Magic: Oh, it's out there

There are two kinds of people in this world. Those who believe in magic, and those who do not. I suspect that you already know where you come down on the matter, but allow me to interject an additional perspective.

Ever hear of a guy called Merlin? I'm thinking you have. Why is that? Why is it that you know about some guy who existed more than a thousand years ago, when Britain first broke free of the bonds of Rome? There is a reason, I assure you. A good one. If I may be so bold? Merlin wasn't just some dude who could wield magic back in the early Middle Ages, Merlin was a station. A position. Shrouded in secret and passed down from one generation to the next.

If you asked some stone age aboriginal shaman out in Western Australia about dragons or the secret races of his or her people, I'm sure he or she would tell you all about them. Be happy to. They probably have some version of trolls or fairies too. Zombies and ghouls, pick your fable. If we were to hyperspace over a couple continents to say, Ireland, or the halls of some random Native American library, or Nigeria, or the Inuit for that matter, I bet you my cat's left testicle that they have stories of magic. I know, I'm terrible. But the truth remains, magic has been interwoven throughout the lores of countless societies all through history.

Riddle me this, reader, why is that? Superstition? Ignorance? Really strong mushrooms? Is it possible that magic actually existed at some point but no longer does? What if I told you that the overlapping figures of mythology and fables across thousands of miles and hundreds of years, from vampires to manticores, was not an extensive uncanny coincidence, but due to the fact that once there was a time when this world shared a border with another world. That that under certain circumstances, doorways would appear and would allow the entry of other beings. That things could cross over. What if I told you that these doorways were closed forever back in the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance by the wizards of both worlds, Merlin representing the home team, but a whole other group of Wizards we have no records of (by design) representing the other team? What would you say to that?

You'd probably say, "Nice theory, Numbnuts, but you clearly smoke crack. Don't suppose you can back any of that up?" To which my answer would be...you're gonna have to read Drynn to find out. Mwa ha ha ha. All right. I don't actually have empirical proof of this theory, but in a nutshell, that's the backdrop to my trilogy, the Last of the Shardyn. Of course there is a riveting plot line and characters you could wrap yourself up in but why speak of magic-wielding knights, police chiefs, reforming sociopaths and lords of the Underworld when your widdle mind might get exploded?

But if you like a little mustard, a bit of badassery (dig that alliteration?), by all means check out Book I of the series, Drynn. I wrote it because I wanted to read this story really bad, so badly that I searched for it for years, through middle school and high school at every library, book fair or Borders I ever went to. But nobody ever wrote it. And I tell you, I looked. So one day I decided, "I'll write it." And I did. Only took fourteen years. I have a good learning curve, though, only took ten months for the next one and even quicker for the third.

And yet, as much as I love Drynn and despite its high reviews (which I am so very grateful for), I'm forced to admit that Book II, Through the Black Veil, is when we get past succulent appetizer and plunge into the feast. Judging by the reviews I've gotten on Goodreads and Amazon (which is always a scary proposition), that sentiment is shared. There is no greater validation for a writer than to get that random email from somebody in Montana or Costa Rica telling me that I whisked them away into another world and that they read my books in mere days. Hours sometimes. That's what it's all about. That's why we do this gig. And now, at this juncture, the series comes to a climax in the third installment, Blood Sworn, coming out July 28th. Dun dun dun dunnnnn. No cover yet but it's coming...

So, to come full circle, there are two kinds of people in this world--those who believe in magic and those who do not. Which are you?

Thanks for the glance.

Steve out.