Welcome to the Storyletter Meet & Greet! It’s been a while since I held one of these (way back in 2023!). Please introduce yourself and your current work in progress. You don’t have to be a writer to participate.
After your intro, feel free to tell us where you live (generally speaking) and if it inspires you in any way. Respond to another member’s comment to meet someone new and continue the discussion. Write as much as you’d like.
Here’s my intro and answer as an example:
Hey there, I’m Winston. I recently moved from Utah to New Mexico with my miniature schnauzer, Vinnie. I served in the United States Air Force before starting a publishing company to learn the ropes and help others. After 14 years of dabbling in various forms of fiction writing, I published my first short story collection, “The Weight of the World,” on Amazon in 2023. This year, I edited and published an anthology featuring 24 authors called “Take Me There: A Speculative Anthology of Travel.” I’m very proud of the work that went into the novel and aim to do it again next year.
Utah inspired me a lot. The region has an expansive literary community, a day of the year designated as “Utah Author’s Day,” and hosts prominent names like Brandon Sanderson, Jack Carr, and Brandon Mull. Something about the mountains invokes a sense of awe and wonder and acts as a constant reminder of the world's grand scale.
Now, I’m eager to explore New Mexico, “the Land of Enchantment.” Santa Fe is home to writers such as Cormac McCarthy (RIP) and George RR Martin, among many others, and I’m sure to be inspired by its culture, arts, festivals, and landscapes. As a small press and indie author, I look forward to networking with the local writing community and meeting the independent bookshop owners supporting them.
I also can’t wait to meet you and learn what makes your region inspirational. Thanks for stopping by. ~ WM
Hi Winston, pleased to meet you! Utah has some fantastic scenery to inspire your writing. And Hello to your miniature schnauzer, Vinnie! Your project sounds exciting and I wish you the best!
I live in the Piney Woods area of East Texas. We have a house on a lake and 25 acres of forested property. It is the epitome of living in the sticks. I’m surrounded by trees and wildlife. My husband and I have two cats and three dogs that keep us very amused. So, yes, I would say I have lots to inspire me. Best to you!
Lovely to meet you all and enjoyed reading your backgrounds. I'm Nicky Webber from Cambrige, New Zealand.
I've lived 20 years in Cape Town, SA too. Both countries have influenced my creative writing. But most of all, it's the amazing people I've met who give me the bones for my stories. Ive Indie published 15 books exclusive to Amazon, multi-genre. Why? Because life is multi-genre and I easily get bored!
I was originally a magazine and newspaper journalist so variet of stories and people everywhere is the life blood for my books.
Looking fwd to learning more abput your lives and work. Have fun!
Nice to meet you, Nicky! I've never been to those places but wish to so badly!! Maybe someday soon. And wow! You've indie published quite a bit. That's impressive! I'm eager to hear more from you about your experiences and lessons learned. Thanks for stopping by to share your story.
Haha..it's an endless learning experience. Just when you think you've nailed it, there's some other app or software or book trend you need to learn. Sigh...but have to keep on writing!
Bit late to his as I've been letting my Substack inbox fill up way too much while I work but hey, I'm Harvey, from South East England. I started self-publishing my Diamond Dimensions Universe (more of multiverse really) when I was 12, concluding in 2021 with 22 volumes across three main series! Since then I've studied both comics and screenwriting, and have contributed two articles to the official Sar wars Insider magazine! I also write about YouTubers for a site called Vlogger Beat, and run my own newsletter on buttondown, with monthly updates and my series 'A Long Time Ago...' which explores both the wide Star Wars canon and ancient art sites that have inspired my writing. The series will soon be opening up to guest posts, if anyone reading this would like to write about their favourite Star wars story and historical site. Here's my linktree where you can check out the newsletter to see the format and more: https://linktr.ee/harveyhamer
Where I live has inspired me so much. My first full-length novel, which I started in 2021 and is finally getting somewhere, is set in my two home counties, villages, forests, fields and paths that I know by heart between the North and South Downs, wonderful scenery. But it also relates to a very special Neolithic site near my primary school. I used to play over stones that once made up the earliest known community burial mound/cist/barrow on these islands, potentially 6,000 years old! It's known as Coldrum Long Barrow. Before I even knew that significance, I included it in my story, which I pitch as The Road meets The Midwich Cuckoos (it also has some dashes of Project Hail Mary and of course some prehistory/mythology thrown in!).
Like you Winston I also can't wait to explore, and hopefully visit some of the ancient sites on every continent which I've written about on buttondown, as well as finding a wider network of writers/reader/sellers. Despite writing for ten years as of this month, I've only read made my way 'out there' in this past year and a half.
So nice to meet you, Harvey. Your Diamond Dimensions Universe sounds pretty epic. Huge kudos for achieving that body of work and for your publishing credentials! Very impressive indeed.
I love that you're inspired by where you grew up and live. That's really special. It's also really unique, especially with that wonderful history you've described. I've read The Road but haven't read The Midwich Cuckoos or Project Hail Mary (although it is on my TBR). How far along are you in the writing process? Is it already published?
Here's to exploring more of the world and what we love! I recently got back from Hawaii and, man, did it open my eyes to some incredible things. I can't wait to go back, or at the very least, do more research about Polynesian culture and the history of those island chains.
Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself. Hope to hear more from you again soon!
Nice to meet you too! Thanks so much for the kind words. The novel's in the querying trenches, though with an agent who requested a full manuscript at the moment!
Nice to meet you all. I'm Jack and I live in Sarasota, Florida with my amazing wife and our adult son. I love "old Florida" with its offbeat places and remarkable histories. Those places inspired one of my fantasy series, which you can find here: https://triskelionbooks.com/the-abby-renshaw-mysteries/.
I grew up in suburban New Jersey, attended grad school in Western Massachusetts, and spent most of my working life in bustling Atlanta. Now I'm retired and following the Muses. My substack is at https://speclectic.substack.com/, where I publish some essays and speculative fiction.
Hi everyone! Great to meet you all. I've recently moved back to my home country of Scotland after some years working in the higher education sector in China. I write sci-fi and speculative fiction, and have nearly reached the end of my first serial here on Substack, a sci-fi novella called "Destination Europa". My professional background is originally in physics, though it's now a long time since I've worked in research; I went into academic editing and latterly teaching academic English skills.
I'd say my writing is definitely influenced by both places, and also by the experience of living cross-culturally between two countries. That cross-cultural aspect probably comes more into play with "Destination Europa", as my protagonist is from one culture but living within a different culture. Some of my short stories have a stronger Scottish influence, especially from the Gaelic culture of the Outer Hebrides, where I grew up and which I'm happy to have come home to. The theme of minority culture struggling to survive within a dominant majority culture, drawing from the region's historical and contemporary experience, is definitely something I see cropping up in my writing. Someday I might get around to revising my sci-fi novel set there. The landscape - low-lying islands and a close relationship with the sea - is also an influence. Other stories have a stronger Chinese influence.
Thanks for hosting this, Winston! It's a lot of fun to read everyone's introductions!
Wow! What an interesting background that would most definitely inform and influence your writing. I can see how including themes like that could help build out a unique and compelling plot/setting. I've only been to southern Ireland, but would love to travel to Scotland someday. Is Destination Europa considered hard or soft science fiction? Do you have a preference when writing sci-fi?
Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself! It was a pleasure to get to know more about you and your work.
Hmm, I’d say that Destination Europa is probably more soft than hard sci-fi, in that the focus is more on psychology than on technology. Though technology does play a role too, and I try to keep it as realistic as I can.
I love this question. Thanks, Winston. I’m Bee and am living in my hometown in Central Pennsylvania near Hershey. I did all my schooling in the Great Lakes area and I have a lot of family in this area, but we’re planning a big move to San Diego to stay close to our enlisted relatives.
I find that where I live influences my world-building in a pretty significant way. I tend to imagine things in small towns and villages, lots of trees and farmland, usually sent in winter with tons of snow. Thematically, religion plays a significant role in the cultures my characters live in since I currently live in a heavily Amish and Mennonite community. If there are big cities, they are far away. Might be rivers and lakes and ponds. I keep coming back to the Midwest again and again for settings and it just makes sense for me.
I did a semester abroad and I was really impressed by the Cliffs of Moher. It lives in my head rent free, honestly. I still write poetry about it.
I'm Bruce Landay and live near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I retired about 6 months ago and now I'm focusing a lot more time on my writing. I write near future military - political techno-thrillers and I'm working on my third novel, though nothing published yet. I'm working on a later draft with both beta reader feedback and technical reader feedback. My current novel in progress, Electromagnetic Assault, takes place in the near future. My protagonist, Jazmin Hassani, is a Navy Special Ops pilot who was the loan survivor on a SEAL Team mission and she was critically injured. Five years later after extensive rehab she's now an investigator and is looking into a case almost identical to her own unsolved incident. As soon as she digs into the details she's called to Washington by a powerful US Senator and her investigation is shut down. Against orders she keeps digging and is soon on the run from a Black Ops team. She'll stop at nothing until she finds out who was really behind the attack on her team. I'm working with an Air Force fighter pilot and an Army Special Forces soldier (retired) to get help with the details. I'm having a blast!
Hello Winston, I’m Ray. I recently moved from England to Colombia, where I live with my wife, son and our miniature schnauzer, Shelby. I was a Chartered Building Engineer living in Hampshire, when I first began writing in a local supermarket café—so cliché, I know—in 2015. I was beginning to learn the craft, and it has taken me until 2024 to feel confident enough to publish my novels—mainly because other authors say not to strive for perfection … just tell a story. I still do strive to be as perfect as I can.
I write speculative fiction, usually based on true events or tales of a paranormal nature. I’m inspired by tales of ghost ships—and have learned a lot about sailing, just to add authenticity—also, things such as, cryptozoology and high strangeness over the Great Lakes, underground and in the air—plus true historical events in England, from werewolves to missing people, and even little people. I’m now hearing tales of odd events, and little people, here in Colombia—plus a lot of high strangeness in the forests and mountains. So who knows, I may gain further inspiration moving forward.
I was also inspired by an encounter with a fiery orb that followed my flight from Bogota to London in 2020, while travelling at 500 mph and at 41,000 feet over the North Atlantic—one-hour out from the Azores. When the orb slowly sank below cloud cover, at around 30,000 feet, I realised I was not to become part of a mystery myself.
There are several novels I’m polishing up ready for publication. At the same time, I’m writing the first draft of a new series—developing stories around a Parish Constable character living in London, around the 1700’s. Many of his cases have elements of the paranormal, based on true historical events.
As an indie author, I look forward to meeting other author’s, and aspiring writers, as well as any independent bookshop owners supporting the community.
Hi Winston - I'm a 55 year old Brit and I live in the Kingdom of Northumberlandia which is the second largest county (technically its not a kingdom outside of my own reality) in England, standing as it always has as a bastion against the marauding Scotts. Ive never lived outside of the UK, aside froma brief 9 months in Aix en Provence in the south of france. I dont think where I live has had much infleucen on my writing - and its only very recently since I left private practice as an evil lawyer to become a good lawyer workign for a non profit that I have suddenly begun to churn out a lot more writing - some of it even seems to be quite well received. Theres only one bit of work that is influenced by where I am curently living, which is quite close to a Mithraic ruined temple, left by the Romans near to Hadrians Wall, which is a few miles from my home. Funnily enough I am also partly through a novel where some of it is set in the deserts of Sonora so I have been researching the gulf of mexico quite a bit for that.
Northumberlandia is a sparsely populated and very beautiful rural county, there is lots of rolling moorside, abandoned lead mines, amazing coastlines, ruined roman towns and forst, mediaeval castles and bastles, quaint stone villages with weird names, and of course, the immense span of roman history - plenty to inspire, but actually not so far any of my own writing.
the only writing ive put out is on Substack - feel free to take a look - might get to finish a book one day and self publish it - seems possible.
I visited that Mithraeum last year when I visited the wall for a second time, this time as an adult! There's so much amazing history and scenery there that's definitely inspiring what will be my next novel, with the temple as a focal point! If you're in London with some free time, there's the Bloomberg Mithraeum, a free museum of another temple with a light and sound experience within the underground ruins!
the car park for Brocolitia is a favourite spot for people trying to see northern lights. it looks like a very healthy dogging community to the casual observer until you park your car and get out. you occaisionally see people stop then leave quickly. i always assume these are disappointed doggers.
A Mithraic temple you say? I actually know two indie creators whose work that'd be relevant to, keep getting second hand Mithra exposure. One is a series of mythology video game RPGs with Mithra as a major character, the other has the ruins of a Mithraeum play a key role in a character's backstory.
my excerpt "The Tauroctony" on my stack is a bit from one of my largely unfinished noveldl . the tauroctony is a key ceremonial element of the cult of mithras.
the piece was described as the "strangest vampire origin story they had ever read" which of course made me very happy.
Winston's published two of my short stories now. I went to New Mexico one time, for an academic meditation retreat, at a place called the Lama Foundation up in the Sangre de Cristos north of Taos. Camped in a burned forest on a mountainside. I would love to revisit that area, fictionally. Loved all the Elmore Leonard westerns set in northern Arizona. Loved the smell of the desert, the many colors of the rocks . . .
I grew up on a farm in Kentucky, and that has influenced my work both on a general level (nature is always a big element) and to a lesser extent with specifics. This story is set somewhere I've never been, but it's like a lot of places I have been. https://randallhayes.substack.com/p/the-rake
I went to grad school in upstate New York, and I've been keeping the Thousand Islands area around Watertown in my back pocket for literally decades. It was a sort of millionaire's playground for NYC during the first Gilded Age. The Old Toad, a British pub in Rochester, has appeared in one unpublished story.
I loved Sean Stewart's novels set in Houston and Galveston while I lived there but have never tried to set any of my work there. Not sure why. http://www.seanstewart.org/novels/
I've been in Greensboro, NC, alternately teaching and entrepreneuring, for a long time now. The story I published this year in the British anthology ALL TOMORROW'S FUTURES, "The Elder Colossus," is definitely set here. That yarden looks a lot like mine, only better. I've been looking at maps of how sea level rise is going to change the NC coastline and which wildlife is where for a sequel to this story. https://randallhayes.substack.com/p/a-bolt-from-the-blue
I've never been to Mars or any other planet except through documentaries, but I definitely find those locations inspiring, much moreso than generic 'outer space.' Most of my stuff is also at least inspired by history, if not explicitly set there. This one is deliberately set 500 years after the founding of Jamestown, VA, in 1607. https://randallhayes.substack.com/p/jamestown-2107-482
Hey! I am Isha. I write fantasy and literary fiction that is deeply nostalgic. The last part of my ongoing serial about Karma of Kulgera would be updated tomorrow. After that, I have something interesting lined up. But I do plan to publish more serials here. Along with this, I am also working on my Novel.
I live in Delhi, India, with my Joint family. A lot of my inspiration comes from the people around me. In addition, the books I read. And the largest influence on me has been the Hindi films, Bollywood. I want to bring that level of drama here in written form.
Would love to connect with people who are also looking for dramatic fiction.
Hello Everybody. Hey Winston! My name's Ben, I live just outside of Vancouver, BC, Canada (voted one of the most beautiful cities on Earth!) I'm retired now, and spend my time writing, a life-long ambition. I write -- and now read out -- novella length stories, as well as share my serial novel THE SHIELD OF LOCKSLEY (behind the paywall) on Wednesdays. I'm inspired by scenery and the seasons, as well as music; and I was once interviewed by Mr. Winston Malone, our gracious host.
I write STORIES, AFTER EIGHT which I publish on Sunday mornings at, you guessed it, 8:00 am. This is the FREE part of my 'Stack, and the one that matters most to me. I write long, involved stories, that are usually tragic in one way or another. One of the themes I've noticed is that most of my stories are love stories. They take place in different places and different times, and are basically just stories that interest me.
One day, I might gather some of my stories and publish them, but it's not that important to me. I believe that Substack can support me eventually, and I want to prove to myself that it can. I have a BOOK TUBE Channel where I'm reading my work out loud. Check it out and why not subscribe while you're there. It's FREE:
Hey Ben, thanks for sharing more about yourself. I look forward to visiting parts of Canada someday, especially Vancouver. It looks beautiful there.
I love that you read your stories out loud. It inspires me to want to do the same. Best of luck to you and your publishing goals. I look forward to seeing where you go from here!
You know where I’m going. I’m going right to the top, Baby! The serial I’m working on is too long to think that someone will take it on as a first novel and actually publish it as one book. I’m thinking it’ll come in at around 250,00-260,000 words. That’s like, 800-850 pages long. I’ll probably have to self publish. By the time I get to doing that, you might have stepped up to doing bigger and large-sized tomes.That would be way cool. You should put it out there, that you’ll do big, oversized, books — get Substack to back you — and voilà, you’re the publisher you keep telling Substack they should be.
My work here is done. (Proverbial mike drop.)
And if you ever make it up here, give me a shout. (I know where all the good restaurants are, and if Vancouver is known for one thing, it’s the food.) And I can show you around and take you to all the cool places.
Hello everyone, I'm John. Like Winston and Keyon, I live in Utah. I work here as a sportswriter for the Associated Press. When I'm not reporting on pro and college sports, you can find me publishing science fiction stories and horror stories through my indie publishing imprint, Samak Press. I expanded Samak Press into an indie press this summer, launching a full-fledged website (https://samakpress.com). We are currently accepting story submissions for a horror anthology, Feral Lands, scheduled for publication in 2025. Submissions window is open through the end of October. A science fiction anthology for 2025 is also in the works and submission guidelines will be posted soon.
I draw tons of inspiration from Utah. Deer Falls, a small Colorado town featured in several of my horror stories, is modeled after my rural Utah hometown. I love the mountains and feel lost without them. I also draw inspiration from Louisiana after spending a year living just outside Lake Charles and it is the setting for some of my stories as well. The people and the culture are unlike anywhere else and stand out in a good way.
Nice to hear from you, John! Thanks for sharing your intro. I didn't realize you'd started a horror anthology! (I'm so behind on my Substack reading). I'll look for it and shout it out. I'll be announcing my next anthology at the end of October (leaning horror-themed this time). How exciting! Wishing you much success on the books and I'll help out any way I can.
Utah is definitely one-of-a-kind. It's a hidden gem that's becoming not so hidden anymore haha. A lot of our tastes overlap, and so I understand what you mean when you say that you feel lost without the mountains. I'm so glad NM has mountains, too. I'm not sure what I'd do if it didn't.
What took you out to Lake Charles? If you don't mind me asking. That has to be a big influence for sure.
Looking forward to chatting and working with you more in the future, John. Keep up the great work!
First of all, glad I saw this through Notes! I still can’t seem to find a solution to get your posts in my inbox. I’ve tried everything!
But hey! I live in Utah myself. I’m not so sure I was aware that you previously lived here, Winston. Such a small world!
I’m endlessly inspired by the Rocky Mountains—particularly the Wasatch and Uinta montane forests we have across the state. I’m a trail runner, backcountry skier, and forager. These mountains, paired with my Persian culture, are really a direct inspiration for my writing.
In fact, my ongoing project is a historical fantasy novel called “Zagros,” which is set in the Zagros Mountains of ancient Persia/Iran. It’s a perfect setting for my intents because there are a great deal of similarities between the Zagros and the Rockies.
I grew up in the Rockies and can’t imagine life without them. We’re from the Hamadan province of Iran (foothills of the high Zagros) so it’s very serendipitous of us to wind up in an environment that so closely resembles it.
If I ever moved I think I’d have to stay somewhere along the Rockies. I can’t imagine my life without them!
Hey Keyon, not sure why that is happening but I'm glad you saw it in Notes! I had no idea you were in Utah! I wish I'd known so we could have met up. Maybe we still can since I will try to travel back up there as often as possible.
I love the Wasatch Front and camping up in the Uintas. Your Zagros novel sounds awesome, and the inspiration being pulled from the Rockies has to be integral to your writing process. A vibe if you will. I get inspiration that way, especially for poetry.
I'm now living near the Sandia Mountains, which I'm grateful for since I, too, fell in love with the mountains in Utah. I can't see myself living in an area that doesn't have mountain views or access.
Thanks for stopping by to comment and introduce your work. It was a pleasure getting to know you more!
I'm Will. I've grown up in and still live in Massachusetts, I wouldn't say my writing especially draws on it though. Generally I write fantasy and have ambitions of making video games. My current serial is me writing out the story of a game I want to eventually make as a script and walkthrough for the game, but I have more typical short stories.
Mythology is a passion of mine and a major influence on my writing. My favorite mythological figure is Tezcatlipoca.
Hey William, nice to learn more about your interests and inspirations. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and comment. Hope you're doing well. We'll need to catch up again soon!
I'm Bill, an American living in Japan. I moved here ten years ago to be with the woman I love.
I write short stories, mostly speculative fiction: scifi, fantasy, magical realism, and horror. (And of course will have something spooky for Halloween.) I used to write nonfiction and once upon a time was a literary agent, but enjoy writing short fiction the most. Substack is a good match for me.
I have a cat (or does she have me?) and collect watches. I like seeing new sights and getting outside whenever I can.
So great to get to know you better, Bill. Thanks for sharing! I'm currently learning Japanese through Duolingo. I'm on a 15-day streak. We'll see how far I get, haha.
If I may ask, how did you like working as a literary agent? What's something about the job that people might not be privy to outside the business?
I enjoy your pictures of Japan! I need to get more familiar with your writing now. Do you have any recommendations on where I should start with your work?
OMG, Japanese is so hard. I’m still struggling with the language, even after living in Japan for nearly ten years. It’s a challenge, but rewarding.
Big publishing houses are monster-size, but editors still make decisions. If you know what particular editors enjoy reading (and their hobbies and other interests) that can help you target manuscripts to the right person.
I had good times and less pleasant ones working as a literary agent. I enjoyed helping writers get books published, but being an agent took time from my writing (and was exhausting) and after many years, I realized that the only way I could write was not to agent.
Thanks, Bill. That's really interesting. I'm going to need to figure out something that works for me in terms of time management with my company and my personal goals. It's important to give yourself the time you need to be happy and enjoy the things you want to do in life.
Hi, I'm Laura! I was born in Ireland where my parents were missionaries for 13 years, but currently live in Michigan. I write (clean) young adult/new adult fantasy in various sub-genres, but nothing inspired by where I'm presently living. My inspiration more comes from my love of history and background as an artist, jeweller, gemology student, and former library worker. I actually hated writing in school and didn't start enjoying it until college and then a project I had in one of my art classes sparked a story idea and I started dabbling in fiction writing. I didn't get serious about it though until a situation at my old day-job had me turning to writing as a mental and emotional escape. It was during that that I wrote and published my first novel. I now have two books out and am currently working on three others concurrently: the second book in my jewellery/gem themed, steampunk, spy series; the second book in my art themed fairy tale retellings, and a library/writing themed urban fantasy.
Nice to meet you, Laura. Your story is so interesting! I aim to get more familiar with your work. I only visited Ireland for 14 days for vacation in 2014, but it was such a beautiful country. I've never been to Michigan. I'll have to remedy that someday. I love the way you describe your stories' themes. They sound very well-crafted and unique.
Three books concurrently?! That's impressive. Wishing you the best! I hope to chat with you further and get to know you better through Substack. Thanks for taking the time to introduce yourself and your books!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it when you do! They always say to 'write what you know' so that's what I did and it's amazing what a wealth of story ideas there are when you look at 'what you know' through the lens of fantasy.
It's been a challenge, but I found working on multiple books at once seems to work best for me and found a system of managing them all that I like. Which is great as my 'to do' list after them is quite large and still growing. Thank you! I look forward to getting to know everyone here more to.
Hi y'all! I was born and raised in New Orleans, have been living in Chicago almost 25 (!!!)years. I spent waaay too many years in the retail and food service industry....the one good thing to the world shutting down in 2020 is it forced me to finally take a leap of faith and try new things.
The job that pays the bills is working for the Chicago Cubs. When I'm not working, I'm puttering about in the kitchen or stabbing fabric with a sharp pointy object (cross stitching ).
Married, no kids, but we are owned by 2 cats, Bailey and Eclaire.
I started writing in early 2023, mainly fiction. I've had a few stories published in lit mags and publish a few on Substack.
Substack has an amazing fiction community, very supportive, friendly and welcoming!
Hey, Kim! Nice to meet you. I've never been to New Orleans or Chicago; I've only traveled close by during cross-country roadtrips. I'm sure those 25 years have flown by. You've got all of your favorite spots and know the area better than most, I bet. The longest I've lived somewhere is 10 years, which was Tennessee. The job sounds interesting!
I'm glad to hear that you've made the most of that terrible situation (COVID) and recently taken up writing. What types of fiction do you like to write?
Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself. The Substack community is awesome and I'm sure you'll continue to find wonderful writers and readers on this platform. It's my favorite place to write!
Thanks Winston for hosting this and glad to know more about you. Geoff in Texas, enjoying a true autumn, as we usually have summer extending into October.
A former engineer then IP lawyer, who has written non-fiction forever, I have a history book about an entrepreneurial aspect of technology in the works at a university press. Lately, I’ve focused on novel writing and it’s made me appreciate how gifted writers hold their audience. I’m exploring the art of telling compelling stories in my newsletter. Current WIP is a character-driven grounded SciFi set present day (not in Texas).
Hey Geoff, thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself. Glad to hear that you're enjoying the seasonal weather. Utah was like that, too, where it would be a week of fall weather and then immediately winter for half the year haha.
IP lawyer as in "intellectual property" lawyer? How did you get into that field?! And what is it like working in that career field?
Your transition from working non-fiction into fiction is interesting. Do you think it helped you as a writer from a technical standpoint to start out that way? I know what you mean about novelists weaving engrossing tales, it's definitely a skill that often goes under-appreciated.
Your newsletter sounds intriguing and informative, and so does your current WIP. Are you publishing it serially or waiting until you finish it? Also, good luck on your history book!
Hey, I'm Brian, and I'm from Michigan in the United States. I'm a software architect by day and an indie author by night. I write fantasy and science fiction, and I've self-published two short story collections. Michigan is a beautiful midwestern state, especially in the fall, when we're known for the leaves changing colors, cider mills, hayrides, corn mazes, apple picking and Halloween. We're considered a water and winter wonderland with our great lakes, and all of those things inspire my creativity and writing. I have a journalism degree and a traditional education, but I didn't get serious about fiction writing until late in life. I'll be 48 this year and want everyone to know it's never too late to try your hand at a new passion. You never know where it will take you... it took me to Substack, to Winston and to a great community here.
Love this! Thanks for sharing, Brian. I would love to visit Michigan someday. It sounds quite lovely and more my speed, maybe because I'm partial to fall weather and vibes. So thankful to have met you and that you're a regular around these parts. Keep up the great work!
Hi, I'm Victor David, formerly of the United States, now living in the high desert of central Mexico. I have a couple of fruit trees and three dogs adopted from the street.
I've self published a couple of books, the most recent: The Defiant Light, a collection of 41 stories. I publish fiction here on Substack, and have recently started publishing on some other platforms as well. I write a lot, which I love, but it also means it takes 3 weeks to get a simple bit of plumbing done. Gotta get those siestas in, too, you know. And walks in the hills with the dogs.
I'm very pleased to be part of Winston's anthology Take Me There and really appreciate all the hard work he put into making that a reality.
My work has certainly been influenced by where I live, and where I've been before, which has been in several parts of the world. As you can see from my photo, I'm not 20 years old any more, and these days I stick a little closer to home. Although I do love to travel and still get here and there. And over that a way, too.
I enjoy getting to know you more, Victor. Thanks for stopping by to share your story. I'm looking forward to reading your latest collection as I have it on my bookshelf. My goal is to read all the books I own before buying new ones but I know that is unattainable. Therefore, maybe if I read 3, buy 1 sort of deal, maybe I can whittle away at my TBR list over time.
Hey Winston, I’m Michael. I’m a librarian who Forrest-Gumped into engineering where I’m now the semi-workaholic engineering director of a series-A, and it’s been a jam but I’m basically an English major who followed the work.
Lately I’ve been investing almost all of my free time into storytelling. I kind of had a pandemic-inspired epiphany about the clock ticking, and so now I’m working hard to make my hobby self-sustaining.
My main medium is audiodrama: fully cast, fully immersive low-fantasy and it scratches a ton of creative itches. It’s just slow as heck.
I’ve been in Fort Lauderdale for about a decade but I grew up in Michigan, and I’m mostly daydreaming about Lake Michigan. I love south Florida — very Dexter — but if my imagine myself anywhere it’s in a remote beach cabin. It doesn’t inspire my writing, but it’s what taps my focus buttons.
Hey Michael, it's so nice to meet you! Your work sounds really interesting. I find that totally relatable as I'm following the work as well. Still, it's great to have a career that supports our passions/hobbies while we get the groundwork set for future successes.
Time is definitely ticking, and it's now or never, right?! I like to imagine it as a snowball that starts rolling and grows over time, the point being to get the ball rolling in the first place.
Audiodramas are so freaking cool. There's this group I follow called Sentinel Creatives, and they have some available on Audible and Spotify that I really enjoy. Lovecraftian-type stuff. What type of stories are you producing, and are any available online?
I grew up in Largo/Clearwater, FL area! I do like the FL vibes sometimes, but definitely understand what you mean when you mention being able to focus. A remote beach cabin would be sweet. Would you be near family again if you moved back to Michigan? That's always something I struggle with; maximizing time spent with loved ones.
Thanks for introducing yourself and for sharing your work. I hope you keep in touch!
Most of my family has sort of scattered so I don't think I'm leaving Florida until the cost of living gets too crazy, _but_ if I have #success I'll get a place on Beaver Island or something before I die.
> Time is definitely ticking, and it's now or never, right?! I like to imagine it as a snowball that starts rolling and grows over time, the point being to get the ball rolling in the first place.
This is spot on ^. I didn't really do anything creative between college and mid-thirties and so I feel like I've got some serious catch-up.
Hey Michael, hope you're doing well after the hurricane. I've been seeing a lot of videos along the west coast of FL and it looks devastating. Praying it didn't hit you as badly!
I love what you're doing with the audio dramas. I'm looking forward to checking them out more in-depth soon. It's never too late to start living your dream!
Hi Winston, pleased to meet you! Utah has some fantastic scenery to inspire your writing. And Hello to your miniature schnauzer, Vinnie! Your project sounds exciting and I wish you the best!
Nice to meet you, Lois. I really do love Utah. Thanks for stopping by to comment. Hope you're having a great week!
Hi Winston,
I live in the Piney Woods area of East Texas. We have a house on a lake and 25 acres of forested property. It is the epitome of living in the sticks. I’m surrounded by trees and wildlife. My husband and I have two cats and three dogs that keep us very amused. So, yes, I would say I have lots to inspire me. Best to you!
That sounds incredible!! I’d be inspired too. Thanks for sharing more about yourself, Lois. What writing projects are you working on currently?
Lovely to meet you all and enjoyed reading your backgrounds. I'm Nicky Webber from Cambrige, New Zealand.
I've lived 20 years in Cape Town, SA too. Both countries have influenced my creative writing. But most of all, it's the amazing people I've met who give me the bones for my stories. Ive Indie published 15 books exclusive to Amazon, multi-genre. Why? Because life is multi-genre and I easily get bored!
I was originally a magazine and newspaper journalist so variet of stories and people everywhere is the life blood for my books.
Looking fwd to learning more abput your lives and work. Have fun!
Nickywebber.com
Nice to meet you, Nicky! I've never been to those places but wish to so badly!! Maybe someday soon. And wow! You've indie published quite a bit. That's impressive! I'm eager to hear more from you about your experiences and lessons learned. Thanks for stopping by to share your story.
Haha..it's an endless learning experience. Just when you think you've nailed it, there's some other app or software or book trend you need to learn. Sigh...but have to keep on writing!
Hi all…
I am Sue
Of Scruffy and Teddy, striped pants and long hair, arranging flowers and smoothing noses
Of mountains and rivers, deserts and seas, peaks high and valleys low
Of questioning and challenging, of yearning for belonging, of loneliness and intimacy
I am Sue
A mother born, a wife embraced
A heart uplifted in gratitude and joy
A head bowed in loss and grief
A spirit free, a heart wild, a back strong
A spirit bowed, a heart broken, a back bent
I am Sue
Of snow and ice,
Of sun and stars
Of rivers wild and brooks gentle
Of forest and flowers, gardens and soil
Of breath frosting and feet cracking
Of body light, of eyes deep.
I am Sue
Giver of snuggles and cuddles
Giver of kisses and caresses
Seeker of challenge and driven of purpose
Questioner of all, pusher of rules, asker of “why”
I am Sue.
I have fallen. I have risen.
I am broken. I am whole.
I am Sue
(And in case it isn’t 100% clear - 🤣 - all of that totally informs my writing!)
Very creative intro, Sue! Nice to meet you and so glad you commented :)
Bit late to his as I've been letting my Substack inbox fill up way too much while I work but hey, I'm Harvey, from South East England. I started self-publishing my Diamond Dimensions Universe (more of multiverse really) when I was 12, concluding in 2021 with 22 volumes across three main series! Since then I've studied both comics and screenwriting, and have contributed two articles to the official Sar wars Insider magazine! I also write about YouTubers for a site called Vlogger Beat, and run my own newsletter on buttondown, with monthly updates and my series 'A Long Time Ago...' which explores both the wide Star Wars canon and ancient art sites that have inspired my writing. The series will soon be opening up to guest posts, if anyone reading this would like to write about their favourite Star wars story and historical site. Here's my linktree where you can check out the newsletter to see the format and more: https://linktr.ee/harveyhamer
Where I live has inspired me so much. My first full-length novel, which I started in 2021 and is finally getting somewhere, is set in my two home counties, villages, forests, fields and paths that I know by heart between the North and South Downs, wonderful scenery. But it also relates to a very special Neolithic site near my primary school. I used to play over stones that once made up the earliest known community burial mound/cist/barrow on these islands, potentially 6,000 years old! It's known as Coldrum Long Barrow. Before I even knew that significance, I included it in my story, which I pitch as The Road meets The Midwich Cuckoos (it also has some dashes of Project Hail Mary and of course some prehistory/mythology thrown in!).
Like you Winston I also can't wait to explore, and hopefully visit some of the ancient sites on every continent which I've written about on buttondown, as well as finding a wider network of writers/reader/sellers. Despite writing for ten years as of this month, I've only read made my way 'out there' in this past year and a half.
So nice to meet you, Harvey. Your Diamond Dimensions Universe sounds pretty epic. Huge kudos for achieving that body of work and for your publishing credentials! Very impressive indeed.
I love that you're inspired by where you grew up and live. That's really special. It's also really unique, especially with that wonderful history you've described. I've read The Road but haven't read The Midwich Cuckoos or Project Hail Mary (although it is on my TBR). How far along are you in the writing process? Is it already published?
Here's to exploring more of the world and what we love! I recently got back from Hawaii and, man, did it open my eyes to some incredible things. I can't wait to go back, or at the very least, do more research about Polynesian culture and the history of those island chains.
Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself. Hope to hear more from you again soon!
Nice to meet you too! Thanks so much for the kind words. The novel's in the querying trenches, though with an agent who requested a full manuscript at the moment!
Nice to meet you all. I'm Jack and I live in Sarasota, Florida with my amazing wife and our adult son. I love "old Florida" with its offbeat places and remarkable histories. Those places inspired one of my fantasy series, which you can find here: https://triskelionbooks.com/the-abby-renshaw-mysteries/.
I grew up in suburban New Jersey, attended grad school in Western Massachusetts, and spent most of my working life in bustling Atlanta. Now I'm retired and following the Muses. My substack is at https://speclectic.substack.com/, where I publish some essays and speculative fiction.
Very nice to get to know you a bit better, Jack. Hope you're doing okay after the hurricane!
Thanks, Winston. Yes, thankfully we did okay.
Hi everyone! Great to meet you all. I've recently moved back to my home country of Scotland after some years working in the higher education sector in China. I write sci-fi and speculative fiction, and have nearly reached the end of my first serial here on Substack, a sci-fi novella called "Destination Europa". My professional background is originally in physics, though it's now a long time since I've worked in research; I went into academic editing and latterly teaching academic English skills.
I'd say my writing is definitely influenced by both places, and also by the experience of living cross-culturally between two countries. That cross-cultural aspect probably comes more into play with "Destination Europa", as my protagonist is from one culture but living within a different culture. Some of my short stories have a stronger Scottish influence, especially from the Gaelic culture of the Outer Hebrides, where I grew up and which I'm happy to have come home to. The theme of minority culture struggling to survive within a dominant majority culture, drawing from the region's historical and contemporary experience, is definitely something I see cropping up in my writing. Someday I might get around to revising my sci-fi novel set there. The landscape - low-lying islands and a close relationship with the sea - is also an influence. Other stories have a stronger Chinese influence.
Thanks for hosting this, Winston! It's a lot of fun to read everyone's introductions!
Wow! What an interesting background that would most definitely inform and influence your writing. I can see how including themes like that could help build out a unique and compelling plot/setting. I've only been to southern Ireland, but would love to travel to Scotland someday. Is Destination Europa considered hard or soft science fiction? Do you have a preference when writing sci-fi?
Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself! It was a pleasure to get to know more about you and your work.
Hmm, I’d say that Destination Europa is probably more soft than hard sci-fi, in that the focus is more on psychology than on technology. Though technology does play a role too, and I try to keep it as realistic as I can.
I love this question. Thanks, Winston. I’m Bee and am living in my hometown in Central Pennsylvania near Hershey. I did all my schooling in the Great Lakes area and I have a lot of family in this area, but we’re planning a big move to San Diego to stay close to our enlisted relatives.
I find that where I live influences my world-building in a pretty significant way. I tend to imagine things in small towns and villages, lots of trees and farmland, usually sent in winter with tons of snow. Thematically, religion plays a significant role in the cultures my characters live in since I currently live in a heavily Amish and Mennonite community. If there are big cities, they are far away. Might be rivers and lakes and ponds. I keep coming back to the Midwest again and again for settings and it just makes sense for me.
I did a semester abroad and I was really impressed by the Cliffs of Moher. It lives in my head rent free, honestly. I still write poetry about it.
I'm Bruce Landay and live near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I retired about 6 months ago and now I'm focusing a lot more time on my writing. I write near future military - political techno-thrillers and I'm working on my third novel, though nothing published yet. I'm working on a later draft with both beta reader feedback and technical reader feedback. My current novel in progress, Electromagnetic Assault, takes place in the near future. My protagonist, Jazmin Hassani, is a Navy Special Ops pilot who was the loan survivor on a SEAL Team mission and she was critically injured. Five years later after extensive rehab she's now an investigator and is looking into a case almost identical to her own unsolved incident. As soon as she digs into the details she's called to Washington by a powerful US Senator and her investigation is shut down. Against orders she keeps digging and is soon on the run from a Black Ops team. She'll stop at nothing until she finds out who was really behind the attack on her team. I'm working with an Air Force fighter pilot and an Army Special Forces soldier (retired) to get help with the details. I'm having a blast!
Hello Winston, I’m Ray. I recently moved from England to Colombia, where I live with my wife, son and our miniature schnauzer, Shelby. I was a Chartered Building Engineer living in Hampshire, when I first began writing in a local supermarket café—so cliché, I know—in 2015. I was beginning to learn the craft, and it has taken me until 2024 to feel confident enough to publish my novels—mainly because other authors say not to strive for perfection … just tell a story. I still do strive to be as perfect as I can.
I write speculative fiction, usually based on true events or tales of a paranormal nature. I’m inspired by tales of ghost ships—and have learned a lot about sailing, just to add authenticity—also, things such as, cryptozoology and high strangeness over the Great Lakes, underground and in the air—plus true historical events in England, from werewolves to missing people, and even little people. I’m now hearing tales of odd events, and little people, here in Colombia—plus a lot of high strangeness in the forests and mountains. So who knows, I may gain further inspiration moving forward.
I was also inspired by an encounter with a fiery orb that followed my flight from Bogota to London in 2020, while travelling at 500 mph and at 41,000 feet over the North Atlantic—one-hour out from the Azores. When the orb slowly sank below cloud cover, at around 30,000 feet, I realised I was not to become part of a mystery myself.
There are several novels I’m polishing up ready for publication. At the same time, I’m writing the first draft of a new series—developing stories around a Parish Constable character living in London, around the 1700’s. Many of his cases have elements of the paranormal, based on true historical events.
As an indie author, I look forward to meeting other author’s, and aspiring writers, as well as any independent bookshop owners supporting the community.
Hi Winston - I'm a 55 year old Brit and I live in the Kingdom of Northumberlandia which is the second largest county (technically its not a kingdom outside of my own reality) in England, standing as it always has as a bastion against the marauding Scotts. Ive never lived outside of the UK, aside froma brief 9 months in Aix en Provence in the south of france. I dont think where I live has had much infleucen on my writing - and its only very recently since I left private practice as an evil lawyer to become a good lawyer workign for a non profit that I have suddenly begun to churn out a lot more writing - some of it even seems to be quite well received. Theres only one bit of work that is influenced by where I am curently living, which is quite close to a Mithraic ruined temple, left by the Romans near to Hadrians Wall, which is a few miles from my home. Funnily enough I am also partly through a novel where some of it is set in the deserts of Sonora so I have been researching the gulf of mexico quite a bit for that.
Northumberlandia is a sparsely populated and very beautiful rural county, there is lots of rolling moorside, abandoned lead mines, amazing coastlines, ruined roman towns and forst, mediaeval castles and bastles, quaint stone villages with weird names, and of course, the immense span of roman history - plenty to inspire, but actually not so far any of my own writing.
the only writing ive put out is on Substack - feel free to take a look - might get to finish a book one day and self publish it - seems possible.
kind regards
Nick
I visited that Mithraeum last year when I visited the wall for a second time, this time as an adult! There's so much amazing history and scenery there that's definitely inspiring what will be my next novel, with the temple as a focal point! If you're in London with some free time, there's the Bloomberg Mithraeum, a free museum of another temple with a light and sound experience within the underground ruins!
the car park for Brocolitia is a favourite spot for people trying to see northern lights. it looks like a very healthy dogging community to the casual observer until you park your car and get out. you occaisionally see people stop then leave quickly. i always assume these are disappointed doggers.
Hello Nick, and greetings from across the border in Bonnie Scotland! We’ll try and keep the marauding to a minimum, at least over the winter 😉
aye! get that waa built back up!
only kidding! my ma lives in scotland and my step bro lives in Edinburgh. its a 0lace close to my heart, truly 😀
A Mithraic temple you say? I actually know two indie creators whose work that'd be relevant to, keep getting second hand Mithra exposure. One is a series of mythology video game RPGs with Mithra as a major character, the other has the ruins of a Mithraeum play a key role in a character's backstory.
oooh... heres a link
https://www.northumberlandnationalpark.org.uk/places-to-visit/hadrians-wall/brocolitia/
my excerpt "The Tauroctony" on my stack is a bit from one of my largely unfinished noveldl . the tauroctony is a key ceremonial element of the cult of mithras.
the piece was described as the "strangest vampire origin story they had ever read" which of course made me very happy.
You’ll never guess what kind of supernatural being is involved in the indie serial with Mithraeum ruins in the backstory. Funny coincidence
ihes not really a vampire in the sense of bram stoker's count either. hes much older than that.
Winston's published two of my short stories now. I went to New Mexico one time, for an academic meditation retreat, at a place called the Lama Foundation up in the Sangre de Cristos north of Taos. Camped in a burned forest on a mountainside. I would love to revisit that area, fictionally. Loved all the Elmore Leonard westerns set in northern Arizona. Loved the smell of the desert, the many colors of the rocks . . .
I grew up on a farm in Kentucky, and that has influenced my work both on a general level (nature is always a big element) and to a lesser extent with specifics. This story is set somewhere I've never been, but it's like a lot of places I have been. https://randallhayes.substack.com/p/the-rake
I went to grad school in upstate New York, and I've been keeping the Thousand Islands area around Watertown in my back pocket for literally decades. It was a sort of millionaire's playground for NYC during the first Gilded Age. The Old Toad, a British pub in Rochester, has appeared in one unpublished story.
I loved Sean Stewart's novels set in Houston and Galveston while I lived there but have never tried to set any of my work there. Not sure why. http://www.seanstewart.org/novels/
I've been in Greensboro, NC, alternately teaching and entrepreneuring, for a long time now. The story I published this year in the British anthology ALL TOMORROW'S FUTURES, "The Elder Colossus," is definitely set here. That yarden looks a lot like mine, only better. I've been looking at maps of how sea level rise is going to change the NC coastline and which wildlife is where for a sequel to this story. https://randallhayes.substack.com/p/a-bolt-from-the-blue
I've never been to Mars or any other planet except through documentaries, but I definitely find those locations inspiring, much moreso than generic 'outer space.' Most of my stuff is also at least inspired by history, if not explicitly set there. This one is deliberately set 500 years after the founding of Jamestown, VA, in 1607. https://randallhayes.substack.com/p/jamestown-2107-482
Hey! I am Isha. I write fantasy and literary fiction that is deeply nostalgic. The last part of my ongoing serial about Karma of Kulgera would be updated tomorrow. After that, I have something interesting lined up. But I do plan to publish more serials here. Along with this, I am also working on my Novel.
I live in Delhi, India, with my Joint family. A lot of my inspiration comes from the people around me. In addition, the books I read. And the largest influence on me has been the Hindi films, Bollywood. I want to bring that level of drama here in written form.
Would love to connect with people who are also looking for dramatic fiction.
Hello Everybody. Hey Winston! My name's Ben, I live just outside of Vancouver, BC, Canada (voted one of the most beautiful cities on Earth!) I'm retired now, and spend my time writing, a life-long ambition. I write -- and now read out -- novella length stories, as well as share my serial novel THE SHIELD OF LOCKSLEY (behind the paywall) on Wednesdays. I'm inspired by scenery and the seasons, as well as music; and I was once interviewed by Mr. Winston Malone, our gracious host.
I write STORIES, AFTER EIGHT which I publish on Sunday mornings at, you guessed it, 8:00 am. This is the FREE part of my 'Stack, and the one that matters most to me. I write long, involved stories, that are usually tragic in one way or another. One of the themes I've noticed is that most of my stories are love stories. They take place in different places and different times, and are basically just stories that interest me.
One day, I might gather some of my stories and publish them, but it's not that important to me. I believe that Substack can support me eventually, and I want to prove to myself that it can. I have a BOOK TUBE Channel where I'm reading my work out loud. Check it out and why not subscribe while you're there. It's FREE:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuYULGx0wNPZvmM0FV8pILu-cgQThxxH_
Hey Ben, thanks for sharing more about yourself. I look forward to visiting parts of Canada someday, especially Vancouver. It looks beautiful there.
I love that you read your stories out loud. It inspires me to want to do the same. Best of luck to you and your publishing goals. I look forward to seeing where you go from here!
You know where I’m going. I’m going right to the top, Baby! The serial I’m working on is too long to think that someone will take it on as a first novel and actually publish it as one book. I’m thinking it’ll come in at around 250,00-260,000 words. That’s like, 800-850 pages long. I’ll probably have to self publish. By the time I get to doing that, you might have stepped up to doing bigger and large-sized tomes.That would be way cool. You should put it out there, that you’ll do big, oversized, books — get Substack to back you — and voilà, you’re the publisher you keep telling Substack they should be.
My work here is done. (Proverbial mike drop.)
And if you ever make it up here, give me a shout. (I know where all the good restaurants are, and if Vancouver is known for one thing, it’s the food.) And I can show you around and take you to all the cool places.
Hello everyone, I'm John. Like Winston and Keyon, I live in Utah. I work here as a sportswriter for the Associated Press. When I'm not reporting on pro and college sports, you can find me publishing science fiction stories and horror stories through my indie publishing imprint, Samak Press. I expanded Samak Press into an indie press this summer, launching a full-fledged website (https://samakpress.com). We are currently accepting story submissions for a horror anthology, Feral Lands, scheduled for publication in 2025. Submissions window is open through the end of October. A science fiction anthology for 2025 is also in the works and submission guidelines will be posted soon.
I draw tons of inspiration from Utah. Deer Falls, a small Colorado town featured in several of my horror stories, is modeled after my rural Utah hometown. I love the mountains and feel lost without them. I also draw inspiration from Louisiana after spending a year living just outside Lake Charles and it is the setting for some of my stories as well. The people and the culture are unlike anywhere else and stand out in a good way.
Nice to hear from you, John! Thanks for sharing your intro. I didn't realize you'd started a horror anthology! (I'm so behind on my Substack reading). I'll look for it and shout it out. I'll be announcing my next anthology at the end of October (leaning horror-themed this time). How exciting! Wishing you much success on the books and I'll help out any way I can.
Utah is definitely one-of-a-kind. It's a hidden gem that's becoming not so hidden anymore haha. A lot of our tastes overlap, and so I understand what you mean when you say that you feel lost without the mountains. I'm so glad NM has mountains, too. I'm not sure what I'd do if it didn't.
What took you out to Lake Charles? If you don't mind me asking. That has to be a big influence for sure.
Looking forward to chatting and working with you more in the future, John. Keep up the great work!
First of all, glad I saw this through Notes! I still can’t seem to find a solution to get your posts in my inbox. I’ve tried everything!
But hey! I live in Utah myself. I’m not so sure I was aware that you previously lived here, Winston. Such a small world!
I’m endlessly inspired by the Rocky Mountains—particularly the Wasatch and Uinta montane forests we have across the state. I’m a trail runner, backcountry skier, and forager. These mountains, paired with my Persian culture, are really a direct inspiration for my writing.
In fact, my ongoing project is a historical fantasy novel called “Zagros,” which is set in the Zagros Mountains of ancient Persia/Iran. It’s a perfect setting for my intents because there are a great deal of similarities between the Zagros and the Rockies.
I grew up in the Rockies and can’t imagine life without them. We’re from the Hamadan province of Iran (foothills of the high Zagros) so it’s very serendipitous of us to wind up in an environment that so closely resembles it.
If I ever moved I think I’d have to stay somewhere along the Rockies. I can’t imagine my life without them!
Hey Keyon, not sure why that is happening but I'm glad you saw it in Notes! I had no idea you were in Utah! I wish I'd known so we could have met up. Maybe we still can since I will try to travel back up there as often as possible.
I love the Wasatch Front and camping up in the Uintas. Your Zagros novel sounds awesome, and the inspiration being pulled from the Rockies has to be integral to your writing process. A vibe if you will. I get inspiration that way, especially for poetry.
I'm now living near the Sandia Mountains, which I'm grateful for since I, too, fell in love with the mountains in Utah. I can't see myself living in an area that doesn't have mountain views or access.
Thanks for stopping by to comment and introduce your work. It was a pleasure getting to know you more!
I'm Will. I've grown up in and still live in Massachusetts, I wouldn't say my writing especially draws on it though. Generally I write fantasy and have ambitions of making video games. My current serial is me writing out the story of a game I want to eventually make as a script and walkthrough for the game, but I have more typical short stories.
Mythology is a passion of mine and a major influence on my writing. My favorite mythological figure is Tezcatlipoca.
Hey William, nice to learn more about your interests and inspirations. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and comment. Hope you're doing well. We'll need to catch up again soon!
I'm Bill, an American living in Japan. I moved here ten years ago to be with the woman I love.
I write short stories, mostly speculative fiction: scifi, fantasy, magical realism, and horror. (And of course will have something spooky for Halloween.) I used to write nonfiction and once upon a time was a literary agent, but enjoy writing short fiction the most. Substack is a good match for me.
I have a cat (or does she have me?) and collect watches. I like seeing new sights and getting outside whenever I can.
So great to get to know you better, Bill. Thanks for sharing! I'm currently learning Japanese through Duolingo. I'm on a 15-day streak. We'll see how far I get, haha.
If I may ask, how did you like working as a literary agent? What's something about the job that people might not be privy to outside the business?
I enjoy your pictures of Japan! I need to get more familiar with your writing now. Do you have any recommendations on where I should start with your work?
Hi Winston!
OMG, Japanese is so hard. I’m still struggling with the language, even after living in Japan for nearly ten years. It’s a challenge, but rewarding.
Big publishing houses are monster-size, but editors still make decisions. If you know what particular editors enjoy reading (and their hobbies and other interests) that can help you target manuscripts to the right person.
I had good times and less pleasant ones working as a literary agent. I enjoyed helping writers get books published, but being an agent took time from my writing (and was exhausting) and after many years, I realized that the only way I could write was not to agent.
One of my favorite stories is Gerald Gray’s To-Do List: https://billadler.substack.com/p/gerald-grays-to-do-list
Thanks, Bill. That's really interesting. I'm going to need to figure out something that works for me in terms of time management with my company and my personal goals. It's important to give yourself the time you need to be happy and enjoy the things you want to do in life.
I'll add that to my reading list!
Hi Bill!🙋♂️
Waving to you, Ben!
Hi, I'm Laura! I was born in Ireland where my parents were missionaries for 13 years, but currently live in Michigan. I write (clean) young adult/new adult fantasy in various sub-genres, but nothing inspired by where I'm presently living. My inspiration more comes from my love of history and background as an artist, jeweller, gemology student, and former library worker. I actually hated writing in school and didn't start enjoying it until college and then a project I had in one of my art classes sparked a story idea and I started dabbling in fiction writing. I didn't get serious about it though until a situation at my old day-job had me turning to writing as a mental and emotional escape. It was during that that I wrote and published my first novel. I now have two books out and am currently working on three others concurrently: the second book in my jewellery/gem themed, steampunk, spy series; the second book in my art themed fairy tale retellings, and a library/writing themed urban fantasy.
Nice to meet you, Laura. Your story is so interesting! I aim to get more familiar with your work. I only visited Ireland for 14 days for vacation in 2014, but it was such a beautiful country. I've never been to Michigan. I'll have to remedy that someday. I love the way you describe your stories' themes. They sound very well-crafted and unique.
Three books concurrently?! That's impressive. Wishing you the best! I hope to chat with you further and get to know you better through Substack. Thanks for taking the time to introduce yourself and your books!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it when you do! They always say to 'write what you know' so that's what I did and it's amazing what a wealth of story ideas there are when you look at 'what you know' through the lens of fantasy.
It's been a challenge, but I found working on multiple books at once seems to work best for me and found a system of managing them all that I like. Which is great as my 'to do' list after them is quite large and still growing. Thank you! I look forward to getting to know everyone here more to.
Hi Laura, welcome, from another Michigander!
Hi! Well, that begs the question: Troll or Yooper? Non-native Troll here, which I guess is kinda fitting as I write fantasy 😂.
Troll myself! Southeastern troll to be exact... a suburban troll to be even more exact. 🤣
Nice! I'm presently a Northern-Mid, semi-rural troll.
Hi y'all! I was born and raised in New Orleans, have been living in Chicago almost 25 (!!!)years. I spent waaay too many years in the retail and food service industry....the one good thing to the world shutting down in 2020 is it forced me to finally take a leap of faith and try new things.
The job that pays the bills is working for the Chicago Cubs. When I'm not working, I'm puttering about in the kitchen or stabbing fabric with a sharp pointy object (cross stitching ).
Married, no kids, but we are owned by 2 cats, Bailey and Eclaire.
I started writing in early 2023, mainly fiction. I've had a few stories published in lit mags and publish a few on Substack.
Substack has an amazing fiction community, very supportive, friendly and welcoming!
Hey, Kim! Nice to meet you. I've never been to New Orleans or Chicago; I've only traveled close by during cross-country roadtrips. I'm sure those 25 years have flown by. You've got all of your favorite spots and know the area better than most, I bet. The longest I've lived somewhere is 10 years, which was Tennessee. The job sounds interesting!
I'm glad to hear that you've made the most of that terrible situation (COVID) and recently taken up writing. What types of fiction do you like to write?
Thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself. The Substack community is awesome and I'm sure you'll continue to find wonderful writers and readers on this platform. It's my favorite place to write!
Go Cubs! My mom is from Evanston and reps all the Chicago teams!
Thanks Winston for hosting this and glad to know more about you. Geoff in Texas, enjoying a true autumn, as we usually have summer extending into October.
A former engineer then IP lawyer, who has written non-fiction forever, I have a history book about an entrepreneurial aspect of technology in the works at a university press. Lately, I’ve focused on novel writing and it’s made me appreciate how gifted writers hold their audience. I’m exploring the art of telling compelling stories in my newsletter. Current WIP is a character-driven grounded SciFi set present day (not in Texas).
Hey Geoff, thanks for stopping by to introduce yourself. Glad to hear that you're enjoying the seasonal weather. Utah was like that, too, where it would be a week of fall weather and then immediately winter for half the year haha.
IP lawyer as in "intellectual property" lawyer? How did you get into that field?! And what is it like working in that career field?
Your transition from working non-fiction into fiction is interesting. Do you think it helped you as a writer from a technical standpoint to start out that way? I know what you mean about novelists weaving engrossing tales, it's definitely a skill that often goes under-appreciated.
Your newsletter sounds intriguing and informative, and so does your current WIP. Are you publishing it serially or waiting until you finish it? Also, good luck on your history book!
Hey, I'm Brian, and I'm from Michigan in the United States. I'm a software architect by day and an indie author by night. I write fantasy and science fiction, and I've self-published two short story collections. Michigan is a beautiful midwestern state, especially in the fall, when we're known for the leaves changing colors, cider mills, hayrides, corn mazes, apple picking and Halloween. We're considered a water and winter wonderland with our great lakes, and all of those things inspire my creativity and writing. I have a journalism degree and a traditional education, but I didn't get serious about fiction writing until late in life. I'll be 48 this year and want everyone to know it's never too late to try your hand at a new passion. You never know where it will take you... it took me to Substack, to Winston and to a great community here.
Love this! Thanks for sharing, Brian. I would love to visit Michigan someday. It sounds quite lovely and more my speed, maybe because I'm partial to fall weather and vibes. So thankful to have met you and that you're a regular around these parts. Keep up the great work!
I spent many formative years in Michigan. Fall and winter in the mitten is like nowhere else. I miss it dearly.
Hi, I'm Victor David, formerly of the United States, now living in the high desert of central Mexico. I have a couple of fruit trees and three dogs adopted from the street.
I've self published a couple of books, the most recent: The Defiant Light, a collection of 41 stories. I publish fiction here on Substack, and have recently started publishing on some other platforms as well. I write a lot, which I love, but it also means it takes 3 weeks to get a simple bit of plumbing done. Gotta get those siestas in, too, you know. And walks in the hills with the dogs.
I'm very pleased to be part of Winston's anthology Take Me There and really appreciate all the hard work he put into making that a reality.
My work has certainly been influenced by where I live, and where I've been before, which has been in several parts of the world. As you can see from my photo, I'm not 20 years old any more, and these days I stick a little closer to home. Although I do love to travel and still get here and there. And over that a way, too.
I enjoy getting to know you more, Victor. Thanks for stopping by to share your story. I'm looking forward to reading your latest collection as I have it on my bookshelf. My goal is to read all the books I own before buying new ones but I know that is unattainable. Therefore, maybe if I read 3, buy 1 sort of deal, maybe I can whittle away at my TBR list over time.
Thank you Winston!
Hey Winston, I’m Michael. I’m a librarian who Forrest-Gumped into engineering where I’m now the semi-workaholic engineering director of a series-A, and it’s been a jam but I’m basically an English major who followed the work.
Lately I’ve been investing almost all of my free time into storytelling. I kind of had a pandemic-inspired epiphany about the clock ticking, and so now I’m working hard to make my hobby self-sustaining.
My main medium is audiodrama: fully cast, fully immersive low-fantasy and it scratches a ton of creative itches. It’s just slow as heck.
I’ve been in Fort Lauderdale for about a decade but I grew up in Michigan, and I’m mostly daydreaming about Lake Michigan. I love south Florida — very Dexter — but if my imagine myself anywhere it’s in a remote beach cabin. It doesn’t inspire my writing, but it’s what taps my focus buttons.
Hey Michael, it's so nice to meet you! Your work sounds really interesting. I find that totally relatable as I'm following the work as well. Still, it's great to have a career that supports our passions/hobbies while we get the groundwork set for future successes.
Time is definitely ticking, and it's now or never, right?! I like to imagine it as a snowball that starts rolling and grows over time, the point being to get the ball rolling in the first place.
Audiodramas are so freaking cool. There's this group I follow called Sentinel Creatives, and they have some available on Audible and Spotify that I really enjoy. Lovecraftian-type stuff. What type of stories are you producing, and are any available online?
I grew up in Largo/Clearwater, FL area! I do like the FL vibes sometimes, but definitely understand what you mean when you mention being able to focus. A remote beach cabin would be sweet. Would you be near family again if you moved back to Michigan? That's always something I struggle with; maximizing time spent with loved ones.
Thanks for introducing yourself and for sharing your work. I hope you keep in touch!
I subbed to Sentinel Creatives Podcast, that's a good find! Horror lends itself to audio dramas and old school radio plays. My main thing is a low-fantasy series called The Thief (https://open.spotify.com/episode/485gLLMu8lQGYVZgIN6lPP?si=OrrTMTg7SAeC8DVCHyGzig) -- I host its main site here on substack -- but I'm making a Lovecraftian horror called Wayfare (a little teaser: https://wayfarepodcast.substack.com/p/the-beautiful-mystifying-and-enrapturing). This won't release until next year probably, but this is my jam 💪.
Most of my family has sort of scattered so I don't think I'm leaving Florida until the cost of living gets too crazy, _but_ if I have #success I'll get a place on Beaver Island or something before I die.
> Time is definitely ticking, and it's now or never, right?! I like to imagine it as a snowball that starts rolling and grows over time, the point being to get the ball rolling in the first place.
This is spot on ^. I didn't really do anything creative between college and mid-thirties and so I feel like I've got some serious catch-up.
Hey Michael, hope you're doing well after the hurricane. I've been seeing a lot of videos along the west coast of FL and it looks devastating. Praying it didn't hit you as badly!
I love what you're doing with the audio dramas. I'm looking forward to checking them out more in-depth soon. It's never too late to start living your dream!