A few days ago I posted that there would be changes to how I’ll be featuring my content, and this blog entry (announcement? statement? royal decree?) is sort of a continuation of that.

I’ve been taking stock of how things have been going over the past year, and that has led to me considering how I want to proceed going into the next one. A big part of that is mapping out a path to where I want to be as opposed to where I’m at.

My big project for 2023 is the Underlayers. The gist of it is it’s a large web of stories that are all interconnected. It started this year with connecting seven stories that set the stage for the main event (I call those stories Prelude to the Underlayers for categorizing purposes).

The Underlayers is going to be broken up into two parts. The first part is the main storyline, which will be a continuing plotline featuring the major characters as they traverse the dying and rotting realities that are the Underlayers. The second part is a series of stories called Bleeds; these are horror stories that take place in the main reality that are caused by the Underlayers being opened, but are more standalone in nature.

I have the majority of this sketched out and the main plot beats are more or less in place. All that’s left to do is the writing itself. This will be starting next week and will be going on for the foreseeable future.

It’s a big project, but hey, I wrote a novel and released it on this site chapter by chapter in the course of a month, so it’s not like I don’t enjoy challenges.

This is where the first part of this blog entry connects with the Underlayers. The question I’ve been rattling around in my brain is what do I want to do with this project. I’ve thought about it long and hard, and I’ve come to the conclusion that I want it to be featured in an audio format to enhance its presentation as much as possible.

I’m looking to partner with someone that would be interested in taking this peculiar journey with me by narrating these stories. I work with a number of narrators on a regular basis, but this is a bit different. It can’t be done the usual way where a content creator picks and chooses individual stories. The series wouldn’t make sense if that was the case. I would need to work with someone that is willing to take them all on as they come.

I’m not saying that only my content could be featured or anything close to that. Of course not, that would be crazy. I’m not even asking that you drop everything when I have a new story ready. All that I’m looking for is someone that is interested and hopefully excited to offer a serialized story to their listeners and/or viewers.

I’m also not asking anyone to walk into this blind. As I said, I have the general story worked out and what can loosely be called a storyboard set up. There are also the seven stories in the Prelude; they’re good examples of my style and how I approach my storytelling. I’m more than happy to sit down and have a long and detailed conversation about where I see this going and to also talk about what this partner’s goals and needs are. This would be a two-way street, after all.

I’ll still be writing stories that aren’t connected to the Underlayers project that will be available for narration. That isn’t changing. I’d be lying if I said that the Underlayers isn’t a major priority for me, though. I’m looking at it as a challenge, as a time to flex my creative muscles, and as an opportunity.

If you’re someone that’s interested in talking about a possible collaboration on this, please, send me a message through my contact form. Even if one or both of us ends up feeling like it’s not the right fit, it’s worth exploring if it is.

I hope everyone out there is having a great holiday season, and from both myself and my family, thank you for all the amazing support this year. It has meant the world to us.