So you want to know about me, eh? Well, let’s start with the basics. I was born in Havre De Grace, Maryland, but moved to Texas when I was 3. I’ve grown up in Central Texas, a country gal. When I was little, I used to draw all sorts of pictures, and made up stories about what I drew. Although I didn’t write my first novel until I was 14 (and therefore didn’t consider myself a writer until that point), I still have some elementary school awards for writing, and recall reading my stories aloud to the principal. I received back surgery for the correction of scoliosis when I was 14, and found writing to be the least painless thing to do for three months of near bedridden-ness.

My first novel was set in the Werewolf: The Apocalypse universe, but it wasn’t intended to be a fanfiction. Just a background story for my favorite character at the time. I’ve written many novels since then, and a number of scraps that never go anywhere. Reading is my number one favorite thing to do: beyond TV, my art, or video games. I finish about a book a week. I finished the 6th Harry Potter book in 10 hours, and got a monster ‘reading headache’ from Order of the Phoenix. Writers are readers moved to emulsion, it is said. So I guess it’s only natural. I became interested in digital art about 6 years ago, because it was faster and less annoying than traditional media. I have long since been of the opinion that I rush my artwork, and digital coloring was just a shameless indulgence. Adobe Photoshop always has things to teach you. I covet tutorials of all sorts, but mostly comic-style coloring as opposed to working with filters or photo manipulation. My brother is a digital photographer, and the purveyor of my Wacom tablet, but what he used Photoshop for was not what I was looking to. I am therefore self-taught; I have never read Photoshop for Dummies or much of anything else. Online tutorials have been my bread and butter, but often spending a couple of hour fiddling in the program can help you solve a problem or discover a new technique.

I love animals; I consider myself a cat lover first and foremost, then dog and horse. But it’s apples and oranges, really. I have a lilac point Balinese named Lux, who is terrified of his own shadow. I have an American Bobtail named Ptolemy, who is like owning a tiny lynx with a penchant for fetching poofballs. I have a Rottweiler named Dexter, who is the best dog I have ever owned. I also own RJS Camphechano, a cheerful sorrel Peruvian Paso gelding. My animals are my haven. People who don’t like pets are freaks. Everyone should enjoy a non-judgemental companions; hell, we crave it. When I first really started getting on the Internet (that is, we got cable instead of dial-up), I discovered a number of people who called themselves “furries”. I am not a furry. I would classify myself as an animal-lover, which is, apparently synonymous. I believe in animal totems (mine is the coyote); I do not believe that I am secretly an animal trapped in a human body. Furries harp on about their mystical animal longing. I get out there an communicate with my animals. I work my horse, I train my dogs, and I snuggle with my cats on my lap. There’s a big difference between communicating to an animal and wanting to be one; communication has a chance of actual success. I donate to the World Wildlife Fund and Greenpeace to make sure that the wild creatures I admire don’t disappear.

I hope you like the site, and care to visit me on deviant art or Elfwood if you do. If this old rag of mine gets published, I will certainly let you know.

The book this site is dedicated to actually started out as a vastly different story. I had an idea for a short story about a psychic girlhunted by a government syndicate that had a big, semi- sentient computer system on their side to track her down. She runs into this ragged street boy, who helps her escape. They also run into an alien race of telekinetic cats who build mechas with their minds. Somehow, it evolved from there, mostly when I asked the question “what would humans do if they found a God?”. The drawing affects the writing and the writing affects the drawing. The drawing said “make a hawk lady and a cool wolf with a robot and a ki-rin guy.” The writing said “make them work with the plot”. It’s hard to satisfy both.

I sat down with a crisp new notebook and started world-building as I had never world built before. The thing about fantasy is that you can make everything up. But that’s it’s bane, too, you have to make everything up. I detailed what the races eat, their history, their laws and values, who used to worship what God, and how the magic works. Once I had some sketches and a firm visual for a set-piece in mind, I went to work. I write things twice before I type them for real: first time is a general summary on what will happen in my notebook, second is a live- action playthrough (I let my characters talk through me when I’m driving a lot) for good dialogue and to get feel for the characters, then I write for real. It stops me from freezing up at the keyboard and allows me to knock out a scene. A lot of people hate outlining. I think outlining saves you a lot of rewriting, because your plot is a lot more streamlined and direct. Dean Koontz says outlining destroys your character’s free will. He also revises 80 to 90 times per scene. Terry Brooks outlines. He says you either do the hard work at the beginning our at the end. Since I get stuck plenty without outlines, I opt for it. There’s no wrong way.

I write maybe two to three hours a night when I’m in book mode. I don’t measure by words or pages; I measure by scenes. I like to write one scene and then stop, so I can muse about the next one I have to write. If I move too fast (and I’ve discovered that it’s possible for me), I risk total burnout and running roughshod over my characters. I guess I’m rather slow and methodical, but persistent in my writing. I often find I can jump from one scene where these characters are doing that, and then jump into the skin of another character in a separate place. It’s hard for me to “shift gears” like that.
Do I have advice for writers? I’m not published yet, but I can offer some words of wisdom. Writing is not a chore; it’s a passion. It consumes the whole of your being. You find yourself thinking about plotline while people are talking to you, or scrambling for paper with an idea in your head. Procrastination haunts every writer, but if you find yourself unable to leave it alone, then you are a writer. It’s a lonely profession, and one understand us, but we are so immersed in these ideas and characters that we don’t care.

Write what you care about. Screw knowledge about it! If you care about what you’re writing about, the rest is semantics. Seek out readers. You’re writing your stuff so people can read it, so don’t defeat the purpose. Just don’t pick your worst enemy to read your stuff. Ask for constrictive criticism. “This sucks” is not constructive. “I didn’t understand this sentence because I didn’t know if you were talking about the main character or her horse” is. Expect rejection. It’s part of being a writer; but if you never get your stuff out there, you will never know if someone will decide to publish it. Get a subscription to Writer’s Digest or something similar. Find a writer’s group.

Don’t be afraid to risk yourself. By the way, have I mentioned I like reading? I’m always up for a manuscript trade. You send me yours and I’ll send you mine, and we’ll both pull out our red pens. Seriously. E-mail me.