“Writing is one of the most solitary activities in world.” (Paulo Corlho,
The Zahir)
In essence, Paulo’s statement is true. In the end, it is the author alone with his words, ideas, and characters. Trust me, my wife, Kathy, is the ultimate “writer’s widow” and I love her dearly for her patience and support. Recently, though, I received an invitation from my publisher, Helping Hands Press, to participate in a short story series with six other authors. HHP provided a starting premise and a couple of characters. Nothing more. The intriguing aspect of the project was the first installment, where all seven authors would collaborate and contribute to the short story.
1 short story written by 7 authors? My first thought was:
yeah, right! It ain’t gonna work (sorry, Gio). But with the publication of Colony Zero, Contact (ebook available on Amzon)
Colony Zero - Volume 1 - Contact
I was totally blown away and pleased with how well the voices and plot flowed together.
Through a long series of emails we ironed out the back story. Travis Perry tackled the first segment, laying the groundwork for the remaining authors. I then picked up the story in the second segment, building on what Perry had started. And on it went. It was a truly gratifying experience to watch the story unfold and see the characters grow. I want to give a shout-out to my fellow authors on the project. It was great working with Travis Perry, Mark Carver, Lisa Godfrees, Tracy Krauss, Grace Yee, and Shannon Laws
As a team, we took what started out as a solitary activity and made it a true collaborative project. If you read Colony Zero, drop me an email. I'd love to know what you thought of the story. There's more to come.
Many years ago as a teen, I had a chance to visit Holland as a member of a touring concert band & choir. I still have fond memories of Amsterdam and staying with a family. Discovering that fellow Helping Hands Press author, Marian Baay, lives in Holland, I wanted to talk with her. I'm sure there will be more guest posts coming. I'm always fascinated by other cultures and points of view. In keeping with that, this post isn't about writing, sorry. I was interested in discussing Marian's experience living as an Evangelical Christian in what appears to be an increasingly “Post-Christian” Europe. I hope you find this as interesting as I did.
