality competition where people can hunt and kill her for sport: "I have every confidence you will find representation," Paula wrote. [...]

This summer, I climbed two 14,000-foot mountains in Colorado with my longtime friend and fellow writer Jon Anderegg. While hiking Mt. Elbert and Mt. Massive, I discovered several similarities between what my feet were doing on the trail and what my hands do each day on the keyboard. I hope this post encourages any author who has decided to embark on this long journey we call writing. 1. Don’t do it alone: While you could hike 14,000 feet by yourself, it can be dangerous (and [...]