After allowing my recent publication of Vallidin to settle, tracking both its successes and its failures, it has come to my attention that the business of writing is infinitely more complex than I had previously believed. I know that whoever has followed the progress of my novel - reading reviews, seeing my blog posts, watching my Facebook news feed - have secretly hoped to see me fall - to watch my efforts crumble away and, simultaneously, give up on the craft of writing and storytelling.

But that could not be further from the truth.

I have learned a lot from the release of Vallidin, and I can say with 100% honesty that I am satisfied with its release. For reasons I will not go into here, it helped showcase the "do's and dont's" of the publishing world; not only that world, but the art of writing in itself.

I wanted to update the people who have watched me, in their peripherals, to let them know that I have not given up. I have not backed down from pursuing a career in writing.

My dreams do not extinguish so easily.

I will read endless books, write bottomless volumes, study, pick apart, and rise to the proud title of Author. I promise to deliver an exciting, involving, and honed piece of work to you, the readers. I will not stop until I have done so.

And I have been doing just that. As a matter of fact, since Vallidin's release, I have written over 100 pages of copy. Further, I now adhere to a grueling writing schedule (which I of course enjoy), inspired by a favorite quote of mine from Stephen King:

"Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work."

Thanks, Stephen, for your guidance in this matter. I will see you at the top of the mountain.