Jason Halstead's Blog, page 26

Weapons of the 21st Century

With a title like that, this blog has to be pretty cool, right? Well, I leave that to the reader to decide, but here’s a spoiler: the weapons I’m referring to are words.

I just did something I try not to do very often. I read my reviews. Not the reviews I’ve written, but rather the reviews people have written on my books. The last 4 were 5 stars, then a 3 star, then numerous other 4 and 5 star reviews. Pretty darn cool, I have to say!

But that’s dangerous too. I’ve figured out a lot of things as a writer with over 20 books published. I’ve learned how to write through adversity and slumps. I’ve figured out what makes the books interesting for me and the readers. I’ve learned the value of good editing. And according to a lot of my reviews, I’ve written some great books and have made some lifelong fans. It would be easy for me to think I’ve peaked and I don’t need to learn anymore. FAR FROM IT!

There’s so many things I want to try and learn that the list is limitless – and that’s just with writing! I haven’t even touched on hang gliding or scuba diving. Reading reviews that praise books like Bound, Bounty, and The Lost Girls leaves me a very warm and fuzzy feeling. Yet it doesn’t teach me anything. Oh sure, it tells me I made some people happy and that’s a great thing. I’m here to entertain, after all, but I want to know what I can do better. The writer that can’t improve his craft has not yet been invented. I certainly appreciate the reviews though, and I hope to earn many more yet to come.

So this blog post is to share some great reviews on the books linked above. It’s also to remind myself and any of my peers paying attention that no matter how good it gets or how great we may feel, we should never take success for granted. Reviews, for example, don’t put food on the table. Working hard and always striving to write the next book a little better than the last one, on the other hand, can help pay the rent.

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com .

 

My Pants Are On Fire!

Back around 2004 I held the match used to light a fire under my own ass a little to close. I haven’t been able to put the flames out since. No, there’s no burning sensation when I go to the bathroom, it’s all about motivation and self-discipline.

I received a Christmas present from my wife and kids that seems a little funny. It was a book. A giant hardcover book. I write books, what do I need to read one for? Not only that, but I’m a huge proponent of ebooks, what’s this boat anchor doing on my desk? First and foremost, a writer that does not read is a writer doomed to obscurity. Secondly, it’s no simple task to get somebody else an ebook for a gift. Oh sure, it can be done, but I think that Amazon needs to come up with a way to make it a simpler process.

So what book was it and how does this have anything to do with my pants being on fire? The book is Total Recall. It has nothing to do with freeing Mars from an oppressive regime (nor does it involve Colin Farrell). Total Recall is Arnold Schwarzenegger’s autobiography. So far I’m only about a third of a way into it, but that’s due to lack of opportunity, not lack of interest.

I grew up in rural Michigan. No, not on a farm. Yes, I grew up learning to shoot guns and we ate the larger furry critters for dinner when we could. We had electricity and modern conveniences, though I was eternally upset that we couldn’t get cable TV and in those days a satellite dish was outrageous. So I read and watched movies and found ways to go outside and entertain myself (see the aforementioned “shooting things”). About the age of 8 I stumbled across a movie on network television called Conan the Barbarian that my dad was watching. I was instantly mesmerized. As soon as I could I had him rent the unedited version on VHS tape (it may have been a few years until VHS was available, come to think of it). Then sometime later I bought the tape and watched it again and again, as well as the sequel, Conan the Destroyer.

I loved fantasy, so that wasn’t surprising that I’d take to those movies. It was more than that though for me. I felt the story and I connected with Arnold Schwarzenegger. I had it good compared to him, but I didn’t know that. I was a stupid kid who thought he lived a miserable life. Nevertheless, I was sucked in and eventually ended up owning all of his movies on VHS that were available. These days I still have several of them, but they’re on DVD. And yes, there are couple of real stinkers in the group, but you take the good with the bad.

I read up on the guy over the years and followed him as best I could. What a story he had, it was something the best of fiction writers couldn’t make up. Or, if they did, nobody would dare to believe it. A poor Austrian kid that managed to rise to the highest level of athletics, international stardom, and even land the position as the governor of California? Who does that? Whether you agree with his beliefs or like him or not, I think everybody alive has to respect his accomplishments.

And now, reading his autobiography, I feel a lot of things clicking for me. Of course the book is a matter of hindsight and I’m sure he’s remembering and portraying only the more positive things in his life. He mentions a few mistakes here and there, but this guy is a salesman – he knows how to put a spin on things. Even so, the drive and the way in which he set goals and worked towards them leaves me with warm fuzzy feelings. If he accomplished all that he did using his methods, it makes me excited about my own future. I woke up in 2004, so to speak, and stopped being lazy. I went back to school not because I wanted to, but because I needed to in order to accomplish the goals I set for myself. I got back into working out and not only improved my health, but I won some powerlifting contests and set a few state records (that have since been beaten). I took my writing seriously and was picked up by a small publisher, then I launched out on my own and started my own publishing company with the help of a friend. My books are doing better than ever these days and I hope one day down the road they’ll hit the point that I can make writing my one and only profession.

I have no interest in politics or acting, but I have a lot of things left I want to accomplish. Reading Total Recall is reaffirming my drive and letting me know that somehow I may have stumbled across the path to success. I compare it to working out – no matter what the routine is or who the trainer is, each weightlifter is different. Each body is different, and only by discovering for yourself what works and what doesn’t can the optimal growth be achieved. I still lift some pretty damn heavy weights even though I don’t compete anymore because I know that’s what my body needs. I know it’s the same level of hard work and dedication that’s necessary some times to write through a tough part in a book or to get through learning the next technology I need to master in order to finish my next project at my day job. It’s about setting goals, working hard, and not making or accepting excuses.

And maybe, one day, I’ll be able to write a book like Total Recall that people will be interested in. I doubt it – I have no interest in celebritizing myself, but I learned long ago to never turn away from an opportunity!

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com .

 

Repeating the Past

We’ve landed back in Michigan! Safely, although it’s so darn cold up here. We can’t figure it out, moving 300 miles west, northwest and the temperatures don’t change much, but it’s just felt so bitter cold compared to where we were. Less humidity, maybe? Well whatever the case, we’re back where we started from. I spent 34 years trying to get out of Michigan and now circumstances conspire to bring me back. They’re good circumstances though. A good job and we’re close to family again (a 75 minute drive is a lot closer than 5 hours!).

Another thing that surprised me is the wildlife population. I’ve lived in Michigan, Utah, and Ohio now and they all have their critters, but Michigan seems to be the one most overrun with deer. I’m a hunter, or at least I used to be, but I didn’t have any places to hunt at until I returned to Michigan. I’d always heard that Ohio had monster bucks, but I hardly ever saw any deer while I was down there, let alone any bucks. I did see herds of elk and antelope in Utah, but never had a chance to try and chase one down. Maybe some day when the books take off I can afford a hunting trip out that way. Until then I’m looking forward to Michigan’s hunting season next year.

Another thing that makes this go-round in Michigan better than the past is my location. I’m living in an amazing house on the outskirts of Detroit. Sure, the rent is high enough I thought I was going to have to prematurely donate some organs to afford it, but we’ve managed to make do with it. The moving process was horrible, complete with a breakdown on the side of I-80 during a blizzard courtesy of a flat tire on the rental trailer, but we arrived safe and sound eventually.

All that remains is unpacking and getting things taken care of. We’re almost there too. I have a few more things to take care of, including running an electrical outlet for our treadmill in the basement and reassembling my home gym (scheduled to be done this weekend). A few more things need to be cleaned out of the garage so I can start parking my truck in it. And lastly I’m waiting on some computer parts to be delivered so I can rebuild my aging dinosaur of a desktop and clean up my office.

That’s right, I’ve got my own office. It’s great! Throughout the last week and a half I’ve been able to use it to continue writing my latest book, Victim of Fate (the sequel to Child of Fate, book 1 in my Blades of Leander series). It’s a fantasy book and in the measure of many great second stories, darker than the first. I’m having a lot of fun with it though. At this point I figure I’m five or six chapters away from finishing it. That doesn’t include the two or three extra chapters that always find a way to sneak in when I’m not looking though.

After that, who knows what’s next. I’ve got a lot of options and I catch myself thinking about them from time to time, trying to decide which one excites me the most and is ready for the rubber to meet the road. The only thing I can be sure of is that I’ll let you know when I know!

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com .

One Writer’s Lessons From 2012

I’m a drop in the bucket of writers out there. Once published by a small press, now I’m effectively independent. I suffered plenty of rejections along the way until I figured out how to do it on my own. And yes, I figured that out without any help or by buying any books on how to write and sell a book. 2009, 2010, and most of 2011 were a struggle for me. Why bother, I often asked myself – the numbers were never promising. Fortunately for me, I’ve always been a long term thinking kind of guy. In late 2011 and then in 2012 those numbers changed.

For example, in 2012 I gave away 107,537 books!

What the hell was I thinking, right? I’ve talked about it ad nauseum before, but my thoughts were to let people see if they liked what I was writing since I wasn’t a big name in the industry. It worked. And no, very few of those numbers came from KDP Select.

Now here’s a less impressive but more substantial number: 33,993. That’s how many books I sold in 2012 on Amazon US and Amazon UK. I sold more in other Amazon markets, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Sony, iTunes, and Smashwords (and probably a few other distribution channels), but those numbers are nothing compared to Amazon so I’m not bothering to list them.

You’re thinking 34k books at the average price of a book being around $10 must be impressive! Yeah, it would be, but I don’t charge that much. As a matter of fact, All of my books save one are priced under $5. I won’t go into financial details but suffice to say that selling 34k books at my prices is not enough for a family of four to live off of. Thus I have a day job too (in fact, I’m starting a new one tomorrow!).

I write primarily fantasy and science fiction – and yes, sometimes the two get intertwined. I can’t tell you which genre is more successful though, but I can toss out a couple of examples in case you’re curious.

Ice Princess, a near future science fiction book, was my best selling book at 3,887 copies. My next best selling book was Voidhawk – The Elder Race, a fantasy novel (albeit space fantasy) at 3,716 copies. Given that my Voidhawk series has 5 books in it at present, the series sold 9,964 books throughout the year (with many of the books not being released until sometime in 2012). Wanted, the trilogy that Ice Princess is a part of, sold 4,253 books (although book 3, Bounty, was just released in December).

So what does that mean? Beats me! Write what you like and keep at it. I released a more traditional fantasy book called Child of Fate in November and it really started ramping up in December (181 copies). I’m hard at work on book 2 in that series and expect to release it in February – which seems like another success story in the making. People enjoy reading books in a series. As a reader, I can’t say I fault them. I always want to know about loose ends and if I’ve spent the time to read a book and become attached to the characters, I want to continue that relationship. As a writer I often feel the same way – it’s hard to just abandon a character and move on to someone else.

I spent a lot of money on a promotional campaign late this year and it doesn’t appear to have done anything for me. Writing more books and making sure they get edited properly and have great cover art, on the other hand, seems to be the key to success. That and a healthy dose of patience and perseverance. I believe that in order to make it in this industry the key is having a will stronger than the grindstone that rubs against it constantly. It’s an opportunity to turn the weakness of being stubborn into a strength!

And so, for 2013, I plan on being a downright irascibly stubborn son of a bitch! Happy new years to everyone, now let’s get to work!

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com .

Back in Time for the Party!

My Internet and cable was supposed to be installed this morning. I managed to sweet talk Brighthouse into sending out a tech yesterday morning instead though. But then I had to drive back to Ohio to pick up the last of my things so I couldn’t enjoy it anyhow. Not having to use the tiny screen on my phone for all my Internet needs is a wonder though! And yes, I consider the screen on the iPhone 5s to be tiny – but I’m using my new 39″ TV that I got as a Christmas present for a monitor. I’m American – go big or go home, right? And for the record, no, I’m not compensating, I just believe that size matters.

So we’re almost completely moved in now up herein Novi, Michigan. Haven’t really met any neighbors, it’s cold and nobody is crazy enough to spend much time out in the snow. But we love the house and the neighborhood thus far. I start my new job on Wednesday, which I’m excited about, and I should have both less stress and more time for writing. Heck, I’ve got my own office at home now to spend time writing in!

But before I launch into 2013, what about 2012? It was a challenging but good year, overall. I saw amazing reception for my books and while they stagnated in the second half book sales have started to pick back up in December for what I hope is a blockbuster 2013. I even intend to release some semi-official numbers when the dust from 2012 settles – which should be tomorrow. Just to give my fellow writers an idea of what’s possible if you’re willing to write your ass off and find some quality people to help you out along the way.

My only regrets from 2012 (and before) is that it wasn’t until the tail end of this year that I find the write working mixture of a support crew (editors, artists, etc.) to really polish my books as I release them. But hey, I’m heading into 2013 with a solid team in place and we’re not stopping until we’ve achieved what we’re after. That may take the rest of my life, but that’s a good thing as it keeps me out of trouble!

So my friends, I’m back to working on Victim of Fate, book 2 in the Blades of Leander series as soon as the unpacking allows. I hope to release it as soon as February. I’m slowing down, I know, but with any luck that’s only a temporary hiccup. After Victim of Fate I’m tossing a few ideas around – a 6th Voidhawk book, the third Blades of Leander book, the third book in the Dark Earth series, or perhaps something completely new in a science fiction venue. So many choices! The good news to take away is that I’ve got a lot of ideas and stories yet to write, so stay thirsty (for words) my friends!

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com .

 

Signing Off

Because shopping, family visits, making kids happy, and Christmas in general isn’t a complicated and stressful enough, we decided to move at the same time! Yep, the boxes are packed and the furniture’s lined up in the garage waiting for the moving truck to show up tomorrow morning. We load it and head off to Michigan. Two years in Ohio and, aside from an overly intense day job complete with ignorant people in strategic positions, it’s been a good time. We met some great people here and I’m sad to leave them behind. We’ll be less than 4 hours away and we have every intention of keeping in touch, but it still sucks that we can’t take them with us.

Another item that sucks is my new Internet won’t be installed until the 31st of December! Yeah, 5 days without Internet. Big deal, right? Well yes, it is. A sizable part of my income is generated by having Internet access. Losing it for the better part of a week has me irritated. I’ll have my smartphone, but that’s nowhere near the same thing.

Ah well, maybe it’ll give me time to write…in between unpacking and settling in. And more visits from family. Well I’ll try! I’m at or just beyond the halfway point of Victim of Fate and it’s a great book! Had another neat idea for a new one yesterday too, one that would be a stand-alone sci-fi novel. I admit, it was inspired by the new Total Recall (entertaining and fun movie, but it doesn’t replace the original for me. It can stand beside it though, unlike the new Conan the Barbarian which was nothing compared to the original). But don’t worry, I don’t have any plans for recreating the altered memory storyline at all.

So until either the 31st or maybe even 2013, happy holidays to everyone and have a great time! And thanks for reading my random musings as I come up with them!

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com .

Hidden Treasures

It might surprise you to learn that this article is not going to be about the Megadeth album released in 1995 that contained previously recorded but unreleased tracks from prior albums. I’m sure that’s what you were expecting, right?

Well instead this is about the current chaos we’re living through over here. We’re moving in eight days. Got the moving truck lined up plus a bunch of trailers. We’re headed from Howland Center, Ohio to Novi, Michigan. Higher cost of living but a magnificent house. Come to think of it, just about everything costs more up there (health insurance, vehicle insurance, gas, food, the list goes on and on). So why do it? Security. The security of a job working for the US Army. No, I didn’t enlist. I did that once almost twenty years ago (Air Force). I’m going to be writing code and working with databases for the army in relation to their tanks. For the first time in a long time I feel like I have a job where I’m actually contributing to something useful. I’m not helping people sate their addiction to gambling, I’m not helping con artists sell snake oil in the guise of super-foods, and I’m not building random parts for automobiles that aren’t particularly enjoyable to drive. Maybe I’m acting silly, but this time around I’m going to be part of a force that can make a difference in the world.

Self-righteous justification aside, this maelstrom of boxes and bubble wrap we’re wading through brought some things to light that had been long lost and forgotten about. An ARC copy of Voices from a few years back. A printed rough draft of Bounty for editing purposes, and a hand written outline of a fantasy story I’d dreamed up ten years ago or so called Silver Arrows.

Silver Arrows, as I now remember it, was the story of a fantasy ranger that lost his fire. He was bitter and sick of just about everything he’d encountered but still pushed on because he was too damn stubborn to do anything about it. Then he saves a young girl captured by slavers and takes her as his own daughter to raise her and teach her his ways. He finds his way again through her, but then I think something bad happens to her and he has to go and rescue her or prove some other form of his bad-assery.

Looking back on it now, it needs a lot more to make it work, but it’s a good baseline to start from. Instead I think I’m going to ditch the entire thing but use it as inspiration for a book down the line in my Blades of Leander series. I’m on book 2, Victim of Fate, right now and it’s clipping along nicely when I can sneak some time in for writing. It’s going to be a doozy of a book, longer than the first one I’m almost certain. Book 3 will end the unofficial trilogy, so perhaps Silver Arrows can be book 4 in the series. Of course I’ll tie this new ranger guy in with Alto and the other Blades of Leander, so he won’t be the central focus of the story but still a major character. I see a lot of great fun to be had with it, as well as some heartache and the requisite bad-assery.

That’s not the only thing on my plate though. I’ve still got the third book in my Dark Earth series to write and I’m coming up with a new idea for the next Voidhawk book. Believe it or not, I found some cool Windows 8 themes that I loaded onto my aging laptop and one of the desktop backgrounds is a really neat fantasy picture that sparked the beginning of some amazing Voidhawk style ideas. I’m not letting them burst into full flames yet though – I’ve got to finish Victim of Fate first. But the great news is that there will be more Voidhawk coming down the road.

Inspiration comes from the strangest places. For me it can be wilderness / nature or a picture on a screen. I wrote an exceptionally long book many years ago that was not fit for publication based entirely off a picture of a woman that captivated me. I’ve been inspired by songs before (Evanescence and Megadeth, to name a couple of bands that made great muses for me), by events, and even by other stories I’ve read or movies I’ve seen. I’ll grab anything I can that gets the creative juices flowing and run with it!

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com .

Vengeance, Vegas Style

I’m cheating here – this article is one I posted on a fellow writer’s blog a week or two back. Leah Rhyne, writer and zombie afficionado, was the lovely young lady to host it for me. She’s a talented writer and a classy lady, I encourage anyone interested to head over and check out her blog at http://www.leahrhyne.com/. Last I checked she and her husband were working hard on raising money for a charity, St. Jude’s, I believe, and her hubby offered to shave his head if they reached their goal.

Now then, on to the blog post, it’s a blatant attempt on my part to promote my latest book, Bounty. But amidst all that promotion I think it’s got some interesting bits and a touch of humor. Definitely worth the sixty seconds it takes to read the blog, not to mention the minimal cost of buying the novel and enjoying Carl, Jessie, Tanya, Sarah, and Allison’s exploits!

 

Sin City has a history of organized crime and preying on the weak and innocent. Bounty, the third book in the Wanted trilogy, lives up to that legacy.

Writing Wanted was a strike of luck for me. It seemed like a great idea but I found myself hung up from time to time figuring out what came next. It deviated drastically from my original plans but thanks to a moment of inspiration I was able to turn that deviation into a great book. I didn’t realize how great a book it was until it became a bestseller and topped multiple Amazon charts.

My readers called for a sequel, they weren’t happy with the story of Carl, Jessie, and Tanya ending so soon. That allowed me to write Ice Princess, but it was even more of a trial than the first one was. I was very happy with the finished product, thanks to a few more random bubbles of creativity along the way. As a matter of fact, with the end of Ice Princess I felt myself getting choked up as I identified with a couple of the characters personally. In particular Jiri Kurkova, the father of Tanya, Miss Ice Princess herself.

After Ice Princess I was spent. There was nothing more I could do with these characters. They’d done it all. They’d been dragged through the mud. They’d been shot, beaten, stabbed and worse. What more pain could I inflict? Well that’s a stupid thing to ask a writer, especially one with an occasionally macabre sense of humor! The concept came to me out of nowhere  one day on my way into to work at 6:30 in the morning. What concept? I won’t spoil it, but I will say it involves an incredible fear of loss that all of us experience at one point or another. Here’s one of the tweets I’m using to promote it as well: “My new release, Bounty, focuses on family values and why you shouldn’t try to kidnap Carl Water’s family.”

Check out Wanted, it’s a free ebook, and then once you’re hooked look up Ice Princess and then Bounty, the incredible conclusion to the trilogy.

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com .

The Greatest Compliment a Writer Can Get

Yesterday was a rough day. Not just for me, but for most (if not all) of America. And none more so than the affected families of what took place in Connecticut. But I’m not writing this to try and generate some interest in my blog or my books. I’m not trying to draw attention or divert focus from anyone dealing with that tragedy, nor the years and years of painful suffering the perpetrators deserve to receive.

No, I’m writing because amidst all the news about that and my own House Hunter-esque experience yesterday, I received an email that took my mind away from the stress of the day and ended the day on about the highest note it could. It wasn’t a job offer or a winning lottery ticket. It wasn’t news that I’d landed a book or a movie deal in the six figures. It was an email from a woman that had read my Lost Girls series and felt compelled to write me because my words had made a major impact on her.

I don’t know the details and if I did, I wouldn’t share them. It’s a private matter for her, not for the general public. I feel incredibly honored to have been given the opportunity to reach out to her in the first place, let alone receive a note from her sharing that my stories gave her the strength she needed to come to terms with certain things in her life. Maybe a thank you note doesn’t pay the bills the bills or put food on the table, but it did a whole lot more than that as far as I’m concerned.

Katalina Wimple, the main character in The Lost Girls series, was and is very dear and special to me. She’s not based on anybody I’ve ever known, but instead she’s got more than a little bit of all of us inside of her. She’s a strong character that wants the world to respect her and be impressed by how tough she is, yet on the inside she’s as fragile and screwed up as can be. That’s no so different from the rest of us, I imagine. But Katy takes it to a new level, trying so hard to do the right thing and risking it all for the people she trying to help that her own well being takes second billing. The girl’s had a rough life, plain and simple, and she’s done nothing to make it easier on herself.

But she learns and grows over the span of the four to six books (four main books in the Lost Girls series, with two stand alone books that she appears in). From fiesty and irritating she grew on me and became a dear friend. More than that, in fact, she became very important to me. Yes, she’s fictional and I realize that may make me sound deranged, but it’s okay. I’m a writer – it’s allowed.

Katy’s story was never about just her, to me. It was about possibilities and overcoming challenges. It was about how we can all discover ourselves and get what we want in life, although for some of us (like Katy) it might require some pretty drastic events to realize what’s truly important. And no, I’m not going to offer up my thoughts on the meaning of life. Yours are going to be different than mine, no matter whether you think you’ve got it figured out or you’re sure you do. I know I don’t, but I’m doing okay right now and that’s the most I think anyone can ask of ourselves.

So why not go check out Katalina and see what could be so special about her that could practically change a person’s life? The first book, The Lost Girls, is free. I can’t make it not take any time for you to read, but if you’ve got an open mind and don’t mind an occasionally stubborn and grating female lead, I think you’ll enjoy it.

Oh, and the House Hunters thing? We looked at three places near Detroit yesterday. The first, and cheapest, was okay but quite a drive. The second, and highest price, was an unfinished dump. The third was in the middle price-wise and it took our breaths away. Just trying to work with the owners to come to an agreement on things. Well that and wait for my security clearance to be processed so I can start at the new job. Those are the only remaining roadblocks, although selling a lot more books would probably help a lot too.

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com.

I Get Around

I’ve been a lot of places. I started out in Michigan and, aside from a few vacations, stayed there until I was old enough to know better. Michigan’s a beautiful state with four seasons and a lot of outdoor opportunities without any major risk of dangerous wildlife. Oh sure, you can be gored by a deer and there are wolves, black bear, coyotes, moose, and elk the further north you go, but not very many. Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is filled with wonderful natural locations: mountains, rivers, waterfalls, shoreline of the great lakes, and (mostly) a lack of industrialization. My family owns some land up near Marquette, in fact, complete with a small river and a water fall on it (and no power!). It’s a breathtaking getaway in the summer or winter. The UP became part of the inspiration for my book, Dark Earth.

But I left Michigan at the tender age of 18. I joined the Air Force and went to Texas. I came back and ended up moving around lower Michigan, mostly near Lansing and Kalamazoo. I’m not sure which city I preferred more, but for nature and landscape my heart was still set on the UP. Then my wife and I visited my in-laws in Phoenix, Arizona and I was blown away.

It’s hard to compare temperate forests with a desert landscape. It felt like I was on another planet, although a very neat one. I never visited during the high heat of summer so I got to enjoy mild temperatures and an outside and diverse countryside. It was every bit as beautiful  as Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, but in a totally different way: tall and severe mountains, dry washes and gullies, sagebrush and cacti. Not to mention the ghost towns (real or fabricated for tourist traps). It fired up my imagination in ways I never expected and became the backdrop for several books, including Wanted, The Lost Girls, Bound, and Black Widow.

Next came a move to southeastern Utah. A little town called Moab which has the title of the mountain biking capital of the world. In the summer with tourism the population can swell to 5,000. Massive. But for the lack of size and numbers it more than makes up for it in high desert beauty. It’s similar to Phoenix but not as hot, a lot higher altitude (close to a mile up), and a little wetter. Moab is located in a canyon and it hosts countless natural wonders that steal your breath and bring a tear to your eye. Towering columns of rock, massive canyons bested only by the Grand Canyon, the Colorado River, and the arches of rock made famous in post cards, portraits, and license plates. Heck, John Wayne called Moab “where God put the west.” Indeed, many of his films had scenes shot in or around Moab, as well as Thelma and Louise (the car driving over the edge of a cliff), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (the tank chase), and several others I can’t remember. Moab also factored heavily into my books, Ice Princess. Just south a couple of hours is Monument Valley, which was an important location in my book, Traitor.

While we lived in Moab I had the opportunity to get away for a vacation to Las Vegas. My first trip there (I’ve been back once since and really enjoyed it the second time) was a little rocky due to lack of sleep and some major blisters from walking the strip excessively (had to make sure I saw it all!). I didn’t get away from Vegas at all to see the countryside (I still want to visit Hoover Dam someday), but I saw enough and experienced enough to factor it heavily into a couple more of my books: Wolfgirl and Bounty.

Then I came back from Utah to northeastern Ohio, near Youngstown (about an hour southeast of Cleveland and an hour northwest of Pittsburgh). Ohio is considered the midwest and by and large it was fairly flat land with lots of agriculture, industrialization, and forested land. A fair amount of lakes and even Lake Erie an hour to the north. We really enjoyed living here even if I missed the raw excitement of nature. Great schools, great people (mostly – I have a few exceptions to that generalization), and great opportunities. It wasn’t until we followed a suggestion by a friend and checked out a place called the Nelson Ledges that I really found something natural and awesome. It reminded me of a miniaturized and temperate version of Moab. Ledges, ravines, waterfalls, even some small caves. In the middle of nowhere, it was amazing. So amazing that the Nelson Ledges became a critical location in my book, Devil’s Icebox.

And now it looks like we’re heading back up to Michigan. This time on the eastern side, near Detroit. I sincerely hope this is the last major move, but by no means is it going to be the end of my travels. I’ve been on a cruise in the Caribbean and would love to do it again. I’ve got a passport and a strong urge to visit Europe and Australia, and perhaps other places as well. I may not want to move but I’ve got a lot of years and a lot of miles left in me. And as you can probably tell, I get a lot of inspiration from traveling so it’s definitely time to find some new backdrops for some exciting stories!

Hmm, I wonder if I could vacation in Hawaii and claim it as a business expense?

To learn more about Jason Halstead, visit his website to read about him, sign up for his newsletter, or check out some free samples of his books at http://www.booksbyjason.com.