When I wrote the short story ‘Broken Wings,’ I wasn’t expecting the response I got.  I was inspired by a friend who has been dealing with a lot in her life and I hoped it would touch her and maybe see in herself what I was seeing.  Yes, I posted the story, but she read it first.  She’s a beautiful lady with a beautiful heart who tries to do too much for others and sometimes she loses herself in all that she does.
My writing genre is horror, but on occasion I like to dig into my more human side and pull out something from an opposite perspective.  Usually when I do this it is because someone has inspired me.  Be it a family member, a friend, or even just someone I see on the street that something about them moved me in some way.
This story however was way different for me.  If you’ve read any of my books or short stories you should know by now that nothing is off limits for me and I can’t say I don’t do religion because, well all I can say there is, you should read my book of short stories ‘Nightmare Express’ and you’ll understand.  I would suggest you read ‘Journey Into Nightmares’ first since it resulted in ‘Nightmare Express.’  Like I said, nothing is off limits.  OK, a couple of things, but I promise not anything you might hit on.  Sorry, if I won’t write about it in a story, I’m not about to write about it here.
I’m not going to say I’ve had a ton of responses regarding the story but more than I expected.  The thing that makes it amazing for me is how it touched them.  When I’m doing a short story that doesn’t have anything to do with horror, yes, I’m trying to either make you laugh or touch your heart.  I’m not expecting to inspire.  I want to amuse and hold your interest, if not through however long it might take you to read one of my books, then for the few minutes it might take you to read one of my short stories.  Sometimes I do want to make you stop and think.  Mostly I just want to scare the crap out of you.  That’s my thing.  I want to make it hard for you to go to sleep at night because you have to get up and check the locks on the doors and windows, look under your bed, and crawl through the clothes in your closet to make sure some monster is hiding there.
When I want to make you laugh, that’s all I’m hoping to do.  I know I’ve managed to do that with a few because I’ve heard about it.  Some of the responses I’ve gotten about that have had me rolling on the floor.  Weird things can happen when people get really tickled.
When I write something that I hope will touch your heart it isn’t because I’m just wanting to tug on your heart strings, although I’m not upset when that happens, but because I want to make you stop and think a moment about what I wrote.
‘Broken Wings’ however, did something different.  I wrote the story and it came from my heart, that alone makes it special to me, but the comment that someone posted touched me.  I shared it.  Now the story and the comment are touching others.  It’s making a few, stop and think.  I’ve gotten other wonderful comments but this one reflects the story itself.  As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t get any better than that.
As for the lady, that’s has been the biggest reward.  She did see what I saw, but in a humble way.  Like I said, a beautiful heart.

I love the twisted and macabre.  I also love the old horror where the thing that went bump in the night scared you and not all the blood gushing from a jagged wound that is more likely to gross you out.  There is a difference.  Don’t get me wrong I can do gore and quite well when I need to.
I’m also not a young adult author.  I’m way too old for that and personally at this point in my life I want to read a book that involves men and women over twenty five and under one hundred and twenty five.  If you’re younger than that I don’t think you’ll care and if you’re older than that then God bless you and let me know, I’ll change the upper end of the timeline.
I tend to be outspoken and nothing is sacred when it comes to my writing.  Well that part isn’t entirely true.  The farm in the Blood Lines series is and I don’t apologize for that.  I started writing because of that farm.
I strive to create the unusual and different and that’s not always easy, as a matter of fact, it’s hard.  I try hard not to do the tried and true.  To give you an idea;
Excerpt from the short story ‘Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies, and Ghouls Need Not Apply’ from my collection ‘Nightmare Express’
“Are you talking about using Brandon’s stamp or rejecting this piece of garbage?  Yes to both.  Come on Shelly you know as well as I do that Brandon is a fuck up and as for this manuscript, really?  I mean the title says it all, My Life as a Ghoul.  I also want you to be sure that you see to it that no more of this stuff comes across my desk.  Send it over to Corey and let him deal with this shit.  I’m so sick of people thinking they have a new take or a really great twist on the tried and died genre.  I may choke if I have to read about another vampire or werewolf screwing someone or God forbid the zombie apocalypse or a ghoul running around acting like a zombie.”  Linda had all she could take regarding that subject.
“Well sex sells and aren’t ghouls and zombies the same thing?”  Shelly really thought they were.
“No they are not and I wish people would figure that out and as for sex with a dead creature or something that runs around on four legs a good deal of the time, come on.  Don’t these people have lives?  If that is the way you roll then invest in a dog.”  Linda realized how that sounded and shivered.  Were people really that warped?
“Linda!”  Shelly knew her boss was tired and when she was she let her mouth run away with her.  It was late and she would like to get out of here as much as her boss.
“Yeah, I know.  I need to go home and get some sleep.”  Linda had arrived at work at six-thirty this morning and it was after nine at night now.  Whether she got out of here or not she needed to cut Shelly lose.
“Well there is no one here but you and me.”  Shelly really did like working for Linda.  Most of the time the woman was a hoot but lately this whole supernatural and sex thing had really gotten on her last nerve.  How many times could you read ‘her loins began to throb with wanting’ or ‘the vampire drew back and asked her again if she was sure’?  Come on people just say ‘the two people fucked one another's brains out’ or ‘the vampire grabbed his victim and ripped his or her throat out leaving the poor bloodless sap lying in a heap on the ground.
When I read a horror story I want to read a horror story.  Can it have love and caring in it?  Sure, but let’s keep things in perspective.  I want to scare you and I’ll leave it up to other really good authors, and there are some really good ones, to give you all that other stuff.
I set out to write horror.  I will take you to places in my books you’ve never been before and along the way I may make you laugh because what fun is real horror if it can’t make you laugh on occasion?  The good part about the humor, you still have to turn the page and what waits for you there might not be so funny.

I have no idea how the next chapter of my life will unfold but I've learned to just fasten my seat-belt and hold on.  I have a full life filled with wonderful people who I love dearly.  Whatever happens pray for them.  They are going to need it.