I’m not really sure what would be the best title for me. Writer, podcaster, producer, editor, director are all terms that I would use, but Storyteller seems to be the one that fits as far as what I have chosen to do with my life so far.
I’ve written a lot of stories, I’ve brought a lot of fun ideas to life, but I still remember when it all started:
It started as a simple suggestion: “I think your detective story would make a fun audio show.”
And I remember saying, “Yeah, that would be fun, but I’m not sure how I could pull it off.”
But I went back, and I looked it over, and with a few adjustments, Mickie McKinney: The Absent Answers was brought to life.
A little while later I ran into an author who needed an editor to do an audio version of his book. Inspired by my experience making Mickie McKinney, I asked if he would be okay with me adding sound effects and atmosphere to his story to make it more of an audio experience. “Yeah, I love that idea!” He said, “Let’s see what you’ve got.” So I did, and he thought it was so brilliant he hired me to do another audio book for him, and another.
I needed more cast members to help play all the roles so I recruited a few friends, and then a few more to help out as well. I started building a website and recording audiobooks, and suddenly the audio show that I “wasn’t sure I could pull off” became a small business with work opportunities coming everyday. Until one day, four years later, the question wasn’t, “can I do this?”, but “how far can I take this?”
I’m still learning a lot. How to promote myself, to spotlight my work in a way that will attract others to me, and I admit I still haven’t perfected it. Patreon and SoundCloud are the primary sites I use to get my work out, but even they have their deficiencies.
If I had to choose one person as my biggest inspiration, it would be my Dad. He has been my biggest fan from the start, but the thing I value more than his support is the fact that he would always provide me ways to improve my craft and get better. He saw that I had talent, and throughout my childhood he would give me books and old scripts to study so I could learn the best way to format, write and tell my stories. Other inspirational writers include Brian Jacques, John Flannagan, Tamora Pierce, and Nora Roberts. Every story they write is a joy to read and study and I am constantly analyzing their work and trying to find ways to emulate the way they describe the world they have created.
At the moment I am working on finishing an audiobook by Kurt Clopton, but I am looking forward to finishing my Mickie McKinney Series, as well as a YA novel I have started called “Chispa.”
Patreon Site: https://www.patreon.com/fauxfictionaudio
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjGBg0K_vJi3JyXCbC6DR2A
*I can’t add a picture*
There is a quote by Mae West hanging on my wall that says, “You only live once. But if you do it right, once is enough.” I built Faux Fiction Audio with an abstract idea of a company where everyone involved was not a co-worker, but a family member. Those who joined were christened with the last name “Faux” for two reasons. The first because the name name means fake, so everyone was literally a “fake” family member. But on a deeper level I wanted everyone who joined – while they were not brothers and sisters by blood, I wanted everyone involved to be family by bond.
Truth be told, I never thought that everyone who joined all those years ago would essentially become like a family to me. But in the hours of writing and recording and editing…somewhere along the way, my wildest dreams came true and the abstract idea became reality.
While there are moments in my life I wish I could do over, the journey I started all those years ago with Mickie McKinney has not only been the most fulfilling, but the one that has been the most enlightening in discovering the sort of life I want to live and the person I want to be.