If was one year ago today I officially began work on my next book, the final book in The Crystal Crux epic fantasy series.

It’s been a long year and a lot has happened. Some days, some weeks, it feels like a snail’s pace. It’s often difficult to pull myself away from life, from family, from work, from the news and other issues to immerse myself in the fantasy realm. Perhaps, knowing it is the final book in the series, I’m being overly cautious with my words and editing.

Time will tell.

I’ll try to update this blog more often than I have been doing. It’s been a few months actually since I stepped foot in this online room.

I have a working title and I have been playing with a few book cover ideas sketched out. We’ll see what becomes of those.

In the meantime, pray for peace, pray for Ukraine and its people, as well as the Russian soldiers who don’t want to be waging a war. Pray for the refugees.

The ambitions of the few never cease to disgust me.

“Protect Italy?” Gherardus was weary of how the motivation to oppose Philip of Swabia’s election was morphing at every turn. He struck his fist sharply against the dragon-faced armrest. “Do not speak to me about protecting Italy! I know what it is to defend this sacred soil with bone and with blood!… I was up to my knees in mercenary guts! You know nothing, you fool!… Innocent’s ambition is clear. He is exploiting this discord to create a papal state. There are no secrets here… Innocent is on a personal crusade and will not cease until all of Europe bows before his despotic God!” The aged commander felt short of breath. He blinked in disgust and supposed aloud, “War, for whatever purposes we have imagined, is all around us. Friends are betraying friends.” – Excerpt from Book One: The Crystal Crux – Betrayal