Well, a lot has happened this month, and it looks like I wasn't able to get everything done that I had hoped. (mainly speaking of the Joseph character sketch I had wanted to do as a companion to the Mary one.) But I did get some of the things on my list done, and it looks like I'll now have a head start on next year's Christmas special which will be the Joseph character sketch.

As the year is drawing to a close, I've been looking back at it and finding an odd paradox. 2025 seems to have gone by so fast in every possible way, yet when I look back at what happened in the spring I find myself thinking, "What?! I thought that happened years ago!"

All that to say, I have gotten a good many things done. The Mission Impossible was a success and my brothers were both surprised and very happy to receive those books on Christmas. It turns out I was able to keep the secret the whole time, though it was certainly hard.

I also completed a new book this month which, (Lord willing) shall release in the Spring of 2026.

This newest book was an interesting one. For the last few years I have danced along the line of writing YA fiction / Adult fiction. A lot of the books have felt YA, but I've also wanted to explore some older themes and topics and start adding in the richer, deeper feel of novels geared toward adults. The result is books that are in the gray area between the two and most people wonder who it's actually geared towards (including myself). Now, age classifications are something that I am not a huge fan of to begin with. As C.S. Lewis wrote:

A children’s story which is enjoyed only by children is a bad children’s story. The good ones last. A waltz which you can like only when you are waltzing is a bad waltz.
― C.S. Lewis

But, as an author I am aware of these genres as it is useful in marketing as well as in writing. Knowing your target audience is valuable. You have to know who you are talking to in order to say things that will be meaningful and relatable to them and explain your point in a way they understand. Plus, there are just some books that I wouldn't hand to a 13-year-old but would hand to a 19-year-old.

So, the trap of these "target audience" categories is when you begin to "dumb down" your writing in a way that you think will make the kids like it. For example, I can't say how much I dislike it when people "baby-talk" to little kids. Talk to little kids in a normal way. They aren't consciously "baby-talking" when they speak to you. They believe they are saying the things that adults say, but they are still learning. Give them the respect of speaking to them as you would any other person, and give them something to aim for by speaking to them as you would any other person.

Do the same in writing. Don't show pictures and tell the little kid all the details of the car crash that killed someone you knew. Tell them stories that will not hurt them and are not too heavy for them to carry, but don't baby talk to them when you do it. Tell it in a way that the adults who are also listening to you tell the story will have something of value to hear.

And don't shy off from scary stories for children. They know dragons are real. Don't pretend those dragons are actually kittens, or one day they will meet the dragon unprepared, or maybe someone will tell them the truth of the dragon's evil, but in a way they were not ready for.

Fairy tales do not tell children the dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed.
― G.K. Chesterton

Since it is so likely that children will meet cruel enemies, let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage. Otherwise you are making their destiny not brighter but darker.”
― C.S. Lewis

Well, that was a bit of a rabbit trail. 🙃 Perhaps I shall write something more in depth on the topic later. But, all that to say, children need good stories, and they need to be told without baby talking, but there some stories that children are not ready to hear yet. My newest book is one of them.

Now, I have been disappointed to find that many authors I trusted and loved when I read their elementary and even YA fiction, suddenly go off the deep end when they write for adults. I want to say right now that I believe this is wrong, and I will not be doing that same thing. Just because I am writing for someone who may or may not be more aware of the evil around them than a teenager, doesn't mean I have to show them that evil with graphic and explicate content. It's enough to reference it and they will know already what it is. And if they don't, there is no need to harm innocence or make my books dirty with evil in order to bring them "awareness".

Just because I am writing for an older audience, I have no right to put cuss words, ultra graphic violence, or making out scenes in the book. For instance, I may have a girl who slept with her boyfriend and had a baby as a result. I can state it in words just as simple as what I just did and no more is needed. There is no reason to write about that night, nor can I see any value in writing all about the way he flirted with her and convinced her to spend the night. What you know will fill the gaps that need to be filled, and what you don't know won't hurt you. We as authors are told over and over to "show don't tell" but not everything needs to be shown. It's the same reason I use ClearPlay and VidAngle when I watch movies. Just because it happened, doesn't mean I need to watch it happen. Sometimes telling is better, and I think it needs to be done a little more than it is.

So, with this newest book, (and several books to follow) I will be covering some more mature topics and studying characters that are flawed in different ways than I have before. But, I can assure you that while it may not be the right thing for a younger kid to read, it won't be because of graphic or explicit content, but merely for mature topics, and even then, those topics will be dealt with in a way that honors God and is not playing with fire just to show people that's hot.

Well, now to the reason that I began this post in the first place. (I tend to go off on rabbit trails all the time. It is the author's curse. But, at least I always find my way back to the topic at hand– often to the great confusion of my listeners. 🤣)

I thought that since we are about to begin a new year, it would be loads of fun to do a Q&A! I know there are many questions that I've received from people here and there, and I do try to answer most of them, but I get them in so many random places that it's hard to remember who asked what and who I was supposed to email back when I got home from my trip, etc. Plus, I find myself being asked many of the same questions a lot of the time, and I know I had a good answer for that question back in 2022... or was it 2021.... and then I do the great email inbox search. lol.

So, I think it would be fun to do a Q&A, and I also have heard from a few close friends that they think it will be fun as well.

So, I'm going to put an email at the end of this post. Please email in all your questions by Saturday, January 10th 2026! I will hopefully post a reply the following week.

What type of questions can you ask?! All types!!! (though I do retain the rights to not answer if I don't want to. lol)

Ask me anything you like. Questions about writing, writing advice, publishing suggestions, how I do cover designs, art questions, story idea questions, questions about things that happened in books of mine you've read, what my favorite books are, if I like chocolate, what's my favorite color, what is my stance on the 2nd Amendment, do I like pickup trucks, have I ever shot a musket, do I have a cat, etc. etc. Ask away in all categories.

How many Questions?! As Many as you like!! Ask one or ask one hundred! I a promise to answer every question I receive so long as it is appropriate and am I comfortable sharing the information.

Please send all questions Here:

authorqa.saddlebag256@passinbox.com

Send all questions by Saturday, January 10th, 2026

I am very excited to read and answer all your questions! If this is a hit, I'll have to do it again sometime. Remember, any topic any amount and I will answer them all. (so long as it is appropriate and I am comfortable sharing the info.)

God bless you this coming year and have a wonderful day!