Most fantasy settings draw on real world history, popular folklore, and ancients legends to inspire their worldbuilding. While many authors focus on these more fantastical elements, I find a certain joy in grounding my worldbuilding with realism. Focusing on the small details of historical life creates immersion and increases the contrast between the ordinary and the extraordinary. Fantasy, in general, tends to be light on historical accuracy, so I've spent a great deal of time trying to be...

Last month, I received a strange email. A reader reached out to ask questions about my prequel, Slice of Sin. At first, I thought she was running a weird roundabout scam, but the more we communicated, the more I realized she was a genuine fan. She read the prequel short story while over at a friend’s house and loved it so much she tracked down my email to ask me three questions: Why did I choose to write the prequel from the villain’s perspective? Why did I name my villain Sin? And above all,...

Imagine a chef fresh out of school, opening up a new restaurant. No customers. No reviews. No reputation. Would you be their first customer? Probably not. This is the experience of being a new author. No one knows who you are. No one really cares. The only fear greater than your imposter syndrome is the fear of the work you spent years on going unnoticed. It's tough out here. You're not only competing with millions of books; you're also competing with everything that grabs a modern audience's...