ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The Story About Robert Cales

In the instant before my birth a sudden fault appeared in the cosmic brain wiring and programming station. Resolution of the error required a complete system reboot. During that process all of my strengths, which should have been distributed across the attribute spectrum, were downloaded into my imagination file. Don’t ask me to clean house, work on the car or care for a lawn. Nobody will be happy with the end product. On the other hand, if you ask me to write a story with a riveting plot and well-developed characters, things will turn out differently.

Figuratively speaking, that’s what happened to me, but literally I don’t know. I have an imagination that has been my constant companion from the very beginning and I discovered something about it. My imagination is very proficient in story development. Eventually it started demanding an outlet. I considered making movies, but startup costs, even to a young mind, were daunting. Paper and pen, on the other hand, were cheap.

For me, in the beginning, writing was like a roadtrip with me driving and my imagination riding shotgun, ready for any task I put before it. I knew the destination, but not the roads to get us there. Eventually my imagination asked to drive. I agreed and never asked for the steering wheel again.

The actual process is like this: I submit the basic concept and then fire up my PlayStation and kill zombies or aliens until I get the call, which doesn’t usually come right away. I might get a few hours in killing the undead or the alien scourge, but eventually the call comes. That’s when I shift focus to the movie screen in my head, an enormous screen, one reclining seat. That’s where the first scene of the movie is shown to me.

I watch the movie and write what I’m shown, without exception. I say without exception because there were times in the past when I had attempted to apply my force of will into the story. It has never worked out well. The movie screen always remains dark until I fix the problem. I no longer even try. I simply watch the movies and remain faithful in my work of converting the movies I’m shown into the written word.

The product of the collusion I’ve just described is utterly shocking to me. I certainly never expected the three paranormal thrillers born of my imagination.

The End~