Upon the completion of Wanderer, I turned my attention to the second tale for July, a Drama. There are times, not all the time, when I have a compulsion to use specific characters for multiple prompts for a given month. Sometimes I don’t know what connection will be when I start, though they typically are connected in some way. While I knew I wanted to delve into a second story revolving around Darren Gilbert, I didn’t know what that was going to be until I sat down to sketch both Wanderer and this tale out...

Another month down in 2024 and once again, I’m scrambling at the end of the month to submit the flash fiction to my patrons. While I grabbed the response from the poll, in short order my current project and life in general have been stealing the time I want to dedicate to both my writings, whether they be for Patreon, Wattpad, or these digital pages. I will once more try to knuckle down and focus on improving my time management, required to ensure that I have more time to craft the stories I want to bring to the world...

Having wrapped up Old Debts and Ruined Flight, my attention turned to the last story of the month for my patrons, which was a horror story. Before commencing the crafting of this tale, I tossed my story cubes, and received a trio comprising a trident, a troll/ogre, and a bow and arrow. Despite my initial desire to highlight my hunter, Solomon, I faced the challenge of finding a cohesive narrative. So, turned to ChatGPT for inspiration...

After completing Old Debts I turned my attention to the next story for my patrons, a tale of suspense. Fresh off the success of utilizing ChatGPT for Old Debts, I piped in the prompt into the AI tool and skimmed through the resulting idea. While I ignored huge swaths of the micro tale, the kernel of an assault on the plane was interesting. So, I plucked that idea and went back and massaged images of a prisoner, an Icarus figure or a paratrooper, and a plane into a new installment for my monster hunter, Solomon...

With the end nearing the project that has been weighing upon me in sight, I hope that I’ll be able to resume the cadence I want to have with these stories. However, as always, I’m determined not to disappoint my patrons. So, I sat to think about what I was going to write. After much thought, I couldn’t think of a thing. As a result, I reached out to my story cubes and gave them a toss. Thankfully, I pulled three out that formed a logical thought, a well, a cat, and a set of trees. While those formed a thought, my creativity refused to come up with anything. Fortunately, while I was at my day job, I spoke with someone who has enjoyed my writing and he asked me if I’ve used AI in my writing process...

The moment I finished Detained and Securing Secrets, I turned my attention to the final story for my patrons, a ghost story. While I’ve created some exciting characters who are capable of exploring this genre, I have a special place in my heart for the ghost stories that focus on a guiding note. As with anything that you develop, the core concept that I stumbled into with Journey of Thanks has grown and developed over the almost five and a half years...

After completing Detained, I dove headfirst into the next genre selected by my patrons, a drama. Despite being willing to blend most of the genres my characters inhabit with a drama, selecting one is always the trick. I’ve come across a saying that I think has some relevance to this issue: “paralysis by analysis”. The rough meaning of the saying is that as we over analyze any situation, we ultimately lose the ability to make a choice. In fact, we usually let the opportunity pass us by...

With May rapidly coming to a close, I forced myself to sit down and stare at the first genre for my patrons. While I eventually reached for some story cubes to craft my prompt, I want to highlight that I’ve not been honoring my intention of publishing all the content I want, let alone creating it. I do have a back catalogue of work that is itching to be written and brought to the world, but other obligations and projects have been consuming so much of my time. Despite being close to the end of the current project, I’m still not in a place to advertise what’s been capturing most of my free time...

If you keep you eyes open, you’ll be amazed at what you find in the world. This week, in addition to some beautiful flowers, I’m bringing you a bit of whimsy from my old chiropractor. While I can’t or more accurately won’t advocate any medical paths for you, I enjoyed the trips, especially when my back wasn’t feeling well. Thoughout the year, he would decorate the skeleton who kept his patient’s company while they waited for their adjustments. And for those who want to see the many pics of the pooches consider buying access to the gallery...

While I’ve always captured things that make me smile, sometimes I forget about them. Thankfully, images captured by my camera get backed up to the cloud. Though I don’t always het a chanvce to go through the backlog of what I’ve taken. However, on a recent exploration, I found a picture of something I snagged at a previous job. Ub addition to the singular pic from my distant past, I ulled some more recent images of flower beds...

With the completion of New Roads and Arduous Harvest, I turned my remaining time in April to write the last story for the month, a tale of suspense. Unlike the previous stories, I had no clue what the story’s rough shape was going to be. Yet with some careful thought, I had an excellent idea take seed. A couple months ago I published an installment in my Partners series titled, Inquiries. While this tale does not pick up immediately after those events, it does highlight the depths of their friendship...

Upon completion of New Roads, I turned my attention completely over to the second genre of the month, a sci-fi tale. When I stopped to think about this one, my mind flashed to Firefly. While it was a short-lived television show, it boasted a unique premise and a wonderful cast of actors. Unfortunately, it lived a single season, but that blend of spaghetti western and science fiction made for some quality diversions...

I hope everyone has had a good April so far. Despite recent attempts to get back on a schedule for the flash fiction for my patrons, my other projects continue to loom over me and steal time away from me. However, as I’ve promised my patrons, I will always publish your stories. So as the end of April loomed over me, I thought about potential stories for both a note driven ghost story and my Partners series...

Despite not being strictly found in nature, the cultivated flowerbeds make me smile. It doesn’t matter how small or large the bed is, if done right, the splash of color does wonders to create a sense of beauty for those who see it...

My favorite sights in nature fall into three categories: a sunrise/sunset, a waterfall (no matter the size), and everything under the water. However, with some recent views, cultivated flowerbeds are creeping into that short list of natural beauty despite being manmade...