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Like many people of my generation (born in the late 1960s and early 1970s), I was taken to a Christian church as a child by my parents. I learned a little bit about the Bible and was told general things about God, that He had a Son named “Jesus” and that there was a Holy Spirit. I was also taught that they were all One Being. By the time I was a teenager, I had even memorized one scripture that I considered my favorite:

John 3:16 (KJV) “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

At the time, we had attended a couple of different Southern Baptist churches. And along the way, I matured enough to go from having intellectual (or book-taught) knowledge of God to developing a belief in Him. I also believed that Jesus was the Son of God. I believed in the Holy Trinity.

But that’s about as far as it went. The churches I attended had plenty of nice people but there were serious issues with the way they were run. And while I didn’t fully understand what those problems were as an adolescent, I picked up enough to want to stop attending. However, since church attendance was mandatory for me and my sister when we were kids, I grew to resent church. I protested in what little, ineffectual ways I could. I may have been there physically but I chose not to sing and had little interest in being taught anything, especially the sermons.

Things changed when I turned eighteen. My parents now considered me an “adult” and gave me the choice of attending. By then, I was starting to understand the managerial problems at our church. The pastor had hired people to build a “mega-church” but in the process had incurred $2 million in debt. When the pastor asked his congregation to take out second mortgages on their homes to help cover that expense, I felt it was very wrong. And that’s when I left that church and gave up on “organized religion.”

Over the next several years, I would occasionally be invited to other churches and I actually visited a few. But I never felt like I belonged at those churches. I didn’t experience God’s presence, though I didn’t understand that at the time. What I did know was that it was disappointing. In truth, I did want to find a church home. I still believed in God and His Son, Jesus Christ. I was on a search and would not be satisfied until I found something “real.”

After I met Angel, the woman who would become my wife, a second time (our first meeting did not go so well, but that’s another story), one of the first things we discussed was spirituality. We soon found out that we both had attended churches and believed in God and Jesus. Even though neither of us had found true salvation yet, we had a common belief. That belief would help solidify our friendship and follow us throughout our dating period and engagement. We prayed together often. And when we said our wedding vows, we made them to God.

By the time our first anniversary came around, we had both given our lives to Jesus Christ and had found a nondenominational church home. Our faith grew through being taught how alive and present God, His Son, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are -- not only in this world but the entire universe. We were taught about sin and that, through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can live without it. It can be a daily struggle but with the Lord's help, sin can be overcome.

1 Corinthians 10: 13 (KJV) "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."

We came to understand that the Bible -- through the Holy Spirit, which is present in our very beings after we ask Jesus Christ to come into our hearts and become our Savior -- becomes a living thing: God’s Word 

John 1: 1 - 5 (KJV) "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not."

Studying and meditating on God’s Word, prayer, church attendance/participation and having a good relationship with one’s pastor and the ministerial staff all work together towards one goal: getting closer to God and His Son, Jesus Christ. It has taken me all my life to realize this. In the process, I have learned that God is the greatest intellect in the universe. He is also the greatest creative muse anyone could ever hope to have. I pray and ask Him to inspire me in everything I do -- and He does!

Perhaps equally important, He is the embodiment of fatherhood. In times of pain, loss or just great stress, I have turned to Him. I lean on Him when I’m alone or it’s the middle of the night and everyone’s asleep or I don’t know what to think (of a situation or problem) or pray for. And He is there. I can feel His presence comforting and reassuring me. And whether it’s right then or later, I receive an answer to whatever is hurting or troubling me.

There is much darkness in this world because of sin and unbelief, which tend to lead to one another. A whole generation or two have been actively taught that there is no God, devil, heaven or hell. Noted intellectuals and celebrity-like representatives of science treat belief in God as if it was the height of ignorance. Evolution is taught as fact when it is more theory than not. And people go to extreme measures, even killing themselves or others, thinking they are trying to "save the planet."

​We can certainly do humane things to reduce or eliminate pollution and extend natural resources. These are common sense things that make life better for everyone. It's when people start using the issue of "the environment" to control other people (or nations) politically and financially or take it to extremes (the aforementioned suicides or murders) that problems occur.

To be clear, I am not in any way against science. It is a wonderful tool for exploring and understanding the world (and universe) around us. However, I am against the abuse of science. That is, when people try to use science to justify their beliefs that God does not exist and spirituality is somehow meaningless superstition.

Wars, genocide, mass and individual murder, terrorism. corruption, injustices -- all the evils visited upon the human race -- are manifested through sin, which starts in the human heart. As people turn away from God, they turn away from hope. And when people lose hope, things get worse. They may find a form of happiness but it doesn't last. People wonder why bad things are happening to them (and the world) but don’t find satisfactory answers. They may even blame God...but forget that they proclaimed they didn’t want Him.

It comes down to a personal choice: Do you want to believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob from the Bible? And people have different reasons for not believing. Some have never felt His presence or love, even when attending churches. Many people have been hurt and/or betrayed by people claiming to be "Christians," those quick to claim the title but not live the life.   It is understandable.

But God is the same today as He was in the Bible, thousands of years ago. He was the same when He created the universe. He has always had limitless compassion and more love than we can truly comprehend. He loves everyone but He hates sin. He knows each of us and wants to help us, to guide us in turning our lives around. But we have to believe in Him. We have to trust Him and His Son, Jesus Christ. But trust can be difficult when one has doubts or has been hurt before.

I will conclude this with the reason I believe in God: He is an active part of my life. Every waking moment, I know He is with me through His Holy Spirit. I can call on Him and He hears me. The Holy Spirit speaks to me. I commune with Him through prayer. He builds my faith, strengthens me, my marriage, my relationships with my family and friends. He inspires my creativity and fulfills my soul. I am a better person for not just believing, but having a relationship with Him. He is my heavenly Father. And I love Him for who He is.

He can be all of that and more for whoever is seeking Him, whether openly or just within their heart. He can send someone "real" to anyone and lead them to somewhere the living Gospel is being preached. And they can finally find hope.

Thanks for reading this.
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As far back as I can remember, I’ve always been a dreamer. As a kid, I dreamed of being a cartoonist, someday working for Marvel or DC Comics. As a teen, I dreamed of being a journalist then a musician, even recording a solo studio album. In my early twenties, I thought I might make it big in a rock and blues band. Nearing my thirties, I dreamed of reducing or eliminating weight-related prejudice in the world. In my forties, I decided to start writing novels in hopes of someday being published. And now, that dream is coming true.

To realize a dream, you have to believe it can come true. You have to have hope. You have to understand that you have value as a person. I was fortunate when I was growing up, since my parents, especially my mother, taught me to believe in myself. She repeatedly assured me that I could do anything I set my mind to. My father's life proved it to me. He was also very inspiring. I am well aware that many people are not fed such encouragement. This can lead to a lot of self-doubt, anxiety and potentially overwhelming fear of failure. Those feelings cause some people to delay or even sabotage their own dreams.

The little bit of advice I would offer to anyone who was not encouraged by their parent(s) or  faced neglect or abuse in their formative years is this: There is still hope. God believes in you or He would not have made you. He let each and every one of us be born into this world, as challenging and cruel as it can be at times, for a purpose. He can help all of us achieve something special and meaningful. He just wants us to trust Him.

The song I included above tells the story of how I wished to fall in love. I knew I wanted to get married and have a family someday. That dream began when I was ten years old. I wrote “(There’s Always Time For) Dreams & Wishes” in 1990, after I’d experienced my heartbreaking first love. But I wasn’t discouraged. I knew if I fell in love once, I could fall in love again. I wanted to find someone who would share that love and make a commitment with me.

A year after I wrote that song, I met the woman who would become my wife. We had to fight for our love, being an interracial couple in Central Texas during the 1990s. But we persevered and did marry in 1995. Even so, it took the Lord to solidify that matrimony and give it a lasting foundation. My wife and I gave our lives to Jesus Christ and invited His Holy Spirit into our hearts -- and our marriage. This year, we celebrated twenty-three years of that union. We have three wonderful children, two sons and a daughter. They are the realization of my dream and I will be forever grateful to the Lord for them.

Time and reality taught me that some dreams are more realistic than others. As a kid and teen, I might have been interested in Star Trek and science fiction but I knew I was never going to be an engineer like the USS Enterprise’s Mr. Scott or a military captain like James T. Kirk. My medical issues made military service impossible and I did not have a passion for number-crunching or other related skills. I was more about creating stories: comics, news stories or songs.

And by the time I attended college, even my dream of being a journalist was shattered. I saw for myself that, even in 1991, what made the “news” was too often determined by political and business reasoning than the idealistic pursuit of the truth. And that's what I had always thought journalism was about, it drove my passion. Still, I never quite gave up my journalism skills, I just found different ways to use them. I contributed articles and design skills to an e-zine for years and then hosted or co-hosted podcasts and conducted interviews.

Dreams have a way of hanging on, even against tough circumstances. They only die if you let them.

Something I have come to understand recently is that all dreams have a price. It will always take time and effort. Sometimes you have to start over to reach what you want. Sometimes the cost is in relationships. It depends on the dream and the individual. To achieve my dream of being a novelist, I had to hand over my talent to God and His Son, Jesus Christ. It was never really “my” talent anyway, only what the Lord imbued me with.

When I sought the Lord through earnest and daily prayer, asking Him to inspire me, that is what changed my course and started me down this path. It started with the Mindfire novel in 2013. I knew my characters and the various comic book plots I had created over the years, but it was the Lord who organized everything and helped me focus. By the time I finished the editing in 2016, it had transformed from an interesting but admittedly so-so first draft to a powerful novel. Mindfire had something to say. And it stood on its own as something new and unique. However it might be received once published next year, I am proud of it.

I repeated the process with Jordan’s World. Only with this novel, I was starting from scratch. I had to lean on the Lord even more, every step of the way. And He blessed. Jordan's World has a different message than Mindfire but it points to the same God. And the two Jordan sequels will be handled the same way.

So, what am I trying to say here? You can dream, but be careful. Ask yourself what your dream will demand of you -- your time, your relationships with those close to you, your money -- or will the cost be to your soul, who you are as a person? Will it change you for the better or worse? How will you balance your dream with real life?

It takes confidence to follow a dream. What have you placed your confidence in? If it's only yourself, that's very risky and could exact a high price. Only God and His Son, Jesus Christ, can provide the inspiration, confidence and security to achieve lasting happiness. They can do anything, so the fulfillment of a dream is hardly a challenge. And when you place Them first in your life, they may give you a new dream that was better than what you originally wanted. 

Matthew 7: 8 - 15 (KJV) “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

Matthew 7: 24 - 27 (KJV): “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it."
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The complete Jordan trilogy will be published by Ambassador International! This will happen one book at a time, of course.

Actual release dates for "Jordan's Arrow" and "Jordan's Deliverance" are still to be determined. "Jordan's World" will premiere Summer 2019.

As I get more information, I will keep you updated.
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Writing can fulfill many purposes. Obviously, people create fictional stories and relay facts in books but that only shows you the end product. It’s what goes on “behind the scenes” during the writing process that can truly be fascinating. “The pen is mightier than the sword” has a degree of truth to it. Writing can be a weapon, if one chooses to use it that way. Or it can heal the deepest wounds.

I was born with amblyopia, a medical condition better known as “lazy eye.” Left untreated, it can lead to blindness. My parents had me undergo multiple corrective surgeries and physical therapy from shortly after birth through the age of twelve to strengthen that eye. Until that was remedied, I had poor depth perception, which made me terrible at sports. I experienced a lot of bullying from other kids, especially boys, particularly when I made any attempt to play sports. 

Not wanting to be insulted or hurt, I isolated myself from most kids. I even taught myself not to react emotionally. My parents had taught me that fighting was bad and not to fight. So instead, I controlled my emotions as best I could. Between the ages of six to perhaps ten, I would come home from school and watch cartoons like most kids but I challenged myself to not laugh or get excited. Even with Saturday morning cartoons, which I really enjoyed, I made myself not react. I showed my emotions with my family and closest friends; otherwise, I was quiet, usually just observing situations.  I wasn’t even aware that I had become a quiet student. No one prompted me to do any of this. I instigated it myself, probably to protect myself from even potentially being hurt.

Not surprisingly, I developed a lifelong disdain for sports of any kind (with a mild exception being soccer). Time and the Lord have lessened this feeling but I have no illusions about ever becoming a sports enthusiast.

Back on topic, I started reading and enjoying superhero comic books when I was eight years old. By the time I was ten, I had actually become something of a critic, knowing what I liked and disliked. One friend remarked “if you don’t like them, why don’t you make your own comics?” And at that time, in my little kid brain, I decided that was a great idea! I wrote and drew a comic book with original characters that formed a superhero team and fought supervillains. Then they began having relationships. In time, they even got married and started having kids. 

In a unique way, I started living vicariously through my comic book characters and their experiences -- their triumphs, their tragedies and everything in-between. I started calling my comics my “therapy.” And in a sense, it was. By the same principle, if I was going through something challenging in my own life, some version of it would often find its way into my comics.

When I gave my life to Christ in January 1996, I had been married for a little under a year and was a new father. It gave me a new perspective. By 2007, my wife and I put together the “Due East” Christian webcomic about a multi-racial family trying to come back together and heal after a separation and divorce. While I had never experienced divorce, I knew plenty of friends and even a few family members who had. I understood some sense of how damaging it was, especially to the children. Because of the sensitive nature of the story, my wife and I had to lean on the Lord through prayer to tackle such a topic. We also sought His help with how to share our faith through a webcomic.

In 2013, I decided to participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and make my first 50,000 word rough draft in less than a month. Through prayer and persistence, I took many of the characters from my first superhero team comic and some of the early stories and re-tooled them to work together to create Mindfire (coming Summer 2019 from Ambassador International). Along the way, a lot of elements of my personality and even my life ended up in that novel. It was exciting, terrifying and cathartic, all at the same time.

I think this is true in everything I write. Whether intentional or not, I imbue each novel with bits of myself. And in doing so, it is also a healing and release, opening my words up to intrigue as well as criticism.

But now, I don’t write just for myself. I try to reach people with a message of hope in the salvation and deliverance that Christ freely offers. I want to share the Healing only He can bring. I know what the Lord has done in my life. Now I want to pass it forward.
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Maybe I’m strange but I’ve never minded working on multiple stories at the same time. That may have started with my years developing comic and webcomic stories, always planning ahead. Since becoming a novelist, I find that some of it is necessary.

Unless you intend to only write standalone short stories or books, an author must have some idea where they are going with their works. Is there room for a sequel? Should this be a trilogy? A series? Just how much story is there for this set of characters and any new supporting characters you may introduce later?

Between 1980 and 2000, I developed many (homemade) comics series, limited series, annuals and special editions, just like Marvel and DC Comics. I just never sold them. They were hand-drawn and lettered on copier paper and made into twenty (or more) page issues, stapled together and collected in a folders then boxes. I would look back through them from time to time to maintain consistency in the characters’ look, story and development. 

Sometimes, I would get burned out on one series and deliberately switch to working on a different one for a while. Or I would deliberately make a crossover story, mixing-and-matching elements and characters from different series. This would inspire me to try new things and give me new ideas for existing series and characters. I would later experiment with this, coordinating between not only mine but others' webcomics in what would become the award-winning "Off Hours" webcomic. It was a series I developed with two other writer friends that ran from 2007 to 2010 and involved 26 comic creators from four different countries.

In 2013, “Mindfire” was created as a standalone novel. It was also a test to see if I could actually complete a 50000+ word book. And I did. My next project was “Jordan’s World.” I created the Jordan as a series, specifically a trilogy. By the time I finished the first book, I had the title for the second and some idea where I wanted it to go. As I wrote the second book, I went through several titles for the third until finally reaching a satisfactory one. Once I finished the first draft of the second Jordan book, I had a good idea what I wanted to do in the third.

Along the way, I was inspired to try writing Christian steampunk. I developed an idea and characters, somehow already knowing it would become a trilogy.

Once that my (and my wife’s) personal editing on the second Jordan book was nearing completion, I was feeling that old ambivalence towards the third book. I wasn’t quite burned out but was getting there. So, I switched gears and threw myself into the first steampunk book for a solid week and that really helped accomplish two things: I got to delve into a new set of characters and story elements, building a new world, if you will. And at the same time, it gave me just enough of a break and diversion to inspire me anew for the third Jordan book.

What’s more, I instinctively know I can switch back and forth between these two books at any time and not lose focus on either. In fact, I’ve been developing an idea for another book! Quite frankly, it’s exciting.

One might ask “how do you keep track of all these characters and story elements? Wouldn’t that get confusing?” I make a point to keep detailed notes about my stories and can refer back to them at any time. Also, once I’ve begun writing a story, I can use it as reference. These things tend to build on one another. Another thing I’m grateful for is having a photographic memory. It’s not as pinpoint as it was in my late teens and twenties but it still allows me to visualize a scene or remember something I’ve written or said before and work from it.

Every author has their own way of storytelling. I realize mine is somewhat complex but it’s surprisingly fun and what ultimately matters is how it comes across to you, the reader. I endeavor to make stories that are worthy of your time and attention -- or at least will entertain you. Time will tell.
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What makes a fictional work "Christian?" Is anything off-limits or "taboo?"  Now, I realize this is topic is subjective, but I will share my opinion. I think any work that declares itself “Christian” should have a few things in common:

It should glorify God, His Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. This should be the motivation for any Christian writer. A Christian book can be elaborate, exciting, funny, thrilling or even touch on things considered “dark,” but in the end, it should point to the Holy Trinity and give praise. There is hope, love and life in them.

They are not fairy tales or moral equivalency stories, somehow no different than any other religious or principled figure on planet Earth. They are alive with power and holiness, moving and shaping not just this world but the entire universe. They are not limited or finite. They simply are. And they deserve praise, worship and devotion for what they have done (and continue to do) for us. As Christian writers, we should be seeking Their Will for our lives and how to best represent it through the talent we have been given.

It should acknowledge Christ’s death, burial and resurrection. There are many ways to write a story. But a Christian story needs to point to Christ and what He did for all of us. He was born into this world, suffered temptation and persecution, was tortured and then nailed to a cross for the sins of the world. He died and was buried in a tomb. But on the third day, God raised His Son from the dead. He was seen of many witnesses over many days before He ascended back to Heaven. Now, He sits at the right hand of God awaiting the day of His return.

To a Christian, these should be indisputable facts. And not only according to the Bible, but the living power of Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit working in our lives!

It should convey that the only way to attain salvation and eternal life with God the Father is through His Son, Jesus Christ. In this world, there are many people claiming to have the solutions to life’s problems. Every year, new trends and philosophies develop. Humankind has always been inventive, seeking answers to all kinds of questions. But whether someone (or a group of people) provides technological, psychological, medical or intellectual remedies, they cannot provide a permanent, all-in-one explanation for the only questions that have persisted throughout time:

How can I find true, lasting peace?
What happens to us when we die?
Will anyone ever love me?

The answer is the same to all of these questions: salvation through accepting Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit into our hearts and lives provides that love, peace and the confidence that we will be with Him in the presence of Almighty God when we die. 

In Romans 10: 8 -13 (KJV), the Bible says “But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

A writer doesn’t have to quote the scriptures all the time to make this point. They can use the actions of their characters or paraphrase through their words or the general direction or outcome of the story. As creative individuals, the Lord can show us how to best glorify Him. We just have to let Him. And that also means listening to the Holy Spirit, which will guide us and let us know if something is not edifying to the Lord.

I am no preacher but I know these things to be true in my life. I am a Christian who is also a writer. And these are the principles I live by when I write. 

Thanks for reading this.
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Another short update: I have learned that both "Jordan's World" and "Mindfire" are tentatively planned for ab Summer 2019 release. They will be published by Ambassador International either on the same day or within a short time of one another.

I will continue to give what updates I can as I get them. I'm just delighted to see both of these books on their way to print, eBook and audio formats!
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I'm pleased to announce that Ambassador International (AI) will be publishing my 2016 novel Mindfire! I do not have a release date yet but I wanted to let everyone know.

I originally wrote Mindfire as part of the 2013 National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) event over the course of three weeks. Then I took a couple of years to edit it. After that, I created the cover and self-published the book on Amazon.

Now that I am with AI, I will be pulling the current version from Amazon so it can undergo additional editing and presumably get a new cover. I'm excited about the new possibilities this opens up!

Here is the synopsis for Mindfire:

Twenty-year-old Leia Hamilton discovers that she can move things -- and set them on fire -- with her mind, a result of her father being a former superhero and her mother, the deadliest of supervillains. Unlike other superhero-related novels, the focus in Mindfire isn't on secret identities, costumes or evil plots endangering the world. Instead, the female protagonist's self-discovery and adaptation to her circumstances take precedence. This novel is also a psychological thriller, delving into mystery, alive with action, unafraid to show love and explore spirituality. But at its heart, Mindfire pulls you into a diverse world of human and superhuman heroes and villains, unapologetically revealing who they are and why none of them are perfect.

Leia's father and step-mother tried to hide their past from her until she was ready: a time when they were part of a team of superheroes. That team disbanded two decades ago after a series of tragedies but that didn't prevent their problems from being passed on to their children. Making life and death decisions with virtually no experience and incredible power, some of Leia's choices have terrible consequences. For Leia, this leads to a personal crossroads and a search for redemption.

I will add updates as I learn more. Stay tuned!
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Both Mindfire and Jordan’s World have females in their early twenties as the main protagonists. Prior to this, several of my webcomics had similar leads. Some may wonder, how can a male effectively write the perspective of a female character? Personally, I think anyone can write any perspective, if they can both imagine it and have some point of reference and experience regarding that perspective. 

In my case, I spent most of my childhood around my mother and older sister. My father was the traditional “breadwinner” and was away a lot due to his profession. We spent time together whenever possible but didn’t develop a truly close bond until I was in my early twenties. Even outside the home, some of my closest friends were females and I learned from their experiences. In many ways, I related to them better than males.

Males had been my childhood bullies, particularly those involved in sports. That’s why I chose creative pursuits such as making my own comics, which doubled as my therapy. Later, I would use music in a similar fashion, to vent my deepest feelings and express my hopes and wishes. I didn't have to be involved in sports or join a team, I could use what talent I possessed all by myself.

Writing allowed me the opportunity to take ideas and experiences and make them relatable to a wider audience, to share my characters’ triumphs and failures, loves and losses. For a large part of my life, I understood the female perspective better than the male one, so that's what I wrote in my comics. Sometimes, that's what I represented in my songs as well.

That said, I never thought of myself as female; I never wanted to be anything or anyone other than who I am. Interestingly enough, it was my mother who instilled a strong sense of self-worth and confidence in me. She wanted me to be emotionally strong enough to face whatever challenges life had to offer. And she succeeded. I have accomplished many of the goals that I set for myself.

But I could not have gotten to where I am now, either creatively (art/music/writing), professionally (in the I.T. field) and personally (as a husband and father) without the Lord’s intervention. He is the one who made me see my need for a Savior. Before then, I could do many things on my own -- except be truly content. Before giving my life to Him, I may have always pursued dreams but just as often, I would get in my own way. It was frustrating, even maddening, to be so close to what should have been "True Happiness," only to have it snatched away by a mistake or mishandling of a situation. And it would be my fault, whether I accepted that or not. 

After the Lord saved me, I was able to relate better to my brothers in Christ and then men in general. Having the Holy Spirit to soothe and heal past hurts allowed me to see the world differently. And that made me a better writer, as I could impart more realistic male characters and provide a balance to my storytelling.

I do admit that I enjoy writing female protagonists and strong female characters. In recent years, there has been a lot of progress towards providing rewarding portrayals of female characters, ones who defy stereotypes or define their standout roles well, whether in print, on a screen or a stage.

It’s not necessary to overcompensate and under-portray the male characters. All you need is a balance. If the lead is female, then that’s fine. And vice-versa for males. What matters is good storytelling.

Will I end up writing male lead protagonists in the future? I’m sure I will, I just don’t know when. I’d like to think I’m up for the challenge!
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Every writer has a unique style that reflects their personality and experiences. I have a fairly laid back personality, generally-speaking, but I am very passionate with my creativity. That’s true for every aspect of it, including writing, art and music. Focusing on writing only, I asked myself what has my style been? I looked to past examples to gauge my answer.

I began writing with comic books as a child and continued that into adulthood. Even though I improvised the writing at first (which occasionally forced me to "retcon" or use "retroactive continuity" to write myself out of a dead-end plot), I began to plan out my comic stories in advance. By the time my wife and I started the “Due East” webcomic, we were scripting each page. That worked much better, letting us map the direction of the story.

One of the advantages of creating comics is that the art does the describing for you. If you can draw the scenery the way you see it in your head, at least well enough for the average reader to recognize each element, then all you have to focus on is dialogue and how you want your characters and story to develop. It’s still writing but it’s not novelization. I had to learn that skill when I made the jump from comics to writing books.

Still, there are commonalities in the writing style between my comics and my novelizations. I generally like a fairly brisk pace when possible, though I do recognize that all characters need a chance to slow down, relax and breathe a little. I like action and adventure but that’s meaningless without well-developed characters. I’m a hopeless romantic, so there will always be elements of that within my stories. And I do have a sense of humor, ranging from dry to silly. I love parody but it’s rare to find opportunities to work that into your average story. And lastly, I can be very intense at times. This is definitely reflected in almost all of my stories. At some point, maybe more than once over the course of a tale, things will get intense. It may not last for long but it will occur and it will serve a distinct purpose.

And now, I think it’s time for some examples from my comics: 

​From 2007 to 2008, my wife and I co-wrote a Christian slice-of-life webcomic called "Due East." It was about a multiracial family (Caucasian and Asian husband/father, African-American wife/mother with two daughters together) who experience divorce and the splitting up of the family. But the parents stay in touch because of their children and eventually fall back in love. The story is about their attempts to heal their family. Their youngest daughter's best friend happens to be Christian.

A pivotal plot twist occurs during a strong thunderstorm. The younger, 16-year old daughter, Brielle, is at home when the storm hits and she is faced with a life-or-death situation.

You can see the page at this link.

Now to show a little of my romantic side, here's a very different page from Due East at this link.

And here's some humor in Due East, just for fun, at this link.

Sometimes I'll mix the elements for dramatic effect or it's just what the story calls for. The following Due East page glides from humor to tragedy in the same page. Friends Brielle and Carolyn are joking around as they enter Carolyn's home but are blindsided to discover Carolyn's mom dead from a drug overdose.

Link here.

I'm not afraid to take chances on what I believe will be a good story. Things may get intense, bordering on controversial. But I also balance every idea or line of dialogue against my faith and values. Does the idea make sense? Is the character a Christian? And even if they're not, will what I'm trying to convey be edifying to the reader? Will it magnify the Lord? I have to consider all of that.

Fortunately my wife, Angel, gives me incredibly valuable feedback and insight. She will tell me when she thinks something I wrote does not work, but she does it with love. She is a huge support and I deeply value her input.

Summing everything up, I try to write stories that reflect who I am and what I hold dear. I weave the type of tales that I would like to read. They need a good pace, proper character development and a story that makes sense and leads somewhere. I hope that comes across. 

About the author

Allen Steadham is a nondenominational Christian. Happily interracially married since 1995 and the proud father of two sons and a daughter. He and his wife have been in the same Christian band since 1997. He plays electric bass, she plays strings, they both sing. It's all good.

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