​Where have I been? My goal was to publish a newsletter monthly, but I ran out of steam back in March.

But that doesn't mean I haven't been writing. It's just...I'm primarily a screenwriter who also writes novels and short stories, and it's a bit difficult to craft a newsletter around screenplays...unless, I would imagine, your newsletter is about screenwriting. The most interest for my books span the months of October through March, so it kind of makes sense that would focus on those months for the newsletter.

​I have been doing a ton of work on the screenplay version of Bad Elf and The Krampus--promoting, connecting with industry insiders, and taking home a trophy for Best Holiday Feature Script at Show Low Film Festival. I met the most amazingly creative people at the festival that I hope continue to be friends inside and outside of my writing career. If you haven't yet read the novel, check out the review by Book for Every Season podcast--it's a short listen (2 minutes), and my favorite line is how the cheerful ending makes you forget all the things you've just witnessed.

We’re going to briefly jump ahead in the process and then revisit this topic later more in depth when it comes time to planning an actual project.

But, sometimes, what inspires you can help you conjure up your what-to-write. And if you’re truly inspired with the project, that inspiration will carry you to The End or Fade Out. (Again…maybe both!)

When I sat down to write Bad Elf and The Krampus, I had many concepts to choose from—thrillers, comedies, rom-coms, paranormal horror. Wonderful concepts. Bad Elf bubbled to the top of my attention for a few reasons.

​I had recently finished and marketed a Christmas screenplay--Joyous Noel. It’s about a misunderstood, semi-orphaned boy who does all the wrong things in order to do something