About The author

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Hiya!

To those that don't know me:

I try, desperately, to be a structured, deliberate writer who balances intricate worldbuilding with sharp, character-driven storytelling. I don’t always stick the landing, but when I do, you’ll know. I pride myself on my attention to detail when it works in my favor, and I hand-wave it away when it makes me look silly. I am committed to you, dear reader, and your voracious entertainment (I didn’t even have to use a thesaurus for that one). I like reforging my prose like Damascus steel while keeping the heart of the story intact. Every moment should have weight. Character choices should feel real. The world should have depth beyond what’s on the page.

I strive for writing that is clean, confident, and immersive. Stories should have propulsion but the train tracks should be laid before leaving the station. Characters should never do what’s convenient just to move the plot forward. We should walk the path with them. I hold myself to the high standards that won me third place in the Barrington Library eighth-grade writing contest. This is a promise to you, dear reader.

I am littered with misspellings, grammar mistakes, and questionable syntax. I also love Oxford commas. I will waste time rewriting an About Me blurb twenty times, even though I know no one will read it. I know. I don’t make sense to me either.

If that sounds like your jam, you can be my peanut butter. Let’s make a beautiful sandwich.

To everyone who I know and love:

Thank you so much for reading my story! Ah, this is crazy. I’ve been writing my whole life.  Got my start on the mean streets of AIM chats, and now it’s all Outlook emails so putting together a novel feels surreal.  I don’t even know where to start, except to say this book wouldn’t exist without the people in my life. 

My wife, my son, our dog, my parents, and my brothers and their families.  As well as my wife’s family, they support me by supporting my wife every day. This book has a legion of authors even though I’m the one (unfortunately) holding the pen.

 I’ve been thinking about this story for 20 years. It has changed, evolved, and refused to let me go. I actually had a girlfriend (you probably know the one) use it against me during a breakup speech.  I’ve taken many cracks at putting it on paper over that time, just for my own sanity, but none of them made it past Act 1. 

 Last Christmas, I took a long drive halfway across the US and back again. I had a lot of time to talk to the dog, my co-pilot, and he helped me rearrange the beats that cracked the story wide open. What I’m saying is that dogs are the best. My wife and son are the best-best, but our dog is like right there (and he knows it).

Last, but not least, thank you reader for supporting my work. I wrote this so it could be read, and I know it’s not perfect, but I hope you find something to love about it like I did. 

Citius. Altior. Longius. Maior.

-Love

A.C. Bishkey