novels
Current list of projects I'm working on. Click on the project to read the first chapter.
(bear in mind that these are still being revised, so some things may change drastically before final release)
Norman Chatter wakes up in utter nothingness. He can remember nothing of his past. He meets an ethereal being in a strange hall of doors. Each door opens to a new life. By stepping through a doorway he enters a new life and gets to sample that life. He must choose which life to live (permanently). As his guide points out, "Not many people get a second chance at life, Norman, you are truly a lucky man today." Each life is grounded in a specific religion, presenting Norman with different lenses to view the worlds beyond the doors. As Norman passes through each life he learns more about humanity as well as himself.
About a man who can see past the veil of existence and peek into the afterlife. Reflective philosophy of what it means to be human with a short life. What it means to be alive and what is consciousness. And ultimately, what does it mean when we die and what implications exist if we truly know there is an afterlife.
A watercolor artist keeps hearing strange music in his head while he paints, and now he's seeing flashes of watercolor overlaid on everyday items. Weird smells start to inundate him in places where there shouldn't be any overwhelming smells. He starts to feel things that aren't there, like wet skin when he is dry as a bone.
When he finally finishes his most recent painting, that of a beautiful, fantastical, faerie woman in vivid watercolor (definitely not quite human, but beautiful all the same), she comes to life, jumping off the canvas, knocking him over in disbelief.
Galen, a young scientist, develops a dimensional looking glass and makes an accidental discovery that opens a small hole into another dimension. As he investigates, he is sucked through, landing high above a lake in a strange world. Realizing he cannot return the same way, he sends a message to his assistant, instructing him to start a program that will open a new hole to his time in one hour. He learns the program will run every hour for twenty minutes, giving him periodic chances to return. Galen discovers that time flows differently in each dimension, and the only possession he retains is a solar electrostatic knife.
Six Boy Scouts, including a girl named Cassie, discover a wounded alien in the woods. Before dying, it gives them visions of strange images, possibly from the past or future, and clutches a slender metal object resembling a silver pen. A red light flickers on the pen and extinguishes as the alien dies. Despite warnings from the others, a boy named Jake takes the pen. The scouts report the alien to their leaders, but when they return to the site, the alien's body is gone, and the leaders dismiss the story as a prank. That night, each scout experiences bizarre dreams. When they piece the dreams together, they reveal the alien's history. It fled its home planet to escape enslavement by robot overlords controlled by an AI singularity. The alien had developed code stored in the pen, capable of destroying the AI and stopping the robots, but was captured before reaching the Citadel. After escaping with the pen, it opened a portal to Earth but was shot by the robots just before crossing through. The scouts realize they must get the pen to the alien's planet, reach the Citadel, and insert it into a terminal to defeat the AI. (a Goonies-type adventure)
Marcus Lane is a lawyer with an unusual gift: he can read the minds of his clients. This ability allows him to win every case, as he only represents those he knows to be truly innocent. His reputation grows, and he becomes a formidable figure in the legal world, feared by prosecutors and admired by the public. Marcus' life takes an unexpected turn, however, when he encounters a potential client, a man named Victor Crane, whom he cannot read. Intrigued and disturbed by this anomaly, Marcus accepts Victor's case, despite knowing that he is guilty of the crimes he is accused of committing.
A man reflects on his life and finds himself lacking. He feels his existence is meaningless compared to those who have overcome significant hardships to make a difference in the world. He sees himself as having the resources and opportunities to instigate change but laments his failure to act. His self-examination serves as a stark contrast to the lives of five extraordinary individuals who have faced abuse and trauma yet emerged to contribute significantly to society. Their stories unfold, each one highlighting resilience, impact, and the profound sense of purpose that drives them.
A woman begins to have the same dream over and over. Each night, a man seduces her in her dreams, but then kills her, instantly waking her up. As time goes on, the dream starts to vary, taking different avenues to seduce her, yet still, every night, she would be killed in her dreams, now in various ways, instantly waking her up. She struggles with the images. She confides in her best friend, not knowing what to do. She falls for the man each time in her dreams, committing entirely to him until he kills her. She doesn't know what it means. Then the dreams start to merge with reality. She begins to have waking dreams, unable to discern the dreams from reality.
In a quiet neighborhood, an elderly woman named Margery lived a simple, solitary life. Her only remarkable possession was an enchanting window that peered into a parallel world, one she enjoyed observing like a fantastical television program. This "Look Window" offered Margery an escape into the lives and dramas playing out across the dimensional divide.
Karnath
Kralek
Xendor
War's End
Demise
Although the water was exceedingly warm, Jarra'ka felt a deep and biting chill. His only son was leaving today, leaving the planet, and all those who loved him the most. His mission, although crucial to the war effort, had been criticized for its risk as well as for its harried preliminaries. Many believed that the project had been rushed far too much, and another year of preparation, they argued, was absolutely necessary to have any real hope of success. Jarra'ka, however, unlike others of the council, knew that if the mission was to be accomplished at all, it had to be implemented now. Timing was critical. Everyone on Kralek knew the Xendorians were winning the war.
Aeric, a rebellious thirteen-year-old, witnesses a shocking murder on his space station home. The killer wears a visual disrupter collar that blurs his features, leaving Aeric unable to identify him. Terrified, Aeric escapes the scene and gathers his group of close friends: a diverse bunch, each with unique skills and knowledge. He tells them about the murder, but they are skeptical. Determined to prove he’s telling the truth, Aeric and his friends use the security badge of one friend's mom, who works in station security, to sneak into the security station. There, they view footage of the crime and realize Aeric was right. Now convinced, they embark on a mission to track down the murderer before he strikes again.
Legion Platt, a narcoleptic young man, struggles with a life of uncertainty. He cannot remember his dreams and is haunted by a pervasive sense of loss and disconnection. In a desperate attempt to piece together his shattered past, Legion undergoes hypnotic sessions. These sessions reveal fragmented memories of a childhood steeped in celestial conflict. He learns that his mother was an angel and his father a fallen angel, and that his forgotten dreams are a manifestation of his repressed divine heritage. As the truth unfolds, Legion discovers that he is not merely human and that his dreams hold the key to his identity and purpose.
Other Story Concepts
Algol - Ghoul, demon (demonstar).
Aphelion - Point in orbit of a body farthest from the body of which it revolves.
Bairn - Child.
Blatherskite - Talks much, says little.
Harbinger - Two eleven year old girls go to a side show fortune teller, she gives one a cheap horoscope outlook, but becomes serious with the other. She says that the devil will visit her five times before something horrible happens to her. Warns her that she mustn’t drink sacrificial blood. Gives her an amulet to be worn always. After the third encounter with Satan, girl is convinced and wears the amulet always. She gets tricked into taking it off for the fourth coming. Begins with fourth appearance, centers around final coming.
Heaven or Hell - Two identical twins (one timid, the other malicious). Both die at same time at same location. Angel of Death and Demon of Repossession confuse the spirits and take the wrong ones.
An exchange is set up on neutral ground (Earth), but during the transfer forces collide and the two brothers escape from their spirit bindings into two other fateful twins. The malicious brother forces his twin to run with him, hiding out on earth, to try and escape his hellbound heart.
Insomnia - Main character can enter other people’s dreams. Finds out about some others who can do the same. Government wants these people and have captured a few. Main character becomes the leader of the rebel dream force against the government. After all the government is killing people.
Key Master - In the beginning there was but one key, a key which would open all of the doors of the universe. The key was entrusted to the only creature in the universe careful enough to use its power for selfless purposes. That creature came to be known as the Key Master.
Kidnaped - War between the Stars - Ace pilot and wife with three year old boy caught by aggressives in route to an outer boundary colony. Pilot and wife are killed and boy ends up raised by aggressives. Boy becomes strongest aggressive captain in the fleet. He’s captured by the humans and enlightened of his true origins. He’s torn between cultures
Land of the Living - Main character becomes terminally ill and gives up on life. A mysterious child (supernatural) befriends the main character and shows him/her what life really is and why he/she was put on Earth to begin with (along with the entire human race).
Last on the List - A man in black gets the souls of the main character’s friends, but before they die they are able to warn the main character about the man in black and his purpose in the scheme of things.
Mirror, Mirror - using mirrors as portals to other dimensions.
Dreams - Everyone has the same dream about some guy, except for the guy. Guy doesn't know why everyone recognizes him the next day.
Sleeper - Every two thousand years the sleeper awakes, but the sleeper isn’t the only one. Archeologist unearths a new kind of stone (statue), harder than diamonds. It comes to life, part organic, part living rock, part alien machinery. At night it visits the archeologist at his bedside, wrapping his hands, feet and mouth in pulsating stone. It tells the scientist that the sleeper will awaken soon and that he must fight the sleeper. He then fuses his body with the scientist’s body. Archeologist becomes a living gargoyle-like monster (story focuses on him getting use to his new powers, and then stopping the sleeper from awakening).
Star Warrior - Bounty hunter finally catches up with his prey.
Unseen - Government develops the perfect soldier, a genetically engineered cybernetic organism with the ability to shape shift into anything with a similar mass of his current body. Government wants to dismantle him since he’s no longer needed (peace talks settle war), but chameleon doesn’t want to die. First half of book is about chameleon innocence & brainwashing to kill. Second half centers on his capture or death (reminiscent of bladerunner).