Brett Armstrong

If fiction and fantasy books are escapism, then let an author write them so as to better equip the reader to face reality by the end.

For the writer, the process of writing a novel is like getting an advanced copy of a book you'd really like to read.

Writing a novel is a bit like being Daniel Boone. An author stands atop a ridge in a mountain range and can generally see a number of peaks in the distance. What lies between those peaks__he dales and glens, rivers, forests, and other features that distinguish one mountain landscape from another... is where the artistry and intrigue of the writing process lives. As the writer sets out into the story, leaving behind those high points__he beginning, a twist here and there, the climax, and, if perhaps a bit indistinct for the distance to cover, the end__ntering the vale below, all manner of things can happen the writer never intended or expected at the onset.