I've been absent. There were a few years from 2018 to 2020 when I was quite active on social media, where I made some great friends and connections. I launched the first three books in The Riven Realm (the first of which was a semi-finalist in SPFBO 5) and the first book in The Portal of Tears.

It was a lot of fun.

Covid, on the other hand, was not. It hit the world with all the force of Tanner Hoff's hammer.

The pandemic lockdown wasn't too bad at first. In any given situation, I'm usually one of the most introverted people in the room, so being stuck at home didn't seem so bad to me. And to be perfectly honest, I still don't mind it all that much. I like being home, and sometimes I just need solitude.

But I think the real issue brought about by the pandemic wasn't so much the COVID-19 virus. It was the underlying issues that all seemed to come to the forefront: the bitterness and anger that started pouring out on social media, the ongoing exposure of systemic racism, the rise of new wars, and extreme ideological polarization.

Anxiety spiked, and I fought against feelings of helplessness and depression.

A Creativity Black Hole

Needless to say, it was not an environment conducive to creativity. I did my best to keep writing and managed to release Wrath in the Woods in 2022, but even that release happened with minimal fanfare and promotion. I just didn't have the energy for it.

By way of example, it's only now, more than three years since that book's release, that I finally added it to the website.

I was drained. And as more time passed, I found myself wrestling with negative feelings and questions about my own self-worth.

Through it all, I continued to tinker with my writing. I drafted Book 5 of The Riven Realm and worked through about half of Book 2 of The Portal of Tears, but it remained a struggle.

Finding My Way Back

I'd love to tell you that I had a moment of profound revelation or that some miraculous motivation came upon me, but the truth is that I still have my struggles. There is still so much pain and darkness in the world, and I still have rough days and moments of self-doubt.

But very slowly, over the course of 2024, the tide has started to turn. I'm having more good days than bad, and the spark of creativity is returning. I completed Book 2 of The Portal of Tears in the fall and spent the remainder of last year slowly getting myself organized.

I finally feel a renewed determination.

What’s Next

Well, I've already launched this new author website and a refreshed Varkas Chronicles website, both of which I will continue to expand with new content and features. Additionally, I am about to start the final revision of Book 5 of The Riven Realm before preparing it for editing. I'll also be working through the initial edits on the next Portal of Tears book.

Beyond that, I'm drafting the next installments in each of these series, with Book 3 of The Portal of Tears bringing that trilogy to a conclusion.

I've also started a completely new Varkas Chronicles series that I'm extremely excited about. It's still in the early stages, so I'm not quite ready to share the details, but I'll be exploring new characters in a new setting that I believe will greatly expand the breadth of the world.

Going forward, I'll be easing back into social media, so keep your eyes peeled. I should slowly start appearing more regularly!

I'd like to close by offering my sincere thanks to my beautiful wife, my amazing daughters, and all the friends and readers who have stuck by me.

Looking forward to a brighter future.