Welcome To Solstice

The idea that I should write my own book series came at a time in my life that found me searching for a new direction, a new place to focus my occasionally ferocious energies.  I had just finished reading the fifth installment of a wildly popular fantasy series and was very unhappy for the money wasted.  I have spent my life digesting other peoples stories in all mediums and have become a very discerning consumer.  I'm not a snob by any means and will take my entertainments where I can find them, but I have a very low tolerance for cheap tricks in place of well thought out writing.

I remember thinking as I put down that disappointing book that I might never find a story that completely satisfies me again, one that made me fall in love and then went on to give me more than I asked for.  Being a do-it-yourself type of girl, I gave myself permission to make up a big story and the floodgates opened.  First I established strict guidelines for my story, I'm an exacting person about some things and this story had to be everything that I wanted.

• Strong, believable characters.  My favorite part of any story is the people I meet, if I'm not invested in them then the story lacks value to me.
• The story must have a known ending and must at all times be working towards that ending.  There will be no X Filing here, no making shit up and hoping for the best at the end.  How a story ends is more important than how it begins because it is the ending that truly decides the worth of all the time invested in the story.
• It had to be fun.  A good story is a good time, why take a trip if you can't enjoy all parts of the journey?
• Neat stuff.  Making up beings and objects to populate a world of your own creation is one of the most enjoyable things I've ever done.  I really do wish that I lived in Solstice with hyacinth shaped light stealers in my yard and a stand of taffy maples in the back forty.
• Easter eggs.  I love 'em, shout outs, homages, references; you name it, I got it.  It's time to give back to the cultures from which I've mined and everything from Springsteen to Bold and the Beautiful can be found in the story.
• Creation story.  How and why Solstice came to be had to be known by me before I could start and everything flowed from that genesis.

From those guidelines sprung the tiers of Solstice a vibrant world born from my unique perspective.  The Last Prospector is the first book in the Song of Solstice series and tells the story of the man who knows that destiny is waiting for him.  Taking this journey with Prospector has pushed me to emotional highs and lows that I never anticipated, but only I can walk this path and I'm very glad I did.