Destiny Entry 1

   As some of you already know, I have an upcoming title named Destiny that I’m very proud of. I’m happy to say that it will be coming out next. I’m currently polishing it and coming up with a marketing campaign. While I do that, I want to let everyone who reads my blog in on this project, though. I’ll write several entries to do with this subject in the coming days, and I hope they give you insight into why this has been a project that’s meant so much to me.

   The idea for Destiny all started when a woman asked me what my favorite movies were. I named off all types of things because that’s just who I am. I love action, horror, thrillers, sci-fi, and even romance. When I mentioned The Notebook as one of my favorite movies, she thought it was a little funny, and I’ll admit I felt kind of ashamed. There’s nothing like letting a woman know on the first date that you’re a total softy. :) Anyway, I started thinking after that day about the things I really liked and realized that action and suspense are entertaining, but what really excites me is relationships. I wanted to write a book about something very simple but yet infinitely complicated. It would have to be a big project because it’s hard to tell the story of someone’s entire life, but I think I did it in a very good way that I can be proud of.

   The first part of Destiny concentrates on a fourteen year old Eric Wilson who visits some relatives in Wisconsin and meets the most amazing person. I don’t want to spoil anything from the book, but it was so great to show those years in a character. They’re awkward and filled with comedy, but at the same time, they’re so filled with love. We’re innocent at that age. Love is pure, and there aren’t so many expectations. We haven’t been burned yet, so things can just be what they are without jealousy or suspicion. The first few chapters really brought me back to a place I took for granted when I was fourteen. All the growing pains, the discovery of who I was and wanted to be, and the ability to love without trying were all a part of my life then. It was a wonderful time, and I think these chapters shine so much because of that. You laugh and fall in love with two characters who have no idea how complicated life can get. All they know is that they love each other.

   At its heart, this story is a romance, but it’s also so much more than that. I think I did a good job of showing a complicated family dynamic, puppy love, and what it means to grow up in these chapters. Those are the themes of the early parts of Destiny, but maybe none of that matters. Maybe all that’s important to the reader is if it entertains. I can’t say for sure that everyone will love Destiny, but I can say this with certainty. Every time I read the first four chapters of this book, I smile a little and get taken back to what it was like to be an awkward fourteen year old who found someone who could appreciate him in all of his awkwardness.

   I hope all of you will check out my future entries involving Destiny and just my life in general. Eric Wilson and Olivia Winters’ stories are almost ready. In some ways, this is really my story, though. I was so comfortable in writing action that I never thought I would do something like this, but when I actually tried it, I found that a slice of life book with a romance that was flawed but beautiful was exactly where I felt at home. I have a new genre to write in now, and I think it might be my main niche from now on.